MSRA—Safety Inspections

Let’s face it: restoring a classic car often takes more than just a few months and can even take years to complete when doing a full restoration. Oftentimes, the restoration process needs to be paused from time to time to accommodate many of life’s other demands. Fortunately, when you do need to take a break, your project car will be there waiting for you when time, money, and resources permit.

The downside of a start-and-stop restoration is sometimes things get overlooked. That bolt you finger-tightened and thought you’d come back to later may get forgotten altogether. That weld on your frame that appeared solid may have actually had a small crack, or when you installed your new radio, you may have inadvertently partially disconnected the steering column plug, causing the stoplights to no longer function. The list of things that can go wrong when building a car is endless, and often items that work well need to be rechecked as the build progresses.

Ultimately we are all restoring our classics to drive and enjoy safely on the road, and no one seeks to end up on the side of the road, or worse yet, risking the health of you and your family. A Classic Car Safety Inspection is necessary for any new build and a is good practice to continue annually thereafter. I know, some are reluctant to have others criticize the build we’ve poured our blood, sweat, and tears into, but I assure you the goal of any safety inspector is not to criticize the decisions you’ve made in building your car but rather to ensure they were done safely.

Years ago the National Street Machine Association (NSRA) was a pioneer in advocating safety standards for cars that participated in their events, and they launched a program of inspecting 23 key components for safety. They trained thousands of car enthusiasts across the country and have continued this program for decades. Other car clubs and insurance companies have seen the benefits of Classic Car Safety Inspections and made them part of their program as well.

Join us as we meet up with Guy Wicklander, a dedicated Minnesota Street Rod Association (MSRA) safety inspector. Wicklander details the process of performing a Safety Inspection and shares some of his insights in common issues discovered in both new builds and cars that have seen a few years of service.