You’ve no doubt seen the bumper sticker that says, “Drive it like you stole it!”

Well here’s a new one: “Drive it like you own it!”

That’s the thought that came to mind this morning when a 69 Camaro pulled up behind me on the way to work. He looked like everyone else heading off to their jobs during rush hour traffic except for one thing, he had a really cool car. Now I really don’t know anything about this guy and his car. Maybe he just took it out for a quick morning spin. Maybe it didn’t even belong to him. But the movie in my mind made him the lead character in an automotive dream.

I’ll be the first to admit that classics are not usually great daily drivers. Modern cars are smoother and squeak less. If you’re driving a later model, you spend less time trying to second guess whether each sound is a problem or just an annoyance. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t drive them at all. When I first got my 97 Corvette, I used to have Corvette Friday. I made sure I drove it to work each week. Lately I’ve fallen out of that habit, but I think it’s time to get back.

People have all kinds of reasons why they don’t drive their fun cars to work. It’s one thing if the car doesn’t run right. But if all you’re doing is trying to keep the mileage down, or avoid a little road grime, then I think it’s time to rethink your auto/driver relationship. Do you own the car, or vice versa?

So if you have a nice car in the garage, don’t just take it out for a Sunday stroll, drive it to work every now and then.

Drive it like you really own it!

Watch Ricky Bobby screaming, “Drive it like you stole it!”