We’re all about anybody going out, finding some car that was earmarked for death, and bringing it back to life. We love that enthusiasm. It’s probably the biggest and best thing our hobby can use: people who are willing to learn, the saving of cars that twenty, thirty or forty years ago were considered throwaway garbage, and the influence that others draw from your actions. Automotive archaeology/revival channels have blown up over the years, without a doubt. But let’s be very clear about one thing, one simple thing that is overlooked in many videos:

You still need the proper paperwork, insurance, and safety equipment in order to operate some bucket you dragged out of the woods on public roadways!

I’m not ripping into Jacob Davis for what happened here. He’s a good dude, he just got hit with an odd situation that necessitated some on-the-fly improvisations. He was fully aware of how sketchy his setup was and was ready to file every mea culpa possible when he got popped by a cop in Tennessee in his newly-purchased AMC Hornet Sportabout X wagon. It had a plate on it, sure. The same one from Colorado that was on it when the car was parked in a junkyard decades ago. Whoops. And the temp tag? That was for the Hornet coupe that he initially was driving on the trip home to Georgia. When that car crapped out, the Sportabout got woken up to finish the drive home. Mechanically…well, it’s better than the coupe was. Legally? It had insurance, but…well, you can watch the video and see for yourself!