Collectors and buffs alike often confuse antique autos with vintage cars. And such notion has to be corrected.

The history of automobiles reflects that classification of cars is divided into various eras. The cars are classified based on the common styling and technology produced at a given period. The vintage car era is just one of the many divisions. It is found between the Brass and the Classic era.

The vintage car era began in 1919 at the end of World War I. However, the end for the era is clouded by different perspectives.

Discover Cars writes:

In Britain, 1930 as the end of the vintage period is strictly defined; while in America, classic car clubs prefer the year is 1925. There are also some who feel that the end of the vintage era overlaps the beginning of the classic era.

Additionally, there is also an alternative meaning to the term vintage car. When we say vintage, it means any car from any that is ahead of its time. In the general sense of the word, it means an old luxury car still in good condition.

Antique Car further elucidates:

The Vintage Car Era followed World War I, a time when factories, machinery and men needed work and promises of better times encouraged pioneers. Vintage cars were built by would-be inventors in barns and backyards, without thoughts of warrantee or repair. Henry Ford kicked off the industrial revolution with his assembly line, but the automotive industry was truly born after World War I, during the Antique Car Era, when entrepreneurs like Ford, Daimler, Chrysler, DeSoto, Dodge, Studebaker, Olds and Hudson were household names.

After the war, military plants were quick to retool for automobile production and the lack of government regulations for safety, the environment or employees gave it a sense of the wild wild west. Industrial accidents were all too common and compensation was at the whim of the employer. There were no vehicle requirements like windshields, doors, lights, turn signals or seat belts. There were no pollution control devices or air bags, and brakes were problematic. There were over 500 companies competing for supremacy in 1910 but by the time the Great Depression hit in 1929 only 60 had survived, and twelve years later there was less than 20.

Wikipedia points out:

The Vintage period in the automotive world was a time of transition. The car started off in 1919 as still something of a rarity, and ended up in 1930 well on the way towards ubiquity; in fact, automobile production at the end of this period was not matched again until the 1950s. During this period, most industrialized nations built a nationwide road system, with the result that towards the end of the period, the ability to negotiate unpaved roads was no longer required. Cars became much more practical, convenient and comfortable during this period.

But the era seems to leave nostalgic trails at the present milieu. Vintage cars are still well regarded by auto aficionados.