I like classic cars – especially the 1949 Ford because it was the first car I drove all by myself. I had no idea how important this car was to the American economy. When it was introduced in the spring of 1949, the car was considered revolutionary because it broke from previous ideas of design and engineering. The brain child of Henry Ford II, who succeeded his grandfather and company founder in 1945 bringing in modern management methods and dramatic new products, the ’49 Ford was sleek and slab-sided with a trademark circle in the front grille.

I interviewed this giant of a man as a newspaper reporter shortly before his death. I wanted to tell him about my love affair with the car he commissioned that ended up saving his family’s car company and returned it to second place in terms of sales. Alas, it would have been inappropriate.

“My” car, which belonged to my mother’s youngest brother, was more than 10 years old at the time. I had watched him work the clutch and shift the gears for months until I was sure I was ready to solo. My foolish uncle, that’s how some relatives described him, took me at my word and handed over the keys with not so much as a –by-your-leave. You can fill in the details concerning the rest of the story. Suffice it to say that I had no business behind the wheel of that car on my say-so alone. My uncle agreed and I never got a second chance to drive that sea-mist green sedan. Even so, that car has always held a special place in my childhood memories.

New products are the lifeblood of any manufacturing concern, to be sure. Few companies produced more new products at a rapid pace than the American automobile industry.

I recently attended an annual classic car show featuring more than 100 hot rods and other vintage automobile makes and models. There were many beautifully restored vintage cars, but my beloved 1949 Ford was not among them. I was surprised to see military vehicles – tanks with weapons attached   among the various models, however.

Speaking of military vehicles, the General Motors (GM) Hummer may soon join the ranks of vintage vehicles long before its time. Also known as Humvee, the Hummer joined the U.S. military’s armaments operating in the Panama invasion into Operation Iraqi Freedom. I get this. Its entry into the civilian market in 1992 may have been shortsighted, however, given that GM has decided to “wind-down” its Hummer operation. We all know there is no accounting for taste. I confess that the Hummer never made it to my list of beautiful vehicles despite its evolution into a “spacious 4-wheel-drive luxury family car.”

I did have a ride in a Hummer once. I can’t say I was impressed. It was mostly hardware and the interior was cramped given that I had anticipated that such a large vehicle would be more spacious. I don’t think any of this has much to do with the declining sales of the Hummer, nor GM’s inability to complete its sales to a Chinese company.

If we didn’t know it was inevitable when our economy began sliding into chaos, we certainly know it now. This is the age of downsizing on most fronts given our depressed global economy. Even so, a moment of silence please for the Hummer as its life force may be ending. The end of its production certainly ended the livelihoods of the factory workers in Indiana, home of civilian Hummer assembly plant.

There may yet be a place for the civilian Hummer in the vehicles archives. Consider that during Operation Desert Storm in 1990 and before Hummers were available to civilians, the actor and now California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger reportedly became so enamored with the vehicle that he wanted a civilian version powered by a Corvette V-8 engine.

In his search for ways to revitalize the economy of his state, this actor governor may find a use for the Hummer. Recycling is a good thing.

The Hummer is yet another example of how alert business leaders must be in recognizing trends and taking swift action at both ends of the popularity cycle. The Hummer may have been a good idea at the time but we cannot hang on to what was once good, for tomorrow will be governed by a different set of rules and different tastes. Meats, other provisions and cars have a lot in common that way.