Road Speed and Modding MVs

[chris vickery]

Guys
I have recently entered into an online debate elsewhere regarding newbies whose first questions regarding MV purchase is "how can I make it go faster?"
For whatever reasons, this irritates me like crazy.
I am of the opinion that our heritage vehicles were engineered in such a manner that they were intended for certain roles. For the most part, HMVs are cumbersome, slow moving, torque driven monsters with a sole purpose to transport man, machine and cargo over rough terrain. As such, they were purposely built with low range gearing and with engines of limited horsepower for the era in which they were created.
Any of you who know me will understand that I am a purist at heart but not without reason.
I understand the addition of extra lighting, signage etc for safety reasons, to be seen. I can also see minor changes to get a little more out of our vehs without being extreme. Unfortunately I am troubled when I hear those words uttered as I know in the back of my mind that the new guy wants his old army truck to be a hotrod and this, my friends, is an accident waiting to happen and would certainly be detrimental to our hobby. Afterall, not every shade tree mechanic is an automotive engineer...
Am I over-reacting? Thoughts?