Karen Panfiglio, A Woman and Her Classics.
I spent the evening during the American Graffiti Car Show looking for women and their Classic automobiles. As I settled in at the Friday night 
early pre show check in, in Petaluma, California, I sat next to a beautifully restored 1967 Mustang. I noticed a woman sitting behind the car so we sparked up a conversation about cars. I asked her why she was here at the show and who’s Mustang might it be that she was so proudly sitting next to. Little to my surprise, it was hers.
This was a score because I am on a mission while at car shows of finding women who either own their own Classic vehicle or share the love with their Husband or mate. I knew that this would not be to hard a task to accomplish. I did not take me long to find one. Her name was Karen Panfiglio and it appears that she bought the Mustang from an elderly woman back in 1980 and the car is beautifully restored back to original condition. Her husband of course had a part in this restoration and his passion for the car was just as strong as Karen’s.
As we continued our conversation Karen’s affection for the Mustang was very clear, it was a passion as well as the labor of love. I was explaining to Karen that I still had the first car I ever bought right out of High School at the age of 18, a 1963 Chevy Impala which I paid $300.00 for and it still has the original tuck and roll in it. Karen laughed and responded, “So Do I”. How cool is that! I asked her to elaborate. Well it seems she still has a 1955 Chevy that she drove in High School long before she met her husband. Karen remembers paying $150.00 dollars for the car back then. In today’s prices, the only thing you’ll get for that price is maybe a wheel.
Karen drove that car with pride until 1968 when it stopped running and looking to her future, the car sat. Even though the car quite running, Karen never lost the love for the car and today it sits in the garage at their Cotati, California home, waiting for the day to once again see its rubber hitting the road. According to Karen, that day will come. At that moment her husband chimed in and offered that if the Mustang is restored then he gets the option of another car he wants. I am not quite sure just what type of car he was referring to, but I think this will be a tossup as to who gets their wish first.
Either way, the love for Classic vehicles with this couple is alive and well. If you know of any women who have the love for their Classic Vehicle, please submit their story. We’d love to hear about it and publish the story on our site.
