First of all, I wonder if this even happens. Have you ever personally witnessed the moment when a car that has only ever idled from show booth to trailer finally got unleashed and driven in earnest? Does it lead to immediate disaster? Is it a glorious symphony of roaring engine and melting tires?
A modern car is likely better if you want power. a 1962 corvette came with 250-360 horsepower. A 2024 honda accord comes with 190, not far behind for a basic ecconomy car. The modern car will have much better handeling because we have better suspention.
which is to say it does happen (see other replies), but most don’t because they are not that great. Besides if you race it something might break and you have to fix it.
With the 1972 change in how horsepower is measured (gross versus net), the modern car is even closer to the muscle car’s horsepower.
Power or not, I’m asking for stories about extremely pretty cars getting properly driven after years of idling on and off of trailers