You have saved this page | See all saved pages
Classic Cars as daily drivers
560 messages, Last post on Dec 02, 2011 at 2:24 PM
You are in the Classic Cars Forum.- Your Host is mr_shiftright
What is this discussion about? Coupe, Convertible, Sedan
#551 of 560 What he really needs... by bumpy
May 08, 2009 (7:59 am)
is to have a full-blowm mechanical restoration done if he wants to drive it 50 miles every day (assuming that hasn't been done already). It doesn't have to be pretty, but all the suspension bits and bearings should be renewed, upgrade the brakes to front discs and dual MC, refresh the rear axle and transmission, carefully look over all the wiring plus the starter and alternator, clean out the gas tank, check over the carburetor and all the linkages, and make sure the metal and rubber fuel and brake lines are good.
#552 of 560 Re: Advice on using classic car for daily driver [deniseal0902] by euphonium
May 11, 2009 (9:03 am)
Replying to: deniseal0902 (May 07, 2009 1:36 pm)
Safety is a relative value. It wouldn't be any safer today than it was when it was new. Reliability is also a relative value, but IMO more important when driving 50 miles round trip to work.
Economy is relative, but considering where the price of fuel is going, perhaps a much younger economy car should previal. The money saved in running the ecocar could be applied to purchasing "the toy" further down the line.
He will always be able to buy a used car, but will never get another chance to spend time with his real baby. The little one needs his attention now a lot more than the old car at the curb.
#553 of 560 Car necessities for a daily driver by astphard
Jun 20, 2011 (1:15 pm)
In thinking about a classic car for a daily driver, which of these would be requirements and which are just nice to have? Are there any other things that I haven't thought of that would be necessary for a daily driver?Rear seatbelts
Front lap belts
Front shoulder seatbelts
Rear shoulder seatbelts
Fuel injection
power steering
power brakes
disc brakes
ABS
front driver airbag
passenger frontal airbag
side airbags
Going 0-60 in 15 seconds or less
Rear windshield defogger
#554 of 560 Re: Car necessities for a daily driver [astphard] by garv214
Jun 20, 2011 (1:30 pm)
Replying to: astphard (Jun 20, 2011 1:15 pm)
Well, if you really want ABS and airbags, your classic car will be at most an early-mid 1990's vintage. It would be helpful if you further defined what your typical "daily driving" consists of. Also, what cars/era catches your fancy? Are you mechanically-handy or a checkbook mechanic (like me... =) ).
You might look into a nice 94-96 C4 corvette (unless you need a back seat). They are quite the bang-for-the-buck car, and you can find many low mileage examples...
#555 of 560 Re: Car necessities for a daily driver [astphard] by Mr_Shiftright HOST
Jun 20, 2011 (1:43 pm)
Replying to: astphard (Jun 20, 2011 1:15 pm)
I'd say for daily driving on mixed city streets and modern freeways, you'd want the following for SURE: Front lap belts --must have
rear seat belts -- not really--the front passengers become the air bags for the rear passengers...
Front shoulder seatbelts -- nice to have if possible--hard to retrofit.
Fuel injection -- if you are driving climate extremes of heat and cold, FI is nice to have. Fuel injection is "smart", carburetors are "stupid".
power steering -- not for a 2- seater, but it's hell without it on a 50s or 60s full size car.
power brakes -- depends on the car really.
disc brakes -- if they can be retrofitted as "bolt-on kits", I'd do it. Why? Because modern cars stop too quickly for old creaky classics to be following them.
ABS --NAH
front driver airbag -- if you have lap and shoulder belts, this is optional. Besides, on cars more than 15 years old, who knows if the airbag will even work anymore?
passenger frontal airbag -- ask your passenger.
side airbags -- NAH
Going 0-60 in 15 seconds or less -- 15 seconds would be about my tolerance level. Why? Because on modern freeway, if you can't get out of the right lane to avoid a blockage, you might end up stuck there for a long time in a slow car.
Rear windshield defogger --NAH--they don't work very well anyway unless there's frost or snow on them.
- astphard (Jun 20, 2011 5:03 pm)
Replies to this message:
#556 of 560 Re: Car necessities for a daily driver [astphard] by texases
Jun 20, 2011 (1:49 pm)
Replying to: astphard (Jun 20, 2011 1:15 pm)
For me the absolute requirement is lap and shoulder belts, followed by good brakes, which probably means disc brakes, which means power brakes. I'd want 0-60 under 15 sec more because I wouldn't be interested in a slower car.
#557 of 560 Re: Car necessities for a daily driver [astphard] by fintail
Jun 20, 2011 (3:07 pm)
Replying to: astphard (Jun 20, 2011 1:15 pm)
Other than on a few oddities, ABS and airbag limits you to the mid 80s at the oldest. Otherwise, you can find some 60s cars that meet most of that, or can with little effort.
#558 of 560 Re: Car necessities for a daily driver [Mr_Shiftright] by astphard
Jun 20, 2011 (5:03 pm)
Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Jun 20, 2011 1:43 pm)
Thanks for the feedback. I'm still considering what classic car(s) might work for me. Since I live in southern Louisiana, I'm guessing that would qualify for extreme heat. I'm partial to the styling of early 50s cars, but in reading some of the threads today the steering definitely became a discussion point. Anyway, I'm just trying to figure out how old of a car I should realistically start looking at. And it's not that I need ABS or airbags, I just didn't know if car experts felt that they should really be there if one was driving a car daily. And I'm definitely a checkbook mechanic, though I wouldn't mind learning to be more hands-on. Just haven't had the opportunity (or the guts).
#560 of 560 got flares? by steve_ HOST
Dec 02, 2011 (2:24 pm)
A freelance writer is working on a story about roadside emergency kits for an insurance company magazine. She’s looking for a good, personal example of why you need an emergency kit in your car -- or about that time you really you wish you'd had one. If you’d like to be interviewed, please send a brief overview of your story to Jenny at atfrostyshouse
gmail.com by 12/10/11.
To POST a message, please
Sign In.
Advertisement
Most Popular in Forums
Search Forums
Enter Keyword(s):
Learn More, Do More
Edmunds Community
Advertisement