Customs Team Softy, or do I want to drive an old car?

Dude!

 

I have a 73 Bronco, fuel injection, disc brakes , 35 inch tires and a cloth top.

for trips over 45 mins or so, with the top off, I wear earplugs.

and I aint driving it 75 and 80, its gets scary squirrley over 67 or so.

I also have a 06 Expedition, smooth and quiet, heated and cooled seats etc, but it does have some wind noise over 77 mph.

also have a 65 Falcon station wagon, efi and vintage air AC, weve taken it on trips from Atlanta to Daytona turkey run and from Atlanta to Jackson Mississippi. its noisy, both exhaust and wind, and its a bouncy ride, but draws a crowd like you wouldnt believe at every gas stop.

 

I don't have a radio in either of my old rides. Sometimes it might be nice, but usually my wife rides along (probably 80% of the time, we actually get along) and we can have a conversation as we are cruising down the highway. With the windows open, and the cowl vent open, and my declining hearing, a radio would probably have to be cranked up pretty high and would ruin the ride.

Like someone stated earlier, it takes a few different forms and sizes of weather stripping to seal the doors on this old stuff. My old stuff all has sounddeadener attached inside of all the outer panels, has door panels, carpet, and multiple door seals.

I did my time with the loud, smelly, rattling, hot rods in my younger years. I have reached a point where my reflexes are not as good as they where when I was younger, and I'm not in such a hurry to get someplace. I believe I should try to preserve as much of my hearing s I can.

 

OUCH!

Ben

 

That's probably a candidate for sound deadening mat.....

 

I was out in my slightly OT Belair in the heat a few days ago... man was it a hot ride, there and back. I had sweat on my care arms. I plan on doing AC for next year. My real OT 2020 Mustang is loaded to the max, cooled seats, AC that a penguin would appreciate.

 

I prefer state and county roads but I always shake my head and laugh when I see these type of threads, I have driven my 53 Chevy on the Instate plenty of times 261 (the big brother of the 235) stock suspension, 57 chevy rear, and bias-ply tires!

The speed limit (at least there in the north east) is 65 M.P.H. if others want to drive over that let them. I stay in the right lane (even in my modern daily driver) and let them go!

The thing I really in enjoy when on a long trip on the Interstate trip is the number of times I will be passed by the same vehicle going well over the speed limit!
Maybe if people left themselves enough time drove a good steady pace, didn't stop and f--k off at every rest area the wouldn't have to speed!

 

4100 mile trip this year in the deuce. It has a stereo, but I've never turned it on. Lots of high speed (70-75+ mph) wind noise made strangely worse with the windows up (it has windlace but no weatherstripping). Cowl vent open and driver window down makes it slightly quieter and quite tolerable. All part of the charm and experience.

 

Although modern materials can help with noise and heat insulation there is no fix for aerodynamics of older cars. The comparison of old and new is somewhat like the old black and white tv you had to get up and walk across the room to change channel or volume and now we have giant high def screens with remote control. Technology changes our expectations.

My o/t modern ride has all the bells and whistles, frankly I don’t know how to work most of them. My old beaters are pretty basic, although I did add a/c to a couple, and that is part of the experience in driving them, to me. They are old cars and each has its quirks rather than a new car which seamlessly accommodates you. First choice for me is to drive an old car if for no other reason the pride of building it, maybe somewhat like the adventurous builders who built their tv or radio from kits in the ‘50s. Much like the rodders who built cars.

No doubt, technology of today provides vehicles which far exceed the predecessors, but it never replaces driving something you built.

 

That’s a very nice car to be so noisy inside .
I’m sure most are like that,,,but they don’t have to be .
I believe most old cars could be helped with the right materials,,,and adjustments to items in the body and frame .

Back many years ago I had a friend that had a 69 Z28,,,,,a very nice original car .
He bought it in about 1983-84,,,,,He ran the living daylights out of the thing !
It caught a lot of abuse,,,,,but he took care of it too .
He was constantly changing cams,,,carbs,,,,transmissions,,,,,gear ratios .
That little 302 was wound up to 8500 several times while I was in it !
It never hiccuped or had an issue !

But this young man had money,,,and he spent it lavishly on that machine !

Inside it was whisper quiet,,,,,,no wind noise,,,no rattles,,,nothing !
We could cruise in 4 th gear at around 3000 or so,,,,,speak to each other in a normal voice .
I remember once he went through 3 driveshafts because of a vibration,,,,,,finally fixed it though .

My point being ,,,,,he didn’t use sound mat ,,or any deadening material,,,,it was just that tight of a body and sealed correctly.
The doors sealed right and were adjusted correctly .
The bushings were new or OEM original GM stuff .
I’m pretty sure it was undercoated,,,,that probably helped any road noise ?
That car was as nice after 3-4 years of abuse as it was when it was brand new .
No harmonics ,,,,no whistles,,,,no rattles,,,,,,just a hot machine that caught it at least 3-4 nights every week.

He’s dead now,,,,been gone over 12-14 years,,,,,but the car is still like new .

Tommy

 

Even my 61 LeSabre and 65 Riviera have a great deal of wind noise at 75-80 mph. I listen to music in short intervals when traveling a long distance in these. The drip rails and non aerodynamic shapes just naturally make a lot of noise at the speeds we are used to driving. At least my cars are comfortable to DRIVE at those speeds and I enjoy my road trips. Just got back from Columbus, which was a 800 mile round trip and did Dover last month, which was a little more. Driving down the Eastern Shore in my 61 was really nice, as most of it wasn't interstate until I cleared VA Beach. I have a very nice new SUV that I drive, also. It's unreal how fast it is, how good it handles and how quiet it is. Totally different driving experience. As someone said, there's something about driving something you built yourself.

Oh yeah, I'm headed to Louisville in the 49 Buick for the NSRA Street Rod Nats in a couple of weeks.

 

WORLDS of difference between 1952 and 1969!! Aero dynamics much improved by 1969.

Believe I will go for a drive in the 1950 and listen to the noise.

Ben

 

I've been driving a 77 F250 with a 300 six, 4 speed and an AM radio that only gets the local indian tribes radio station here on the rez (good base in the war dance music) and that is about as close as one can get to herding a hot rod plus the wind noise and broiling heat in 100+ weather.

After I chopped it it cut down on wind noise on my 48 and it doesn't have rain gutters on it but no wind buffeting even at speed with the windows down. I'm not sure how it will do this time around but it is getting plenty of heat/noise insulation and good weather stripping along with AC. My wife earned her ride in a hot truck in the summer and freeze your ass off it in the winter creds 50 years ago.

 

in the 60's Dad used to drag us off to Pennsylvania with us 4 boys and mom in a '58 VW micro bus. We would leave at 4:00 am and pull into the destination motel about 5:00 pm....granted we did some sight seeing stops but he would always say "look there in the parking lot...some of the same cars that stayed in the hotel we were in last night"
I always thought....yes...but they left after breakfast at 8:00 am and pulled in to check in at 4:00 pm
I'm used to slow, noisy, no radio and leaving at 4:00 am

 

Twenty five years ago I had a working decent radio/ entertainment center..... in everything I drove. In the early 2000's I started doing some serious motorcycle trips, started wearing ear plugs and just enjoyed the scenery. The last few years driving my old cars that had wind noise/exhaust noise I've found that I don't care if there is any music/news/etc as I drive. At my age (80) I probably don't need any more distractions???

 

Old cars have lots of wind noise. Even with good seals and weather stripping. Sound deadening helps a lot, as well as full interior. So does A/C and being able to keep the windows up. But an old car will never be as quiet and comfortable as new cars.

One thing for sure is that heat (windows down) and noise will wear you out on a long road trip. I used to drive my 49 Ford COE 700 miles to Bonneville. The A/C through the desert made huge difference in how I felt upon arrival.

I'm getting softer. But still prefer dribing my old cars when I can.

 

So, when did U S automakers stop installing drip rails? I think drip rails add a good amount of wind noise.

 

Sound mat and better shocks. And as mentioned body maintenance and fitment

 

The cacophony of squeaks, rattles, wind noise and groans is how I know I'm pushing the old girl too hard. She'll tell you a lot when she's pitched sideways in a turn on an old country gravel road

 

Well, as I said, I went for a drive, almost 200 miles, in the '50 Buick. Noise was not as bad as usual, or so it seemed. Then I realized I had left MY HEARING AIDS at home. Sounds good to me.

Ben

 

I bought a new XXX last spring as a DD, and I have come to love it. One feature it had was a "Backup Camera". I qyuickly learned to use it and became dependent on it. I got back to Minnesota a couple of months later and got the old '51 (Ford) out for the summer. I have had problems with flexibility in my body (old age and arthritis) and found that I can no longer turn around far enough to see out the back window to back the car up. Plus, the dependency on the new cars system had completely spoiled me. To my amazement, you can buy a complete workable camera and screen from Amazon for about $40. The procedure was complicated by the fact that the '51 is still 6 volts positive ground, but I got the system installed and operational a couple of weeks ago. The hardest part was getting everything mounted and wired up without drilling any new holes or making any other permanent changes. (Thank you Velcro.)

To say it is slick (for me anyway), is an understatement. I just put it in reverse (I used an original Ford backup light switch) and see the screen lights up (with the attendant red, yellow, and green lines) is a treat for my tortured old torso. This is especially nice, because as most "shoebox" aficionados know. outside rearview mirrors don't work very well on these cars. After a couple of close calls last summer, I'm glad to have it.

Road noise and heat, I can deal with. Now, if I could come up with something to use as power steering, I would be happy as a clam. BTW, since I now had a 12 volt negative ground power source available, I have installed a $40 "mini-boombox" that I can turn up high enough so I can drive 55 with the windows down.

 

I don't give a shit about wind noise and rattles. I have no radios in any of my cars love listening to the Yblock in the 57 F100 sing the 62 Fairlane is a whole differnt leval of nasty and cant wait to hear the 303 rocket belt out its tune in my 35 Olds.

 

I picked up a slightly OT Belair recently. The PO installed a new exhaust, front to back, as quiet as a mouse. Sort of refreshing after a drive in the Ford. I still haven't tried the radio in it, I gave up on radios in my cars (except for my really OT whips...) a long time ago.

 

I love to drive my old cars. But i keep my speed at 50-60 as they was built for.
If i want to go fast in comfort i take my daily. But i think that is a boring way to travel.

 

Gene ,,,,
I remember that very ad,,,,I was thinking about it reading this original thread the other day .
I might be wrong but I was thinking the ad was for a Dodge Ram,,,,in the mid 90s era .
The antenna was whistling in the wind .

Tommy

 

You're not really alive if you don't have rust blowing into your eyes and a seat spring poking you in a testicle...

 

I out grew that 45 years ago, when I decided to drive a rusty junker without a windshield down my gravel road. Rust and gravel flying at me through the holes in the tops of the fenders, and broken seat springs poking through the seat cover a little more with every little bump. No eye protection of any kind, and that broken seat spring was enough of that style of living pretty quickly. I turned around as soon as I could, and drove back to my place much slower.
The plywood seat cover and safety googles made the old wreck much more fun for a few weeks, then it was done.

 

Why did I waste my money on sound deadening? As for the radio, we were lied to watching "American Graffiti".

 

The last few years I've been dreaming of a family hauler (think 55 Chevy wagon, vintage Suburban, IH Travellall) that I can take the wife, kid, dog, etc. in on a road trip. I also love long road trips in my old cars.

We just got back from a week-long vacation in my wife's 2020 appliance in the middle of a heat wave with our 7-month-old and one dog and I have to say I am on the fence of whether an old family barge would have been worth any additional enjoyment on the trip.

The appliance was quiet, I never worried about being stranded on the side of the road with a young child, it got good economy, a/c worked good, and we could run it with the a/c on with the remote start if we needed to leave the dog in it for a few minutes. We also encountered a lot of bad foreign drivers in the Rocky Mountains that would have been a lot more stressful with something more precious and uncommon.

I'll never stop driving my old stuff, but maybe the family barge idea isn't a big priority at this stage of life.