When I sold bicycles, I commuteed EVERY fuckin day, rain or snow. I miss that, I will get back to the bikes soon. But since then, working in the rodshop I have driven my 2000 Ranger. Carla had her car, a 92 LeSabre which was a great low milage car when we got it. last I checked it was 70K.....the other day it was 100K+!! Then her car stated to take a crap. 3 times in two weeks.............I am done with it! The last few days, carla and I relied on the 54 to get me to work, So, tonight we talked. I cant replace the 54 for the $5800 I wanted for it. So, we decided to keep the 54, take the meager proceeds from the LeSabre to buy a better heater and a new guage set. Then take the rest and put towards the T! Thats it, the 54 will be my daily, until the Touring is on the road. Carla also likes driving the 54 so I MIGHT get to drive the Ranger again someday
My wife has a '00 Honda Civic, but my daily driver is the Freak-conoline. Before that, it was the '60 Pontiac. Before that, the '63 Falcon wagon. It costs a lot less than $200+ per month (new car payment) to keep a decent old ride on the road AND it just FEELS better drivin' an old car. Now,if we would start dropping even $100 per month into the van, I would acctually get it finished during THIS decade.
hey, bad luck can actually end up pretty sweet I guess hope its a good heater, we NEED them (-61 with windchill yesterday morning up here)
[ QUOTE ] (-61 with windchill yesterday morning up here) [/ QUOTE ] I'm not sure a heater matters much at that temp.!
[ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] (-61 with windchill yesterday morning up here) [/ QUOTE ] I'm not sure a heater matters much at that temp.! [/ QUOTE ] Heater hell, you need a hammer and chisle!
Fuck that heater shit! After riding bike for 5 years in this weather, just getting out of the wind is warm. The sad thing is the 50 year old car is reliable and the 14 year old car is dead?
In another 50 years, you're more likely to see a 100 year old car on the road than a 50 year old car...excluding whatever stupid laws get dreamed up to get our old cars of the road. New cars are built o be thrown away...they want you back on the car lot every 3-5 years. When we traded in my wife's '88 Nissan, in '02, the salesman about died. He could not believe we were driving a car that old. ??? The only reason we were trading it in was because it was a worthless pile of junk that was costing us too much to keep on the road.
[ QUOTE ] So we are Anachronisms? [/ QUOTE ] I would agree.... Anachronism n 1:an artifact that belongs to another time 2: a person who seems to be displaced in time; who belongs to another age. You probably know about the SCA, Society for a Creative Anacronism. Their hobby is Medieval and Renaissance culture, dress, and mock battles. I think some "hotrodders" are doing a 1940s-60s version of a creative anacronism, and then there's some who just like to tinker with old pieces of metal. (tin·ker n. One who enjoys experimenting with and repairing machine parts.)
My 1954 chevy is my only car Shes a beater but I drive her every morning to work. Have for two years Some mornings I think it would be nice to have a heater (-7 this morning) And the 6 volt system sometimes acts up. Sometimes I think it would be EZer to own a ugly plastic 1990s piece of warentied crap. But who am I kidding if I had the means to beg borrow or steal the $17000 it would take to get a newish car I would spend it on 3 more old cars Just a thought
For the past 2 1/2 years I've been driving the '48 Ford pickup here in nw Montana as a daily. When it gets below 0*F and the heater is minimal help you just pull on the Carhart bibs.
Yeah! I've always driven my Shit through all four seasons...no reason NOT to! Currently, I scoot around in a little Metro, but once the old 49 Chevy is done, it'll be the main driver. Hell, it's already rusty, so what's to worry about??? I used to get the strangest looks from fellow mechanics and others at the Ford dealer when I'd ride my old KZ-1000 to work in the middle of January...below zero temps and snow on the ground! They'd ask "WHY?", and my only answer was to point towards the bike and ask "If you had THAT parked in the garage...why the Hell WOULDN'T you drive it???" Drive 'em if ya got 'em, folks!!!
Back in my college days(re: a few years ago) I drove amy 1969 Beetle everywhere. When my first college winter came, my parents insisted that I drive their '84 Cutlass Ciera, because they were concerned about the VW leaving me stranded in the cold. I figured what the heck, it'll save some rusting on the Beetle so I drove the Cutlass. I had more problems with that than I ever did with the Beetle. The next winter I drove the Beetle, and didn't have a single problem with it. Go figure. People often forget that old cars like ours were driven everywhere, and all year round when they were new. A restored car it just as good as, and often better than it was when it was new, so why not drive it? -Bugman Jeff
I drive my Galaxie. I'm in cheap and its as dependable as a hammer (with a pipe handle ). the wife drives a Neon, not here favorite ride in the world and starting to get some miles on it. Thanks to Warpigg, she'll be driving a Crysler 300 by our anniversary. The Neon will be there to chase parts and loan out. Our general rule of thumb has always been, build it maintain it and it'll be the best you ever owned. If it breaks fix it, and if it gets bent, well you built it the first time didn't you?
[ QUOTE ] "If you had THAT parked in the garage...why the Hell WOULDN'T you drive it???" [/ QUOTE ] Sweetie and me are down to the fairly new pickup and the 32 roadster. I use the 32 almost every day. Days I don't use it, it's either raining or I ain't goin anywhere. And sometimes I drive it in the rain anyway. Couple days back a gal at the market asks me, "Don't you get cold in that?" "Naww, if it gets cold I'll just turn the heater on." She smiled, said, "cute car" and walked away. Guess she thought I was funnin her, but it does have a heater, high up under the dash and out of sight on the right. Sweetie gave it to me for my birthday. You'll notice whose side of the car it's on....
Ha Ha...cool story, C9!! My old Kaw actually kept me pretty warm...by the time you had your jacket, gloves and helmet on, then straddled the big four, it threw off enough heat to keep you outta frostbite territory!! I drove an old beater with no heater a couple of years back. I bought one of those little electric jobs that you plug into the cigarette lighter. Sitting out on the dash did no good...but if you dropped it inside your jacket and zipped it up a little, it kept your body warm!
Good on you, T-man. The 47 we are putting together now is going to be a Daily grocery getter. The down side is that like the car you turned around and saw 100,000 miles, your 54 and my 47 will get there, too. So, we should keep that in mind when parts come available is swap meets and the HAMB classifieds? My first car was a 41 Pontiac Silver Streak 6, similiar to Rocky's new ride. It had a heater, but was not great. the folks who rode in the back seat had a blanket available to throw over their legs, sometimes, the driver used it, too. JIm
{I used to get the strangest looks from fellow mechanics and others at the Ford dealer when I'd ride my old KZ-1000 to work in the middle of January...below zero temps and snow on the ground! They'd ask "WHY?", and my only answer was to point towards the bike and ask "If you had THAT parked in the garage...why the Hell WOULDN'T you drive it???" Drive 'em if ya got 'em, folks!!!} Hack, a fellow my dad knew rode his Harley to work Every Day of the week, year, month, decades, rain, sleet, snow, heat, sun, or dark. When he retired, he sold it and as long as he lived never rode another "bike". Jim
We used to drive everywhere on a Gold Wing, the wife got mad because I could tuck my feet under the cylinders to keep them warm and she couldn't. We did have electric vests for when It got below freezing.
I drive my 55 every morning to work. I drive it everywhere. I have a ford ranger when I need to pick stuff up but it usually sits parked on the street.
I'd brag about what I've driven all winter long, about only putting the top up on an MGA roadster 6 times in 4 years but it really doesn't mean a hell of a lot since I live in PARADISE does it.... I got hailed on one afternoon riding a Sportster in Pasadena and since it started out a warm day I was only wearing a T shirt and a pair of painters pants. At that time, (20 ears ago) my only wheels were the Sporty, a CB450, a Yamaha Enduro and a '55 Olds. It does get down close to freezing a couple of times a year here, and wife got snowed on last Saturday, hiking up Mt Wilson, which is just above Pasadena...and I was just 40 miles away at "the Beach" wearing shorts and a T shirt!
I'm digging this post. I'd like to drive something old on a day-to-day basis...but I'm a sucker for the conveniences of my late model AWD vehicle. I spend a lot of time in the mountains and it's real tough to find 50's/early 60's 4x4's in good condition. That said, I drive my old stuff whenever I can.
I'd like to find something that would work all year... maybe an old 4x4 something to take on the beach!
HAAAYYY T-DUDE,I hear ya,we are building the old Suburban[56] to replace our 2000 Olds alero which is a neverending source of agony to us....we are gonna spen 4500 on this old truck and we are gonna drive it all the time....an the alero goes to the recycler when it costs over 500 to repair- its gone!AS TO HEATERS-WHAT IS THE DEAL/ thats the simplest part of our old car build- no excuse not to have a good one -as C-9 said -even in a roadster the windows need de fogging, if not for comforts sake- for SAFETY sakes my God!!!! GOOD LUCK WITH THE PLAN,MAN!
lol i cant come up with money every month for insurance so rather then have one econo-crapbox and drive it illeagly with no insurance ill build one decent 50' and be able to pay a coupel hundred bux for a full year of insurance. lol like i could afford to have a newer car and an old car? lol tim
I have been wrestling with this question lately. Right now the only car I have to drive is the roadster. I work about 23 miles from work. I have the option to take the bus which adds about 2 hours to the length of my work day. The bus fare even when I buy the discount tickets is only cheaper than driving if the cost of gas is below $1.70 per gallon. My wife has suggested that we look for an inexpensive mid to late '90s Japanese car to use (use up) as a commuter. I have looked at a few and anything less than $3000 dollars is pretty much a liability waiting to happen. I know of a 1961 F-100 short bed uni-body truck with a six and three on the tree. It runs and the price is right at $600. I would much rather have something that I can work on, Japanese cars seem to fight me, and everybody needs a truck in my opinion. Sorry about the wordy spew. I am test driving the truck Saturday and just need to convince my wife this is the better deal in the long run. Thanks, David
My Dad drove a 1958 Alfa Giulietta Veloce year round in the 70's. It was primer red and didn't have a top. 5 speed with dual sidedraft webers. But had a full beard and wore a bomber hat and aviators. I still smile when I remember him picking me up after football practice in that thing. The only time he had trouble with it was during the blizzard of '78, he couldn't make it up the steep hill to our house.
JimC, That blanket trick really works! All in all, I am having fun drioving the 54 as more than a toy.
After a cool down period-both me and the truck-I tore into it, and cured the overheating and got the hesitaion licked! The little bastard runs beautifully now and even went without overheating today. THAT is a feat in itself. I know it is raining like wet in the Pacific, but still my Econo heats up. I think I cured that. Now for the alignment...
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