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Customs Daily driver?

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Walkerl79, Oct 4, 2021.

  1. Walkerl79
    Joined: Oct 4, 2021
    Posts: 1

    Walkerl79

    Who else drives there hot rod/custom daily? I’m working on a 52 Chevy for a new daily.
     
    guthriesmith likes this.
  2. oldiron 440
    Joined: Dec 12, 2018
    Posts: 3,299

    oldiron 440
    Member

    My Fairlane will be a spring to fall daily driver...
     
    guthriesmith likes this.
  3. I'll drive either one of these to the shop daily unless it's over 100* and I want AC. High is going to be 89 today so I'm in the Merc.
    197548823_10226448849794558_2112304800650018963_n.jpg
     
    egads, 41 GMC K-18, i.rant and 8 others like this.
  4. Ken Smith
    Joined: Dec 6, 2005
    Posts: 413

    Ken Smith
    Alliance Vendor

    D2A71E52-1EDC-4550-857F-59652CB29C3A.jpeg I drive this 51 coupe daily until the snow gets too deep.
     

  5. I just sold my daily not long ago. But, it was a 12-month-a-year driver.

    4F801AED-4B46-41C4-A013-2CC39C2597DE.jpeg 47BE7A3C-F39B-4E62-ACCE-004644882477.jpeg 09353583-655F-4BAE-A6D1-32F562FC2675.jpeg 896A7D1E-FAA0-418C-95D9-0139B116F8AC.jpeg
     
  6. Rehpotsirhcj
    Joined: May 7, 2006
    Posts: 1,440

    Rehpotsirhcj
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    1. Northwest HAMBers

    My 53 is my daily, unless it’s broke…then I walk or ride my bike

    A1147CA9-B837-4DCF-A0CB-F75625C08DAE.jpeg .
     
  7. Kinda depends on how much salt they dump on the roads, and when the temps drop below 0. I'm too old to fix rust, or freeze to death. Those days are gone forever. Common sense has taken over.
     
    XXL__, jvo, wicarnut and 2 others like this.
  8. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 33,861

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I've known a number of guys over the years who's hot rod was their only car and their daily driver 365 days a year. A couple of guys who have known me for the past 50 years will probably say the same for me.
    Still using an older car or hot rod as a daily I'd have to say that it's reliability and possibly simplicity might have more to do with it than anything else. A solid and reliable drive train with a fairly mild engine that doesn't need adjusting all the time and an electric system in top shape make life a lot easier.

    That simply means that you find reasons to drive it rather than excuses to leave it at home.
     
  9. I drive my '50 nearly every day from late March to early November. As long as there is no ice or salt on the roads I'm ok. The heater works well, and if it's hot outside the windows roll down so it's not too uncomfortable. 100_1054.JPG
     
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  10. jaracer
    Joined: Oct 4, 2008
    Posts: 2,419

    jaracer
    Member

    My 64 Chevy flat bed has been my daily driver for about the last 10 years. It is being replaced by the Model A that is now road ready. However, it will probably come apart this winter for body work and paint. So, back to the flat bed. Chevy04.jpg IMG_1519.JPG
     
  11. Drove this daily for 3 years.
    1D26F18E-22AF-4445-A4E0-5288D2644B5C.jpeg
    Driving a 67 f100 now
     
    Last edited: Oct 4, 2021
  12. typo41
    Joined: Jul 8, 2011
    Posts: 2,571

    typo41
    Member Emeritus

    My Spouse drives a '28 Ford Roadster everyday,,,, sunshine or rain,,, no top
     
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  13. Squablow
    Joined: Apr 26, 2005
    Posts: 17,390

    Squablow
    Member

    I'll put this away when the snow/salt comes, Wisconsin is terrible for that. And there was a few weeks in the middle of summer when it was too hot and humid so I opted for a car with A/C. So I can't call it a true daily driver. But I put a few thousand miles on it this year including daily chores, that's probably as close as I'll ever get.

    20210803_111117_HDR.jpg
     
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  14. 1971BB427
    Joined: Mar 6, 2010
    Posts: 8,717

    1971BB427
    Member
    from Oregon

    I drive one of my hotrods almost every day during the warm weather, and my OT '69 Suburban the rest the year. I just can't bring myself to drive our newer car unless my wife wants me to take her somewhere, and she's not interested in riding in my hotrods.
     
  15. Did on and off for about 8 years. IMG_1863.JPG
     
    Center of the Galaxie likes this.
  16. The better question is what would you jump in for a run to EMERGENCY CARE if you or someone close to you needed needed life saving attention. That old car/hotrod or the soulless OT people hauler? Be honest.
     
  17. 51504bat
    Joined: May 22, 2010
    Posts: 4,755

    51504bat
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I drive Rusty almost every day unless its raining or 100 +. In the process of getting Lucille on the road. 2 speed
    Newport Engineering electric wipers and Vintage Mark IV A/C so no reason to be driving my OT GMC sometime early next year.
    IMG_3009.JPG Lucille.jpg
     
  18. gene-koning
    Joined: Oct 28, 2016
    Posts: 4,040

    gene-koning
    Member

    My 49 Dodge pickup (has off topic wheels, so I can't post pictures) will be my winter driver this year. My 48 Plymouth coupe is my summer driver. Both vehicles only seat 2 people. The only other ride here, and the only one that seats more then 2 people is my wife's PT Cruiser.

    The first two weeks in Sept this year, the pickup made the 700 mile round trip to St louis, and the next weekend, the coupe made the 700 mile round trip to Council Bluffs Iowa. Either is capable of doing both trips back to back if desired.

    As for that emergency care vehicle, if just 2 people need to go, I'd trust either old vehicle more then the PT. If the snow is flying, the truck is 4x4 and has a better heat;/defroster set up (and less air drafts). If 3 or 4 need to go, it would have to be the PT.

    A true daily driver old vehicle needs to be built with a different perspective then an occasional driver. Gene
     
  19. Correct. That different perspective just makes it an old car, not a hotrod. When I was young, old cars were the beaters you drove when the weather/roads/situation was too shitty to drive your hotrod. And you were always looking for a better beater, so you could spend more on your hotrod.
     

  20. Love those bidness coops!
     
  21. arkiehotrods
    Joined: Mar 9, 2006
    Posts: 6,803

    arkiehotrods
    Member

    In 2010 I was alone at home while my wife was at hospital with our daughter when I suffered my first heart attack. I called 911. In 2011 my wife was home with me when I had another heart attack. She called 911.
    I would drive neither my old cars or late model cars in that kind of emergency situation.
     
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  22. HSF
    Joined: Oct 25, 2014
    Posts: 225

    HSF
    Member
    from Lodi CA

    20210501_132635.jpg Every day, hot cold rain or sun. If not these, I'm on a old Ducati.
     
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  23. spanners
    Joined: Feb 24, 2009
    Posts: 2,073

    spanners
    Member

    I'll be the first to say it, "Hope she uses a good sunscreen".
     
  24. gene-koning
    Joined: Oct 28, 2016
    Posts: 4,040

    gene-koning
    Member

    I guess then you need to define what a hot rod is. Back in my day a car or truck was considered as being a hot rod if it was faster, had better brakes, and handled better then it did before you owned it.

    Both of my old vehicles have more power then they had before my ownership. Both have better brakes then when they were new (40s Mopar brakes were about the best available at the time). Both handle better then when they have since they left the factory. Both can probably perform as well as most of the traditional hot rods that are here. Both were built from the ground up. One has a manual trans, the other is an auto trans (my left knee appreciates that). Just because both were built to be drivers, do not assume they are not hot rods.

    When a hot rod is built to be a daily driver, you take extra effort to have functioning windshield wipers, a functioning heat, defrost, and possible AC. You do a better job at insulation and door sealing to cut down on drafts and so you can keep the windshield clear on bad weather days. You go for a more mellow cam so it runs more consistent and you install better lighting for the other idiots on the road. Gene
     
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  25. All valid arguments. We'll just have to agree to disagree. To each his own. It's just at this stage in my life I figure my dues are all paid up in the daily hotrod/old car club. These days, I'll stick with my OT AMG Merc. Which by the way is faster, has better brakes, handles, rides, and is more comfortable than a stock Merc, so I guess in a way my daily is a hotrod.

    But whether you drive a hotrod/old car daily still depends on your area. If your state spreads the salt in the winter like it owns stock in Morton, it doesn't really make sense to destroy that old hotrod/old car just so you can say it's your daily. When I lived in Wisconsin I brought back an absolutely rust free Nevada 59 El Camino and drove it thru the summer. Before I took off for warmer climates that fall I sold it to an older fella and tried to impress upon him the importance of putting it up before that first snow fall. Well, when I got back in late spring(with another rust free El Camino) my buddy told me to look up the 59. Seems the guy used it as his daily that winter. Well the salt had really done a number on that poor car. It was rusted up to the door handles. Drivers side was so rusted that it flapped in the breeze when you slammed the door. Hell, the corner of the driver side dash had rust starting. The car was ruined. Not enough good metal left in that poor 59 to even hold the trim, as most of it was laying in what was left of the bed. He eyeballed my latest El, and I told him it wasn't for sale(which wasn't true). I just couldn't let him do it again.
     
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  26. twenty8
    Joined: Apr 8, 2021
    Posts: 2,318

    twenty8
    Member

    Or puts a top on. She may distract other drivers...........................:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
     
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  27. I know I posted pics above of driving my Thunderbird in the snow. I would only do that because we don't use much if any salt in this part of the country very often. I'm not trying to prove anything by driving something old daily. I just enjoy old cars and would choose to drive one of them over something late model about any chance I get even in emergencies. The cars I have driven daily that are old would be every bit as trusted as anything late model. They all break at some point. I recently had to go pick up my wife's 2017 van after it pitched the belt which then wrapped around the harmonic balancer and took out the crank seal. It has about 70k miles on it and is our low mileage late model. Otherwise, my 56 is the lowest mile car we own and is only at 102k... Oh, and my oldest son (17-years-old) just bought a 59 Edsel to use as his daily. Although not likely a hot rod by any means, it will likely become a daily driven custom. And, my other kid will soon be driving a slightly OT vette roadster 4-speed car as his daily. Although not what we define here as hot rod, it will definitely have more power than it did from the factory. These old cars were meant to be driven and I plan to continue doing that until gas goes extinct. I drive about 100 miles a day or so and figure why not enjoy it.
     
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  28. Hamtown Al
    Joined: Jan 17, 2007
    Posts: 2,899

    Hamtown Al
    Member Emeritus
    1. Virginia HAMB(ers)

    Al and EC old ports cthse.JPG
    I started building this car in 1973 and had it on the road in 1974. It was my daily driver, as in just about the ONLY car I drove:eek:, until about 1982-84. It took me to work, to college, to National Guard meetings, car club meetings, and just about everywhere else I went.:) The 67 GTO was reserved for family use.;)
    It was a 1930 Ford tudor sedan body on a shortened 1961 Chevrolet chassis:eek: with a 375HP 327 Corvette fuel injected engine with solid lifters hooked to a turbo 400 transmission and a 3.31 posi-traction rearend. The fuel injection unit was long gone when I got it.:( It had a big 4 barrel carb when I got it.
    On a cold morning, it would start and run on less than 8 cylinders:eek: until I wound it up a bit by keeping it in first gear and then second.;) You do what you got to do when you've got to get to work... and love driving a hot rod!:) It could be a handful in the rain... and the snow!:eek::D You also had to keep your arm off the window sill while driving with a long sleeve white shirt and the road was wet!:D:D
    It wasn't pretty but it did fly!
    I took a lot of ribbing about the old hot rod which the club members dubbed "The Yellowbird;" but it was driven to more club meetings that any other hot rod in the club during the first ten years after the club started. I sponsored an annual award at the yearly club banquet for SECOND place;):D in driving your hot rod to the club meetings.
    Yellowbird Award.JPG You could only win the award once. Many of the members over the years went the extra mile to drive their hot rod to the club meetings in an effort to win that award.;) I was surprised but felt good about playing a small role in getting these guys to drive their cars and trucks.:)
    Many a club member over the years that had joined in kidding me about the Yellowbird told me later that that old hot rod really inspired them to get their cars on the road.:) They said that while it might not be perfect; it WAS at the meetings... and most of the other club members were still walking... ie, still building their cars and trucks.
    Somewhat of a left handed complement but I'd take it and grin.:)
    I also blew the doors off many more than one fellow club member that thought HE had a fast hot rod!:D:D
     
    Last edited: Oct 6, 2021
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  29. wicarnut
    Joined: Oct 29, 2009
    Posts: 9,052

    wicarnut
    Member

    I've never used a hobby car as a daily driver, exception, back in the day 60's, only owned one car, was my street racer, grocery getter, baby hauler, etc. I started with two cars mid 70's and being a Wisconsin resident all my life, the road salt capitol of the world, now we spread liquidsalt to rust our vehicles faster than ever ( a cheese manufacturing byproduct) vehicles rust apart more so than attaining high mileage here in Wisconsin. I have 2 mint OT hobby cars, Never Ever been in snow, stored since new in winter, one 32 years old, other 16 now, this is what I'm finishing it out with for hobby cars, it's been a good/great run, car hobby serves me well, old but still Cruising. FYI, all my hobby/hot rod cars were/are Grundy insured, agreed value policy, not a year around daily driver type policy, read your policy.
     
    Last edited: Oct 5, 2021
    RJP likes this.
  30. Pass The Torch
    Joined: May 18, 2018
    Posts: 1,629

    Pass The Torch
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I drive (one of) mine as much as possible, or practical. Being self employed, and in the construction industry, driving it to work is out, as I'm home-based. Taking it to a jobsite isn't practical either, so that leaves errands, taking my son to school, and the like for "daily" uses. I do my food shopping and trips to Lowe's routinely in it. Hell, it's transportation!
     
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