I have the opportunity to trade my o/t daily driver for a 1964 Ford F100, what are your thoughts? It's a 6cyl, 3 spd(on the floor ) Has some new chrome. Needs bodywork(not a biggie cause that's what I do), no floor in bed. The cab floors seem solid. What are problem area's I need to watch for? Any advice on trading a reliable(albeit high mileage) auto for an old truck? My wife is a little unsure but is being very supportive, she knows that I am an old car nut. So she is trying to understand. She did suggest that I ask the thoughts of everyone here. Thanks
It's a 98 Nissan Altima, 194 k, wife bought it new. I don't think the trucks engine has been rebuilt, well it's had a spray can rebuild
Is your O/T car reliable, comfortable, and does your wife have to use it ocasionally? You may want to give this a lot of thought before you do this. Old cars and trucks are great for fun, and a hobby, but they may require more attention and money over time when used on a daily basis. I have had more than a few friends who have tried it for a while, but the novelty can wear off soon. Now I am sure that there will more than a few who will disagree and flame me , but they are the hard core of the group! You asked and I offered this up!
Oh man, I'd trade in an instant!!! There's so much available for those trucks!!!! Do it... nothing wrong with a 3 sp on the floor!!
Based on the mileage of the daily, how much driving will the truck see? And when it goes down for repairs, upgrades etc., what are you gonna drive? If the daily is a spare, trade it, AFTER you check real well for rust and maybe a compression check of the engine.
The car is fine, really. No she has her own o/t vehicle that we use whenever we do anything with the family. It'd basically be a work truck for me. I have seen post on here about the pros and cons of driving old vehicles on a daily basis. I'm up in the air. Part of me wants to jump and go right into it. But the "father/responsible adult" side is a lot more cautious.
A car with 194K can break down also. I'd rather be putting money in a car that I could get that money back out of if I sold it.
I ran the Kelly Blue book on your 98 Trade-in at good condition is about $600- $700 Resale is around $1200- $1400 I'd keep the Nissan & let wifey drive that. They are very dependable & go forever. Save your pennies & buy the truck for you. What's the truck worth?
I'd have traded already! I drove a '53 F-100 for a daily for ten years, drove my Nomad as my daily for the first 11 of the 20 years I've owned it (300,000 miles so far). The smile on your face as you drive an old truck around on a daily basis is worth the small inconvenience of dealing with an antique. Heck, I had two late-model vehicles break down at the same time in May of this year and was forced to rent a car for 5 days (of course, I made sure the rental was a Dodge Challenger!). Go for it! And kudos to your wife, too!
do it. an old truck can be just as reliable as a nissan with proper care and reg oil changes.get a pertronics distributer kit and drive it anywhere .as said parts are available.
The floor shift was added at some point, a three speed would have had a column shifter. Those old F-100s were pretty simple and durable trucks, they'll rust but if you have the ability to take care of that it's not a big issue - parts are available. However, it will ride and drive like an old truck...no a/c or cruise control, it will be loud and and the seat wasn't the most comfortable thing, no secure storage space, no seat belts or shoulder harnesses. The gas tank is in the cab behind the seat which a lot of people don't like. You can update or improve a lot of these things, but it will be a big change from the Nissan. I have a '66 F-100, and used to have a '65 F-250 as a daily driver; I didn't mind it but my dates weren't so crazy about it.
I would make the trade in a heartbeat. 98 Altimas are nothing special. A 64 Ford pickup has a soul. The pickup will define you, keep you alive and teach you how to be a good man. What to watch for ? I dunno... a life of value ..street cred ... ? Dale Cleveland OH
Life is short, drive what you like because when your dead your dead, driving a "sensible" vehicle isn't going to matter much.
Can you handle the difference in gas mileage when using it as a daily driver? My 71 truck gets 12 on a real good day and the 92 box with wheels that is supposed to be my daily gets 30 and my round trip is 46 miles a day just to work and back. But, the plus factor on my truck or that Ford you are looking at is that normally you can fix it yourself in short order and it doesn't break the bank when you do have to work on them. Those Ford sixes are dead nuts reliable as long as you take car of them and keep them serviced. And as long as you take car of it and don't beat the hell out of it that truck will be worth just as much and probably more in five years if you keep it that long. Plus it can haul or drag hot rod project stuff home easily enough.
The big thing for my wife is the gas mileage, it's 30 miles one way. I've heard it should get between 18 and 20, but is that a dream?
be practical and keep her happy at the same time. Keep the daily and save your pennies. Something will come along soon enough and you can buy it with cash.
That's a dream. They are good old trucks, but gasoline wasn't the precious commodity of the day back then. In real life expect about 15 mpg. Good quality after market shifters for that truck are hard to find and the "fishing for gears game" can get old quick. BUT the truck will likely never be worth any less money that what it is right now, and the car won't ever be worth any more than what it is right now. Just be sure you have adequate finances to see the old truck through the early ownership days of working out the bugs. You will soon wonder how a feller could get by with out an old truck.
I'm a used car manager. I wouldn't put more than a few hundred bucks on a 14 year old Altima with what's basically 200k miles. I think that Truck is worth more than a few hundred bucks.
What engine is in there? Run a compression check and put a mechanical oil pressure gauge on the oil system to get an idea of the engine condition. As for a daily driver, I drove my '56 F100 with a stock 292, 3 speed and 3.73s for about three years as a daily driver, got about 20 miles to the gallon. After I swapped in the 429 and 4 speed the mileage dropped but I still drove it across the country twice. I say go for it if the motor is good. The missus has the other car so its no big deal if you have to work on the truck from time to time.
I drove an old vehicle for the first 9 years I was married. I was fine with the crappy heater and no a/c. When we had kids and they had to ride with me, I went for something newer. Now I drive the new one when I want to and the old one when I want to. How much do they want for the truck straight up?
I say go for the trade.. for one, the value of the truck will only go up and up.. and the car.. well.. you know... second, that truck has more soul, style, and cool-factor than that car will ever dream of having. third, driving an old truck (or car in that matter) daily is possible.. i mean.. people had daily drivers before the 70s right? I drive an original drivetrain 51 pontiac daily.. i have no complaints. all in all, offers like these hardly ever come up, and if you get the truck and dont like it, it should be easy enough to sell it or trade it with somebody else who has a late model car.. or maybe even swap in a 302 with C4? Its up to you. but to quote Nike.. JUST DO IT!
I'd trade, but I like putting around in old shit. It most likely has a 223 which is tough as nails and they use a lot of Y block parts. Do a compression and vacuum test first, then drop the Nissan like a bad habit and get the truck and throw in a sheet of plywood for a bed.
Decent lookin ole truck,but I would bet the front cab mounts are bad,they all are (around here) on those old fords, all the way up thru the 70s,and it definately wont handle like the nissan,It will feel like your gonna turn the truck over when you go around a sharp curve,Ive owned a few. I say if you like the truck and have a spare vehicle to drive if you need to,you have nothing to lose,I would trade. p.s. check to make sure the rag joint between the steering column and steering box is good before doing much driving,It should be pretty inexpensive to change if you need to.
Is this really even a serious question to be asking here? Come on, look at this thing. If your wife's OT car is good and reliable for the family stuff, I don't think there is even a question on this. If the Altima had 100K miles, maybe, but not 200K. Not only is it ugly, but at that mileage anything could go wrong with it at any minute and cost some serious money to fix. Now that truck needs some work for sure, but at least it is worth fixing. Don't kid yourself on the mileage though if that is critical. No way the Ford is going to get the same kind of mileage as the Altima. And no, it isn't as "safe" either. But, that's not why we are here.
the question should be, are you the type of guy to drive and maintain the old truck? for years my only transportation was a '39 gmc truck, had to use hand signals, one wiper, heat was provided by my 107# dog, and i used the back of my glove to defrost the windshield. i had a pile of extra parts and a shop to do repairs in. i loved it! now i have a modern ['91] pickup that i split the driving with and i don't have much of a commute. the truck sounds like a better deal but can you deal?
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