I started driving fifties cars as my daily drivers in the late seventies, they are easy to maintain, and if something does happen on the road, easy to Band-Aid together to get you home until the proper repair can be done. My word of advice is to always remember they will not stop or steer anywhere as well as the newer models, so drive defensively! ---John
I drive my 62 galaxie 352 cruiseamatic everywhere.almost everyday.if I don't drive that I drive my 53 ranchwagon..... 383 stroker....I love my old cars.but you have to take care of them.i drive my cars hard and Im crippled up so I sure as hell don't want them to leave me walking. been doing this with these cars for around 4-5 yrs.never had to walk yet. but I do fix things now notb later.i love the way you HAVE TO DRIVE THEM.and they do draw attention. stop for gas and you get a crowd comin up to you.met a few friends that way.you just don't get in these cars and point them the way you want to go. they are also good for my depression. when im in my cars I get to take a trip back in time.and that part I love. I highly recommend driving one for a daily. we have a 05 dodge Daytona pu in the driveway with the hemi with 50,000 miles on her.i cant tell you when the last time I drove that truck.
I drive my 60 Lark wagon on my days off, mainly because I don't want to drive it just the 10 miles a day back and forth to work. I agree with most folks who have DDs, they're fine, be aware of the condition of your vehicle, i.e, brakes, cooling, suspension and transmission and stay on top of those concerns. Get used to people pulling away from you at intersections like you're an impediment to their 'important' destinations, but also get used to a lot of smiles, waves and nods, and the conversations when you stop. I've got a flathead 6 w/OD in a wagon. I pull away and get to speed sooner than diesel trucks, I get to speed only seconds less than anyone else in traffic and I easily maintain 60-65 on the freeway, so for anyone who is annoyed by my 'slow' car, get over yourself. In a way, it's an interesting experiment to notice the difference between your perception, your vehicle and traffic around you once you get the Falcon on the road. Oh, and as for safety, if the car doesn't come with seatbelts, they are very inexpensive to obtain, and depending on your model, even 3 point belts would be worth the investment in retrofitting. That would be one less concern for your spouse. FWIW, many of us on the HAMB are here after growing up with lap belts or less. A car seat in the back, properly installed using lap belts should not be an increased danger to your children, imo.
My daily is my '69 Chevy Suburban, and I don't even think about it as old really. Nor do I worry about heading out of town or cross country with it. I can darn sure fix it easier than my wife's newish Mazda. If you go through and make sure it's a mechanically sound engine, trans and rearend, then there's no reason not to drive it daily, and it will be better off for it. Anytime I had issues with old cars it was when they sat too long, not when they got driven regularly.
My '63 Comet was a great daily driver for 15 years. Not a great winter car, beauce it was a convertible, but I did drive through some pretty cold winters.
It'll take you longer to run errands because you'll be talking to folks just about every time you stop. Especially when getting gas.
65panel rat I think my signature says it all. __________________ I don't own No New Crap! I dont own any car as new as 65panel! For redzula, I advise: Listen to your car. It will usually tell you when you need to make a repair. I have driven my 39 Ford every day for 17 years and have NEVER used a tow truck
Our daily drivers are a 92 Chevy PU and a 93 Cad Deville. All our friends wonder why we drive those 'old' cars.. haha... As long as you maintain it, as some have said, shouldn't have many problems. You might work on it more than a 'late model' but the repairs will be cheap and easy, and will not require a scan tool!
I drove my 1956 Chrysler Windsor as a daily driver for 4 years back and forth to work .40 miles every day. Took it food shopping and gassing up every time it would draw people around Christmas time I would put presents in the rear deck window. People loved it. It got better mileage than my 98 dodge 4/4 pick up. Sold it to get my 1956 buick special station wagon .Its been 6 months and I still don't have it on the road. That old Chrysler would always fire up no matter how cold. I miss it. Bruce.
P.S.I would love tail gaters I would love to lock up the brakes and watch the car drop back and people would scater as smoke would come off thoses tires.LOL. Bruce.
My girlfirend drives a 76 chevy c-10, mono-jet 250 inline-six and a 3 speed manual hurst on the floor. every day, even road trips to the dunes. my chick sold her 2008 hyundai accent to take up the c-10 as her daily. she has been driving it untill an ankle injury put her out of the clutch club, so she drives my lifter 97 jeep cherokee. I drive her truck untill she gets better. I had a 72 Nova as my only car before, thousands of miles, road trips cross states etc.. Truth be told, I enjoy driving her old-ish (I know 76 aint REAL OLD, but certainly not a late model) truck much more than my jeep. it really just gives you a nice satisfation, and content feeling crusing around. Keep maintance up, your good to go. The way i see it, back in 1976/ whatever year your car was made, someone was really stoked on there "New" car and probally drove it everywhere. Keep it tight and clean, and do the same. Then notice the dead, zombie, hate myself looks on others faces when there driving their econo-boxes around town. Just dreadly boring...
Very dumb idea. Lie to your insurance company and they don't have to cover you - read your policy. That said, find a company that will insure the car as a DD. May want to consider several safety things: I would add a third brake light I would add shoulder belts in the back for the kids car seats I would drive with the lights on all the time Consider shoulder belts up front for you too These may not be traditional but they may save your car from being missed by distracted drivers. PS Why do so many people tailgate old cars?
What's the issue with an old car and insurance? Maybe in your state, but unless the OP has another car, he can't get old car insurance, so that's not going to be an issue. If this is his car, even if his wife has a car, it's going to be insured for modern car rates, so how much he drives it won't be an issue.
I have to agree with the other posters here. I drove the model A street rod that is my avatar for 7 years and 95000 miles. I drove it to work 70 miles daily. I finally had to quit as the copious amount of salt used in New Jersey just ate it up. It rusted through in numerous places. It is back on my rotessorie for repair. You need heat, defrosters, windshield wipers and washers. I would also consider a front disc upgrade. People out there are dumb as hell and the brake upgrade is cheap insurance. Good luck and enjoy the ride. You only go around once and you might as well enjoy it in style. MIKE
I added a third stop light from an real old car it had the red glass and said stop on it .I put in the rear deck window of my 56 Chrysler .it really did help as those old brakes weren't real bright.Did I tell you I missed that car.lol.Bruce.
my insurance insures my truck 53 3100. For 65 a month no mileage restrictions and roadside assistance. don't lie about the mileage or usage you are driving, saving a few bucks a month could cost you the car if you have an accident.
As you are already aware, the car in question is 50 years old and passed its Best Before date when Madonna was a virgin. So, you will need to be alert and take care of repairs when they crop up. Fortunately repairs are easy and cheap on a car like that. 2 weak points I know of on early sixties Falcons: oil burning due to bad valve guides or valve guide seals, and busted leaf springs. Keep an eye on the rear springs if the back end starts to sag, head for the spring shop and get new ones. Should be about $200 installed. For the engine, check oil regularly and get a valve job if it starts burning more than a quart every 500 miles (1000 miles if you are picky). One other thing I learned about old cars. Replace everything made of rubber especially under the hood. Rad hoses, heater hoses, fuel lines, vacuum hoses, fan belts. These are the things that leave you stranded. I've never been stranded by a bad set of points or a bad water pump. But I have blown heater hoses, rad hoses, and seen them badly bulged or mummified. It might cost $100 and take a Saturday to replace them all. Do this every 25 years lol. O ya while you are at it, check the fuel line all the way back to the tank for rubber. Also check the ball joints and tie rods for torn rubbers and replace the motor mounts if they are mushy. Get the owner's manual and follow it as regards upkeep and maintenance. You will probably find you need to change oil, lube the chassis etc more often than a new car. Or maybe not, the Falcon was built about the time Ford started their extended maintenance program with front ends that only needed grease every 30,000 miles etc. This is why it is important to check for torn boots, if the rubber seals are damaged you need to replace them or grease the front end at frequent intervals to prevent wear.
RE: maintenance, then and now. 10,000 miles was about the limit for points-n-plugs. No lead gas extends the plug life some. It was a lot of "clean and adjust," not R&R back then. Having a knowledgeable and concerned pair of eyes scrutinizing the undercarriage every 3000 miles or so would catch a lot of problems. Nowadays the "full serve" gas station attendant hurries to offer to wash the windows......................... after I start walking around the car manning the squeegy. And I have not heard an offer to " check under the hood " for several decades. Not that I really want anyone messing around under my yhood.
About 30± years ago my transportation consisted of a '55 Olds, a '73 MGB GT and a 73 Sportster. I still have the MGB GT but its not a "daily driver" My daily is an 06 Civic (I inherited from Wife when she bought a '12 CR-V last July which already has 19.000+ miles on it, she drives a lot!) or in good weather when I don't want the air conditioning, my '40 GMC... Yes I go to the grocery store in the hotrod truck. Don't EVER leave yourself with only one vehicle to drive if you don't absolutely have to. We have four running and licensed and insured vehicles right now between the two of us. so we have "backup's" to get around. (Plus half a dozen bicycles.)
What Rusty says, plus, put a set of disc brakes on the front. Get the Scarebird stuff. You stopping is not what I worry about, jackass avoidance is the issue.
SteppinOut is right about the safety factors. The older cars are not built to give upon impact. If you have kids that are going be in the car make safety your priority. As far as a daily driver i agree the same as everyone else.
Thanks for all the advice guys. I checked with insurance and they will just insure it as modern rates like some of you said. Almost my entire family lives in town and we have a few "extra" beater cars I could use in a pinch. Just went down to the local carmax with my late model expecting them to lowball me to sell it to them (3.5k on the best of days) and they came back @ 6k at that price even if i dont get the falcon ill probably still sell them my current car. So I just need to ok it with the wife one last time and ill hopefully be making the deal. I plan on keeping a box in the trunk with a few of the extra parts you guys talked about. Got a pm about an engine and rear end for free for it that I could rebuild and replace the ones in the car at some point. Lastly and most important is a 63 falcon HAMB friendly or am I going to have to keep this one hushed like I already do with our met?
I hope so: http://jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=80033&highlight=doing+falcons+right http://jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=281142&highlight=doing+falcons+right
A couple of people mentioned this, but it bears repeating: Make sure the windshield washers work very well! Upgrade them if they don't. Wipers alone don't cut it in the winter. I spent many a day with the sun in my eyes and salt on the windshield. It is not fun.
I had two near-wrecks with my old '63... both times involving something in the brake system that simply couldn't be checked ahead of time by eyeballing. One was the old master cylinder, and the other was a brake shoe pivot pin (the really big one). I'm not sure anybody would be up for constantly changing every component out before a failure happens. And besides, new parts are not available for every single component. It would be safer to have better-designed stuff. As in.... later stuff. You know, disc brakes, etc. etc. Later-design upgrades tend to make an old car a little less "old" though. Carry the "upgrade" thing along far enough, and you've got modernized street rods with third brake lights molded into the bodies and airbags in the steering wheels.... which just seems weird...
My last old DD was a 64 Comet Cyclone. Loved it. I drove it all over the Bay Area for about 7 years. Only left me stuck once and it was the starter. Before the Comet, all I drove were pre 70 cars; all ot but easy to work on; Mustangs, 68 Bronco, 69 Chevy pickup, 70 240Z and even a 70 Pinto. I have a 58 F100 now and it will be my daily here in Portland just as soon as I get it road worthy.
I got this '37 Willys in 1977 at 18 and did 70,000 miles as my daily for nine years,wore her out and still have it,i then ran '66 Falcons for the next 15 years. Keeping older cars in top running order is is ok if you have a backup. Pic taken in 1980. JW
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