Been thinking, need your opinions

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Nite Moves

Nite Moves

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Hello all. I have my ram up for sale and thinkin maybe trading. Anyway, it dawned on me. Why not get a older Mopar as a daily driver....70ish Dart what ever. You buy a used 2000 or newer, you loose when you buy, drive it for a few years and loose more. If you get a somewhat decent daily driver , drive it for say 2/3 years it puwkes on you, hell you still have value....Don't you? any thoughts? Thanks
 
Heck if it pukes on you, there are still numerous parts available to fix it! As long as you don't mind driving a carbureated vehicle. Go for it.
 
do it...as long as it is roadworthy in the winter...you guys gets winters up there in canuckia don't you ?
 
I don't drive anywhere far from home much anymore, so I sold my 03 Diesel Ram and bought a 88 dodge pickup that I may have a total investment of $2500 after fixing it up a bit. Now this was 3 years ago,it's still going strong, no payments,cheaper insurance,plates,not much maintainence.Very reliable.I hope to get at least 4 more years out of it and still sell it for $2000 or maybe more when the time comes.When I had my 03 Ram I was using a 63 Valiant daily when a truck wasn't needed.
 
I'd say it depends on things such as:

1) how much are you going to drive it? If you're putting a 1000 miles per week on it you might be better off looking for an economy car.

2) how important is instant reliability to you? There may not be a guarantee that a newer car will never leave you stranded, but a 40 some year old vehicle will usually need some work and more maintenance. If it's your only transportation and you absolutely cannot miss work, then once again a newer car might make more sense.

3) If you're looking at it from the financial aspects of the purchase, you're most likely going to be a lot better off spending the least you can in comparison to the value of what you're getting. Some older cars end up being money pits that constantly suck the cash from your wallet. But if you get a solid car that is a popular model with potentially high resale value you should be in good shape. At least you should be able to recoup your investment if you bought it at the right price.

All that having been said, I enjoy driving 'vintage tin'. Taxes ARE cheaper. Gas is quite a bit more expensive but I tend to drive the older cars locally the most and use our Sebring convertible or pickup for longer distances.

Oh, I think maybe I tend to smile more when I'm in the old cars too! LOL
 
I like the idea ^^^^^ as long as you know you are taking a chance that things will come up on such an old car. And if you are ok with the gas mileage.
 
I used to drive a 68 barracuda everyday for 7 years in Detroit. It's possible, but not as easy as it used to be. the parts are getting harder to find at local parts stores. They usually have to be special ordered (because they are now slow sellers). So they don't stock very many parts that you may need to keep it on the road in case something breaks.

However you could stock up on the basics for JIC. Starter, alt, voltage reg, spare gasket kit, Cap, rotor, plugs, & wires, brakes.


I would also recommend if you run a SB, have electronic ignition and a 4 bbl with electric choke. If you set the electric choke right and hook it up to a good 12 volt source, all you have to do in the morning is pump the gas twice and crank it over. As soon as the oil pressure comes up on the gauge, put it in gear and go, no stumbles. Even below freezing.
 
The whole old car/ new car thing is all relative to how much your willing to be inconvenienced on a daily basis. The pros and cans are
Pros
The initial investment is cheaper
If you get antique plates your taxes are cheaper and you can get collectors insurance(declared value) pretty cheap.
You look pretty cool riding down the road.
Good conversation starter.
Most parts(60's/70's) are still pretty much available and not expensive
When it breaks you can probably fix it enough to limp home.
Keeps your mechanic skills sharp.
You can tune it well enough to get better MPG's than your new car
No payments.

The cons

Your wife probably wont like it. but her Grandma might.
you cant have the guy at Autozone scan it to tell whats wrong.
You probably cant even explain to the guy at Autozone what part you need because its not in his computer.
You will probably break down and get hung out somewhere you don't want to be.

All in all I kind of like driving older cars, as long as I have my wife something decent to drive so I don't have to drag her out in my old ride.
I drove a 71 Challenger convertible for about 12 years and didnt regret a minute of it. I gave $1800 for it and sold it for $15000.

I've owned hundreds of cars in my lifetime and only made payments on one. Most of my cars come with one payment.
I recently bought an 87 Corvette for $2000. and it only costs $100 to put antique plates on it. Insurance cost is $65 every six months and I declared the value at $2000 so even if it gets totaled I get all my money back. I cant even find an old P.O.S. Duster for that much money. It will run at least 130 mph(I know because I did it) and it gets close to 20 mpg (tuned port injection and real high gears) It will cruise 60 mph at about 1500 rpm and it will spin the 275/50/R18 rear tires at will. Now I wouldn't drive it every day but I could and it wouldn't bother me.
 
I have been driving a 73 Dart, Slant, 4 door, 75 miles, 5 days a week for the last 6 months.

Initial cost was EXTREMELY low.
Maintenance cost is EXTREMELY low.
Insurance is EXTREMELY low.

I could get a new car but the wife and I have went to a debt free, money hoarding lifestyle and I don't feel the need to style and profile during my daily drive to work.



Being debt free, including the house, is fantastic.
 
daily driver /6 a body is the way to go. i've been looking for the right one for a while now. tired of driving my cummins 70 miles a day even tho it does get 20 mpg.
 
My old daily driver was my '79 Dodge Magnum for 9 years. I only stopped daily driving it due to the mounting issues that an old car has including rust. Which I'm trying to take care of now.

You can not get classic car insurance on a old car that is a daily driver so be ready to prove you have one and lie a little bit.
 
Thanks everyone. I got my Ram 5years ago with 129,000 km. It now has 165,000 km on it. Thats 36ooo km in 5years, Yeah i dont drive much. The thing is, Ihave put $1000s in it. Didnt have to lower it and put the add ons on it but at that time it was my Mopar toy. Now i have my 67 Dart and thats my priority. 2003 Ram quad, lowered,performance exhaust,Hemi, roll pan, Factory running boards and skirt pkg. 2wheel drive,,,why lower a 4x4? Im asking to get at least $4500 for it with no bites??????????? Hell i think its a great price.
 
For $1900 I would daily drive the wheels off of this car and not think twice about it.

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Since you live in the rust belt, I'd rather that you didn't drive a classic mopar in the winter and have it rust out beneath your feet.

Get yourself a low-mileage grandma fresh Buick LeSabre or something similar. 3800 V6, good fuel mileage, good in the snow,cheap to buy, cheap insurance, and they don't really break anyway. Parts are everywhere. It will even start at -25 without issue. Other than the condition of the transmission, those cars are utterly bulletproof.
 
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