Daily Driving Your Bird, GTX, Satellite, 4-door C-body

[patrick]

I won't bore you with the details (and believe me, they're long and boring), but I basically will be without a newer-car daily driver for a few months. The only thing is, I have to drive the Road Runner to work for a few months (about 50 miles round trip). I know, poor me. Point is, does anyone else get nervous driving their old car? As a kid (it was the early '90s), I drove it to various jobs all the time and never thought about it. I knew nothing about how to fix cars and I only broke down about twice a year. Now that I'm older and have more or less a career, I am kinda nervous about it. Funny how when you're not worried about something, it tends to work out, eh? Of course, the old Mopars were younger then too (only 25 years old instead of 35).

[Smellslike1974]

Patrick,Are you worried about getting in an accident or are you worried the car wont make it to the destination?


I plan on driving mine,but not 50 miles.Not that i don't trust it,I just don't want to drive that far with crazy people on the road!

[ROGERLEE]

i am with you brother on the nervous factor, and i think you are talking about the crazy drivers, cows, deer, i live in the sticks and so for in my lifetime, i have had a rooster kamikaze my windshield, damn thing hit it, cracked it and flew off, next going toward greenville in the mid seventies and a damn old mule..i kid you not, so things happen all the time, also nowadays you have to put up with all the douchebags keying your car and so on.

[Serious Satellite]

i am with you brother on the nervous factor, and i think you are talking about the crazy drivers, cows, deer, i live in the sticks and so for in my lifetime, i have had a rooster kamikaze my windshield, damn thing hit it, cracked it and flew off, next going toward greenville in the mid seventies and a damn old mule..i kid you not, so things happen all the time, also nowadays you have to put up with all the douchebags keying your car and so on.

A Rooster! I got hit by a boat while sitting at a Speedway a few years back. The guy ahead of me in line for the pumps had a big ass old boat on a beat up trailer. There was a line behind me as well. So what does this idiot do? Start backing up to get out of line. All I could do was sit there and watch this big old propeller grinding out the hood of my wife's Neon and then come through the windshield. It stopped at least 12 inches--my wife says I exagerrate size ("it's more like six inches,) LOL-- from my face.

I'm nervous about driving my car in the Miami Valley area. . .so many idiots in Dayton, so little time . ..to get out of the way.

[patrick]

Actually, I was talking about being nervous about it breaking down, hence the mention about career and whatnot. It never even occurred to me to worry about it being in an accident because even with our own life comes death and you just gotta take the good with the bad. It's a yin yang (unity of opposites) thing.

But now that you mention it, when I commute to work (single lane highway), everyone does tend to tailgate pretty badly. After a recent rash of tickets, I've learned to just set my cruise control 10 mph above the limit, and everyone rides my ass anyway, often passing over the double yellow and flipping me the bird. I've learned to not react. It's just not worth it.

Of course, I'm in California and everyone's nuts. I've been driving 20 years and of all the accidents that have occurred, it was all someone hitting me. One time someone ran a stop sign and T-boned me. I also had the slight bump of the rear at the red light. Explain that one. They KNOW it's red, but they insist on being so close to me, they tap me. It was just enough to chip my bumper but not enough to worry about or file a claim, so I'm left with a chipped bumper. I loved that one. Seems I'm always getting screwed. It was so funny, when I got out of the car and asked for the chick's information she said, "I'm not worried about it." and I said, "Yeah because you have a chrome bumper (she had an '80s Volvo or something like that) and nothing happened to you!" When I asked if she had a pen, she just takes off.

I've learned to since carry a pen on me at all times. How "old man" of me. I used to make fun of my dad for carrying one in his shirt pocket. Now I understand! I also have my cell phone camera ready "just in case".

Oh and yeah, I can totally imagine someone keying it in a parking lot. Why are people like that? If they're jealous, why don't they just find the means to get one? If they hate Mopars, why not appreciate it for an old car? If I see an old Camaro, I'll wave at it just because it's an old car thing (not like the past where it was instantly "the enemy" LOL)

[72 RR fan]

My worry is always fuel mileage..LOL! My vintage driver cars...well I just roll with the attitude that won't get hit (I've been lucky, knock on wood)...If my car was mint, restored, I'd just throw up if I got a ding or dent.....the driver cars...more than anything...mileage...I'll trade off a V8 car or my Ram 3500 and drive my Geo Metro to offset fuel cost!
You never know when someone is going to pull somethin dumb....My friend's classic pickup got plowed into when someone tried to do a U turn who was travelling alongside of him to the right....drove all over the side and front of his truck....
Breakdowns? It can happen of course...I have a late model VW salvage and repair business...I'm sure your Mopar won't breakdown any more frequently that the gal in the office with a new Beetle..LOL!

[rabidscott]

I've daily driven old cars every day of my life. My newest car ever was a '75 Duster.

My only worry is the other idiot drivers, I've totalled a '68 Charger 440 4 speed because a guy in a Firebird turned in front of me, and slammed a '64 El Camino into some asshat in a Suburban that also turned in front of me. I totalled a '74 Duster by sliding it into a telephone pole, too, but that was 50% my fault. I was going too fast around a corner that a gravel truck had recently gone by, and well, physics dictated that I was going to go straight through that corner and not around it.

Otherwise, to me the benefits are multi-fold. Here in Cali, 1975 and older cars are smog exempt. Yearly registration for old cars is $57 and old trucks is $80. I can insure 3 or 4 old cars for about $600 bucks for 6 months. I can do all my maintence myself. Sometimes the trade off between the costs of operating a newer "more efficient" vehicle and an older vehicle that gets less mileage are a total wash. The biggest benefit though is driving some thing with style!

Anyone can make an old car just as efficient mileage-wise as a comparable newer car without going to fuel-injection. I could do a whole article about it!

My current daily driver is a '57 Chevy 3100 shortbed truck with stock brakes and suspension with a 350 and T-5 tranny. I have taken it everywhere, but with the I-beam front axle it feels like I'm driving a big rig sometimes. I've since replaced the distributor with once with a better vacuum advance, but the last time I checked I was getting around 17 mpg freeway, 12 or 13 city, a little less MPG than a comparable brand new 5.3 V8 Chevy shortbed truck, but there's still room for improvement. Not bad for a 51 year Chevy truck!

I once had a slant six Valiant I got up to an average of 28 mpg out of, with a one time best of 30 mpg.

In fact, the entire reason I bought my '73 Satellite was to make a bitchin' daily driver that I wouldn't care too much about getting beaned in traffic or stolen. I have a '70 Challenger with a Shaker hood, 440 4 barrel, overdrive four speed stick and 3.91 limited slip that can do the daily driver deed just fine, I just worried too much about it "disappearing" on me.

Wow.... sorry for the long rambling post...

[landon1]

when i was in high school (only a few years ago) i drove my satellite all the time - it was my daily driver(about 25 miles a day)...i guess breaking down was just part of the experience lol...but then i got it pretty dependable and then lookin good and didn't have a problem with driving it anywhere. but then i went to college, didn't have a garage anymore so it started being less reliable and then the rust started...but now i have the rust temporarily under control and replaced/upgraded everything that was wrong so it's very dependable now...my biggest fear is getting pulled over for having exhaust that's too loud

[Serious Satellite]

when i was in high school (only a few years ago) i drove my satellite all the time - it was my daily driver(about 25 miles a day)...i guess breaking down was just part of the experience lol...but then i got it pretty dependable and then lookin good and didn't have a problem with driving it anywhere. but then i went to college, didn't have a garage anymore so it started being less reliable and then the rust started...but now i have the rust temporarily under control and replaced/upgraded everything that was wrong so it's very dependable now...my biggest fear is getting pulled over for having exhaust that's too loud

Here in Englewood, Ohio, US of A, you can get a ticket for a stereo that's too loud, but the older classic cars are granny claused on the muffler sounds. . .go figure. . .