classics... can you really use them daily?
Discussion
So I've got a 3grand coming my way and pretty much settled on a mk2 golf gti but I kind of want to go abit older deep down..
I'm thinking along the lines of a spitfire or a mgb gt?
Can a 3grand example of those two hack a daily 30miles and the odd (say monthly) trip too Bath from Manchester and back?
This thread was not intended as a what car but any suggestions feel free to add..
(Please not v8's are out of the question as I do a lot of town driving and don't fancy guzzling my min.wage that quickly)
Cheers!
I'm thinking along the lines of a spitfire or a mgb gt?
Can a 3grand example of those two hack a daily 30miles and the odd (say monthly) trip too Bath from Manchester and back?
This thread was not intended as a what car but any suggestions feel free to add..
(Please not v8's are out of the question as I do a lot of town driving and don't fancy guzzling my min.wage that quickly)
Cheers!
Depends I suppose. If you have a level of mechanical competence and don't mind the impracticalities of poor fuel consumption, short serice intervals, comparatively poor reliability etc, then go for it. You will need to set some time apart for maintaining and preserving the car though.
Classic Grad 98 said:
Depends I suppose. If you have a level of mechanical competence and don't mind the impracticalities of poor fuel consumption, short serice intervals, comparatively poor reliability etc, then go for it. You will need to set some time apart for maintaining and preserving the car though.
I have no mechanical competence but have an interest in learning, and my dad used to run a mg midget so sure he wouldnt mind helping me out if need be! Im mostly steering towards the mgb.. what mpg would i be getting in town driving?
Checked out Volvo Amazons.. dont seem to be many around for the 3k to 3.5k?
My job also includes driving a certain type of dough based food around so need atleast 28mpg and to be good at starting everytime (nearly).
Think a mk2 GTI is still going to be the decision hmm.
In my opinion you can't really put an MGB and a MkII golf in the same box with regard to practicality.
An MGB might not do 28mpg in traffic either.
For you I'd say the golf sounds ideal.
Like you I wasn't too clued up on mechanical stuff, but a year driving an oldish Caterham daily soon sorted that out!
An MGB might not do 28mpg in traffic either.
For you I'd say the golf sounds ideal.
Like you I wasn't too clued up on mechanical stuff, but a year driving an oldish Caterham daily soon sorted that out!
Classic Grad 98 said:
In my opinion you can't really put an MGB and a MkII golf in the same box with regard to practicality.
An MGB might not do 28mpg in traffic either.
For you I'd say the golf sounds ideal.
Like you I wasn't too clued up on mechanical stuff, but a year driving an oldish Caterham daily soon sorted that out!
Yeah the golf seems to be the way to go. Ive been driving an 09 seat ibiza and its bored the hell out of me for 3years and thank the lord, the lease is nearly up! Im trying to capture some of my back to basics fun of my first car (fiat cinq) but with more power and the mk2 seems to be ticking the boxes.. plus i know a golf specialist who seems to have every part for every golf under the sun who is local.An MGB might not do 28mpg in traffic either.
For you I'd say the golf sounds ideal.
Like you I wasn't too clued up on mechanical stuff, but a year driving an oldish Caterham daily soon sorted that out!
Neither me nor the missus run a modern (tho' that is about to change with a '92 Subaru Brat)and have managed fine with older cars.
My Spitfire, mildly tuned with a four branch and twin Weber 40s would manage over forty to the gallon if used with a light foot or on motorways/dual carriageways. More spirited would drop it to below thirty. This was with an overdrive equipped 1500 - the overdrive makes a difference. My current 1300 based Hurricane drinks slightly more due to overall lower gearing. As already said the big problem can be rust - however, a good (and repeated) dose of Waxoyl or similar will go a long way to almost curing that problem especially if you regularly clean it (particularly in winter). Leaky roofs are usually easy to sort but any old soft top is likely to get damp inside. And therein lies the biggest bar to most people driving these sorts of car all year round...damp inside in winter equals ice on the inside of the screen. The heaters, lights and wipers do not come up to modern standards - in most other ways, with extra mintenance, they are quite capable of all year round everyday use, just not quite as convenient or easy as a Golf. Parts tend to be cheap but the quality of them can be atrocious. But if you get a tax exempt one then that's a couple of hundred quid towards your fuel bill (or about twelve hundred miles).
My Spitfire, mildly tuned with a four branch and twin Weber 40s would manage over forty to the gallon if used with a light foot or on motorways/dual carriageways. More spirited would drop it to below thirty. This was with an overdrive equipped 1500 - the overdrive makes a difference. My current 1300 based Hurricane drinks slightly more due to overall lower gearing. As already said the big problem can be rust - however, a good (and repeated) dose of Waxoyl or similar will go a long way to almost curing that problem especially if you regularly clean it (particularly in winter). Leaky roofs are usually easy to sort but any old soft top is likely to get damp inside. And therein lies the biggest bar to most people driving these sorts of car all year round...damp inside in winter equals ice on the inside of the screen. The heaters, lights and wipers do not come up to modern standards - in most other ways, with extra mintenance, they are quite capable of all year round everyday use, just not quite as convenient or easy as a Golf. Parts tend to be cheap but the quality of them can be atrocious. But if you get a tax exempt one then that's a couple of hundred quid towards your fuel bill (or about twelve hundred miles).
I used to use an MGB GT as a daily driver without much of a problem. Main issues were to do with overheating, so if you do, it's wise to upgrade the cooling system with an electric fan. Classic Saab 900s make great daily drivers, are still simple to work on and will do everything you're asking. Heralds, Dollys and TR7s will manage it too although Heralds with a 4 cylinder engine will do it quite slowly. Your best bet is to check parts supply and availability with an owners club, which is why MGs and Triumphs are good. I'd also suggest a P6 Rover with a 4 cylinder engine.
What matters is condition. If it's been well looked after and you look after it well, it'll be fine.
What matters is condition. If it's been well looked after and you look after it well, it'll be fine.
Jamirecluse said:
Above post may be helpful in trying to convince my dad that classics are usable.I'm looking at a Herald or Imp for the cheap insurance but my dad thinks it will just be a money pit and useless in the winter(most cars are though).
Herald may be okay but I would avoid the Imp, they weren't reliable when they were new !Golf GTi is a good shout. There should be no problem at all with running one as a daily driver, after all that's what they designed for not that many years ago. I've been running them for a while, the biggest issue I find is that some things are much poorer compared with modern stuff we've all got used to, e.g.
Heater is poor, takes ages to warm car up and often mists up
Headlights poor
Wipers slow
Noisy
I'm not sure I'd spend all of your £3k on one (although you can these days), perhaps spend £2k and leave the rest as a fund for repairs along the way.
Heater is poor, takes ages to warm car up and often mists up
Headlights poor
Wipers slow
Noisy
I'm not sure I'd spend all of your £3k on one (although you can these days), perhaps spend £2k and leave the rest as a fund for repairs along the way.
pwrc said:
vixen1700 said:
Volvo Amazon - Job done. 
shirley volvo p1800, one example of which is nearing 3,000,000 miles on the clock in the USA!Yes OP, it's perfectly possible to run a classic as a daily. Sure, you need to allocate more tinkering time but all in all, it's quite a rewarding experience.
As a bonus, my Amazon costs nothing to tax and fully comp insurance was 87 quid last year and £114 this year!
Result!
I run my BMW 325i as a daily runner (1990 vintage, modern classic) and besides having to recently overhaul the suspension, it's been pretty reliable and only once broken down, ironically on my drive.
So long as you can do basic servicing, a modern classic car (MGB / Mk 2 golf, E30 BMW etc) fairs pretty well. Ok the fuel economy isn't as great, but I always found that the lower running costs / parts cost offsets this.
As for poor headlights, simple fix is to install HID's and make sure the headlights are correctly adjusted. Ok it doesn't look right with a classic with HID's but it can be rather amusing to have people move over, only to realise it's a 20 year old classic that just overtook them
So long as you can do basic servicing, a modern classic car (MGB / Mk 2 golf, E30 BMW etc) fairs pretty well. Ok the fuel economy isn't as great, but I always found that the lower running costs / parts cost offsets this.
As for poor headlights, simple fix is to install HID's and make sure the headlights are correctly adjusted. Ok it doesn't look right with a classic with HID's but it can be rather amusing to have people move over, only to realise it's a 20 year old classic that just overtook them
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