Classic car daily driver?

[Poisson96]

I did use The Heap - my Moggy as daily transport for 5 years. It needed a restoration at the start of that time, now it's been withdrawn for said resto and I've got an R100 to cover for it. 95% of the time completely fine and I reckon most of the issues I had were caused by it being laid up for a long time before being put to use. Gearbox was the biggest part to fail, and even then it was drivable. Only left actually stuck twice, once as I couldn't diagnose a fuel pump fault, once as the carb killed itself, both fairly easily fixable.

[Rollin]

eccles said:

Rollin said:

The W123 Estate has been great over the winter so far. Very comfortable and reliable. I need to check/adjust valve clearances at some point, but it's running so well at present that I don't want to mess it up. It's been doing weekend trips too..

I've been using my coupe all year round as well. It really does need a wash at the minute, the East Anglian sugar beet season puts a lot of mud on the roads!

I've owned this car nearly 2 years and in that time I've not seen a single other W123 of any body type on the road.

[DonkeyApple]

Most of the world drive classic cars as their daily and while we don’t have the luxury of being able to wait by the side of the road all day or not having to comply with any rules, we can overcome this by fitting modern cooling and electrics.

[eccles]

Rollin said:

I've owned this car nearly 2 years and in that time I've not seen a single other W123 of any body type on the road.

I've owned mine just over two years and apart from one local chap who has a very nice 230e saloon that he takes to shows, I've never seen one being used in 'anger'. Just the odd show car.
I upped my limited mileage on my insurance to 8000 a year and i usually use most of it. I'm not sure what it is, but the car just gives me a huge amount of confidence in it, and I feel I just take on any journey should I need to.

[Rollin]

eccles said:

Rollin said:

I've owned this car nearly 2 years and in that time I've not seen a single other W123 of any body type on the road.

I've owned mine just over two years and apart from one local chap who has a very nice 230e saloon that he takes to shows, I've never seen one being used in 'anger'. Just the odd show car.
I upped my limited mileage on my insurance to 8000 a year and i usually use most of it. I'm not sure what it is, but the car just gives me a huge amount of confidence in it, and I feel I just take on any journey should I need to.

It took a while to have confidence in mine. It's never stopped working but had a few small niggles.
Changing the fuel filter stopped it from intermittently stuttering on motorways. I also changed radiator last year which stopped any overheating in traffic tendencies. In fact I have recently discovered it was running below recommended temps. Changing the thermostat has fixed that and it also fixed the issues with the automatic choke not cutting out soon enough. It now runs great. Amazing to have have zero rattles or squeaks in a 37 year old car too.
The biggest issue is going to be rust. The arches and sills are covered in Bilt Hamber, but come the summer I need to get it on a lift and sort any areas.

[eccles]

Rollin said:

eccles said:

Rollin said:

I've owned this car nearly 2 years and in that time I've not seen a single other W123 of any body type on the road.

I've owned mine just over two years and apart from one local chap who has a very nice 230e saloon that he takes to shows, I've never seen one being used in 'anger'. Just the odd show car.
I upped my limited mileage on my insurance to 8000 a year and i usually use most of it. I'm not sure what it is, but the car just gives me a huge amount of confidence in it, and I feel I just take on any journey should I need to.

It took a while to have confidence in mine. It's never stopped working but had a few small niggles.
Changing the fuel filter stopped it from intermittently stuttering on motorways. I also changed radiator last year which stopped any overheating in traffic tendencies. In fact I have recently discovered it was running below recommended temps. Changing the thermostat has fixed that and it also fixed the issues with the automatic choke not cutting out soon enough. It now runs great. Amazing to have have zero rattles or squeaks in a 37 year old car too.
The biggest issue is going to be rust. The arches and sills are covered in Bilt Hamber, but come the summer I need to get it on a lift and sort any areas.

The only slight issue I've had was a leaking water pump, which was a bit of a git to change, but it didn't stop me driving the car. Have quite a few niggly issues which I'm working my way through slowly.

[Hippea]

So, given the choice between a VW Beetle, Citroen 2cv and Morris Minor what do you think would be the best daily driver. This is taking into account initial cost, keeping it on the road, reliability, ease to live with etc.

It would cover around 6000 miles a year, no motorway use only B roads in a rural location.

[DonkeyApple]

I think the more overt vulnerability of a 2CV would soon wear on you as an everyday car. Of the other pair I think I’d opt for a Beetle as it’s probably easier to find a solid one and keep it running but ultimately between the two there isn’t much in it.

[Poisson96]

I dailyed the Mog for nearly 20,000 miles and yes it is more effort but usually good fun. Id imagine there is little difference between a series 3 or V Mog and a Beetle for parts availability, ESM have nearly everything for any Minor around.

[Yertis]

Hippea said:

So, given the choice between a VW Beetle, Citroen 2cv and Morris Minor what do you think would be the best daily driver. This is taking into account initial cost, keeping it on the road, reliability, ease to live with etc.

It would cover around 6000 miles a year, no motorway use only B roads in a rural location.

Having owned/driven all three at one time or another I'd choose the 2CV every time:

1 Amazing ride
2 Sweet handling
3 Open top in summer
4 Sprightly performance within its own limits – nice revvy little engine.
5 Great in the snow and crap
6 Just great fun.

By comparison the others seemed turgid. I just don't get the love for Beetles at all. The Mog had its own charm but felt heavy and slow.

I'd get another 2CV tomorrow if I had the space. When I had the 2CV all I wanted was TR6 or Quattro (or a 308GTB4). Now I've got both of those I want a 2CV again. Driving a 2CV puts me in the same mellow place as when sailing a dinghy.

[Hippea]

I do like the idea of a 2cv but the values seem very high, even compared to Beetles that I have always found to command a premium.

I do already own a Beetle and I’m a big Beetle fan so it makes sense to run another. The one I own is 1 owner, low mileage and totally original and lives somewhat of a pampered life so I wouldn’t be putting that into daily service.

I’m not worried about an unrefined ride, im used to classics and my commute is short. My major concern is chasing rot which is inevitable, Beetles have some tricky areas that are costly and complicated to repair properly, heater channels etc. The car would be kept outside and used all year round in all conditions. Basic servicing I would carry out myself, but rust and engine out jobs are something I’d have to seek help.

I think it would be an interesting experiment to run something like this exactly as intended for say 3 years and see how much it costs.

[Poisson96]

I'll admit, my Mog has the 1098 in it but it's getting upgraded as 48bhp isn't enough. But a 12g940, HIF38 and decent exhausts aren't a million quid

[sparks_190e]

My daily drive, love it to bits.

[DonkeyApple]

sparks_190e said:

My daily drive, love it to bits.

Especially now you could drive it round London without everyone trying to get in the back every time you stop at the lights.

Great wagons.

[psi310398]

DonkeyApple said:

sparks_190e said:

My daily drive, love it to bits.

Especially now you could drive it round London without everyone trying to get in the back every time you stop at the lights.

Great wagons.

I loved mine but really, really hated the front seats.

I've never had such uncomfortable seats, at least not until my wife bought a Mercedes (R171) SLK.

[sparks_190e]

psi310398 said:

DonkeyApple said:

sparks_190e said:

My daily drive, love it to bits.

Especially now you could drive it round London without everyone trying to get in the back every time you stop at the lights.

Great wagons.

I loved mine but really, really hated the front seats.

I've never had such uncomfortable seats, at least not until my wife bought a Mercedes (R171) SLK.

That's interesting as my wife and I find them quite comfortable.

[iacabu]

Although I no longer own this, I did run it as a daily for quite a while.

Out of all the cars I owned, this is the one I'd have back over any

[psi310398]

sparks_190e said:

That's interesting as my wife and I find them quite comfortable.

I'm glad because mine made me think twice about doing long journeys which was a pity because everything else about the car was a pleasure.

[BorniteIdentity]

psi310398 said:

sparks_190e said:

That's interesting as my wife and I find them quite comfortable.

I'm glad because mine made me think twice about doing long journeys which was a pity because everything else about the car was a pleasure.

Pre or Post facelift?

The seats were completely reconfigured for the facelift (easily identified with the body cladding) and are a world away from the early seats.

They’re not very well padded, granted. Especially in cloth flavour. But I could get my seat back TOO far which never happens in cars for me. Could easily do 2hrs straight, probably more.

[sparks_190e]

BorniteIdentity said:

psi310398 said:

sparks_190e said:

That's interesting as my wife and I find them quite comfortable.

I'm glad because mine made me think twice about doing long journeys which was a pity because everything else about the car was a pleasure.

Pre or Post facelift?

The seats were completely reconfigured for the facelift (easily identified with the body cladding) and are a world away from the early seats.

They’re not very well padded, granted. Especially in cloth flavour. But I could get my seat back TOO far which never happens in cars for me. Could easily do 2hrs straight, probably more.

Mines a 1990 "H".