How many of you drive your classic stang daily? I really want to build a vintage mustang to drive to college. I know many people think this is a bad idea, but I HATE trailer queens. I really think I could do it. Any thoughts or suggestions????

 

I drive mine daily its not a big deal but do expect to do some work every now and then to keep it running.

My car has so far always warned me of impending issues with enough time to fix them before they result in total failure.

good add ons include:
Disc brakes
electric fan
electronic ignition (i recommend MSD)
Aluminum radiator
suspension up grades such as front and rear anti-swaybars and maybe some springs front and rear to match swaybars.

There lots of other stuff but those are high priority in my book

-Gun

 

In the early 90's my 66 was my daily driver. It did fine until I started building a hot rod.
The more power to the motor started going down the line breaking the weakest parts one by one.
It was a stop light attraction. I had a lot of fun with it in those days.

Advice for you is have a good working brake system.
Drums were around for years but disc are better. Your call.
Good cooling system and charging system are a must!
These cars draw attention even worse when the break down the Chevy guys like to chime in while your stuck on the roadside.

Ill be starting on the 65 fastback in the winter on looking into 5 speed and upgrades to possibly make it a daily driver.
Lots of things to consider if you go that route look @ James W's site there is some good info on updating for such tasks there.

 

I don't drive mine daily but I do take her out at least 5 times a month. It still need some work but I enjoy driving it, when I use it I go somewhere where I know I won't be far from it or gone too long. I think what fun is it to build something great where you only see it and take it to show, don't get to enjoy it (my opinion, sure others think different). Just make sure you have some protection for you car if you plan to use it daily. Mine needs some, guess thats why I don't use it alot more. What kind of car do you have?

 

I don't drive mine daily but I do drive it to work about 1 day a week and more often than not to my Aikido class on Saturdays and other places on the weekends. The local "car club" gets together at a local pizza place every Saturday night and I try to make it up there on Saturday evening every few weeks if I don't have other commitments. I drive it to church on very rare occasion on Sunday.

Mine would not make a good DD for these parts. Mine doesn't have Air condition and it gets really hot (and humid) here in the summer so it wouldn't be very practical as a DD. Not to mention, my car is dependable enough but would need some work before I would want to drive it every day.

But I have seen plenty of folks that use classics as their DD and seem to do ok with it. I had a friend back in High school that had an old cougar he used as a DD another friend had a really nice '57 Chevy Bel Air another had a '60s something fast back stang that was really nice, etc.

 

I use mine as my daily driver and she rarely lets me down. Just make sure that you know how to fix something if it breaks, because you will eventually have something break down on you.

 

I drive mine daily, when it runs that is. Still have a lot of work to do to it, but I don't see not having it as my daily driver..

 

I'm in college and my 67 is my only car It only left me on the side of the road once, and that was because I was lazy and didn't replace my leaky radiator (with the one I had sitting in the closet) before it blew the entire top seam apart. Aside from fuel costs, I have no problems driving it long distance. It does take some time and effort to fix all of the old and worn parts, and I'm always in the process of upgrading whatever I can (disc brakes, leaf springs, sway bar, pending shelby drop, etc), but I can usually get everything done in a couple days before I need to drive it again.

These cars were meant to be driven Don't feel bad doing just that.

 

I use mine as a DD as well. My sguuestions are as follows:

Have a break-in period: Have another DD while you drive your mustang in every concievable condition. Ive noticed over the years with my mustangs that they take about 3month-1 yr (depending on how much you drive it/work on it) to have the weak points fail...after that they have been rock-solid reliable for me.

Disks up front are a must, so are a cooling and charging system that EXCEED the need of your car/engine

Make it comfortable- hot area? install AC. annoyed with unlocking your car/trunk? install power locks/trunk. Get a center console from a mustang place that has cup/change/cell phone holders. Install high-back seats for comfort and 3-pt seatbelts for safety. If your going to drive it every day...it doesnt matter how great it looks if you hate driving it for any length of time!!

All that I have mentioned can be done for under $3000 if you are smart and do the work yourself. Factor this into your price when you buy it and understand that things WILL break and you will have to replace them. If you have a budget, know that it will be broken.

And as always- MAINTAIN your car, tune and change all fluids regularly and watch/listen for warning signs...she'll tell you before she lets you down

 

Having a classic mustang as a DD is an awesome idea, if you don't mind spending time laying in the dirt on the side of the road trying to figure out WTF was that noise? Or, hmmm this oil on my face is hot. Or... well.... ****. Where did this bolt come from?


I have a car I take out at least a couple times a week, if I can. I'd recommend still having a beater for when the mustang fails you..