Are Old Cars Really Unreliable?

[Walter White]

Are old cars unreliable ? Not necessarily i reckon, but they will as many have pointed out require servicing and replacing worn parts. However as an accountant said to me, buy a new car and suffer depreciation or buy a secondhand car and pay for repairs that is the choice. Motoring costs one way or the other. I think that is true, snag is i think when you have to decide whether to have a new clutch or similar major work costing say £350 on a car that may need it's sills welding next year and then a set of tyres after the sills have been welded and then be due a cambelt and waterpump and so on.

Knowing when to throw the towel in is key but if you really like the car you will have the work done or have a change.

For 90s to 2000 registered cars I think they will run out of bodywork before mechanics.

Not very helpful I am sure.

For an older daily may be worth starting with a car that had a good reputation for reliability eg Merc 190, Toyota Carina e, early Avensis.

[fordperv]

Old cars are very good at showing how shit new cars are.

ftfy

[beko1987]

I don't think so.

 

My l reg zx never failed to get me to work in near 3 years

 

The R reg xantia has one technically. First was the rear height corrector, but I fixed that and got in for the afternoon. Second was the cambelt, but since the aux belt caused that it could happen to any car so I don't really count that!

 

XM never failed me, old zx never failed me, my y reg puma tried most mornings to fail me but I jumped it from the meriva.

 

Take from that what you will

[HillmanImp]

My thoughts are that older cars are likely to have parts wear out as they might have been on the car longer but they are easier and cheaper to mend.

 

New cars have more that can go wrong with them and can be much more expensive and complicated to mend.

 

The real issue is when the new complicated car becomes an old car and as such is not worth the time and effort of repairing. When this point happens will probably bring the average lifespan of cars down quite dramatically over the next few years from what it was 10 years ago from cars peak (IMO) in the mid 90s.

[steveo3002]

not really had any bother with old toot, but im happy to maintain them to a decent standard and im straight onto any noises /defects that come up

 

can you buy a cheap 40 year old car and do 30k a year without lifting the bonnet ?  no not really but a new one will do that

 

then again whats an old car ? our 11 year focus has been pretty trusty doing lots of miles but id consider that a modern car ...old stuff is hilman imps and minors etc 

[cort16]

Anything with trunions and grease nipples you can rule me right out . Stuff like mk4 cortinas and mk1 cavaliers are usable it's just a lot of them are a bit worn out with use.

[gordonbennet]

Just as with new cars, some old ones are the dogs bollocks and some were shit then and in most cases haven't survived.

 

I've owned three Landcruisers in my time, and despite them being more comfortable more refined faster more economical and supposedly safer with each evolution, from what i see under the vehicle they just aint going to last as long as the older ones have, and have gained electronics the old ones didn't have so couldn't fail, plus things like bulb changes are no longer  a 30 second job, it took me a full ten mins to swap both headlight bulbs on the 55 plate one i recently aquired (thats as new as i'm going, end of, no newer), previous models the square headlights were perfectly adequate on standard bulbs but this one with curvy lights is shit so i've had to buy some Osram super laser day meets night thingies so i can see where the fuck i'm going.

 

Thats just one model range, i suspect it's much the same with many ranges of cars, most makers have made decent motors that with some TLC, maintenance rustproofing and sensible driving will last probably 20 years before needing major refurb work to get the next 20 out of them.

 

We still run the oldest cars where we live, but ours are the only bonnets i've ever seen raised in the 14 odd years we've been here, that's why older cars become unreliable, bone idle neglect.

[danthecapriman]

In a word, no.

 

I've only ever had cars from the 90's and older, the majority of them have been 70's and 80's cars. I've only needed breakdown/recovery once. That's a good result in my opinion.

 

Old cars are not and were not unreliable. They were tools in their day like moderns are now and they were fine, but of course you do have to accept the technology and cost limitations of the time. Old stuff is much more maintenance heavy than modern stuff but as long as you keep on top of it you should be alright.it needn't be expensive either, generally old simple cars are much cheaper and easier to fix and service.

The oldest car I used as a daily and long distance trips was my 74 Capri, it never refused to start and it never let me down, it was also used all year round. And it was an old car at that time! Was I underneath it every weekend? Nope. I looked after it well but I can't ever remember it taking over vast amounts of time.

 

Obviously you can't run an old car like you can a modern car but if your so inclined and want a car that's different and good looking then there's no reason at all you can't get an old one and have reliable safe transport.

All of my old cars came to me already old, and once I'd put of effort in to them to pull them back around they have been fine.

[Pete-M]

Modern cars are much more reliable. Old ones are easier to fix, but require a lot more fixing.

 

The key to reliability is servicing. Fresh oil along with investigating and repairing any untoward noises and the majority of cars will just keep on ticking for hundreds of thousands of miles.

 

Some stuff can't be helped. An Alfa/Laguna/Peugeot with electric issues, the Range Rover P38, Saabs and Vectras are all going to be more trouble than they're worth.

[AMC Rebel]

Car ownership is a gamble.  If you want reliable transport, book a taxi or if you live in any country other than the UK, get on a train.

 

 

Pah!

 

Round here the only "reliable" thing about booking a taxi is -

 

- It's a gamble if they will bother to come - if you phone up and ask where they have got to they are always 5 minutes away

- Any vehicle you travel in will have the EML on

- The driver will grumble if you booked on line and claim the computer gets the fares wrong

[mercrocker]

Anything with trunions and grease nipples you can rule me right out . 

 

Pain in the arse alright, but most Series II-IV Oxfords and Cowleys that have been properly maintained are still running round with their original steering racks.    "Sealed for life" does not always infer a particularly long life!    Greasing both my Morrises takes me 10 minutes once a month and that's probably more often than they really need.

[Cheggers]

If we're talking about daily/ commuting use, give me a modern (younger than 20 years) every time. While an older car can be reliable, the advances in heating, ventilation and general comfort in newer cars make them a much more pleasant daily prospect, especially through the winter.

[cros]

This year I've done about 21000 miles so far. My newest vehicle is a 1972 mgb, the oldest a 1933 Morris Commercial. I've had 4 breakdowns, all easily fixed by myself. A new (Indian made 17acr) alternator failed on my Sunbeam 90 in Surrey. I bought a new battery and got back to Kent where I bought and fitted a re-con Lucas. Unfortunately this failed a few weeks later, modern shit diode pack was the culprit.

The Morris C type's brakes would not release on the way to the Shitropolis;

they had to be freed by letting out a small amount of fluid on 2 occasions and the fault was an over-enthusiastic master cylinder residual pressure valve which I had renewed only 3 years before. It goes without saying that these items are unlikely to be of the original quality thought I'm happy that they are available and that it was a quick fix once home.

Last breakdown was when the P4's Boyer electronic ignition unit failed- luckily the points are retained and after changing a couple of wires over I was on my way.

For most owners of modern cars 4 breakdowns in a year would be the end of the world and along with J. Man I would heartily recommend they steer clear of old stuff because they will be incapable of understanding or indeed giving a fuck about the reasons why cars are unreliable in the first place.

[Six-cylinder]

Car Breakdowns I called for assistance for in my 40 years of driving.

 

1 month old Cavilar CDi electrical connector block pulled out

2 month old Volvo 480 broken clutch cable

8 year old Imp broken throttle cable

8 year old Volvo V70 T5 broken wire to electronic throttle

9 year old Rover 2000TC propshaft disconnected

9 year old Vitesse big end failure

10 year old Vitesse broken halfshaft UJ

10 year old Vitesse broken diff

11 year old Range Rover diesel pump internal seal failure

15 year old Volvo 740 battery cable arced out and caused a small fire

16 year old Volvo 740 heater value exploded

16 year old Volvo 740 saloon broken cam belt

22 year old Mercedes 500SEC condensation in distributor cap

25 year old BMW E30 self locked (aftermarket Toad alarm)

26 year old Volvo 740 Fuel pump relay failure

27 year old Fiat 500 broken diff (bad repair Middle Barton Garage)

29 year old Mercedes 280CE alternator failure

32 years old Herald dynamo pulley failure

33 year old Herald wheel came loose

33 year old E type melted fuse holder for electric fan and popped core plug

37 year old Vitesse condenser failure

38 year old Herald trunnion failure

39 year old Herald points failure

41 year old Vitesse drive shaft bolt came loose (poor repair by Jigsaw racing)

42 year old Vitesse alternator failure

 

Note - While the names 740, Herald, Vitesse come up a lot they were mainly different cars

 

There are others that have required a bit of self fettling on route.

 

25 breakdowns requiring assistance, this is over 40 years and I have always done a reasonably high mileage and while I have no log I am estimating an average of 20,000 miles a year that adds up to 800,000 miles, 32,000 miles per breakdown.

 

In the 12 years I had a new company car every 3 months I still broke down twice, but this works out at 120,000 per breakdown.

[Wilko220]

In 15 years of driving, running cars never newer than six years old but more commonly 15 to 20 years old (and a lot of them Rovers), I have only ever broken down twice. And on one of those occasions, a new battery solved the problem.

[pshome]

, the advances in heating, ventilation and general comfort in newer cars make them a much more pleasant daily prospect, especially through the winter.

all my old cars give me warm air at the second light down the road. New stuff never has any heat to give to the cabin before i arrive at whatever the destination is in town. In summer i comfortably put my elbow out the open window. Try this today, the edge of the window is so high, you will suffer from muscular strain within minutes.

 

Nothing new beats the comfort of a 70´s or 80's french car!

 

Security? Old cars have windows that i can actually see through and check what's going on around me in every direction. Today, you get tiny viewing slots, seems glass has become so expensive that car makers generally try to avoid its use. Remember, a good all around view used to be a sales argument, what happened to these diagrams that were part of evey sales brochure?

 

[Cheggers]

I guess I must just have been unlucky then...pretty much all of my 40+ old snotters have steamed up in the winter. How did I not realise my £70k modern was a retrograde step with shit heating and no glass to speak of...?

 

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

[dollywobbler]

Thing is, it isn't just age. The gearbox shat itself on my Rover 600, but it had covered 175,000 miles. Things are going to be worn out on a 175,000-mile car that just aren't on a newer one. It was rotten bodywork that ultimately rendered it unworthy of a fix though.

[Junkman]

I guess I must just have been unlucky then...pretty much all of my 40+ old snotters have steamed up in the winter. How did I not realise my £70k modern was a retrograde step with shit heating and no glass to speak of...?

 

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

 

Well, if you compare old snotters with 70k moderns, the old snotters surprisingly do fall short, don't they?

How about comparing a 70k old car with a 70k new car?

Adjusted for purchasing power, this would have bought you a 560SEL way back when.

I don't think that would give you any grief in regards to comfort and reliability.

[steveo3002]

newsflash

 

£70k new car better than £500 used shitter shocker

 

read all about it .....

[dollywobbler]

I guess I must just have been unlucky then...pretty much all of my 40+ old snotters have steamed up in the winter. How did I not realise my £70k modern was a retrograde step with shit heating and no glass to speak of...?

 

Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

 

I find it quite easy to keep the 2CV demisted, even though it doesn't have a heated rear window or a blower motor. Can be a struggle in traffic, as the engine cooling fan is what provides the blow. If it's ticking over, there's not much of a blast. I do agree that a good heater blower set up makes a huge difference in winter though. By the 1980s, the Japanese had really sussed this.

[Cheggers]

Well, if you compare old snotters with 70k moderns, the old snotters surprisingly do fall short, don't they?

How about comparing a 70k old car with a 70k new car?

Adjusted for purchasing power, this would have bought you a 560SEL way back when.

I don't think that would give you any grief in regards to comfort and reliability.

A fair point well made sir.

 

Having owned 2 SEC's, I still say my current SL is "better" in a number of ways as a daily driver.

 

Let's compare entry level then...which is the more pleasant prospect for your daily 30 mile commute on a cold, damp November morning - A new Fiesta or a 30-year-old Escort?

[Cheggers]

newsflash

 

£70k new car better than £500 used shitter shocker

 

read all about it .....

I knew that all along...One advantage of being in the extremely fortunate position to drive a nice new car is that I can provide an experience-based opinion.

 

I used a 1971 Triumph 2000 as a daily for 12 months a few years ago. It was a fantastic car, but I'm not so blinkered as to ignore it's shortcomings (unlike some...)

[Snipes]

Well that's a matter of opinion but if the fiesta is costing ~£260 a month for the next 5 years while the escort was ~£800 two years ago I'd have the Escort.

 

I'm sure my girlfriend would prefer the Fiesta so it's all just opinion isn't it?

[Tamworthbay]

Escort every time! Rwd ftw (ok so an 86 would be fwd)

[Six-cylinder]

There are just a few days a year I wish I had a brand new car again, the rest of the time it would be sitting around doing nothing like when I bought a new Fiat 500 sport and did 2,000 miles in 14 months!

[TripleRich]

My dad works for Merc and gets a new company car every 6 months.  Currently its a primer grey C class diesel with too many buttons and too many gears.

 

At the grand old age of 4 months and with 1400 miles on the clock it completely died on the drive.  None of the electrics would work at all (including the Mercedes assistance button) only for it to suddenly come back to life 20 mins later.  This was fixed the following day at a dealer but it still isn't right.  At the moment the start stop rubbish often wont restart the engine at junctions and the solution is to repeatedly stab the start button.

 

 

Give me a 1600 Capri any day...

[cort16]

I think there's a sweet spot probably late 90s early 2000's that cars had all the good stuff like independent suspension. Abs, airbags, crumple zones, fuel injection and the like but are still relatively simple.

A lot of brand new cars fall fowl of their own complexity . My juke for instance has keyless go so I can start the car as long as the key is in my presence . However of late it sometimes doesn't recognise the key so I can get in it but it won't start. There's no ignition key slot to over ride it so I'm stuck until it figures it out. The car is 2 years old. How's that system going to fairing up in 5 years time .

[nisfan]

I'm using the stanza over winter as I'm not really bothered about it now, . It's failed to start once in the 3 years I've had it, only changed filters and plugs and it gets ragged a lot and I mean really bad, not bad for 33 years old

[sierraman]

You can't get away from the fact modern cars will do the miles a lot better. At 100k in a 1977 Cortina you'd certainly be on the 2nd/3rd clutch, top end overhaul due again for the second time. Likely a few carb rebuild chucked in as well. Sills would be hanging off, seats would be falling apart, carpet threadbare...

 

Equivalent 100k Focus might have the small possibility of incurring a big uneconomic to repair fault but pound for pound you'd have spent less getting to 100k. I'd be willing to bet it would do 200k before you were in the territory of stuff like serious gearbox wear etc. How many cars require engine rebuilds these days due to wear and tear?