How many here daily their classic motor?

[Mr Pastry]

10 minutes ago, Dj_efk said:

Main lesson of this thread appears to be don’t even consider dailying anything French of any age 🤯

I daily a 40 year old 2CV and a 20 year old Kangoo, and rarely have any trouble.

[Matty]

59 minutes ago, Mr Pastry said:

I daily a 40 year old 2CV and a 20 year old Kangoo, and rarely have any trouble.

2cvs don't count. They were made properly to start with

[DSdriver]

On 7/23/2023 at 4:32 PM, Weird Car said:

This is accurate. 
the amount of people who pull out on me whist in my classic is way higher than a modern, maybe they just think “slow old car can’t be going that fast” when in reality I’m doing the same speed as everyone else but with 4 times the stopping distance.

I thought it was because I forget to switch off the cloaking shields on the DS.

[robinmasters]

I split daily duties between a 2000 Xantia and a 2002 Rover 75,  the former being relatively modern and the latter the sensible, reliable, safe modern, but both normally the oldest car in the car park at work. Pretty much anything from the nineties onwards can be treated as an car and as long as normal maintenance is kept up it'll be fine. Anything before that, as long as you avoid rust, can get parts, and know how maintenance differs from a modern, will also be fine. 

Also, run two cars, on the proviso that as soon as one breaks, fix it. 

[Stinkwheel]

10 hours ago, Dj_efk said:

Main lesson of this thread appears to be don’t even consider dailying anything French of any age 🤯

Id disagree, almost all the 40 to 15 year old stuff i mention above were Citroen

[Cento16v]

I used my 1984 924 everyday for a year, if anything it got better the more I used it!

Was better on fuel on my then commute than my 9-5 Aero and R56 MCS Works I had at the same time as well.

Only issue was if it was icy or cold, the heater was ace but it had so much glass it took ages to defrost.

Service bits were cheap, tyres were cheap, even for decent ones as it had little 15 inch wheels, but the best bit was how it looked 😎

I'd do it again.

[Stinkwheel]

12 hours ago, Matty said:

2cvs don't count. They were made properly to start with

Having known 2CV's (and Dyanes) since birth (yes, this is true) - I can categorically say, thats not true 🤣 The factory standards were as bad as any other in the 70's and 80's  

[danthecapriman]

3 minutes ago, Stinkwheel said:

Having known 2CV's (and Dyanes) since birth (yes, this is true) - I can categorically say, thats not true 🤣 The factory standards were as bad as any other in the 70's and 80's  

But… with a 2CV there’s considerably less actual ‘car’ there to break or fall apart!

[Stinkwheel]

Just now, danthecapriman said:

But… with a 2CV there’s considerably less actual ‘car’ there to break or fall apart!

Oh i agree, i mean yu can virtually see every part with a fairly short look over. But i wanted to dispel any myth they were always screwed together properly 

[De Selby]

I'm dailying 23 and 20 year old cars, mainly short journeys though. I do have something a bit more recent, not that it's any cheaper to run.

[Dj_efk]

10 minutes ago, Stinkwheel said:

Oh i agree, i mean yu can virtually see every part with a fairly short look over. But i wanted to dispel any myth they were always screwed together properly 

I remember trying to change the points on the one I had - By the time I got it all apart the overwhelming consensus of “fuck that for a game of soldiers” drove me into the arms of one of the electronic ignition kit sellers - Other than that it was a fun car to work on, no way would I daily one for anything beyond short urban trips mind - it felt like a death trap at anything over 35mph!

[Stinkwheel]

2 minutes ago, Dj_efk said:

I remember trying to change the points on the one I had - By the time I got it all apart the overwhelming consensus of “fuck that for a game of soldiers” drove me into the arms of one of the electronic ignition kit sellers - Other than that it was a fun car to work on, no way would I daily one for anything beyond short urban trips mind - it felt like a death trap at anything over 35mph!

Afraid i cant agree there, I dailyed them for 15 years on and off. they are fine and with a good thrashing even do fine in modern traffic. Best one was the dyane with the GSA engine, that really upset folks on the motorway.

If points on a 2CV are not your thing, never own a dyane or ami. they may cause issues of self harming

[2flags]

As many on here have said and demonstrated with their own vehicles, you can run a classic as a daily. What you consider a classic and what others consider a classic is open to your own interpretation.  You already have the Volvo, so that is great. Maintenance is the key. What about getting something from the late   to run during the winter? 90's early 00's to run during the winter? They are now as cheap as they are going to get, so a cheap run-around to save your classic from the worst of the winter salt?  

[derskine]

I've always ran 80s cars daily, they are generally my preference for a nice balance between retro and still functional/semi reliable.

Pick something reliable to start with, can't really go wrong with an 80s Mercedes or Volvo.

What I will say though is regardless of what you pick, you need to be able to weld or plan on learning to...

Also helps to have a backup car (or multiple).

Despite owning/previously owning 60s/70s cars, I'd not fancy trying to run one daily.

 

[Austin-Rover]

For the sake of long-term preservation the 'classics' are restricted to 'no road salt' months. That's not to say they're totally banned in winter. I might take one on a trip for a special occasion but I like to know I have time set aside for a thorough clean afterwards. 

In the nicer months of the year, they'll be used for work on an alternating basis usually once a month come rain or shine. I've been doing just that this week. This was yesterday's early morning drive to Buxton;

 

[Matty]

Oh mk2. First thing I drove unaided was my dad's mk2 astravan diesel. Second thing I ever owned was an astramax diesel. Kind of like another if I'm honest

[1duck]

I used to daily a 1982/3 Scirocco it was decent tbh, kept up with traffic always started. Only broke down a couple of times, once when it ripped the clutch cable through the firewall but other than that it was fine. I replaced it for daily duties with a civic and honestly I think I'd find it hard to go back.

Power steering, abs and other such creature comforts just make moderns nicer.

[Ghosty]

I was dailying one of my H plate Civics for the last six months, but considering my commute it's wasted on the Civic, and the IS200 is just such a nicer thing to use daily (slushbox, aircon, cruise, fuel injection). It's still only* 22 years old.
That Civic does still come to work occasionally, but it scrapes on the speed bump on the way into work and driving it in anything other than spring and autumn on the daily is a PITA.

[warch]

Depends on the definition of classic. I do frequently use my Land Rover as a daily, notably recently whilst changing the clutch on my car, which became a bit of a protracted process taking several weeks. It also gets used for proper Land Rover stuff like off roading or towing. It copes rather well, and it  is and has always been notably reliable, notwithstanding the odd component starting to fail due to extreme old age (e.g. the now replaced brake master cylinder). It does often cross my mind when some distance from home (especially on a motorway) that it is a bit of a big ask to expect a car built nearly 60 years ago and still largely original to keep working but it does.
 

I do prefer to own/ride oldish motorbikes, they’re usually still perfectly fit for purpose and reliable whilst not being as much of a theft risk if left unattended (new bikes are often stolen to order). Also I’d much rather chuck 1200 quids worth of bike down the road than 5 or 6 grands worth. 

[brownnova]

I’ve used the 2CV regularly for commuting down the last few years, and for my 8 mile 40mph A road commute it’s great… in nice weather. I’ve always said it would be 100% capable of daily use for my commute. 
 

On 23/07/2023 at 13:35, Lankytim said:

just to add being a married father of two I’d also need to use it for the ferrying around of kids etc

This is the bit which means that in the last 12 months it’s been used a lot less, since my wife’s been back at work from maternity leave I often pick the kids up or drop them off and therefore the back seatbelts (or lack of them) means that I wasn’t taking it very often.

From September my commute changes to 20 miles down a dual carriageway, but no children transporting duties…. Not sure if that will increase or decrease 2CV commuting.