All of mine are driven as daily drivers usually only for a few months before I sell them for another project.

All you need to do is make sure your brakes are in working order. The carb is able to start in cold weather, electric is all working, and do not expect to stop or accelerate like a modern car. Leave that extra distance.

 

All of mine are driven as daily drivers usually only for a few months before I sell them for another project.

All you need to do is make sure your brakes are in working order. The carb is able to start in cold weather, electric is all working, and do not expect to stop or accelerate like a modern car. Leave that extra distance.

Hello cerial,

Thank you for replying, I am updating these cars a bit too, the old FE's are modernized and make just north of 500 gross hp at sea level at 5600 RPM's so they are healthy with modern innards and multiport fuel injection and the gal 500 XL has received Ford (not aftermarket designs) 4 wheel disc brakes so I'm hoping for some modern car acceleration and stoppage from them

I was curious if anyone really decked their old classic car out for the long run (as in 10+ years) as a reliable comfortable daily driver.

Cheers!

 

The more " high performance" they become , the less reliable they become ! Simple as that ...

 

Hello 2old2fast,

Thank you for replying. I would agree on a certain level that is most definitely true.

But I think if you take the time to do research and study of ones drivetrain, then make the appropriate modifications that it is possible to avoid those pitfalls. About 15 years ago I had a 1996 Impala SS that I started upping the little 350's (LT1) power levels and I ended up shearing the transmission (4L60E) output shaft in two. Lesson learned. I spent a great deal of time in research and bought all the hardened upgraded parts for the transmission (hardened input and output shafts and similar 'better' parts in between). Plus that was the first 4L60E transmission I ever rebuilt/built up and for the next several years of ownership (sold it). I never had another problem with the higher horsepower in any part of the car.

On my concurrent two 1966 full size Ford projects I spent the time and money also doing the same for the transmissions and I also upgraded the heavy duty (big bearing) Ford 9" on the gal 500 XL.(nodular iron case, 31 spline 1540h axles, etc) Even though I don't plan on keeping the C6 transmission as I want overdrive eventually in them both (just haven't decided the route I want to take on that as it's not clear cut) I did rebuild/build them up to handle the potential 500 horse with a better grade and more clutches and a wider band. I also spent the time and machined both of them to fully rollerize them to reduce parasitic drag. With this I am hoping to avoid the pitfalls I learned earlier in life

Cheers

 

How about internal regulator 100 amp alternator, big aluminum radiator, gear motor starter, HEI ignition, “E” core coil, 900 cold cranking amp battery, overdrive 5 speed Tremec transmission, copper plug wires, relays and halogen head lights, Brad Penn synthetic motor oil with STP, 1/0 battery cables, heavy braided ground straps, power kill switch, stainless steel brake and fuel lines, silicone dot 5 brake fluid, only use gas without corn juice, new wiring, power brakes, rack and pinion steering, 60 series radial tires, gas shocks, and lastly vintage air just to stay cool.

No computer stuff or nothing I can’t fix on the roadside. So it still has a carburetor and mechanical fuel pump. And I carry an extra HEI module in the glove box.

 

Hello 57Nomad,

Thank you 57Nomad for taking the time to reply. You have some great ideas, some of them I have already employed and some I simply can't due to the physical layout of the car.

The '66 Fords have a 60 amp 1G original style alternator (I fully test every part including the stator and rotor windings and rebuild these) and as there are no high draw electric fans (using engine driven thermostatic fan clutch) that should be just fine and the Ford 1G charging systems are pretty robust as Ford used them for a couple decades. Already have the headlamps and horns on relays and dedicated circuit breakers and they are the upgraded H4 halogens. Boy oh boy there is nothing worse than dim yellow headlamps! I'm also on the same page as you as all our old cars have stainless steel brake and fuel lines. I had looked into silicon brake fluid, but in doing the research the viscosity drastically increases in colder climates and isn't suitable for winter months so I ended up going with regular glycol based brake fluid.

They don't make aluminum radiators for the '65/'66 full size Fords, I guess I could have one custom made, but instead I did find that US Radiators makes a double density (twice the columns) and 3 row all copper brass radiator for these all brand new so this is the route I took. The radiators are not large in these cars so I went this route and also kept the engine driven thermostatic fan clutch as that will move more air when fully engaged than any electric fan, at the expense of more horsepower obviously. I had to do a compromise there but I feel confident about that decision. Plus I've had nothing but long term durability with brass copper radiators vs aluminum. The huge 4 row brass copper radiator in my '73 Caprice Classic still cools just fine and no degradation. I've replaced countless factory aluminum radiators in our '96 Impala SS's as well as our Grand Marquis and I do change the coolant every 2-3 years. I'm not a big fan (ha pun intended ) of aluminum radiators.

I do plan on running synthetic engine oil once the engines are broken in (rings really as the cams are rollers). The batteries are the yellow top Optimas as I do not like the flooded lead acid batteries constantly allowing acid vapor carried outside the battery when charging. Plus the yellow top batteries are more deep cycle and are tolerant to sitting for longer periods without too acquiring too much cell damage.

For us there is no reason for rack and pinion steering as the existing parallelogram steering systems are fully rebuilt and work just fine. As for air con, both these cars will have factory air con. I have already completely restored one HVAC system in the '66 LTD as well as converted to R134a with ester oil using mostly the original style components (York 210, factory condensor with brand new receiver drier with dessicant rated for 134a) and on a 90˚F + hot day with the windows down and blower on high my dash vent discharge temperature was 37˚F. I was very pleased with that result especially at idle.

I agree 100% with you on all new wiring and that's in the works (making all the harnesses myself). On the topic of fuel and carburetion. Our fuel quality is pretty poor where we live, best you can get at a local filling station is 90 octane and that's only with a high percentage of alcohol. Now we do have access to 100 leaded aviation fuel as there is a pump a mile or two down the road but that gets really expensive and the high lead content will lead foul plugs eventually (tried it for a while on my '73 Chevrolet).

The other problem is our altitude, we are much higher than Denver and running regular pump gas on a hot day with the air con running and you can watch the fuel boil right in the carburetor and it's nothing but driveability problems. The sad part is there is nothing you can do about it. We have problems from even the weed whacker on hot days. So fuel injection for us is the only way to go.

On your suggestion of an overdrive, again I'm on the same page as you. However with engines being FE engines and having their own bolt pattern, there are no overdrive transmissions that will just bolt up. With that I am still doing the research and weighing options for the route I wish to take, in the meantime I have their respective C6's installed. I want to install either a 4R100 (C6 derivative) or 4L80E (TH400 derivative) in them in the near future. I wish I could just bolt up a modern overdrive directly to the engine just like I can bolt up a 1999 4L80E out of a 1 ton 2WD truck to my '73 Chevrolet with a factory 454. If only it were that simple but no, Ford had to have a plethora of bolt patterns and upteen different engine families. <sigh>

Again I wish to thank you for your input with some really great ideas.

Cheers

 

All of my cars have been pre 1949 and really can't be daily drivers for insurance reasons but when building I follow some simple rules. Use parts that are sold at the local automotive chain stores. If you are stuck 500 miles from home there is a parts store with the correct part just around the corner. No high dollar high performance part that would have to be ordered. Of course use quality parts when building. Document EVERYTHING. If you buy a fan belt, put the receipt in a folder, you will need it later. When wiring, make notes on the diagram about changes and where certain parts are located such as a relay. Make a copy of the wiring diagram and carry it in the car. Last is a modern drivetrain. I like fuel injeciton for the MPG, performance and reliability. A 2010 engine/trans with 100K on the clock will be fairly cheap and have a good 150K more left in it.

 

Hello 39 master,

I do like your suggestions and just like 57Nomad I see we're also on the same page on many things. I am trying to stick to OEM style parts for all our old cars (and eventually truck) builds. There are some caveats of course. Like I stated earlier I do intend on eventually using a modern ECU controlled overdrive automatic but for the engine I like original engines and just bring them up to date if possible. With that we just updated the old FE's with modern internals; modern ring packs on custom made pistons, rollerized valve train and multiport fuel injection with timing control. It should have a nice long reliable service with more modern performance. The only caveat is the roller camshafts for these are steel cores and require the softer distributor gear, so at X miles I will have to pull the distributor and check the condition of the gear and replace if necessary. That was my one drawback on the whole FE build.

For the fuel injection system all the major wear components I've selected are just typical GM, Ford and Chrysler off the shelf parts. The in tank fuel pump is a typical Panther, the throttle body has GM style TPS, IAT and for some reason a Chrysler IAC (I dunno why Holley did that, but it is what it is), then I used a separate GM 1 Bar MAP. The injectors are just regular Bosch style lapped disc injectors.

For the brake systems I wanted to do a test so I left the '66 LTD with its factory 4 wheel power drum brakes. I fully rebuilt and detailed every part of the system (including the Midland Ross booster) and the only alteration I made was converting it to a dual hydraulic system with a shuttle valve (warning lamp) for safety reasons. On the '66 gal 500 XL I used factory Ford '68 full size disc brakes for the front along with the associated Bendix booster (I rebuilt that as well) and for the rear disc brakes I used 2000 Explorer disc brakes and adapted those to the original heavy duty (big bearing) Ford 9" axle.

Whilst the Explorer brakes are common off the shelf parts the '68 full size brakes aren't. They were a 1 year only braking system and most local stores do not carry those parts. However I did buy several brake jobs worth of brand new rotors, pads, seals and hardware kits and stock it here at home.

So I wanted to do a test between 4 wheel power factory disc and 4 wheel power factory drum brakes on the same basic style car (LTD vs galaxie 500 XL) with the same tyres to see for myself how they braking systems behave between the two. If there is a vast different between the two with the drum brakes being that bad, then I'll hunt down another '68 front disc setup and do the 4 wheel disc brake conversion on the LTD as well.

As for your idea on keeping all receipts and notes on modifications, I have two large D ring binders, one for each car and they are already 3" thick and growing .

Again I wish to thank you for taking the time to respond with good ideas.

Cheers

 

I drove a '70 SS-396 El Camino from '87 to around '08, most of that time as my only driver and putting about 150k on it starting with a fresh motor. As long as gasoline is gasoline, you gotta figure if the car was any good back when, it still is now. I did upgrade the brakes after a couple scares, put in tall gears and a Richmond five-speed when the Muncie'd had enough, and there was a valve job done around the 100k mark. For the last couple years I had a new Painless wiring harness as the old harness just had too many bugs. Twice it was damaged significantly by people backing into it, apparently parked red cars don't show up in people's rear view mirrors or something. Whatever you put out there on the road is going to get some abuse, if nothing else you're going to have people opening their doors or ramming shopping carts into it, keying it, taking photos of their wives sitting on the hood, putting cigarettes out on it if the paint is really nice, and all that stupid stuff humans have to do. Just goes with the territory. Anyhow, stick with common parts as much as possible and the best thing is to have a whole similar parts car available.

Certainly you could use a more modern drivetrain, I dealt with 14mpg or less the whole time.

These days I drive a 29-year-old Cherokee that I don't care if anyone sits on.

 

I drove a '70 SS-396 El Camino from '87 to around '08, most of that time as my only driver and putting about 150k on it starting with a fresh motor. As long as gasoline is gasoline, you gotta figure if the car was any good back when, it still is now. I did upgrade the brakes after a couple scares, put in tall gears and a Richmond five-speed when the Muncie'd had enough, and there was a valve job done around the 100k mark. For the last couple years I had a new Painless wiring harness as the old harness just had too many bugs. Twice it was damaged significantly by people backing into it, apparently parked red cars don't show up in people's rear view mirrors or something. Whatever you put out there on the road is going to get some abuse, if nothing else you're going to have people opening their doors or ramming shopping carts into it, keying it, taking photos of their wives sitting on the hood, putting cigarettes out on it if the paint is really nice, and all that stupid stuff humans have to do. Just goes with the territory. Anyhow, stick with common parts as much as possible and the best thing is to have a whole similar parts car available.

Certainly you could use a more modern drivetrain, I dealt with 14mpg or less the whole time.

These days I drive a 29-year-old Cherokee that I don't care if anyone sits on.

Hello kso,

I admit I was taken aback some when you said people would pose on your car or put cigarrrets out on them. I've been driving my '73 Caprice Classic for about 20 of the 25 years I've owned it and I do understand about general abuse and that's, as you say, to be expected. I try to park out of harms way whenever possible, I like the exercise. My better half still drives her '96 Impala SS 70-100 miles per day and we joke about how it's probably one of thee last B bodies on the road doing that daily mileage. We've had that car for about 12 years now. Whilst she likes that car she really wants her '66 gal 500 XL. So it will take the place of the Impy when finished and the Impy will be a back up car as I keep up with all its problems and fix them all. Well except for the power antenna but it's in the up position anyway, but that's it, everything else still works as normal. We've got a lot of miles on that car, we wore through the original axle shaft spot and bearings, did the extender bearings, then wore through those spots on the axle shafts, then replaced them with 1541h new axle shafts and went back to the original style bearings and seals. Poor car has a lot of miles but runs like a top and that engine just keeps going with no oil consumption. I'm hoping to get that kind of service out of the '66 Fords with the correct modifications.

I like your idea of a parts car, we do have a complete roller (sans interior, engine and transmission) '66 gal 500 should the '66 gal 500 XL get whacked. Even though we live in New Mexico we do get snow occasionally so we do have winter cars; I have a '94 Grand Marquis and my better half has a 2004 Grand Marquis, both have traction control and with new good tyres they trudge through 8" of snow like a little half track and the older cars stay at home on the snowy days.

I do wish to thank you for the splendid tales and advice.

Cheers

 

You do not need to see this project as a mountain of time, research, money... The first thing to remember is that your cars were designed, sold and used as daily drivers. If you fully restore them, you will have daily drivers, pretty much usable as is, since we are not talking 1930s, or hot rods. And they would pretty reliable just like that.
Of course, they would be a bit dated, so some things could (should) be updated, depending also on your own preference: better brakes, quicker steering, overdrive trans, modern tires, electronic ignition, alternator, good HVAC, modern radio... The smoothness and reliability of modern EFI is hard to beat; swapping a late-model EFI engine and trans combo with all their accessories and electronics is a great way to go. I would think that all the electrical and anything rubber should be new. Good working wipers and a waterproof car don't sound very sexy but are good ideas, too!
As mentioned before, keep everything OEM: reliable, usually cheaper and easy to find.
Considering your cars are already torn down, that kind of improvement is really not much "extra" work!

 

Why is everyone so scared about this? These cars were daily drivers when they were new. What's changed now? Here's a hint: the closer to stock, the more reliable the car will be. All these "upgrades" in the name of reliability have nowhere near the level of engineering and testing that the factory put into the original car. Pay attention to the brakes, steering, and suspension and fix anything that is at all questionable. Follow the factory recommended preventative maintenance chart. The car will be a daily driver just fine.

 

most classic car insurance policies will not allow the car to be used as a daily driver.
with what a guy has invested in a car you dont want being denied coverage if you are
involved in an accident.

 

most classic car insurance policies will not allow the car to be used as a daily driver.
with what a guy has invested in a car you dont want being denied coverage if you are
involved in an accident.

If you are using the car as a driver, you need normal car insurance and normal registration, period. Try and use antique plates and insurance on a daily an you will be totally screwed if you ever have to make a claim. And yes, most insurance companies won't sell you collision on a "classic car" for daily use because they have no way of quantifying the financial risk. Any settlement will assume the blue book value for a well used old car with no consideration for anything you have done to it. I understand that and accept the risk for my cars. It still beats driving a soul sucking new car festooned with electronic nanny BS.

Frankly, the biggest problem I have with using my old cars as drivers is time to get repair parts. No auto parts store stocks parts for older cars anymore, so if something breaks, you either need a backup vehicle or you need to have spares on the shelf. I do both. And if your older car has unobtanium parts (as do most of mine) then be aware of the risk when someone hits you. Unless you have a car that's well supported in the aftermarket, you'll be searching long and hard for bumpers, lenses, and sheetmetal. Again, this is why I have parts cars (and acreage to put them on...). The parts cars also come in handy when you need that one special fastener or bracket that is unique to the car.

 

I would t go so far as to call mine a daily driver as i have a work van, but it runs perfect and I wouldn’t hesitate to jump in it and drive across the country, then again, it’s only an 83, so. Barely a classic. Being as it’s a jaguar xj6, reliability was never its strong point! But since swapping a rebuilt drivetrain from a 94 Pontiac firebird into it, it’s become very reliable and also more comfortable than both wife’s sub and daughters car!!

 

I do, seasonally, meaning not when salt is on the road.
It was a daily when new, so only thing I have done is resist the urge to try to find more power and performance.
A solid tune up, and service as it is pushing 50 years old.
Clean out the carbon in the engine was step 1, and did it as I drove it the first month, Took a spare late model windshield washer nozzle and put it where the breather would be in the air cleaner housing. and every once and a while after it was up to temp. while taking off from light, I'd hit the washer button and it spray washer fluid into the air cleaner and get sucked into the engine.
Then a tune up, clean carb. adjust as needed, removed my make shift sprayer.
oil change and lube, new transmission fluid and filter, and new gear oil in the rear. checked brakes, replace old rubber lines.
A new battery as the one in it when I bought the car was 12 years old, and a new set of battery cables.

And just drive it.
I will be adding a 95 amp alt. (1985 pontiac t/a alt ) This spring as I add tunes, and a dash camera, and a few other things.
I have only found I end up on the hook and towed ,when I start trying to make them faster.
So I now limit that to another vehicle for week ends, and then the stock old daily for the non winter season.

 

state farm will insure it alright, for blue book value. blue book value isn't much past 15 years. state farm does not do agreed value policies in michigan.

for most classic car insurance policies, you need to have another vehicle listed as daily driver. i have my 58 truk insured thru grundy, it is my daily driver when there is no salt on the roads. i have a standard tag on truk, collectors tags (in michigan) can only be used for car club/show related activities, you can't go out for breakfast with a collector tag. grundy doesn't care how many miles i drive as long as i have the daily driver.

 

state farm will insure it alright, for blue book value. blue book value isn't much past 15 years.

Hello ogre,

Perhaps I didn't state it well enough in my last post, sometimes I do that, it's a failing I admit. But our State Farm broker will insure it for the appraised value and not blue book. However we need to pay for the appraisal obviously, which is more than fair in my opinion.

Cheers

 

it may be different in your state. an acquaintance of mine had his 33 ford insured with state farm, i advised him that the value of his car was not covered, he assured me that he had asked and was covered, the agent was a good friend of the family. guess what? he totaled it and yes he was covered, they paid too replace the pole, nothing for his car.

 

as far as what i did to make my truk a dd? i made it dependable.
efi crate motor, rebuilt 700r4, ac, power windows, cruise, 4 wheel disc power brakes and a killer stereo.
truk gets 21 mpg with the cruise locked in at 80 mph
i finished the latest build 10 years and 36,000 miles ago.
i've done little to it since other than maintenance
every spring it starts without any tweaking

 

Classic cars (Chevy) as they were build are pretty reliable. It is when we start modifying them with bigger cams, more compression, racing type carburetors, aftermarket ignition boxes, big gears and tires that don’t fit the car that problems arise. I’m not saying this is always the case. But total mismatched parts that are not well thought out can be issues that put you along the side of the road. Now a vintage car with an LS transplant done correctly and with supporting parts to take the added power will be reliable. But without a well thought out build it will be parked along the road side like the guys on “roadkill”.

I try to substitute known good design parts and features to my cars that in fact do perform better than the originals. Examples Tremec TKO transmission, HEI ignition, “E” core coil, vintage air conditioning, Power Master gear motor starter and alternator. Basic quality selection and matching of parts. Take the starter and alternator for example without replacing the original small gauge wire and worn wiring in the car would be foolish.

One thing does lead to another when dealing with these old cars. It makes no difference if seldom driven or all the time. It was pointed out that parts store type pieces can keep you on the road vs special hot rod pieces. So consider what you put in in the initial build. If something “quits” your gonna want to be able to replace it locally and quickly.

 

On the insurance I put the bare mininum with just liability (no collision) or such that will cover everything except MY car.

Some of my rides are modified to the point I am the only one that can fix them.

Some I get great deals on only having $3000 to $5000 into the entire car making insuring them for $600 to $1200 a month worth taking the risk of parting it out for $1500 to $3000 in the event of a crash.

Most of my old piles are not restored bought for around $1000 rusted piles that scare people that live in sub divisions. Couple hundred thrown into making them reliable and drive the wheels off the thing doing stupid stuff. Yes I have driven 70's muscle cars in the winter without much issue.

I do love when people spit out the line "I can't believe you drive that in the snow/rain or cut up a xxxxx". In which I usually offer to sell them the car so they can "save it" dumping 30k to have someone ELSE restore it. Or give them a "whatever dude" a couple times which I find is a respectful way to shut those people up.

Nope. Let that pony run. I don't care about scars or bruises. I have had just all out rust buckets running good reliable powertrains. But just rusted beyond what people wanted to mess with will still get compliments.

I had a 81 rabbit pickup ($200 rusted) and a 81 rx7($800 pass door hit) . Shortened the vw's bed behind the cab(cut the thing in half and removed a few inches) and laid the modified body over the now straightened rx7's powertrain and belly.

Insurance on a rabbit pickup is nothing. Insurance on a rx7 is nuts.

I got more thumbs up driving my "rotary rabbit" then many other rides. I just drove the heck out of the thing. It was not fast but it was tons of fun.
I had around $1500 into it and sold it for $1200.


Cars are more about the memories then the value in my book. If you enjoy driving them for however short that smile on your face is worth every penny.

Don't focus on getting every little thing perfect. That is how most build threads end. Just get the thing close enough to be driven safely and then slowly add upgrades to it.

If you plan on keeping it for say 10 years. No point in doing all the stuff at once unless your planning on selling it or starting another project after. Trust me you will want to build something else just as soon as you have the thing "finished".

Most builds fail because people take on to much at once. Life throws in a curveball. Then they need to sell the thing.
I am usually the guy who comes in to buy these for a fraction of what the parts cost. I have seen it all from just "don't have the time/room" to getting evicted, divorced, or medical reasons.

If the stock engine is "good enough" then just drive the thing and then later on when you have all the other bugs worked out then you can drop in the fuel injected beast of a engine.

 

On the insurance I put the bare mininum with just liability (no collision) or such that will cover everything except MY car.

Some of my rides are modified to the point I am the only one that can fix them.

Some I get great deals on only having $3000 to $5000 into the entire car making insuring them for $600 to $1200 a month worth taking the risk of parting it out for $1500 to $3000 in the event of a crash.

Most of my old piles are not restored bought for around $1000 rusted piles that scare people that live in sub divisions. Couple hundred thrown into making them reliable and drive the wheels off the thing doing stupid stuff. Yes I have driven 70's muscle cars in the winter without much issue.

I do love when people spit out the line "I can't believe you drive that in the snow/rain or cut up a xxxxx". In which I usually offer to sell them the car so they can "save it" dumping 30k to have someone ELSE restore it. Or give them a "whatever dude" a couple times which I find is a respectful way to shut those people up.

Nope. Let that pony run. I don't care about scars or bruises. I have had just all out rust buckets running good reliable powertrains. But just rusted beyond what people wanted to mess with will still get compliments.

I had a 81 rabbit pickup ($200 rusted) and a 81 rx7($800 pass door hit) . Shortened the vw's bed behind the cab(cut the thing in half and removed a few inches) and laid the modified body over the now straightened rx7's powertrain and belly.

Insurance on a rabbit pickup is nothing. Insurance on a rx7 is nuts.

I got more thumbs up driving my "rotary rabbit" then many other rides. I just drove the heck out of the thing. It was not fast but it was tons of fun.
I had around $1500 into it and sold it for $1200.


Cars are more about the memories then the value in my book. If you enjoy driving them for however short that smile on your face is worth every penny.

Don't focus on getting every little thing perfect. That is how most build threads end. Just get the thing close enough to be driven safely and then slowly add upgrades to it.

If you plan on keeping it for say 10 years. No point in doing all the stuff at once unless your planning on selling it or starting another project after. Trust me you will want to build something else just as soon as you have the thing "finished".

Most builds fail because people take on to much at once. Life throws in a curveball. Then they need to sell the thing.
I am usually the guy who comes in to buy these for a fraction of what the parts cost. I have seen it all from just "don't have the time/room" to getting evicted, divorced, or medical reasons.

If the stock engine is "good enough" then just drive the thing and then later on when you have all the other bugs worked out then you can drop in the fuel injected beast of a engine.

Hello cerial,

I understand your goals with older cars. My better half and I have a slightly different goal with an old car. Instead of paying 50 grand for a new luxury car, why not put that into building a nice old car that has more character than a new car we can use instead. That's our mindset with these two '66 Fords. We opted to buy cars that were beyond just fixing up, because it was a better deal for us in the long run. Whereas you are able to find deals and such, I usually have no luck in that department. So rather than buy someones "fixed up" Ford full size for a ridiculous price only to have to tear it down anyway to build it back up properly again, well, it just made sense to buy cars that were beyond initially usable but at a fair price for the condition but complete.

The '66 galaxie 500 XL was so bad, the engine had 2 gallons of water in it and rusted, the transmission internally caught fire (actual ash on the inside of the transmission) which more than likely explains the water in the engine (putting the fire out emanating from the dipstick) and the frame and body were both bent. I have used parts from 4 different cars so far to put it back together.

Please feel free to have a look at my build thread on this, if anything it's worth a laugh just to see how bad it was initially:

https://www.hotrodders.com/threads/1966-galaxie-500-xl-refurbishment.541588/

Our '66 LTD, even though it looked pretty good for a really fair price it had loads of underlying problems that didn't make it a fixer upper. The frame was internally rusted and the body had to come off to repair it and the engine and transmission were in need of complete rebuilds (the engine had a broken piston ring and the transmission was slipping). The car was the typical old persons car that had sat in a garage since the early 80's and just left there. It was still sporting its old bias ply tyres with a fuel tank filled with fuel from the early 80's. Here's some pictures of the old girl when we brought it home.

(I like the rear vent feature.)

The goal here is to have as close as possible a new '66 LTD and galaxie 500 XL. For this it makes sense to do the upgrades as it's being assembled rather than later as it's twice the work. It's so much easier to add factory power windows and locks when the doors are being assembled rather than disassemble the doors and a good port of the interior to add them later.

I mentioned earlier I do have a '73 Caprice Classic I bought myself 25 years ago when I was in college and it had a poor restoration when I bought it and have been trying to keep up with it over the years but there just comes a time when it needs a body off frame complete refurbishment to help press the reset button on a lot of problems if you know what I mean. That car will be next after these two. I don't want to fall into that trap as I did with my old Chevrolet of chasing problem after problem due to sheer age or a previous hack of a restoration. Add to that a couple years ago we bought a running late 70's Dodge Power Wagon. Just a big ol thing (club cab, full size bed, heavy duty 3/4 ton, big rims and tyres) and I thought this shouldn't take much to get back on the road again as it runs ok. Well, I couldn't have been more wrong if I was the captain of the Titanic and thought it's just a small iceberg . That will be another project all in its own in how much Mopar I can excise from that truck.

I know what you mean about burning out on intensive projects. I've had to take breaks from these from time to time. But being more than half way done and sinking roughly 35 thousand in each of these just alone in parts and supplies is pure motivation to finish them.

It does sound like you have had your share of old cars and projects. I got a kick out of your rotary rabbit, that's for sure.

Cheers

 

Hello All,

This question may be considered "Out There" in unrealistic land but I wanted to ask. My better half and I like old cars and thought why not build them to be daily drivers. I know it's a mountain of research, time and money even if you're doing the work yourself. I try to do all the work myself here at home, so far the only time I had to hire something out was the machining on the engine blocks and of course having custom engine parts made from places like Diamond Pistons and the like.

With that I was curious if anyone else had those goals and what did you do to the car to make a reliable daily driver? Did you add amenities as well?

I have two current projects that I'd like to see if this is possible. They are complete tear downs literally down to the last nut and bolt. If anyone is interested, this is one of them :

1966 galaxie 500XL

The other is a 1966 Ford LTD but I haven't posted anything on it here yet. I'd like to finish both of these cars by late spring/early summer.

Thank you for your time.

Cheers

Hello All,

This question may be considered "Out There" in unrealistic land but I wanted to ask. My better half and I like old cars and thought why not build them to be daily drivers. I know it's a mountain of research, time and money even if you're doing the work yourself. I try to do all the work myself here at home, so far the only time I had to hire something out was the machining on the engine blocks and of course having custom engine parts made from places like Diamond Pistons and the like.

With that I was curious if anyone else had those goals and what did you do to the car to make a reliable daily driver? Did you add amenities as well?

I have two current projects that I'd like to see if this is possible. They are complete tear downs literally down to the last nut and bolt. If anyone is interested, this is one of them :

1966 galaxie 500XL

The other is a 1966 Ford LTD but I haven't posted anything on it here yet. I'd like to finish both of these cars by late spring/early summer.

Thank you for your time.

Cheers

Like Cerial I drive mine all the time for routine tasks but some states are more strict than others. I am in North Michigan and northern Florida with no problem. ALWAYS carry a box of parts for YOUR car ad most states allow for transport to shop for “”repairs”
As far as safety, this is simple... what do you dot to your now “” driver

 

My 70 Chevelle Wagon got front disk brakes, a mild rear end ratio, a torquey cam, and an overdrive transmission. I also added an integral regulated alternator, an upgraded radiator, and of course good quality tires. My 65 2 door wagon got the same stuff except it badly needs an overdrive transmission. One thing that every old car should have is a dual master cylinder.

 

Nice cars.
I have found for older cars I plan on using daily if when you rebuild the engine , or updating it with a 4 barrel and cam, if you build it for low to mid range torque and not, bench racing hp bragging. You don't need gearing in the rear that is unfriendly at todays highway speeds and still move the car nicely from a stop.
Nothing against adding o/d. other than the buy in cost. of course if your transmission needs a rebuild anyways, the cost isn't that much more.
Having said that, I do have a 2004r in shed waiting for a rebuild that most likely will end up in my good weather daily.

 

You want road worthy. How about three Hot Rod Power Tours? Each 9K miles home-to-home.

It is a 65 Mustang convertible. The current drive train is rail injected, 427W, AODE, 9inch.

Here is some evolution.

1-Mustang 351W-427W 1965

168 new items · Album by Ray Davison

goo.gl

 

Make sure you REALLY like the car you pick, as you will most likely have a lot more in it than you can get out of it later. So DRIVE your value out of it! I've had the 63 Rambler Classic wagon in my avatar since 2003. Built from the start as a driver. I updated the engine to an EFI model (Jeep 4.0L in this case, pretty much the late 60s Rambler six with some improvements, almost a bolt-in), had to update the trans (AW4 Jeep -- OD auto) and rear axle (went the expensive route -- Jag IRS from a 88 XJ6). Brakes were updated to discs. I updated the seats (90 Eagle Premier -- did some u-pull-it parts yard crawling) and installed modern shoulder belts (early 90s Blazer fronts, mid 90s Nissan in rear). I just rebuilt the stock front suspension, and other things as if restoring the car (new door and window seals, etc.

I'd definitely update the drivetrain for any daily driver, and the brakes, as well as add good seat belts. You could install the entire dash from a late model car along with the bumper sensors and have air bags -- or just a late steering column and just a driver air bag. That might be going a bit far, but if it makes you feel safer...

State Farm will insure it for a "stated value", but if there is a claim they may not pay. I had to threaten to write the state insurance commission and complain to get a fair pay-off for my 63 Rambler (an earlier one -- why I had to build another in 2003!) . I had a stated value policy where we agreed on $7K. That was a bit UNDER the actual value, but I felt it enough. When the car was totaled they told me it was only worth $3750, and all they had to pay was the current market value. After the claims person hung up on me (I said something like "to hell you're giving me that", she replied "you can't cuss at me like that", and I said "you're about to hear a lot more" ...), I talked to my body shop, who suggested I contact the insurance commission. He had told me the appraiser came out, looked under the tarp, and was gone in 15 minutes. No one ever asked me about modifications or for any info at all. After I complained (and forwarded a copy of the complaint to the head State Farm office) they sent a "special investigator". We talked, they insisted on sending another appraiser, who was more versed in modified cars and would meet me. That went well. I had an appraisal of the car for $10,500 from one of the mail-in photo type places. Their appraiser said $8,500. We settled on the middle -- $9500. After I had the check in hand I asked the guy if he knew about my policy, and he said he'd never looked. Told him it was a $7K stated value -- if they'd just paid WHAT I'D BEEN PAYING FOR I'd have been happy. He just shook his head and said "I don't know why they do this"... They spent $2-3K on him and the new appraiser I'm sure, and gave me more!! While I made out in the end, it took three months to settle. Of course it didn't help that the guy who hit me had State Farm insurance also. If it had been another company they may have been more aggressive. My agent, by the way, was worthless. I expected them to at least make a phone call and ask what the deal was since I had the stated value policy. Instead, they just said it was out of their hands and left me hanging.

Go with a specialty car insurance like Hagerty if you can. You MUST have at least one modern daily driver with them though. Personally, I'd get a small commuter car to drive back and forth to work and drive the modernized old car all other times.

 

Make sure you REALLY like the car you pick, as you will most likely have a lot more in it than you can get out of it later. So DRIVE your value out of it! I've had the 63 Rambler Classic wagon in my avatar since 2003. Built from the start as a driver. I updated the engine to an EFI model (Jeep 4.0L in this case, pretty much the late 60s Rambler six with some improvements, almost a bolt-in), had to update the trans (AW4 Jeep -- OD auto) and rear axle (went the expensive route -- Jag IRS from a 88 XJ6). Brakes were updated to discs. I updated the seats (90 Eagle Premier -- did some u-pull-it parts yard crawling) and installed modern shoulder belts (early 90s Blazer fronts, mid 90s Nissan in rear). I just rebuilt the stock front suspension, and other things as if restoring the car (new door and window seals, etc.

I'd definitely update the drivetrain for any daily driver, and the brakes, as well as add good seat belts. You could install the entire dash from a late model car along with the bumper sensors and have air bags -- or just a late steering column and just a driver air bag. That might be going a bit far, but if it makes you feel safer...

State Farm will insure it for a "stated value", but if there is a claim they may not pay. I had to threaten to write the state insurance commission and complain to get a fair pay-off for my 63 Rambler (an earlier one -- why I had to build another in 2003!) . I had a stated value policy where we agreed on $7K. That was a bit UNDER the actual value, but I felt it enough. When the car was totaled they told me it was only worth $3750, and all they had to pay was the current market value. After the claims person hung up on me (I said something like "to hell you're giving me that", she replied "you can't cuss at me like that", and I said "you're about to hear a lot more" ...), I talked to my body shop, who suggested I contact the insurance commission. He had told me the appraiser came out, looked under the tarp, and was gone in 15 minutes. No one ever asked me about modifications or for any info at all. After I complained (and forwarded a copy of the complaint to the head State Farm office) they sent a "special investigator". We talked, they insisted on sending another appraiser, who was more versed in modified cars and would meet me. That went well. I had an appraisal of the car for $10,500 from one of the mail-in photo type places. Their appraiser said $8,500. We settled on the middle -- $9500. After I had the check in hand I asked the guy if he knew about my policy, and he said he'd never looked. Told him it was a $7K stated value -- if they'd just paid WHAT I'D BEEN PAYING FOR I'd have been happy. He just shook his head and said "I don't know why they do this"... They spent $2-3K on him and the new appraiser I'm sure, and gave me more!! While I made out in the end, it took three months to settle. Of course it didn't help that the guy who hit me had State Farm insurance also. If it had been another company they may have been more aggressive. My agent, by the way, was worthless. I expected them to at least make a phone call and ask what the deal was since I had the stated value policy. Instead, they just said it was out of their hands and left me hanging.

Go with a specialty car insurance like Hagerty if you can. You MUST have at least one modern daily driver with them though. Personally, I'd get a small commuter car to drive back and forth to work and drive the modernized old car all other times.

Hello farna,

I couldn't agree more with picking a car you REALLY like first . Originally I was going to start on a ground up from the last nut and bolt build for daily driving on a very clapped out 1968 Ford XL fastback with what I call the trifecta of options (FE big block, factory buckets - centre console and factory air con). It's really hard to find these XL's with those three factory options, let alone a decent one. But then I came across this 1966 4 door hardtop LTD on Fleece -Bay, err E-bay . No one bid on it, twice it went up and not a single bid (starting bid was 1500 dollars). So I contacted the seller and we made a deal and I bought it. I generally do not like 4 doors (especially post 4 doors), but there was something grand about this 4 door hardtop that just caught my eye. I never think or intend of it being sporty and I have no delusions of it ever being such. It's just a nicely appointed old Ford with more metal trim (inside and out) on a singular vehicle than I've ever seen.

The interior is nothing but sharp metal trim everywhere, I'm surprised Ralph Nader didn't have a cow over something like this ( I bet Ford was glad he spent his time focused on the Corvair). I'll be the first to admit it's a death trap on the inside compared to even cars 2 years later. The rear package tray is all metal, the rear sail panel grills for lamps and speakers are cast metal and chrome plated and like I said everything is sharp or extremely hard on the inside. The steering wheel is solid plastic with a steel inner core and the column doesn't collapse. That's what your rib cage is for . But all that doesn't bother me one jot, having flown many old GA private aircraft I can tell you that's far more dangerous than this car on the road.

Whilst I have a '94 Grand Marquis in remarkable condition (babied and sits mostly in one of the garages) I'd like to daily drive this '66 LTD instead along with a couple other old cars. Some of the things that I appreciate about this '66 LTD is the original couple that bought the car (all paperwork since it was new was in the glove box) opted to spend money on a big block and factory air con. For those who may not know factory (not dealer installed) air con back then was one of thee most expensive options, usually followed next by the AM-FM radio option.

What really makes the notion that someone ticked off the 300+ dollar air con option more interesting in this cars case is Ford had a rear cowl vent that was only offered in the 1965 and 1966 full size 4 door hardtop cars. T-birds and Lincolns had this too, but these were the only full size Fords to have them. The idea was it was poor mans air conditioning as well as rear window defrost. These cars still have the front kick panel vents that allow pressurized air off the windscreen (car in forward motion obviously) and if you opened these and opened the rear cowl vent (low pressure area behind the rear window) you could have a large airflow through the entire car with all the windows up and wing windows closed.

I find these esoteric options fascinating.

Cheers

 

My 1939 ford fordor is being built (by me) to be an everyday driver and highway cruiser. Not quite running yet but close. 8.8 explorer rear that is all rebuilt and I used factory park brake cables. LS1 with all factory stuff, no AN fittings on the car anywhere. Anything that can break me down is available at any auto parts store. Custom 23 gallon ss fuel tank with stock fuel pump for my engine with factory nylon lines and fittings which is covered from pump to fuel rail with stainless steel flex for protection. So I'm a big fan of daily drivers . That's why I sold my daily driver 40 Tudor for this easy to get in fordor.

 

I had an 87 trans am WS6 for a long time. I just insured it as a 1987 Pontiac Firebird. I had full coverage on it (wasn't much). In fact it was cheaper than getting collector car insurance on it. Yeah if it was totalled I'd probably get a handful of pennies for it, but I bought the car for 1500 bucks.
It had a TPI 305, 700r4, 3.23 rear and the WS6 suspension. I added aluminum heads (zz4's), and updated the HEI, updated the brakes, steering and suspension. It was a GREAT 3 season driver and got 22-24mpg on the highway.

 

A couple more remarks...

My experience w/ State Farm once was pretty bad, all the advertising they do to make you believe in them will seem like some kind of scam the first time you need them. Around the time my oldest daughter became driving age, on the advice of a body shop owner friend we switched to Mercury, there were some claims but we were very happy with how things were handled. This was years ago however, it would be wise to ask around now and again check with a body shop owner who deals with insurance all the time from many companies. Maybe some companies have changed their ways? Recently we've been insured w/ GEICO and there was a claim (ugh) but dealing with it was a breeze.

As an aside, a couple years ago same State Farm dropped people's homeowner's insurance in this area of So. Cal. by the hundreds (literally) in one fell swoop because they don't want to pay for wildfires. Can't blame them but instead of just upping the premiums to reflect re-assessed risk they left everybody hanging with nothing. We had to really scramble, and ended up w/ Travelers. I think there were a lot of people in this town who wanted to tar-and-feather the local State Farm agent and run him out of town, considering our previous automobile experience with him also I know I did. All that money paid in premiums over decades without a single claim and then, "poof", they're outta here.

With that, for a driver I tend to buy automobile insurance for liability only, like a normal beater car, and "self-insure" for the rest. Since I did all the work on the car in the first place the figuring is that when something bad happens I fix it with the money I saved. So far that has worked well, but your results may vary. I have two cars that I am no longer comfortable about doing that with and they have been just sitting but since they are not daily drivers I can easily get the classic-car-type policy when I'm ready to drive again for the one at-least. For the other that has a roll cage and sees a little track time, that may be another matter.

Another story: In the nineties there was a guy here who put his 16-year-old daughter in a restored classic car, an early Falcon. It had drum brakes and tires that were either 13 or 14". She got out there and drove it the way her friends were driving their cars and ended her life in front of an oak tree in a corner where nobody else crashed that year. Seems like Daddy blamed everybody but himself for that one, including the highway dept. and suing our school district for big money because she was on her way there. My point, and my opinion: Put your own old tail in a crazy old car if you want to, but for everyday use have your kids and wife in something newer with new handling and safety standards and airbags. Is how I do it anyway, a significant portion of my living over the past 25+ years has been from the airbag business and I've seen how hard they work (and how much money they spend) to make sure those things really will help when a crash happens.

 

A couple more remarks...

My experience w/ State Farm once was pretty bad, all the advertising they do to make you believe in them will seem like some kind of scam the first time you need them. Around the time my oldest daughter became driving age, on the advice of a body shop owner friend we switched to Mercury, there were some claims but we were very happy with how things were handled. This was years ago however, it would be wise to ask around now and again check with a body shop owner who deals with insurance all the time from many companies. Maybe some companies have changed their ways? Recently we've been insured w/ GEICO and there was a claim (ugh) but dealing with it was a breeze.

As an aside, a couple years ago same State Farm dropped people's homeowner's insurance in this area of So. Cal. by the hundreds (literally) in one fell swoop because they don't want to pay for wildfires. Can't blame them but instead of just upping the premiums to reflect re-assessed risk they left everybody hanging with nothing. We had to really scramble, and ended up w/ Travelers. I think there were a lot of people in this town who wanted to tar-and-feather the local State Farm agent and run him out of town, considering our previous automobile experience with him also I know I did. All that money paid in premiums over decades without a single claim and then, "poof", they're outta here.

With that, for a driver I tend to buy automobile insurance for liability only, like a normal beater car, and "self-insure" for the rest. Since I did all the work on the car in the first place the figuring is that when something bad happens I fix it with the money I saved. So far that has worked well, but your results may vary. I have two cars that I am no longer comfortable about doing that with and they have been just sitting but since they are not daily drivers I can easily get the classic-car-type policy when I'm ready to drive again for the one at-least. For the other that has a roll cage and sees a little track time, that may be another matter.

Another story: In the nineties there was a guy here who put his 16-year-old daughter in a restored classic car, an early Falcon. It had drum brakes and tires that were either 13 or 14". She got out there and drove it the way her friends were driving their cars and ended her life in front of an oak tree in a corner where nobody else crashed that year. Seems like Daddy blamed everybody but himself for that one, including the highway dept. and suing our school district for big money because she was on her way there. My point, and my opinion: Put your own old tail in a crazy old car if you want to, but for everyday use have your kids and wife in something newer with new handling and safety standards and airbags. Is how I do it anyway, a significant portion of my living over the past 25+ years has been from the airbag business and I've seen how hard they work (and how much money they spend) to make sure those things really will help when a crash happens.

Hello kso,

That's a really good idea on asking a body shop on insurance claims from different companies. I shall indeed do just that. You have also brought up good points about safety. Now back in the 90's when I was a junior in high school I bought my first car and it was a rusty 700 dollar beater of a 1968 galaxie 500 2 dr fastback. It had manual 4 wheel drums and a really rotted frame, but even being dumb as a box of rocks like most teenagers I would never push the car to the point of loosing total control. That may be Darwin doing his thing with others and natures way of deselection, of which I am strong proponent. I do think for those who have become accustomed to modern cars for many years it would behoove the individual to rethink their driving actions and habits on an older car.

My better half really wants a reliable '66 galaxie 500 XL. Now I did make some modifications for her '66. I did install Ford 4 wheel disc brakes (not aftermarket designed ones). I also upgraded the front sway bar to a much much larger one. Then again the original ones are like a pencil so anything compared to that is much much larger . The one thing I do need to train her on is bracing for impact as the '66 gal 500 XL interior just as dangerous as my '66 LTD, probably more so as the factory bucket seat backs in the XL package were never designed to lock and there is only a lap belt. With that she needs to be ready with proper arm action.

When the car is finished and ready for service we shall go out on dry and wet pavement out away from anyone and practice panic stops and control as well and more importantly what to do when you loose control and also get a feeling when that loss of control will happen in multiple conditions. It's the same idea in training for stalls (power on and off) in a small aircraft and recovery.

Now anyone can just assume they can know how to handle an old car, but it probably wont end well in an emergency or in trying to show off. Just like you can legally hop in an ultralight aircraft and try to fly with zero flight skills or training. Again probably not going to end well, but you have the freedom to take your own life in your own hands and end it if you wish. I like to think I'm very pragmatic about that.

As they say play stupid games win stupid prizes

My better half currently daily drives (70-100 miles per day) a '96 Impala SS so it will take some getting used to the less stable '66 Ford full size as the 94-96 Impala SS's have a lowered stiffer stance and really wide tyres from the factory. Even at 135 miles an hour it handles really well along with being stable and of course it has safety features like ABS to aid in panic stops for those who truly panic and don't think to modulate the brake pedal manually.

Cheers!

 

Oh and BTW I really dig the LTD.

 

Cheers mate!

 

Unique is cool. But not always practical.

Pulling the drivetrain or motor out of a classic buick, olds, pontiac, or cadilliac and droping in chevy engine not only allows for easier/cheaper parts availablity. But it also preserves the low mileage engine or at least working when pulled engine to be dropped back in at a later date.
Same thing applies to unique factory rims or axle(s).
I have even went as far as when I paint something I pick a low cost popular color vs the correct color. Unless the correct and incorrect are sitting next to each other most people will never notice. But generally you can find a low cost popular color for say a 95 minivan that is close to the expensive paint for the 70 car.

Generally interior wise covers and having the thing regularly detailed is going to keep things looking nice. Now it wont help with "Turner & Hooch" damage that pets and kids can cause. But, generally if adults are behind the dash a bit of protection will keep hings where they can be cleaned from the occasional soda or dirt.
Oh install "catch all" cut to fit floor mats. I don't care how careful you are. Factory floor mats do not catch anything. Keep those with your orgional factory nice parts and you can throw them back in for shows or selling.

 

so my story is real not opinion. 1959 chevy brookwood wagon swapped out the 283 powerglide combo for a gm vortec 350 with a 700r4 i drove this car all over including trips to nj, detroit and texas on several hot rod power tours , even did the tail of the dragon with it. then the bug bit me went to a 383 and efi. drove great so i headed out to the 2014 hrpt in charlotte. made it to the south Carolina border and it died. here's where the problem comes in. it is no longer a simple carb but a mess of wires and things which a lot of shops don't want to get involved in. ive grown tired of the fi and im going back to a simple carb. simpler is better when out on the road

 

Hello 59 wagon man,

I agree with you on the aftermarket EFI systems, I wouldn't want a module that you only have to get from Holley or Edelbrock, etc. Plus on those systems they do not have the diagnostics that an OEM ECU would have. For us our elevation and poor fuel quality lead to nothing but abhorrent driveability problems in the summer heat. EFI is the only answer for us. I am going to have a go at designing my own ECU with diagnostics built in but I can also put a spare in the boot. Since we have a few old cars it makes sense to design my own and replicate the systems as many times as needed. This will be cheaper in the long run.

Another possibility would be using an OEM style ECU but reprogram it for your needs. Of course there is still the possibility of needing an interface module or two.

Do you use your car as a daily driver or just nice day pleasure cruiser?

Cheers