Exactly why I only buy IIHS+ and similar top picks. I lift weights. I do jujitsu. I carry a firearm certain times. Everything I can do to hedge my bets of coming home, I might as well do. Extends to vehicles too.
Older car daily drivers
- Thread starter doublebase
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- Feb 27, 2019
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Up until a couple months ago I was driving a '93 Nissan 240sx about 50 miles a day and when we moved into our new house two years ago that went to almost 80 miles round trip daily. For the first 10 years or so I had it the odometer only worked when it felt like it but even though it showed 250,000 miles according to my math it had north of 350,000 on it when I sold it so a guy my daughter works with. Ran great, didn't burn oil, and until last summer the A/C even worked quite well. Constant verbal abuse by my friends and family is what pushed me into a newer car. The body looked pretty decent but the frame rails and most of the underside in general was developing a lot of cancer. Jacking it up just to do tire rotations or brake changes resulted in a lot of crunching sounds. Was a bit sad to let it go, bought it for $3500 and drove it almost daily for 19 years and put a ton of miles on it. But driving a car that only gets a bit over 20 mpg almost 80 miles a day was resulting in a lot of pit stops at the gas station, and driving a new car again feels pretty nice.
I think that’s rationalizing the purchase of a new vehicle.
The structure and build quality of some luxury vehicles will never be equaled by an economy vehicle. If you’ve got a strong structure, stability control, ABS, front and side airbags, seat belt pretensioners, etc. you’re good, regardless of age.
Frankly, I’ll match the crash performance of any of my Volvos against a new economy car. Insurance rates, and crash statistics support my contention.
I wouldn't want to get hit by that S600 either. Saab and Volvo are among the strongest cars ever made, far surpassing most makes in unibody integrity even by today's standards.
Mine is a 2005. Doesn't have a lot of miles, 85000, but is 15 years old.
Gets terrible gas mileage, 5.3 that is not real powerful, and is an extended cab rather than crew. Everyone tells me to buy a new 4 door and I will love it. Maybe so, but I like my old truck and I've had it long enough that I would miss it if I sold it. I will be 71 next month and my health is not good, so I figure this old truck will be all I need until I don't need it anymore.
Shoot I dont qualify! ... Just a few more years! When I do I'll recommend my 2013 Chrysler 300S with the 3.6 pentastar and ZF 8-speed. With a 19gal tank, 75mph cruise and a light foot (tough for me) my station to station record was 609mi (33 mpg) with a half gallon to spare. Not to mention its quiet, comfortable and well priced. Looking back and being in Michigan I would have opted for the AWD for piece of mind in the winters but eh, I have good snow tires.
I lived 45 miles from work and drove a VW to other side of 300k. It was only 11 years old when I got rid of it, but I didn't feel comfortable driving cross country in it anymore--VW diesel mechanics are a rare breed.
Until the pandemic hit I was doing 50 miles to work (100 miles round trip) in my 21 year old Camry. Paint is shot so it's a beater--interior is clean but there's a few stains and wear and whatnot. I keep it clean. But the big thing: almost any place can fix it (maybe even me!), and parts availability is decent.
I do wonder about the whole safety thing. Our '11 Camry replaced an '01 Civic (which I hated!) so as to get ABS and side curtain airbags for the wife & kids. Ya always wonder about the "other guy"... Me, I've been content in my Camry, but I just accept that it's simply not as safe as anything being made today. It's new enough to be decent, and hits the level of safety content I want (although some days I think about disabling those airbags, they seem to be hit or miss as to if they actually are safe).
One thing that isn't mentioned here is that IMO to have a beater for a DD means you probably have two vehicles on hand. Older cars are just more apt to break. Maybe not "all the time" but you get the idea--they are simply that much closer to the MTBF on any given part or system. I live in the sticks and it can be a half hour drive to get a car part--but with n+1 vehicles I can either mailorder the part, pick it up while running errands--or at the very least, go get it myself. If I had to get by with just one vehicle, it'd probably be much newer for that peace of mind. [Which unfortunately is what I did for years, as I was renting and could not have spare vehicles.]
Until the pandemic hit I was doing 50 miles to work (100 miles round trip) in my 21 year old Camry. Paint is shot so it's a beater--interior is clean but there's a few stains and wear and whatnot. I keep it clean. But the big thing: almost any place can fix it (maybe even me!), and parts availability is decent.
I do wonder about the whole safety thing. Our '11 Camry replaced an '01 Civic (which I hated!) so as to get ABS and side curtain airbags for the wife & kids. Ya always wonder about the "other guy"... Me, I've been content in my Camry, but I just accept that it's simply not as safe as anything being made today. It's new enough to be decent, and hits the level of safety content I want (although some days I think about disabling those airbags, they seem to be hit or miss as to if they actually are safe).
One thing that isn't mentioned here is that IMO to have a beater for a DD means you probably have two vehicles on hand. Older cars are just more apt to break. Maybe not "all the time" but you get the idea--they are simply that much closer to the MTBF on any given part or system. I live in the sticks and it can be a half hour drive to get a car part--but with n+1 vehicles I can either mailorder the part, pick it up while running errands--or at the very least, go get it myself. If I had to get by with just one vehicle, it'd probably be much newer for that peace of mind. [Which unfortunately is what I did for years, as I was renting and could not have spare vehicles.]
We are a spoiled society
The S class has an enviable safety record and superlative crash performance. I would take it over any economy car today, in fact, I would take it over any regular car today. Body integrity, safety features, size, engineering, the S class is hard to beat for survival...
I’ll take good snow tires over AWD every single time.
I’ve said this before, I used to watch AWD SUVs and Subaru’s crash with astonishing regularity when I lived in Stowe, VT.
AWD doesn’t help you stop, turn, or go down the icy hill. AWD does get you going much faster, so that you discover the traction limitations of worn all season ties, that frankly, perform poorly in snow or on slick conditions.
Real Vermonters usually had some rusty FWD beater with four Nokian Hakkapelliittas fitted...and those cars were never in crashes. They stopped with ease in slick conditions and didn’t need AWD to get going or climb a hill.
Tires often matter much more than drive system...this is particularly true on slick roads.
Absolutely. My old RWD BMW with decent winter tires runs circles around a friend's RAV4 with all-seasons. Even more importantly it stops better too.
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I’m reminded of Mollie Hemingway's philosophy: "Look, I'm a mother. I care deeply about my children's safety. But safety is just one important thing to teach our children. And it's not even anywhere near the most important thing. Keeping your kids from dying or getting hurt is of secondary importance to teaching them how to live. Safety isn't even a virtue. If you're teaching your kids more about safety than you are about honesty, kindness, respect for others, responsibility, gratitude, integrity, cooperation, determination, social skills, enthusiasm, compassion and manners, you're doing it wrong."
If you’re more comfortable in a semi-autonomous cocoon have at it. As for me, I’ll keep driving engaging vehicles- even if they don’t have 25 airbags and every safety nanny known to man.
Unfortunately, the typical American vehicle operator-“driver” is far too generous a term-has been dumbed down to the point that they believe that FWD or AWD is a necessity to operate a vehicle on anything other than bone dry perfectly level and arrow straight pavement. I realized that this abject ignorance was virtually irreversible when I had an incompetent fool tell me he couldn't buy a RWD car because he needed a vehicle that he could drive in the rain.
And yes, my RWD BMWs get around just fine in snow and ice because I fit them with winter tires.
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She is a beauty !
I think you’re confusing older car and beater. Sure, in NH, older cars are rust buckets. Beaters.
Here’s my daughter’s 2002 Volvo after getting detailed this year. (yep, saw the hydrant, I didn’t park it there, the shop owner did). It’s a 200,000 mile car in perfect mechanical, and excellent cosmetic, condition. Inside and out. Everything works. Everything.
You’ll note, too, that it has the Blizzaks mounted on 16” steel wheels for Utah winters (ski season). In summer, it runs on 17” Volvo alloys that also happen to be in excellent condition.
It’s an older car, for certain.
But it’s most certainly not a beater.
Certainly a pretty sharp looking car!
Nothing lasts up here so I tend not to care--just going to rot away anyhow. Somehow though most everything on my fleet is still working--I killed the rear defroster on my while removing window tint, the CRV will only blow cold while moving, and the good Camry is getting rather creaky these days. TPMS is mostly dead too. All of them have untold amounts of cosmetic damage. But none of them are valuable cars that anyone would want to pay much for anyhow. Run of the mill junk, just enough to do their purpose in life.
I still think spare cars are a necessity. Pretty much all independent garages I have dealt with are of the "drop it off and we'll call you in a day or three when it's ready". Thankfully I've only had to have 3 tows in 20 years but still, even routine work means finding a larger shop with a comfortable area to wait for the day and hoping nothing else breaks, or dropping it off for a few days and wondering how I'll get around.
Nothing lasts up here so I tend not to care--just going to rot away anyhow. Somehow though most everything on my fleet is still working--I killed the rear defroster on my while removing window tint, the CRV will only blow cold while moving, and the good Camry is getting rather creaky these days. TPMS is mostly dead too. All of them have untold amounts of cosmetic damage. But none of them are valuable cars that anyone would want to pay much for anyhow. Run of the mill junk, just enough to do their purpose in life.
I still think spare cars are a necessity. Pretty much all independent garages I have dealt with are of the "drop it off and we'll call you in a day or three when it's ready". Thankfully I've only had to have 3 tows in 20 years but still, even routine work means finding a larger shop with a comfortable area to wait for the day and hoping nothing else breaks, or dropping it off for a few days and wondering how I'll get around.
While I like having the spare car, the reality is cars (at least mine) are reliable enough that it's hard to make the case for the spare car. I can rent one for the once every 12-18 months I need a spare car and come out money ahead.
I did press the 99 MGM into service last year when the Mazda3 was getting some body work due to my tired body scraping a post in a parking garage during one of my on-call weeks. Two weeks in the shop, but that's a rare occurrence and for about 3 months of the year, only I am commuting to work, so two cars sit.
Ditto with the move to more work from home.
I'll probably sell the 99 MGM as it doesn't make sense to pay nearly $800/year in insurance and tags here in Illinois. That would cover a number of rentals of something more interesting.
I did press the 99 MGM into service last year when the Mazda3 was getting some body work due to my tired body scraping a post in a parking garage during one of my on-call weeks. Two weeks in the shop, but that's a rare occurrence and for about 3 months of the year, only I am commuting to work, so two cars sit.
Ditto with the move to more work from home.
I'll probably sell the 99 MGM as it doesn't make sense to pay nearly $800/year in insurance and tags here in Illinois. That would cover a number of rentals of something more interesting.
Yeah, WFH has changed things. But no one knows how long that will last for, so...?
Still a 30 minute drive to a car rental place. If I were to work from home for years to come, then that might be acceptable to rent on the rare occasion it's needed. But if I start commuting 100 miles a day again...
Still a 30 minute drive to a car rental place. If I were to work from home for years to come, then that might be acceptable to rent on the rare occasion it's needed. But if I start commuting 100 miles a day again...
Understand, everyone's circumstance is different. At $800 just to have tags and insurance before I buy a drop of gas or do any maintenance has me questioning the third car in the driveway...
But I'm not 30 minutes away from rental options. I have Enterprise and Avis both within 4 miles of my home.
But I'm not 30 minutes away from rental options. I have Enterprise and Avis both within 4 miles of my home.