[mechanickeith]

I have 2 daily drivers. My 61 Tempest for over 18 years. Over 557,000 miles on that car. Also a 65 Grand Prix with over 160,000 miles on her.

[tpssonic]

Originally Posted by Formulajones

Funny how driving a classic makes even the most unpleasant trips more enjoyable. I'm always looking for excuses to go places just to drive one.
It's not even the car shows and cruises I enjoy anymore, it's the drive to and from that is the best part for me. Once I'm there I can't wait to leave so I can drive some more

Yeah, back when I was getting paid to drive my laundry wagon around- especially in a beautiful country setting- I had to stop every once in a awhile to pinch myself.

FJ- you "get it".

Tony

[goatwgn]

My '66 Tempest Custom wagon was my "daily driver" until 1989, when it had at that time 292,000 miles. I bought my '74 Olds Cutlass from an Aunt at that time so I could fix up the old Pontiac. I know it isn't a Pontiac, but it is still an old car, and I have used my 1974 Olds Cutlass Supreme for daily driver usage and trips, as well as using it for a truck pulling a small 5X8 trailer since 1989. It has 510000 on it now (Olds 350/ TH350/3.08). Very smooth riding and reliable car. My Tempest gets out to play on weekends. I recently inherited my Mom's '93 Buick Regal with the 3800, I now use that car for inclement weather, but still drive the other two whenever I can. Nothing feels better to me than driving an older car, (especially an old Pontiac)

[rjpaige3]

I mostly daily drive my practically new '78 Catalina, though I occasionally alternate with my "practical car", a '99 Corvette. Just hit 25K miles in the Cat, starting from 13K when I bought it almost 3 years ago.

[vidguy]

I put ~15,000 over the last 7 years on my 75 Formula as my ONLY car. 14 miles back and forth to work in HOT and ccc...ooo..ll..dd weather.. I rebuilt or replaced everything before dedicating it as "My Car" and selling a BMW 740il..
Only problems I have had that I can recall:

Ignition Distributor harness came loose one cold morning at a stop light, Thought it was the Module.. Messed with distributor car fired up.. Checked at home later..

A lower Ball Joint Lower busted pulling into my Driveway.. Fender fell onto wheel. Lucky break there. In the Driveway and no damage..

I just stopped driving it this last spring. I love driving the car but it is impractical for moving around guitars and amps or anything...

[mechanickeith]

I put over 40,000 on the 65 GP in only 20 months!

[Formulajones]

Originally Posted by tpssonic

Yeah, back when I was getting paid to drive my laundry wagon around- especially in a beautiful country setting- I had to stop every once in a awhile to pinch myself.

FJ- you "get it".

Tony

LOL, thanks Tony for reminding me there are cars guys out there just like me. I've always considered the really die hard car guys are the ones that actually drive them and drive them frequently. Refreshing to see so many here that feel the same way.
Even cooler than that is my wife, she's the same way. She loves the classics, got tired of the new cars, doesn't care about creature comforts, she doesn't want computer controlled fuel injection, so she pushed me to get her into something as a daily driver. She was driving the 70 formula for a while, and then my old truck before I finally got her car finished. She's now daily driving her 69 Z28 with it's original 302/4-gear and she loves it. None of our classics have more than power brakes and steering. No AC, no power windows, etc... Usually as we get older people tend to do the opposite but I guess we are just backwards

[MDGOAT69]

My goal is always to use my Pontiac as my summer DD. I came close with my 79 TA, hoping to build my new 69 GTO to be capable of it.

[64speed]

If I had a way to mount a babyseat in the rear I would drive mine a lot more often. Years ago when I had body to think of but myself my only car was a 64 GTO. Life's responsibilities kicked in in my mid twenties and I had to get something practical but yes I would drive mine everyday if I had back seat belts. I have them just need to install them

[Formulajones]

My son grew up in the back of our 70 Formula. I searched a long time for a car seat that didn't have sharp edges and wouldn't gouge into the upholstery. I ended up shoving a big pillow under it.
Was also difficult to find a car seat that worked with simple lap belts in the rear. I prevailed and he survived

[vidguy]

HA!

Originally Posted by Formulajones

.... I ended up shoving a big pillow under it.
Was also difficult to find a car seat that worked with simple lap belts in the rear. I prevailed and he survived

Did the same when my GTO was my Daily Driver in the 80's with my Son. Also drove him around in a child seat in a 69 2000 Datsun Roadster... I was hit hard in that right after I dropped him off.. That was when I stopped that and got my Wife a Van...

[geeteeohguy]

In the '80's and '90's, I used both my GTO's exclusively as daily drivers. To this date, my '67 GTO is the newest car that I've ever owned. I put 68,000 miles on it in two years commuting in '85-'86. After that, I used a '63 VW bug for ten years for fuel mileage. I now mainly commute in my '83 Toyota, but still use the '67 GTO as my main ride when I take long trips out of town or cross-country. I DO own a 2005 Tundra when I need to 'go modern' with air conditioning, cruise, and 4x4 for camping and hauling. What many folks don't realize is just how reliable and comfortable these old Pontiacs can be, and, geared right, fairly economical to run.

[Formulajones]

Originally Posted by vidguy

HA!


Did the same when my GTO was my Daily Driver in the 80's with my Son. Also drove him around in a child seat in a 69 2000 Datsun Roadster... I was hit hard in that right after I dropped him off.. That was when I stopped that and got my Wife a Van...

I will admit that even though both my wife and I still drive classics daily, I'm way more careful today than I ever used to be. With climbing prices and more idiots on the road you just can't be too careful. We find ourselves driving routes that are off the beaten path (less traffic) most of the time just to stay away from people. But I don't mind, it's more about the smiles per mile for us.

[Formulajones]

Originally Posted by geeteeohguy

In the '80's and '90's, I used both my GTO's exclusively as daily drivers. To this date, my '67 GTO is the newest car that I've ever owned. I put 68,000 miles on it in two years commuting in '85-'86. After that, I used a '63 VW bug for ten years for fuel mileage. I now mainly commute in my '83 Toyota, but still use the '67 GTO as my main ride when I take long trips out of town or cross-country. I DO own a 2005 Tundra when I need to 'go modern' with air conditioning, cruise, and 4x4 for camping and hauling. What many folks don't realize is just how reliable and comfortable these old Pontiacs can be, and, geared right, fairly economical to run.

That's what I love to hear, that's a real car guy.

[64speed]

I would drive mine a lot more often but there is the car seat issue with seat belts in the back. Not that I am cavalier with my kids lives but I used to be a cop and I've seen accidents that the person should have walked away from die at the scene and I've seen "unsurvivorable" accidents where people didn't get a scratch. It's in gods hands. I got no problem riding my kids in classic muscle as long as good safety steps are followed. Just my two cents

[Formulajones]

That's probably where I differ a bit. I feel safety has been shoved down our throats a bit too much over the last couple decades. I'm all for being safe and all that but everything just can't be like Disney Land and I won't live every minute of my life in worry. But like I said, I drive off the beaten pathways and avoid most of the traffic. I don't care if it takes an extra 20 minutes.
If I had another child today I'd still be driving around in a classic with the car seat. I would more than likely just have to search harder for a seat nowadays that would work with the rear seat lap belts.
Shucks I still drive cars that never even had seat belts, ever. They were still an option up through about 1968. That particular car was already in hibernation when my first born came along, so he grew up in the 70 Formula, which happened to have belts obviously.

Always wondered how that worked with a child, when I'm driving a 56 Nomad with no belts. I daily drove it for years, and I know I could never get a seat belt ticket myself because the belt law didn't apply to anything older than 68. I tested that a couple times, lol. Boy how things have changed, ugh...

[charles bledsoe]

Drove the 79 Trans am daily for 3 years 40 miles each way (2006-2009). I changed jobs and now have a home office so l don't commute to work anymore. I decided to rebuild the transmission and engine as it had high mileage. Using the truck right now if I need to go anywhere. Can't wait to get the T/A back on the road. I had no problem using it as a daily driver and enjoyed using it as one, that's the reason I bought it to be my daily driver. I really didn't want to drive the others daily to include the 2006 GTO (which I bought new). We do have a 2014 Buick Enclave which we use whenever we go somewhere with the kid. The Enclave is safer, but mainly its more reliable only because its newer and has fewer miles on it. I'm sure a low mileage 62-72 Safari wagon would work just as well if I could find one

[Greg Reid]

Originally Posted by b-man

Used to drive several '60s Pontiacs as daily drivers but not anymore.

I prefer the creature comforts and safety features of later model cars for both commuting and toting the family around, my classic Pontiacs are purely for pleasure now.

Once I retire I'll likely drive my classics more often for daily use, but for now risking them during the rush hour commuting craziness is not in the cards.

This^^^
Up until 2004~2005 I was driving some type of '60s or '70s car fairly frequently to work and so forth...2000 and earlier, I was driving almost exclusively '60s cars.
NOW? the traffic is just too crazy around here and at almost any hour. Too many cellphones behind the wheel I think is the real problem.

[moontower69]

Never had a problem using Britax kid seats in my 74 Lemans daily driver. Lap belt keeps it secure and never worried about the crease in the vinyl.

Brought my son home from the hospital in this car to boot.

[Teej]

I've been driving old cars almost my entire life.
First car was a 67 1/2 Datsun 1600 Roadster, very much like Vidguy's. (Ouch)
The rest are in order, but I typically own two at a time. (Work on one, drive one.)
1968 Mercury Cougar
1968 Camaro Convertible
1967 Lemans Convertible
1967 Tempest Wagon
1964 Lemans 2 door
1969 Catalina Wagon
1970 Olds Vista Cruiser
1966 Bonneville Wagon (in work)

Current daily driver is 1958 Chieftain 9 passenger wagon. About 250 miles per week and about 40,000 since I got her on the road.

I installed 3 point belts up front and five point harnesses in the 2nd row for the kids. Once they get taller than the seat, it's going to get complicated.

The wife has a modern car for most of the kid transport, but I still really enjoy my daily drive.