Overhaulin'

Would a classic car be a bad choice as a primary car?

Would a 80's model year car be worth the investment or would I be asking for trouble? I would probably want it as a daily driver, but I don't want anything super fancy. I've always been in love with the 81-85 El Camino's, Monte Carlo's, Regals, pretty much anything GMC. I like the stock/muscle look so I wouldn't molest it with over-sized wheels or anything (love rally wheels). I would probably only put money into things such as interior, engine, and body work (of course). Here is my thought on these particular cars; parts are everywhere=cheap, older cars are more simplistic in terms of troubleshooting and maintenance, insurance (liability) would be cheaper, tags, if current, would be cheaper, and a trip to the shop probably wouldn't kick my ass. I would still be keeping my current car, 96 Honda Accord, but I just want something different, newer cars are nice but expensive, everything about them are expensive, and a nice 1985 El Camino just seem like a better answer for a younger person who can't afford a nice ass car along with the higher insurance, and maintenance costs. I figured instead of making payments on something new, why not put that money into a car that will never go out of style. EVERYONE can respect a classic. And I am very aware of the risks you take in buying cars that old, It could come with all sorts of problems, gas guzzlers, might not be as safe as modern cars, etc., but my answer to some of those is that I figured for one of the cars that I mentioned, I could get a pretty nice one, restored where it counts, with nothing special added, for at least $4000-$5000, keep in mind what type of classic I am talking about, not a Corvette, Mustang, GTO, Chevelle, but cars that were common in its day but super appealing now. Any advice would be appreciated, just share your thoughts. Thanks.

Public Comments

1. The issue is your daily driver will be an old car and they are prone to break down more than newer cars. So maintenence would be higher as well as the "trouble" dealing with repairs. That might be partially offset by less depreciation, at lease hopefully. But much depends on the price you pay. Understand that such cars can be very hard to sell unless you underprice it a great deal.
2. Actually El Caminos/gmc cabaeros are still popular. In fact GM builds a modern version in Australia, The Holden Ute. http://www.holden.com.au/vehicles/ute#/overview Why GM does not bring these here is why the company is so screwed up. That is something cool. Not the rental car crap they have to sell today. Oh, I digress.... Your best bet is check online for nice rust free models from like CA,TX, AZ. Since they don't have a bunch of electronics, they are not hard to fix. You can swap motors to a v6 if you wish. In my area it has been a while since I passed one on a used lot. If you can find a restored one, for that price go for it.
3. Old cars are cheaper, yes, but they are cheaper because you can pay cash for them and anything after that is just maintenance. If they don't break down, OK, but when they do, the shop isn't likely to have the parts sitting around in a warehouse. When your mechanic has the car in the shop for two weeks, waiting on a parts supplier to manufacture some silly little thing like a suspension bushing or a piece for the emissions system that has corroded into dust, then you'll be driving the Accord. And the electronics don't get troubleshot with a code reader that says "That's broken, go change it." Nooo. Get ready to form a close bond with a pair of multi-meter leads. Body parts aren't as plentiful as you might think either. Most salvage yards only keep cars ten years or newer. Yes, you can buy a parts car, but nobody really wants to have a parts car sitting in their backyard collecting rust. Insurance on a car 25 years or older is also tricky - your insurance company doesn't want to see it driven 15,000 miles a year. It's hard to put valuation on those cars because the average selling value is all over the place. A junker might sell for $300, but then a beautifully resto-modded example might sell for $30,000. I'm not saying you shouldn't buy the El Camino. You might be very happy with it, it might run for 10 years with only normal maintenance and by then you'll be ready for something different as a daily driver. Just consider everything before you jump into it.
4. it really depends on the condition of the car. Still see a few 80s caminos on the road. If you look and have patience you can find some clean ones that shouldn't give you to much trouble. I had a 67 Pontiac lemans. It had been restored 10 years before I bought it. so basically i was driving a 10 year old car. It was a daily driver and served me well. I drove it form South Carolina to Nebraska and back with no issues. Now I have a 77 IH Scout. I bought it as a project. it does have some things that need attention but I was aware of it when I bought it. not my first choice as a daily driver. So far it has served well. I've actually had worse luck with newer cars. If you want my 2 cents. get you a good cheap dependable daily driver. and save some cash for a classic for the weekends.