Need some help and thoughts with a theory about old cars and wagons

The '67 to '72 Trucks around here were becoming easier to find, especially in better condition, as well as being more reasonably priced. When I bought my first one, the '60 to '66 style were on their way back up in value and price. Plus the '67 to '72's are also great trucks. On some of the trucks sites I belong to, I list my years as a fan of "'60-'72" Chevy and GMC trucks.

Bill

 

Personally I don't like a 700R4. Replaced the Powerglide in the 1955 Chevy wagon with a 2004R. A better match size wise to a 350 auto or powerglide. High or overdrive is also higher and low is lower. Only need to move the rear cross member and mount back a few inches.
Son has bought at least three rebuilt 700R4's that did not last and the gaurantees are useless. For his 1985 Chevy truck with 350 he replaced the last 700R4 with later truck five speed. He's very happy with it. Also had to buy a truck flywheel that matched the older 85 engine. I think 86 went to one piece seal and different flywheel.
Only problem with the five speed stick is finding one in a salvage yard.

 

I understand what you are saying, but like KK it is not practical for everyone for different reasons. For KK it is the actual work on the car. For me it is the rust factor. It is hard enough finding a rust free older vehicle. Drive it through 4-5 Michigan winters and it will be done. All of my cars that have been retired have been due to rust issues.

I do like older vehicles, but I work on a lot of newer vehicles on the side. They really are not difficult to work on and understand. They still use the same principles to run as an old engine. You just have to use common sense and realize that a "Check Engine" light code is not always going to tell you what is wrong with your car. I think carburetors are great, but I don't think you can beat fuel injection for drivability and ease of use.

As with any repair it is a cost versus value proposition. A guy at work had me put a new engine in his son's 2002 Chevy Prizm. All told with my labor he paid about $2500 to do it. Is it worth it? Well, the way I see it is, the car is solid and everything else was in reasonable shape. What would it cost to replace that car with something in similar shape that ran and drove well? He'd probably have to spend $4000 to get something equal to what he had. I've got another friend that wants me to put a new engine in their Subaru Outback, but those engines are a bit more expensive so it gets closer to the point where it might make sense to just scrap the car.

I'm sure I'll get a lot of dissenters who pine for the good 'ol days of carbureted engines, four wheel drum brakes, and points distributors, but that is how I see it.

 

I agree that it is harder to accomplish in states that have rust problems.

I also agree that you can still make it work with newer vehicles, but it will take some more expertise and more creativity, along with some luck, lol. Also, the savings won't be as great, but it is still rewarding to accomplish it. One way I am dealing with newer cars, is to hire out on some of the repairs needed. Luckily I have a friend who can work on newer cars and charges me very reasonable prices. Most of the time, we work on the cars together. Not only does that save me some more money, but I also learn a whole lot from it. Finding good quality parts at reasonable prices also helps.

Choosing the right brand and model of car is also important. I've always stuck with American Made cars and always with GM.

Bill

 

Kevin--------I'm sure I'll get a lot of dissenters who pine for the good 'ol days of carbureted engines, four wheel drum brakes, and points distributors, but that is how I see it.
I agree with you 100%. Newer cars are much more fuel efficient and longer lasting. And even where I am from rust is a big issue and not many decent older cars are left. Then again, we wouldn't want to drive even a nice 80's vehicle in snow, ice, and salt. It wouldn't be nice for many more years and most likely spent winters before in a garage or someplace like down south.

Bill. My younger son lives here in Florida and likes tinkering on cars. He does not make much at his regular job or make much working on late model cars for customers. Most of his work is word of mouth, and friends of friends or their neighbors. His problem is he feels sorry for them and works way too cheap. But when he gets a car going it makes everyone happy.
He tells most when it's time to scrap one rather than dollaring them to death. Still some can't afford payments and it costs a lot of time and money to get some going again. Only to fail later when another part wears out.
The main thing with a late model car is to know when to stop throwing money at it. I suppose that's true about an old one too. But at least an old car with a decent body will still be worth saving to someone.
Sometimes it really is cheaper to buy a new or good used engine than to have years of high payments. After all who knows how good that next used car engine is?
Also all of this depends on the weather where you live. In places with lots of cold and snow it may not be practical to only have an old clunker.

 

I've always looked at Florida as one of the better states. Do y'all actually have rust problems there in Chiefland?

 

HA! Someone just posted this in another thread.-----
Quote:
Originally Posted by 101Volts
Keep in mind it's in Ohio. In Ohio and Pennsylvania area rust is an issue; "Florida Car" can mean it has a lot less rust, if any. Though the Mercury I got last month is a Pennsylvania car that was never wintered.

When I lived in Illinois which is similar in weather to Ohio, I used to think like that. Now that I've lived in Florida for 20 years I've seen Florida cars with more rust than those midwestern cars. If the car is a coast car, either coast, the salt air can be a problem. If you don't live in the city and park in a garage, the damp sand can cause major rusting under the car.
In any part of Florida things unpainted like a master cylinder, wheel cylinders, etc will rust even in a garage.
An Illinois or Ohio car stored inside may be better. So don't let FLORIDA CAR or BARN FIND fool you.
__________________

When I added the following i meant where I was from in central Illinois..
Originally Posted by ModelT1
And even where I am from rust is a big issue and not many decent older cars are left.

 

That is kind of a surprise. But now that you say it, when we would take our hotrods ('55 to '57 Chevys back then) to the Beach, we would make sure to wash them good once we got back.

Funny though, Myrtle Beach, SC has become my "2nd home" in the last few years and I haven't noticed much of a rust problem there ??

Also is the West Coast of Florida not as bad as the East Coast?

 

We are roughly 30-35 miles in from the west coast and have spent lots of time with two different old cars on both coasts. Even camped right on the ocean with the 55 Chevy wagon a few times. (Across the highway) Honestly I never noticed any problems. But with a few old cars temporarily sitting on the sand where we and others live the sand seems to hold moisture which rusts frames and things.
Something I was told but never noticed either, late model annodized trim and other side trim will corrode if you spend a lot of time near the beach.
We stayed over a week with the 55 wagon on the main highway (US 1?) camped at Myrtle Beach and didn't even think about it. Possilby things on the beach distracted me!

 

Many different problems have the same symptoms on computerized cars. I'm a GM guy so I speak of 87 and newer. It seams at the ten year mark or 100k it's better to have it hooked up diagnostics machine rather then trail and error and even that can be misleading. My best luck has been maintaining the older carbureted stuff and use direct replacement parts. My chevelle still operates with the spring coil choke with no pumping the gas pedal. Just depress the pedal once and it fires right up. Let it run on high for 2 minutes and tap the pedal and it idles down. That what the owners manual says to start the car. The tuning instructions are under the hood. I still run points so I can tune as the factory suggests. I've have done 2000 mile return road trips. I did need to do a gasket job but the compression was still in spec. Crate engines are very affordable and is only a weekend job on cars like these. Go for another 120k.

 

My "new" car is my '86 Country Squire. My wife's "new" car is an '06 PT ragtop that we bought new - and is the last new car we are likely to buy. I'm allergic to car payments, and so to keep my health good, I'll never have another car payment, if I have any say about it. My Dodge pickup is a '68 half-ton that does everything I need it to do.

 

More years ago than I remember I bought an old Chvy work van (mower repair) for $500. Supposedly the 350 engine and 350 tranny had around 20,000 or so miles on them. Talked to the engine rebuilder in town. Nice guy and very good. He said it had more like 50,000 miles on it and is a 305. Still I got the whole van for $500. Gave son the tranny and used the powerglide a few years till I got tired of it. Already had a swap meet rebuilt 2004R with new torque converter.
Had to replace one head. Ended up getting two rebuilt HP Camaro rebuilt heads from that same engine guy. Really made a difference along with the RV cam it has. Swapped in an HEI dist and new Edelbrock carb. Not the hottest engine in town but it's been very dependable and gets a decent fuel mileage.
Still I wished I'd bought a crate ready to run engine. Makes sense and will last most of us older members a life time.

 

I'd rather have a nice clean older Chevy or Dodge pick up. I broke out in all sorts of rashes and fits of fear after I bought my new 04 Dodge with a Hemi. After ten years about all I can do under that hood is pour liquid in the hole where it says 710!
Lucky it's been fairly trouble free and will be my last car! Wait I said that when I bought the one before that.
I calculate that with higher expenses for everything already we can barely afford to live.......
another week or so! Who can afford car payments?

 

I am currently without a classic car, let alone a wagon, but am casually looking for another (wagon, that is); ideally 1985 or older. I too am a Chevy guy. Since moving to CA, I have gone back and forth between using my classic car as my daily driver versus just as a weekend cruiser, for much of the same reasons mentioned here. (When I lived in NYS my '68 Caprice spent nearly 8 months of the year in storage to avoid exposure to the salt roads, so I had to have a "modern" daily driver).
Since selling my '70 Caprice last October, I've taken on a new car payment (ouch). While I absolutely love my Impala, I am again thinking of getting another classic as my daily driver, especially when my lease on the Impala expires, as will the free service (hence my "casually looking" now). This conversation has further persuaded me in this direction (thank you all ).

 

I made the mistake of selling my 68 chevelle opposed to selling my 99 cavalier in 2006. The 68 was fully restored and I felt that running it all year round was just wreck it. I had 15k into it but everything was new. I took $8500 for it. The cavalier another 3 yrs until it was toast. The chevelle is still running strong today. The car end up owning you too much not to drive them. Worst case you may do body work again ten years down the road. $1500/yr for ten years. Cheap I'd say compared to $6000. I have $15000 into my wagon and I will get the miles out of it if need be.