"B" about old cars

Rant:
I love old cars. I love my new wagon. BUT I have only put 35 miles on him. I knew that the rear brake lines were bad and the radiator was shot. I ordered a new rad. No sweat. Took 13 days to get to me. Almost overheated. Found soo much crap in the engine it stopped the t-stat from opening... URG! Now I have been waiting for over a week for the water pump (needed to be replaced as it was very bad)!!!

I like to drive the car more than fix it. I fixed the brake line and now am in the process of adjusting the rear shoes. Luckily they are brand new....

Sorry, we now return to your normal broadcast already in progress,,,,

 

What a concept!

Good thing its not a F.O.R.D.! Fix Or Repair Daily.

 

Nice!!

Found On Road Dead

 

Now, now! No need to get nasty...

 

FORD--first on race day

 

Found On Rev's Driveway?

Hey guys, there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with Ford. They have some wonderful parts on them. Heck, some of my friends drive them and restore them, and thnk very highly of them. I even owned some, once

 

I'm going on Safari to Rev's Ford jungle!

 

F'd on race day
Just kidding.

Anyway, get used to 2 things.
1, fixing old cars. They break until you replace everything on them.
2, you bought a new to you old car. People typically don't sell perfect cars, and if they do they go with a perfect price tag.

If it's any consolation, I bought my cutlass April of 07 and was working on it til June of 09 before I got plates. Imagine my frustration not even being able to drive my own car that I was pouring all this work into. It almost pushed me over the edge a few times, frustration set in, fleeting thoughts of selling and giving up came through my mind too. But in the end I pushed through and from June 09-Now I did nothing at all but drive it and maintain it.
Until of course last Friday when I pulled the old 307 and started putting in my 403 which I have been waiting to do and collecting parts for for 3 years.
Really nice to hear it fire last night, and now I can't wait to drive it again.

 

Oh yeah! Well at least it's not a Pontiac a Piece Of Non Technical Idios...ah hell I give up. Your brand has too many letters in it.

 

The only one I know is "Poor Old Nig%& Thinks It's A Cadillac", but that's not very nice!!!

I like driving better than fixing too, but I've never owned a car (old OR new) that didn't need something. Even when everything is working like clockwork, there is always something I ought to clean that I don't get to...

 

Yeah I know all of those for the Pontiacs!!! I have to say that my last company car was a Ford Taurus X cross over... It was nice.. for a Ford...

I am a little biased. My Grandfather worked for GM for almost 40 years...

Dave

 

Tempest, my other car besides the Colony Park is an '08 Taurus X. I love it.

 

I pretty much only drive older cars - my daily driver is an 84 Custom Cruiser and that's one of the newest cars we own. A couple of lessons learned:

1) Do your own research as to part numbers and applications before you go to the parts store. The "computer" is frequently wrong (or has no listing) when it comes to older cars, and the person behind the counter is usually too young to remember paper catalogs.

2) The MIGHTASWELLS are a slippery slope, but I usually replace all associated parts when I have to make a repair. For example, a new water pump would probably cause me to replace all hoses and belts at the same time (unless I personally knew of their age), and unless I knew when the timing chain was last replaced, I'd probably put one of those in at the same time. Same concept applies to brakes, suspension parts, etc.

3) Parts will be hard to get unless the car is a mainstream car like an Impala or an A-body. Parts for my 62 are virtually nonexistent, and when I find them they take a long time to arrive. Start buying stuff when you see it, don't wait until it breaks. Of course, if you're like me, you forget where you put it and end up buying another one... :banghead3:

 

I know what you mean. My grandfather was a Chrysler mechanic for 40+ years and I still to this day won't touch one of those things

 

That's like my dad. He has accumulated most any parts for his 60 Plymouth he'll need, but he usually forgets he has them when he needs them and winds up going out, searching and buying one and THEN he remembers he has one and exactly where it is.