If your mopar is you daily driver!

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Agree with price of newer car versus MPG for the most part (new web acronym alert- FTMP).

I am currently running three vehicles (2000 Dakota, 2003 P/T and 1973 Satellite) for less than the cost of payments on a newer car.

All cars owned free and clear cost about $900 a year for basic liability insurance and about $200 a year for registration. We get a small break on "antique" registration in FL.
I should probably add in maint costs, as we've had about $900 on the P/T (A/C and Timing belt) this year and $600 on the Dakota (A/C). I don't do those repair, but do a lot that doesn't require special tools/recovery system.

NOT having a $400+ monthly car payment sure can buy a lot of gas for the 14 average MPG Dakota and Satellite and the 26 average MPG P/T.

I'm itching for a manual trans classic, and an o/d trans in an A body would fit the bill nicely, and still not be equal to that $400/month "new" car payment.


PS- bonus material for cost consious "money" minded folks-

I own stock in three "oil related" companies- BP, Sunoco Logistics, and Pembina Pipline.

The dividends from my investments in these companies pays back about 40% of what I spend at the gas pump!
If I'm paying them, they might as well be paying me!
So far I've got about 16K invested (8K plus gains). My goal for the mid-term is to have the dividends cancel out the at the pump costs :)
They've also appreciate quite nicely Pembina is up 25% for the holding period, Sunoco Logistics has (wait for it) TRIPPLED, and BP is "beat up", is up about 5% but could recover back to pre0spill prices which would be about a 25-33% gain!
 
Taking into consideration the payment on a new car and repairs you can no longer do. Use that for fuel on what you have .You will still be ahead of the game
 
TrailBeast said:
We are, or I am anyway.

My insurance is almost nothing, as is my license and registration.
Parts are cheap relative to new cars, and I can do all the work myself.
It is highly reliable and I wouldn't hesitate to take off for the east coast with it (right now)
I have not had a no start and run situation for years.

I can stand some pretty high gas prices and still come out the end ok.

One of my kids friends had to take thier car in for a scheduled maint timing belt change and all said and done it was $1,200 bucks.
Thats a lot of gas.
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Yeah new car parts are a fortune , starter cost 300 , alternator another 200 , my Dart 30-80 for a starter , alternator 40.00 , my 2009 cars cost double or triple in repairs compared to the Dart , only problem in 3 years 10,000 miles was a ballast resistor 2.00 and 15 minutes .
 
In 1990-1993 I drove a 65 Barracuda with /6 and 3-speed on the column. It was great on gas, but didn't look that great due to all the rust in the quarters. I drove it for 2 years in AK and then drove it to SC. Man, she was a great car. Back then I never realized how good I had it. After I sold her, I heard she ended up in Blue & Gold salvage yard north of Charleston, SC.

Those daily drivers are still out there, not as common, but most people today don't want something without A/C and all the other amenities they've become accustomed to. I'm guilty of it as well.
 
Im driving my 02 2500 d4x4 diesel right now as my daily, it has right around 480-500 rwhp on street tunes and i can eek out 18mpg out of it. I'll stick with driving that vs an econo box.
 
For the price of an overdrive you can buy a 40 mpg car off Craigslist. I'd recommend a 1st Gen neon with a manual or a late 90s early 2000s Saturn with a stick. They almost give away the parts for these cars and they are simple to work on.
 
I'm putting an overdrive in my Dart , now it's getting 25 mpg highway , figure with an overdrive and a change in gears I'm hoping for better all around mileage . Don't drive much city , but the 3.23 are not great in the city ,3.55 or 3.73 and the overdrive should give me the best overall highway city mileage , at least I hope so .
Even with $6.00 plus gas I see plenty of pickups and other cars with bad gas mileage on the road , summer I see lots of trucks pulling speedboats , now there is a combo that eats gas .
 
Up until recently I drove the Duster on a daily basis except for weekends when I was working on it. It should be back on the road within a couple of months if I can get off my lazy butt and put the glass back in... Best mileage with the slant was 24 on the hwy with a carter BBD and a 833-OD. Worst, 12 around town with the turbo ;)
The goofy thing is that the 2006 quest wont get any better than 22 PERIOD! I just swapped in a 99 360 and kept the OEM fuel injection and hope to be right there with what I was getting before and it can sit for a month and with one kick of the key, it's lit
Do the math on total cost of ownership. Include car payments,insurance, maintenance and repairs as well as fuel costs. You may be surprised where you end up...
This thread has every all kinds of responses, and I've thought the same way everyone here. Some days I measure in smiles per gallon and some days I have a stroke watching the gas pump. Just depends on if you can stomach it and find a happy place...I see now I'm of no help, sorry :D
 
There's been a lot of hinting around at the reality....you never come out ahead buying a new car vs. used even if the new one get's 40mpg highway.

By the time you factor in payments, interest, annual registration and taxes plus the maintenance and small repairs...the 40mpg savings mean nothing.

My job pays me .32 per mile to drive my car around to the places I work at, and the math tells me I would almost cover the costs of a new car with what mileage pays me. Or, I can drive my Plymouth or that little Susucki Reno and pocket everything past gas and maintenance.
 
My daily driver is my restored fully loaded 93 Dodge W-250 with a modified Cummins and a built trans and a low stall converter, also acts as tow rig and plow truck and has been raced before lol does cool burnouts. Fun ride but rough riding way to get 24 avg mpg
 
My '74 D100 is my daily driver and I'm 22. The MPGs are like 12-14 ~ just normally running around town. Not really sure on highway. I know it does 14+.

what will the Mopar enthusiast look like in 10 years? like me, 10 years older. lol.

O/D 4 speed and a slant with a small turbo is what I suggest. push like 4-5lbs and gain some gas mileage. it can be done on a very tight budget. but as everyone is saying, the rest of the parts outside of the tranny get expensive
 
I'm gonna add dual quads and a four speed and more gear hook the airboat to the back of it and enjoy the gas prices while I still can.....might as well have a smile on my face :)
 
My current daily is a '75 Dart Sport. Been my daily since I was able to drive it. Had it since sophomore year. Set up right now is a 225 and 904 auto. I get around 12-15 freeway; and a little better on freeway. I'm only 17 ! I'm still carrying on the young mopar driver tradition . I'm building a 360/727 set up for it at the moment. I'll still drive it everyday.
 
72bluNblu said:
My Challenger is still my daily driver, after about 5 years and over 40k miles. It has a pretty stock 318/904 in it, although I added a 4 barrel and headers and I run 3.23 gears out back. With that set up I get around 12mpg in town, and around 15-16mpg highway. I drive it like a musclecar, so I know I could do better in the mpg department if I lifted a little. :D
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I believe you there. Was turning into a parking lot one day when I heard some tires peeling out....only to see a blue Challenger raking it around the corner :glasses7:.

I daily drive my slant six. 19-22mpg at all times whether it's city or highway. Unless gas gets ridiculous, I'm not going to stop driving it. If it gets bad, I'll do the math and see if it's that much cheaper to get something better on mileage. As of now, low insurance, no car payment and not having to spend hundreds of dollars to have a mechanic change a starter or alternator is why I still drive it.
 
I have been daily driving my old 78 power wagon for the last two weeks because of road conditions, It will get 15.5 mpg running in 2wd and keeping the speed below 55 mph.
I had to run it for a week with the 4wd locked in and the milage went down to 10 mpg.
The wifes 11 caliber gets about 30 mpg on average.
My 12 challenger averages 22 mpg if I can keep my foot out of it.
Our 03 Wrangler gets 17.5 tank after tank.
 
67Signet said:
And gas gets to be better than $5.00 a gallon and it will
what will u do good idea to plan now ?
We don't see enough old daily driver Mopar's as it is.
I'll keep driving my V8 Dart.

Will there be a run on slants/273's L.O.L
Not by the hotrod V8 people.

Planning ahead I have both a slant (My daily driver a body)Signet
and a v8 a body Dart for enjoyment.
Good call.

But I got to thinking that if I had just the v8 as a daily driver
how truly brutal that would be, and see the options I could face

I have kids so I try to be as practical as possible:
so remember I could only pick one
I have four ranging from 21-38

1. Over drive trans, (big costly project for noobie)
2.Swap a slant in and run v8 only during summer (you get a back up motor and trans just in case)
3.drive something else better on gas scooter or ?(not good with kids)
4.swap a new generation combo(better mileage motor but costly)
For a low buck noobie:

I kinda think its a good Idea to have a spare motor and trans
I personally would temp drive a under powered slant than give up my old classic as a daily driver.
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So am I in left field here? My 21 yr old daughter wants a Dart but cant afford 2 cars so for someone like her... what would be the best plan?
Let her do what you did (made a life, worked for what you got, and bought yourself a well earned hobby/car)
How many crappy cars did you have to drive during your life so you could end up with the things you wanted?

If she were to bust her but and buy.. build a nice car she would not be able to use it daily she couldn't take it on a trip out of state at 14 miles a gallon.
Same decisions we all face. (Can I afford this?)
Obviously she currently cannot.

My suggestion is to find a nice slant car and start looking and collecting parts for a future swap but she wants to have a mean chromed v8.and i tell her If she chooses that path she will be:walk: more than driving.
Same things you went through getting older and being responsible with your money. (AFTER you made it) not have someone else handle the burden for you.

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Do you see most future young guns buying slant cars? what will the new mopar enthusiast look like in 10 yrs?
Same as now, only maybe they have more money. :)
what would be your suggestion?
People complain about the costs of building Mopars I think gas price's might be the bigger deterrent now. I have a 14 yr old too and she wants an a body barracuda I think i will find her a slant before she gets set in stone..LOL
Again, she needs a reliable car also and also might make the decision down the road to add a classic to the garage.
(If she can afford it, and pays the dues just like the rest of us that did it)
Incuding yourself.

I have worked hard to pass the hobby to my kids and look forward to sharing the shows and the road with them.
let me here from all of you.
Dads speak up!
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Me too.
I show them that having a goal and doing what it takes to get there is a most satisfying feeling, as I drive off in my Dart and they are waiting for Mom to get back so they can borrow her car (that they won't even bother to check the oil on)
No matter what anyone says, it's always better taken care of and most appreciated when you do it yourself.

Young working people have no business driving classics unless they are in a position to do so on thier own in my oppinion.

Let them, or help them buy VW's, Honda's, Nissan's, or Kia's and they can save up for a classic if they are still willing when they find out what it actually takes to aquire and own one.
Kids hate it when you do what is best for them.:-D



 
"I have worked hard to pass the hobby to my kids and look forward to sharing the shows and the road with them.
let me here from all of you.
Dads speak up"!

You Got that right. My wife and I have made a lot of sacrifices for our 4 and 6yr old girls. Private Christian school so they will be away from the sagging pants wearing rap listening idiots. Shooting matches (great class of people), and fun/scary rides in my 66 Barracuda. My girls are growing up knowing how to work on old cars, shoot guns, and preparing for college.

$5 a gallon? Well I'll just have to pay it.
 
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