We’ve all heard about Ferrarris, Porsches, Jaguars and Aston Martins. My question is this:
[ul]What car would you choose for your “daily driver” if you could have any car in the world for free, but still had to pay for gas, maintenance, etc?[/ul]Me? There’s a couple of choices:
[ul]1) Citroen DS-19
A car so far ahead of its time that several were used (credibly) as flying cabs in Back To The Future, Part II.
Chrysler Sebring Coupe
Roomy for a GT, it’s not as fast as a Mustang, but it’s roomy and economical, too.
1968 Toyota Crown
Not a bad car, and easy to maintain (ignoring, for a moment, the difficulty of obtaining parts in New Mexico). My dad test-drove one of these when the energy crisis hit, and got a Datsun 510 wagon instead. Too bad.
1940 Dodge Sedan
My dad used to have one of these when I was a kid. It had running boards and tweed seats (definitely want mohair if I ever get one). It was a fun, old-fashioned car with lots of room and just enough grunt to keep out of its own way.[/ul]Well, okay. There were four. What cars appeal to you?
Well, being a car guy, I think I have pretty good taste.
First off, a 1970, 1971 or 1972 Plymouth Hemi 'Cuda. Sublime green, with the pistol grip 4 speed.
Number 2, 1932 Ford 5 window coupe (pumped up with a small block mopar 340 sixpack would be nice)
Number 3, '65 GTO, 386 with 3 two’s
Number 4, AWW whats the use, I am only 20, I can’t afford any of this crap. Oh wait its freee, I almost forgot.
Ok the last one, James Dean’s spyder.
I prefer slightly odd, little cars. So why do I drive a Taurus?
That Citroen, definitely. Coolest car ever made.
Had a '71 Datsun 510 wagon, so I sympathize. Got it instead of a rusty '67 Firebird 400 ragtop cuz I was moving and thought I needed the space. Big mistake.
The local Toyota dealer has a '70 Corona Mark II in perfect shape, under 30k miles (and good enough shape for it to be true), slate green. My kinda car. Think I’ll stop by tomorrow and ask how much.
'67 Corvair Monza convertible, 140hp, dark blue w/white top and interior. Icy and fast.
Any Karmann-Ghia.
I like Tauri, but have one already. Sturdy, practical, fast enough. Power windows would be nice. Think I have the only '94 without 'em.
But I don’t understand why people would throw enormous amounts of money at M-B S-Series or other hyper sedans. Those fancy things cannot possibly be three times as good as a Taurus or a Camry. Regular cars have gotten that good.
Oh, yeah! A MANLY Land Cruiser! Two seats up front, the face-to-face benches in the back. Not one of those things they sell now. Nat Geog claims some people in the Mid East call them “Monicas” for their “shapely” lines.
Of course, a “real” Land Rover is cooler, but it IS a Rover. The Toyota might start on a regular basis.
What I’m driving now: '95 Maxima. It is mundane-looking, like something Grampa would drive (or at least backed into a wall with), but it is comfortable (and ungoverned).
Fnord, I’m likin’ you better and better.
You ever get that ‘cuda or that GTO, look me up and we’ll go cruisin’.
I’m just a sucker for muscle cars.
But you left out an important one, my friend.
Where’s the Camaro?
Ooh…horsepower…
Me, I want a 68/69 Camaro SS.Red with black racing stripes and black leather interior.And I don’t know what it all means, but I want all the cool sounding stuff like headers and glasspacked mufflers(I know what they are),and,and,a positraction rear-end, and, and, and a Holley Carb, and and and…Oh,yeah, ya gotta jack it up in the back…
OK, they have to be drivable and affordable. Kudos on the DS, by the way. A fantastic car indeed.
Here are my choices:
Peugeot 306 GTi-6. I have a 306 now, but it’s the weaker 75 hp version. Great car, superb handling, but it needs more power. The GTI-6 is simply the best hot hatch available. It eats Golf GTI’s for breakfast.
Peugeot 205 GTi 1.9. I used to have a 205, but not the GTi. The 205 GTi is simply the greatest boy racer ever built, and it is loads of fun to drive. No longer in production.
A nice MG-a, or any other MG that does NOT have rubber bumpers. Chrome please.
A Land Rover, although it WOULD be expensive to drive.
A Morgan Plus 8 PI. Sure, it’s above budget NOW. But I know I’ll be able to afford one in about 8 years or so. Click here to see why I love it so much.
OK, this IS a long shot. But I one day want to own a Ferrari 512 BB. Let the boy dream
When I wsa in high school, I worked for a landscaping company. We had this 1972 Ford stakebody duelly diesel. No power steering, no power brakes, no AC, AM mono, and a front right fender (the best looking part of the truck) straight out of the junkyard. I loved driving this thing. Ford’s new superduties are nice, but it’s like you’re driving a damn car. They don’t even come close to what this thing was like. I’m not sure I could afford to keep it on the road, though. I’d have to buy oil in 55 gallon drums.
I had a Triumph GT-6 that was lots of fun, especially if you liked to work on cars (setting the valves was a weekly thing, and, as with most British Leyland offerings, little stuff like door handles and windshield wipers were apparently decorative).
Another fun one was my 1975 Plymouth Gran Fury Police Interceptor - sort of like the NASCAR option - no frills, but rugged and fast. A Blues Brothers car (although I think theirs was a '74 Dodge - same car, really).
Nowadatys though I’m happy driving a BMW 735i. I might like a newer one someday, but it’s comfy, reliable and has got plenty of get up and go.
I want all my old cars back. Loved every one of them:
1967 Chevy Impala, yellow, with a 283.
1967 Chevy Camaro, 327, silver w/ black rally stripes.
1969 Chevy Pickup, 3 on the tree, puke green with a 283
1971 Datsun 240Z, with a race-prepped motor (triple weber carbs, 11:1 compression, roller bearings, the works)
1983 Camaro Berlinetta -
1994 Ford Mustang
Every one of those vehicles was great. I’ve been really lucky with my cars. I’ve never had significant unscheduled maintenance (except the 1967 Camaro - I kept breaking parts of the car after dropping in the 425HP motor). My 1983 Camaro was mine until 1996, and in that whole time I never put a nickel into it other than gas and oil and two tune-ups. Oh, and I replaced the tires once.
Now that we’re parents of a toddler, all the sporty stuff is gone, and we’ve got a 1997 Taurus and a 2000 Windstar. Both are great vehicles, probably better than any of the other ones on my list. Just not much fun.
