New car vs. Restored classic?, What are the possibilities? Options

[JeffBowlsby]

In another post it was said. ‘Wife bought a new Bronco in 2022. We sold it a few months ago and bought a 1972 Bronco to replace it.’

Been pondering the same dilemma. Not talking about sports cars in this thread.

New cars are expensive to buy, maintain, repair and insure. Loaded with tech, and numerous features they can be very complicated. Even lower cost new cars can fit this description. A recent article says new cars average $50K now, even an F150 pickup is reportedly $65K. The new cars we really want can be over six figures. New cars depreciate like rocks whereas vintage car values are much more stable. I’m thinking fully restored cars that would pass a thorough PPI. No project cars. No complicated cars. No “they only made X of these” with an inflated cost. No 40 Ford restorods or Model As. Nothing particularly ostentatious.

I think the possibilities, risks, rewards of a good quality vintage car instead of new could be advantageous. We need to consider at least reliability, availability of shops that can provide service, parts availability. Certainly reasonable safety is important which most older cars are not well equipped. Collector insurance may help reduce costs if that fits the situation.

Which specific vehicles would you consider as good candidates for a family car be it a sedan, SUV or minivan? Both domestic and imports, low mileage, well cared for. Condition is more important than collectibility. Probably A/C is a must but could be retrofitted. Want to focus on vehicles that would be reliable as daily drivers.

I am thinking of 60s-70s Chevys, Fords, 2000s Hondas and Toyotas. 1975 and earlier would be beneficial to those of us in CA. Valued at something less than $50K. What are your ideas?

[fiacra]

I have to say I have been loving the 1983 Volvo 240 sedan that my neighbor passed on to me when she stopped driving. I've put in some time sorting it out and they are easy to work on, reliable, safe, and parts are easy to come by and reasonably priced. This one will go to my godchild once I'm finished, but I might have to get one for myself. So, my contribution here is to suggest a Volvo 240 sedan or wagon, affectionately known as "bricks." As a bonus, you can get one with a turbo. And, I think they all came standard with child seats (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[wonkipop]

one word - toyota.
one decade - 90s.

its called a camry in australia.

parts. still available. in abundance. at least down here.
i know several architects who maintain them as office cars.
and as we all know. architects pretend to have money........ (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)


the big problem with older cars is the parts are drying up.

and the big problem with modern cars is they are a big problem, either happening or waiting to happen. one word. plastic. all over the engine and part of the engine.

but you are correct mr. b in thinking that if you only have to have a car that rolls for the next decade or so, the smart move is not to go new. but you have to choose wisely in terms of the old if its a reliable appliance that is required. a t camry is considered by many to be the beetle of the current confused and distressing age we live in.

i myself have the 94 ford falcon ute. straight six. stoneage tech. with a three on the tree slur box. but you don't have those in the USA.
it always goes, anywhere i have to go, doing any job i have to do. and if i did not have that i would have a camry. and its got a cabin like a 914. two seats, glass right behind my skull and a pretend third passenger. steering - not quite 914. but parts still in reasonable abundance. and it gets as many thumbs up driving it as the 914. aussie aussie aussie type nationalistic carry on. but you know, no one hates you driving it. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[Dave_Darling]

90s Honda Civics. You probably remember my CRX--there were actually two of them, one which I totalled and another that replaced it. Drove them for years and years, good fun, good on gas, reliable, easy to work on for the most part.

Civic hatchbacks or sedans, if you can find them in good relatively original shape, would be great as well.

Mechanical bits are still, for the most part, available. Trim and body is more difficult.

The main drawback I can think of is that they're not the most robust in a collision.

--DD

[Jack Standz]

Arguably better than a bronco.

Porsche 955 (or 957, 958).

First, it's a Porsche. An "SUV" that handles like a 911 Carrera. And unlike a 914, it carries 5 adults in luxury. Awesome offroad (search for Transiberian race history) that can be improved upon with some modifications, depending on your preferences or intended use. Will run laps around any Bronco (just to point out one feature, it has 7,700 pounds of towing capacity).

Many possibilities for modifications, comes in different flavors (V6, quad cam V8, diesel, twin turbos), and can still be found at reasonable prices (take your time looking).

Downsides: avoid one that has bore scoring issues (do research and inspect before purchase), the V8s have really bad gas mileage (but, there are hybrid ones, although those are hard to find and tend to command higher prices).

Bought one 4 1/2 years ago and the only regret is that we didn't get one sooner. An awesome vehicle that is so comfortable you might drive your 914 a lot less, although you can use it to bring along (tow) your 914 (last month towed the 914 over 2,000 miles without any issues).

And its a Porsche. It's dead sexy too (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Best wishes for your search.

[mepstein]

Classic car insurance only really works if you have a daily driver and don’t put many miles on the car.
Older Hondas and Toyotas without a ton of mileage might work but unless you live in CA, most cars 20 years or older are rusty.
A restored car from the 70’s is a niche / enthusiast product. It’s not a daily driver for 99%.
It’s also very hard to finance an older car.
But I do agree, new car prices are obscenely high right now. It doesn’t seem sustainable in the current economy. I imagine prices will explode once the full effect of tariffs kick in.

[emerygt350]

When I was looking for my mustang I was considering something fun like an escort gt or glh horizon but the parts are just not there for those disposable cars. However, if you pick a common old car with a big following (mustang for example), parts are cheap and plentiful. If I were going to stop daily driving my fun cars I would probably look for a 4 cylinder hatch. Not because I think the fox body is any kind of tech marvel, but because I know I could keep it running forever. Camry is great, so is carolla and many other 90s cars, just not sure about the parts market for the kind of items you will need to replace as it hit 40 years old.


And I really do think driving old is smart. Modern cars are soooo over teched. The 2004 mini I bought is just on the cusp of stupid but still a car.

[mepstein]

Arguably better than a bronco.

Porsche 955 (or 957, 958).

First, it's a Porsche. An "SUV" that handles like a 911 Carrera. And unlike a 914, it carries 5 adults in luxury. Awesome offroad (search for Transiberian race history) that can be improved upon with some modifications, depending on your preferences or intended use. Will run laps around any Bronco (just to point out one feature, it has 7,700 pounds of towing capacity).

Many possibilities for modifications, comes in different flavors (V6, quad cam V8, diesel, twin turbos), and can still be found at reasonable prices (take your time looking).

Downsides: avoid one that has bore scoring issues (do research and inspect before purchase), the V8s have really bad gas mileage (but, there are hybrid ones, although those are hard to find and tend to command higher prices).

Bought one 4 1/2 years ago and the only regret is that we didn't get one sooner. An awesome vehicle that is so comfortable you might drive your 914 a lot less, although you can use it to bring along (tow) your 914 (last month towed the 914 over 2,000 miles without any issues).

And its a Porsche. It's dead sexy too (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Best wishes for your search.

We are doing a safari build for a customer. So much easier than air cooled cars. Just order parts and bolt them on. Car is a 2013 manual so wasn’t cheap but pretty cool build.

[GregAmy]

There are a lot of advantages to older cars, some of which you extol. Another is simply overall cost: cheaper insurance, and cheaper property taxes. In CT, any car on a classic plate is assessed at $500 for property tax purposes. The insurance on my 2011 GTi is 2/3 of what it is for my wife's 10-yr-newer car.

And I can work on all of those.

I have a 1974 914 street car, which IMO is too old to be a good daily all-year driver. Too small, too tinny, no good radio, no good insulation, marginal heater for CT, etc. Plus, its value is increasing way too much to justify driving it daily. It's a "classic" and I treat it as such.

I also have a 1992 968. This is more of a modern car and represents an era where having a classic becomes rational. Still capable of being worked on and still fun to drive but stronger, safer, better equipment. It feels modern and is engaging.

Right now, the 1990s is the sweet spot.

And then there's the 2011 GTI. That car came to me new and it replaced a 2000 Audi S4, which I adored. But the Audi was more complex, had some equipment with a history of regular failure (suspension links and turbos) and was expensive to own once it started getting on in miles. I replaced is with the GTI for those reason and that replacement has been a delight in operation and maintenance since.

Its one concern is Northeast rust, of course. I'm since "pretired" (laid off and not looking hard) but if I had to commute daily in CT I'd give that last statement second thought.

When the 968 arrived, and I got all its DAPO stuff fixed, I often quoted myelf out loud, "if anything ever happens to the GTI, I'll just dump it and daily drive the 968." Well, something happened to the GTI a couple weeks ago:

https://tgadrivel.blogspot.com/2025/09/on-r...y-bus-ride.html

I began to give thought to if I was gonna follow that advice and I decided that, no, the GTI gives me enough utility that instead of taking a check and running, it's worth saving. So I am.

Where am I going with this? For this crowd, I suggest the sweet spots are 1990s through 2010s. Before that they're "too classic", and after that they're "too complicated and spendy". For example, if the GTI cannot be repaired, I'd probably look at a mid-00s Acura TSX with a K24A2, 205hp, 6-speed, fantastic chassis, approachable maintenance/repair. Or maybe another Mk6 GTI. Or maybe I'd jump on the B-series wagon with a late-90s Integra GSR with the B18C1.

Lots of options when you stop thinking you need a new car. - GA

[flipb]

I've been daydreaming lately about maybe getting an old Saab 900 SPG to daily. Not gonna do it, but it's a fun thought. Would be entertaining to drive and good for all seasons, but also a maintenance headache.

[Superhawk996]

one word - toyota.
one decade - 90s.

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

98’ Camry. Terribly boring appliance. But high hundreds of thousands (millions?) were made which largely solves the parts availability concerns. These cars redefined the meaning of reliability. Stealth invisibility cloaking - cops cannot see this car. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/av-943.gif)

Drove it 5000+ miles cross country earlier this year.

Actually took that vehicle over a 2012 BMW X5 simply because anyone can fix the Toyota. Not so much for overly complicated German machinery.

I’ve always loved the 2009(ish) Acura TL with SH-AWD which is their name for torque vectoring. Amazing handling (for a pig of a sedan). Comfortable. Reliable. Parts aren’t as readily available as the 90s Toyotas. Not as easy to work on as a 90s Toyota Camry. Would be a strong 2nd choice for me.

2012 - 2014 is about as new as I would ever consider. Vehicle complexity went way up and overall reliability starts to diminish pretty quickly after that era. Transmissions with too many gears and fragility. Too much active safety (ADAS) crap started infiltrating the industry. Move away from V6’s towards the now ubiquitous 2.0L turbocharged four cylinder that is too highly stressed. On and on. . .

[Jack Standz]

I also have a 1992 968. This is more of a modern car and represents an era where having a classic becomes rational. Still capable of being worked on and still fun to drive but stronger, safer, better equipment. It feels modern and is engaging.

Greg, we also have a 968 Cabriolet.

Sorry my friend, but wouldn't call owing one as "rational" (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (especially as a daily driver). Aggregating all years of production, Porsche imported only something like 2,008 to North America and about the same number of coupes. So many parts are NLA, new or used. If available, some parts are quite expensive. It's also uses an interference motor, so if you're late on timing belt maintenance or unlucky, and the belt breaks, you're looking at a very expensive fix and probably one that few could handle with tools in their garage.

For those reasons and others, don't think this meets the OP's criteria.

Don't get it wrong, we believe the 968 is an amazing "luxury sportscar" and really fun to drive (especially with the 6 speed manual transmission). Dead sexy too (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)


Edit: 968s also have a strange 19 pin round OBD connector and use Porsche Durametric software that is hard to find and expensive and most comfortable using older operating systems (Windows XP, Vista 7, etc.) software.

[carr914]

all of my cars are Old ( kinda like me (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) )

I daily drive a 2003 Acura RSX ( friggen great car)
have Two 1990 944s2 Convertibles

[Optimusglen]

Taking Classic to be 30 years old or older, the 90's is probably the sweet spot, but a little newer has some options too.

The Volvo 850 (and the 855 waqgon) are great options for comfort, reliability, and safety. Could even get an 850R for a factory sporty version. These had galvanised bodies, and a really interesting rear suspension design that makes them pretty fun to drive.

I had an 855 (turbo 5-cyl, FWD)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/live.staticflickr.com-19709-1760622243.1.jpg)

and also had a 1st gen V70R (turbo 5-cyl, AWD)

(my apologies for the atrocious photo edit)

(IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/uploads_offsite/live.staticflickr.com-19709-1760622244.2.jpg)

[brant]

I have 5 cars and many motorcycles


The newest is my 2003 Cummins tow vehicle
My daily a 2000 ford ranger

Maintenance is my specialty and they all need it often

Wife has 2 newer vehicles
One electric that I don’t have to maintain

[Steve]

I also love Toyotas. We have a 2002 sequoia with 300k miles on it. Original drive train. We also have a 2016 4Runner. Due to the epa idiots, the sequoia now has a turbo v6 instead of the v8 and the 4Runner now has a turbo 4 instead of a v6. I’m not a fan of turbo’s in off road vehicles and there were issues with these new motors.

[Superhawk996]

Maintenance is my specialty and they all need it often

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/lol-2.gif)

[Lockwodo]

When I was looking for my mustang I was considering something fun like an escort gt or glh horizon but the parts are just not there for those disposable cars. However, if you pick a common old car with a big following (mustang for example), parts are cheap and plentiful. If I were going to stop daily driving my fun cars I would probably look for a 4 cylinder hatch. Not because I think the fox body is any kind of tech marvel, but because I know I could keep it running forever. Camry is great, so is carolla and many other 90s cars, just not sure about the parts market for the kind of items you will need to replace as it hit 40 years old.


And I really do think driving old is smart. Modern cars are soooo over teched. The 2004 mini I bought is just on the cusp of stupid but still a car.

Another vote here for a mustang. '88-'93 5.0 fox bodies are great, parts are plentiful, easy to work on, qualify for classic car insurance, and the resale values are going up.

[JeffBowlsby]

Classic car insurance only really works if you have a daily driver and don’t put many miles on the car.

Wifes car is a newer Honda, daily driver. Car #2 is an older Honda for the grunt work and it qualifies us for a multicar insurance discount, so its basically a free car.

The other cars in our stable are on collector insurance (JC Taylor), no mileage limitations, but with 3-4 cars to choose from we dont drive any of them much.

[Root_Werks]

Don't use Collector car insurance or Collector plates on any of our vehicles. All vehicles can be driven at any time as much as we want. Three of our cars have stated values.

I think my wife and I reached the limit of model years when it comes to cars. I'll say it's likely the mid to late 90's. ODBII is nice, but get too new and one module can control too much or need special software to diagnose.

We have specific models we like, but all that is just personal preference.

It's hard to think a 2025 mainstream vehicle will be on the road 30 years from now. Most newer models seem so....fragile if that makes sense?