Daily driver = how high or low tech would you go?

[Crosley.In.AZ]

I hope to keep this mostly simple on discussion of a daily driver vehicle.  

A vehicle you would use daily to - from work.  Get the family in it and travel 250 or 2,000 miles for  a road trip.

How high or low tech are you for this vehicle?  I am thinking about backing up on the tech in my daily driver truck.

No safety air bags, ABS , stability control?

Would you use  a carburetor  engine or EFI?

Would you use  a carburetor , with points dizzy or electronic dizzy?

I hope  folks  understand what i  am asking.

Would you use a 1948 Chevy with an EFI engine and transmission?  Or use a straight 6 with 3 speed and over drive?

or buy a 2011 vehicle to just drive and not worry about nuttin cept the payment ( if you had one)
I am curious

[32coupe]

At this very moment I have a 1992 model little compact ford (jap model) that a freind of mine gave to me because he was sick of looking at it.
It still has a few months of registration, so it's perfect.
It's a 5sp manual, with air but no power anything.
Can't complain about the price

[Carnut]

Heh, heh, my answer to that question is my 02 PT Cruiser meant to be my daily driver while I was working.

Now since I knew I would be running 'Big N Littles' on the Cruiser I specifically ordered it with without ABS, but otherwise it's loaded.

Now that I'm retired my Charger and my Chrysler are my daily drivers and I only drive my 02 PT Cruiser once a month or so.

If had to go somewhere like work everyday I'd go with a latemodel ride.

Now that I'm retired, I really enjoy driving my old tech rides. But both my Charger and Chrysler do have factory electronic ignition retrofitted but no A/C.

[Topsterguy]

When I build a car, throughout the whole build I've got one thing in the back of my mind - will I be able to fix this on the side of the freeway? That's why I keep everything as simple as possible, because I drive my cars a lot and long distances, and sure as hell eventually somethings going to go south on it. The 40 pickup I'm just finishing and the 32 roadster are the first cars that haven't had point distributors! I've heard horror stories about modules going and you can't fix them without another module - with points you can always get going. Same with ignition boxes - I had one die on me in the middle of nowhere and wired around it....tore it out when I got home!  Just my preference I guess!

[chimp koose]

my daily driver. 65 ford 1/2 ton,240-6, carb,points,3 on the tree. 5years of faithful service so far. $124/year ins. Longest trip 600 miles each way.I am about to replace it because the cab floor is not worth fixing for a beater. I just hauled the replacement home tonight.65 mercury 1/2 ton ,240 from the ford will go in with a fresh timing set,4 speed (wife and son find 3on tree difficult). Just to make it simple I will keep the points and carb but I have been thinking about swapping to fuel injection ,electronic ignition and maybe a header in the future.The thing that holds me back from the upgrades is that this thing is so easy to fix.

[enjenjo]

For a daily, cheap, reliable, economical, in that order. With the salt here, it doesn't take many winters to ruin a car. So I am not picky about a daily. When I am done with one they have little value to anyone, and are generally scrapped. I'be had very little trouble with electronics failing

[zzford]

I am a firm believer in K.I.S.S.. If I were to build a daily driver from an early car, it would be a carburated small block with HEI. A/C and radio would be the only options. If you had a Mustang II front end, I'd go with PS. Use only over the counter stuff on the car. You'd end up with a car that is reliable and you could fix it on the side of the road. Just for cheap insurance, I'd carry a spare HEI module. I have done that for years and never had to use it.

[sirstude]

My daily driver is a 2001 GMC 1/2 ton short box, regular cab.  Gets pretty good mileage, drive nice, and fits me.  It was a total, so not in it a bunch.  We don't have a many issues with the salt here, although they are starting to put the liquid stuff on the roads here in the winter, so rust is not such an issue.  I expect to drive the truck for another 10 years or so.

Doug

[Arnold]

Some of you guys/gals..gotta get with the program hehe.

  Daily driver=155L  gas tank..for starters.
  1994 GM 1 ton HD extended window van. Serious "tankage". Ya..err..a bit dog eared.
  I do a LOT! of driving. I LOVE this TANK!  LOl..so does my big dog. Sits on the psgr seat head out the window barking. Great vehicle.
 My other daily driver..03 Focus wagon. My last 3 daily drivers. Ford Escort wagons. Great vehicles.

 My next daily driver. (the Focus is in really great! shape. But I never drive it. Sits in the driveway. Dog doesn't like this as much. He is too big. ) will probablly be..
  when the van starts to break down..another full size van..another GM..but an AWD. I have sort of followed these for a few years..they are starting to show up in boneyards..so parts and the knowledge to fix these things is there. I would buy a used one.

 Personally..I prefer  used vehicles for daily drivers. Models that have been around for a while. And have already proven themselves.Stuff that there are the parts and the knowledge to fix relatively easily already. Everythng can and does break. Not much worse than a new daily driver that is next to impossible to get fixed..or keep fixed..or stupid expensive for "service". I have simply heard,read too many horror stores with new models.

[phat46]

For a daily driver I tend to buy a new vehicle about every ten years. I have never had one leave me stranded, not once. I don't want an everyday vehicle that I have to be working on a lot, and I want to know that I can jump in it and drive across country with just the usual checks before leaving because what little maintenance there is on a modern vehicle is up to date.  It's not that I don't trust my older vehicles, but they are old technology and just plain old parts that do breakdown. If i'm going to a car related event of course I'm driving the old stuff, but if I'm driving 800 miles to see the grandson I'm in the new one.  The safety and reliability of the new ones is just so much better than it was even 30 years ago, the challenge is to find one that is more to you than just an appliance.  

[Jokester]

My last 5 drivers have been Buick Lesabres; big, comfy, lots of luggage space, and 30 mpg on the highway.  Of course they don't make them anymore.  Corporate suit types can sure get dumb when they discontinue something that works.  I don't know what I'll do for my next "good" car.

my 2¢

.bjb

[rumrumm]

I have a '92 Safari van I use for hauling stuff, and I drive a '97 Monte Carlo as a daily driver. My wife gets a new vehicle about every three years because she travels a lot. If I travel any distance, it's usually in the Monte Carlo or the street rod. If I built a car to be a daily driver, I would keep it simple but I would probably try to go with a stock FI engine--LT-1/LT-4--something that could be repaired with readily available parts. A decent stereo and A/C would be all the extra's I'd want.

[enjenjo]

My daily right now is a 2001 Ford Escape, it was free. The one before that was a 1991 Aerostar van, it was cheap. Before that a 1987 Dodge Caravan, bought out of a junkyard with a bad engine. And going back further, 1987 S10, 1982 Toronado diesel, 1982 VW Rabbit diesel, 1975 GMC 1/2 ton, 1970 Hornet, 1976 Chevette, 1966 Olds Delmont, And several Vegas.

[Beck]

I hate to work on daily drivers. Early last year I was driving a 05 Cavalier. I had purchased it new for my daughter. When she bought her own car I got it back. It was getting to the 60k mile range. I didn't want to do anything to it. I pulled into the Chevy dealer and made a deal on a new 09 Cobalt. I tend to keep my daily stuff pretty new and low mileage. I have never had a problem on the road. If I decide to head cross country tonight, I know it's ready.
On the other side of the coin a coworker bought a new Cavalier many years ago. He is still driving it every day. It has 250k miles on it. He has had to do some minor service, bit it still goes. I'm sure he has invested a lot less than I have in those years of service.

[parklane]

Well all of my daily drivers are trucks, cuz it's so handy. You can throw stuff in the back, and usually there is only 1 or 2 people anyway. I never buy anything new, usually one/two years old.  Always looking for stuff at the salvage sales, a theft recovery or a light hit.