VCCA Home Forums GENERAL DISCUSSION New User Forum Looking at getting a "new" car

Hi all,
I am interested in obtaining a classic car. I live in a town of 4500 and could easily use it as a daily driver during the summer since the speeds here are slow.
I have spotted a 1929 Chevrolet National 4 door on Hemmings for $6k to give you an idea of what peaks my interest but I would prefer a convertible as that would interest my wife more.
Could you suggest any other websites or methods of finding such a car? What kinds of prices are reasonable for a complete driver? I am prepared to make mechanical upgrades on a car to make it more driveable but wouldn't bother with any cosmetic work so it would have to be rust free.
Cheers, Steve

Steve- That is going to be somewhat daunting task. You are going to find a large variety of 29`s in many dfferent states of repair.. But if you are patient, you might just find it will pay off . There currently is a 29 on e-bay now #231122234327 for 19K and one for $9750 251405138364.

hoppy

If you have not owned or driven an old car of that vintage my suggestion would be to get in touch with someone local who has one. Ask questions and perhaps take a ride. Become familiar with the maintenance requirements and also the availability of parts so you are prepared when breakdowns happen-and they will. There is lots of information on this website and even more if you join VCCA.

Thank you for the responses. I am thinking of something under 10k delivered. The more costly ones are too nice and would suffer under my ownership. I suppose the best way to get one would be to go to a lot of car shows and try to buy one in person.
I haven't seen any of these cars listed as OK with unleaded fuel. Do people make the required changes or do they just run additive? Also, are the ones with the wooden ceilings meant to have their soft tops rolled back to make them a sort of convertible or is that just the way they are made and should not be opened up?
Maintenance is not a big concern, they can't be any worse than a 1990's diesel VW or a dirt bike. Some parts may take a little longer to obtain and some may require machining but no big deal.
Thanks again, Steve

Hi Stevemo,

There will be no need to make any changes to your car to burn the unleaded gas that is available at the local pump. An additive is NOT needed.

We welcome you on Chevy Chat and hope it is of value to you. As has been suggested you should consider joining the VCCA for the extra services it adds.

Steve... Welcome to the VCCA chat site. I notice that you are from Canada, and was wondering what province you are from? We have a region in Ontario that has members that own the type of car you are looking at. I would recommend that you do a lot of research before running out and buying a vintage car. Check with your insurance company first before decide if using a vintage car is an affordable option as an everyday driver. Historical Vehicle plates are really cheap with the insurance... however the insurance companies will walk out from under you if you are ever caught using your car as an everyday driver while being insured as Historical. Have fun searching for the right car... and don't be afraid to have an expert look one over with you before making a purchase.

Hi Brewster,
I am in Eastern Ontario. I will have to see what the deal is with the historical plates and talk to my insurance company to see what they would accept. Even if I got regular plates I'd be selling my truck so it should be a wash for insurance costs.
There was an interesting 1934 Pontiac straight eight in Oshawa that just sold...talk about bad timing. I would have gotten it if it was summer and it was as nice as it appeared to be. The 1929 Buicks look good too. I am going to go nuts looking at cars I am not going to buy all winter.
Steve

Steve,

If there is no single car that turns your crank then take your time and don't buy anything for the sake of buying. Follow the instructions above and you'll do fine. The insurance on an old car in Ontario is about $10 per $1000. No need to get rid of anything. there are some restrictions on use though, not for daily driving.

Hi again,
I have been trolling the internet for more deals and one issue keeps coming up. Not all of the cars out there have been restored so their undercarriages would need to be preserved to prevent my purchase from rotting out from under me.
My preference would be to obtain a previously restored car but I may find an attractive deal that has only had mechanical work done on it with an acceptable body. Do people ever just have the undercarriage scrubbed down to clean off surface rust and then repaint that black to save the frame and floors? I would even consider taking it to get it rust proofed annually and no doubt the dripping oil would match the age of the car and go unnoticed.
An example of such a car to try and preserve would be this Dodge which may be a total heap but it is hard to tell due to the low quality photos. 1934 Dodge You will have to forgive my lack of brand loyalty but the Chev's have peaked my interest in vintage cars so I joined this Forum first. I don't want a Ford but most other 1929 to 1934's have got my interest.
Thanks again, Steve

Most cars of that vintage if not now rotted will not be subjected to road salt and will not rot out. Restoration of the frames is usually done by most for cosmetic purposes.

In the forties and fifties they used to undercoat cars with about 2cm of an oil/tar combination that dried hard. If you can find a car with that on it, scrape some away and check the metal underneath. My '51 is like brand new under it's coat... but pretty bad anywhere the coat didn't cover. I'm not sure what they used in the 1930's, or if having a wood floor would mean a different process... but it's something to check.

Hi Steve,

This is a good chat site for asking questions and getting a lot of diverse advice. Welcome. Here are a few suggestions.

Do a lot of looking on ebay to establish the years and makes of cars that attract you. You may eventually fall in love with a particular design or look. That is how I choose my 1941 Chevy. I probably would not have given it a second look if it wasn't for the visor on it!!!

Make sure you test drive your purchase before you buy it. If you are bashful, like me, at least have the owner drive it while you ride in the front seat with him. Make sure that the driver's area is large enough/small enough to accommodate your size comfortably. If you want others to travel with you also check out how easy it is for them to get in and out of the car and the roominess for them.

What speeds do you think you want to drive and what is the terrain you will drive in? The higher the speeds (40 or over), hilliness, and curves could mean you may feel more comfortable in a newer car (something form the late 30's or 40's.

Brand name does make a difference. Do you want to purchase a car that 50,000 were made or one over 500,000. It will make a big difference in finding parts and mechanical support. There could be less than 25 people who can find the parts and rebuild a 29 Dodge transmission in North America while over thousand for a Chevy or Ford. Never pass by an opportunity to pick up a cheap parts car if you want a daily driver. It is one thing to fix something up to look at, it is another to daily drive your car and need to replace parts as they are damaged or wear out.

Makeup a complete written check list of what you want to look at/for on each car you inspect. Make sure a good part of your questions apply to vehicle history. Who were its owners? When was the body work last done on the vehicle? Who did the body work? What mechanical areas of the car have been recently rebuilt and by whom? Depending on the price range you want to spend you should be getting greater reliability the more you pay!!!

Establish the price range that you can afford. It is very expensive to replace most car parts, your doing the mechanical work is a real cost saver. An example is the cost of rebuilding a brake system. It could easily cost you $1,000 to replace all the parts on a brake system that are susceptible to wear and aging (new brake lines, brake shoes, master cylinder, brake cylinders, emergency brake lines, etc.). This is usually the first area you should be concerned with before driving any car you are not familiar with. A great body, wonderfully rebuilt engine, etc. is worth little if you can not stop the car reliably.

Normally, a car valued between $6,000 and $12,000 should provide you some assurance of its quality. But it may also be providing you only a fancy paint job with and engine that needs rebuilding. Or it could be providing you a car in excellant mechanical condition but needs a complete paint job and some body work? Or it could need a complete new interior?

I would not limit my purchase by overlooking a good deal this winter. All these cars should perform well in winter if they are reliable. If the "stars line up" and you find something interesting then treat it like the weather doesn't matter. Do a complete evaluation of the car in a heated garage with a followup drive afterwards. Try to look at some local cars right now so you can develop a routine of questions to ask and how to conduct an interview with the owner.

I have been restoring my car over the last 10 years. I do major work in the winters and drive it as a daily driver the rest of the year. I have regular insurance on it year around so I can drive it on a sunny dry day in the winter. I insure it and a 77 Impala for around $600 a year. The insurance is based on the value I have established on each vehicle. The 41 I value at $8,000, the 77 at $12,000.

Keep the questions coming, and best wishes, Mike

Hi Steve,

I posted some chat links to your frame cleanup question. While these will help answer your questions they probably are just good food for thought until you get ready to do the work!!!

Best way to clean and paint frame

Painting Frames and Suspension Parts

Painting Frames and Suspension parts Part #2

Painting Frames and Suspension parts Part #3

Painting Frames and Suspension parts Part #4



All these articles came from the Mr. Goodwrench- Technical Forum called Body-Sheet Metal, Paint & Wood. They near the bottom of our list of Forums.

Good luck, Mike

Thank you all for the responses. I am mainly concerned about rust due to parking the car, not driving it. I do not have a paved driveway so it will be on gravel which causes rust to spread...just ask my 2004 truck. :( Hand painting the frame for the time being would be OK and I am happy I wasn't called a heathen for suggesting that sort of thing.

I agree with the brakes. I've had a few brake failures where the lines looked OK so I now change the lines before hand. Dual systems and a working hand brake are a real life saver when this happens... Putting a dual master cylinder in on one of these older cars would probably be a good idea and this sort of work can be done over a couple evenings.

I am focusing more on the 1934 model year at this point, I like the way the grille and windshields slope during that year which was common with many different brands. The sustained top speed I would want to achieve is about 50 MPH (80 km/hr) or I will have to stay in my town with the car. I don't live in the mountains so I am not really going to worry about how they can handle hills. The Chevrolet's of that year have higher production going for them but the Dodge's have IFS, steel bodies and hydraulic brakes. They also have the absolutely ridiculous free wheeling system which negates the safety features but it seems that you do not have to use it. The Pontiac's have the straight eight which is also neat but probably not necessary.

Actually seeing a car is going to be hard. The last car show I went to had 12 cars at it, they are either not common around here or don't get out of the garage. The '34 Chevy I was sniffing out is going to end up being higher than my up-front target price. I've contacted the people with the Dodge and expect to get some details on that car in about 2 weeks. There was a '34 Pontiac that sold for 8k which would have been a great deal but it got put on ebay before I got a chance to talk to the seller.

The main technical issue is that any car I buy will have to sit until the spring as I only have access to open trailers. The other issue is that I had previously applied to a job where the posting got cancelled but the company's HR department told me to send my resume in for another job so who knows where that is going to take me.

Steve