Ccporsche

Hi everyone,

I'm a huge fan of classic 911s but have never owned one nor have I had much experience driving them.
My question is what would it be like to have a classic 911 (1965-73) as a daily driver? What would the maintenance costs look like? Etc.

TT Oversteer

Depends where you live. In moderate climates an early 911 is an excellent daily driver. Aircooled 911's are durable, fairly economical on gas, and FUN!! These cars were never designed for air conditioning so they can be a little uncomfortable in hot climates. Overall maintenance costs are not too expensive, particularly if you can do some of the work yourself. Parts and repair costs on the other hand.... Also worth considering if you spend a lot of time commuting: airbags, ABS, seatbelt pre-tensioners, crumple zones, etc can save your life. You are giving up many layers of crash protection when driving a forty year old car every day.

VintageRacer

^^ What he said.

The early cars are not theft-protected like modern cars. It's not hard to drive one off.

ivangene

yes you can daily drive one...

but have a back up car - those years might be temperamental with carbs and all plus the basic fact its 40 years old, stuff goes wrong...if its a car that has sat a long time, it will start leaking and wearing out....if its been driven a lot, its already worn out and leaking

it will require work, maybe not a lot, but some - and the work can take time which means you need a back up plan

IMO

welcome and good luck

DTMLGND

Sure! I daily drove mine for 3 years, shuttled 3 kids to/from school and then foolishly sold it for a car with a larger backseat(1989 BMW E30 M3). Both dynamite and iconic cars, but obviously different drives altogether.
I know, should've got a beater for a DD and kept the 72T!!
Ughh!
Now I'm looking at 964 C2 coupes, G50 Carreras and SC's now that my kids are all driving their own cars.

race911

While the longhoods still certainly function as cars you can use daily (even with AC, if you require and want to go to the expense), I think the ship has sailed with them as far as how much value you're putting at risk.

Then you've got the safety factor mentioned above, depending on the specifics of your commute pattern.

That said, it was nice to see a nice 356C coupe out and about during the week around town recently. Likely a pleasure drive, though.

Ccporsche

Thanks for all the responses!

Safety is a concern, but I don't do very much freeway driving and I don't drive long distances too often. One of my other concerns is Arizona summers. I've been concerned about the reliability and effectiveness of the A/C in these cars in AZ extreme heat.

So I've decided to consider later models. I'm taking a look at a beautiful 74 911 with 1980 3.0 engine transplant. Not sure how I feel about it not having the original engine. What do you guys think?

race911

A '74 isn't exactly a later model. Now if you were comparing to an '87-9 G50, maybe.

Think you need to educate yourself on the 2.7L engines that were originally installed with them.....

No way, no how, in 2013 are you enjoying an air cooled 911 in the AZ summer. In the '80s, life was simpler, so we dealt with it.

Ed Hughes

A '74 with a transplanted engine is not a high-value car, and you will have a limited market should you sell.

Personally, I'd not want to drive an older 911 as a DD. Not to say you can't run errands during the week, but I like having a DD that is more "civil"- it makes me appreciate the drives in the Porsche even more. A 911 doesn't make such a good car for shopping trips at Costco, either.

rusnak

When I was in my late 20s, I drove the 914-6 with dual carbs for about 2 years.

It was not nearly as comfortable as the 911SC or the 3.2 911 that I eventually bought to drive as a DD. But other than periods when I have to drive the work truck, I drive an aircooled 911 daily and have now for about 20 years. I probably have put a half million miles on aircooled 911s...

VintageRacer

No. The rubber bumper 1974 is not worth the change.

Have you ever installed a 1980 3.0 into a 1974 911? It is not as simple as it seems.

I promise.

race911

In most basic terms, it's minor wiring on the engine harness + the 6 pin ignition box, and an oil line (purposely not mentioning installation of an oil cooler since the 2.7s need them anyway). Hell, you could just run the 2.7's wiring harness, ignition, and CIS systems if you really wanted to.

Sure, optimizing the installation means making the slightly incompatible CIS systems mate, and welding an O2 bung on the better OE '74 exhaust + using the chassis' existing oil lines.

I've only done about 15 3.0/3.2 into earlier cars, what have I forgotten since the mid '90s?

VintageRacer

This seems simple to me.

MrBonus

There are two main things that prevent me from making a daily driver out of my '89 - the anemic air conditioning (which currently needs a recharge) and our salt-covered winter roads.

Steam Driver

Back in the '70's I had first a 356C, then a 914-4, and finally a 914-6 as daily drivers, the latter up into the '80's. No problems doing that with any of them. Granted it's 40 years later, but the cars can be as reliable now as they were then. I never had ANY unscheduled or non-routine maintenance issues with the -6 until after I made it a weekend toy only; then stuff began. The cars don't like inactivity.

Recurring things I keep hearing in these threads are safety and creature comforts. I've never considered the former (when a salesman starts talking airbags and the like to me I switch him off) and regarding the comfort issues the cars haven't changed, we have! (Thinking of the "P-word.")