Reminiscing about older vehicles

[dieselcrawler]

Tom has a VERY good point... my superduty trucks are 3x the truck that my '84 k30 is, with regard to safety. Power too.

 

[3930dave]

lol no prob about hijacking, makes the treads interesting when they take on new meanings.

I think i just need spares of all these sensors in my toolbox, so tired of being absolutely stranded, sometimes in remote locations only to find its a $20 piece of plastic junk stamped made in mexico that did it. My old trucks and i have owned all the brands over the years were so simply made that they were all so dependable compared to this thing i drive now. Just feel like im going backwards.

Mechanical (meaning non-points versions) distributors could eventually wear out, but it usually took really high miles.....

As the years rolled along having ECU's under the hood to fire injectors, it was only a matter of time before the relatively expensive mech distributors got axed in favour of a simple sensor.

Time marches on a little further, and some manufacturers succumb to cost reducing even that simple, albeit critical, sensor.

Years back, my Dad, then later myself, carried spare V fan belts. These sensors may be today's equivalent.

Rgds, D.

 

[Rustyiron]

I have to help hijack too! I have 3 of the 7.3's, my buddy has 2, both of us had them since 2007, not one single cam sensor issue. Bet I just jinxed myself...

I don't exactly remember what years, I had the 7.3 since 88 through 01. Still have a 99 & 01 and at first, the replacements would sometimes need replacement. It seem's that they've worked out the problem since the original batch or design. I don't carry one anymore but they're not my every day driver also.

 

[gwstang]

I have a '66 mustang that I've restored and dropped a 1990 5.0 HO and an AOD transmission into it. I get the best of both worlds, fuel injection and overdrive transmission with a vintage mustang...lol. Runs like a scalded cat with EFI.

 

[quicksandfarmer]

I think cars in the 60's and 70s were more disposable than current vehicles. My last several vehicles were very dependable.

I hardly ever see cars on the side of the road disabled anymore. 40 years ago there were broken down cars, often over heated on the roadside.

Having owned cars built in every decade since the 60's, I agree. Here's what I see: cars are built with a longer design life now, usually a decade. And materials science is much better, they can better predict the lifespan of materials, so just about every piece in the car has a good chance of lasting for that life. And conversely, once you reach that age they're all likely to fail, they don't build them more expensive than they need to be.

What I remember about cars from 40-50 years ago was that some parts were overbuilt and some were underbuilt. So you might have a cast iron engine block that was good for 600,000 miles, but the distributor would fail after 30,000. A ten-year-old car would have a bunch of things that didn't work, as long as it wasn't anything important and you could go and stop there was no point in fixing them. You just accepted that windshield washers, clocks and interior lights were only for people who bought new cars every two years.

Today's cars stay new a lot longer. But when they get to the end everything goes at once.

 

[ultrarunner]

Owning cars from every decade from 1900 I do agree safety has greatly improved for occupants.

Longevity as in a lot of miles over a few years is generally much improved... notwithstanding a few vehicles with transmission issues.

What I do see is perfectly good, rust free and sometimes driving cars getting junked because some sensor or part is too expensive or simply not available.

High end cars are especially subject to this.... you might find a car that was pushing a $100,000 fifteen years ago be next to worthless... like the big BMW or Land Rovers because it won't pass the emission test or part is no longer made...

The wrecking yards are filled with cars with nice interior and exteriors that won't pass smog...

As far as enjoyment... I wouldn't say driving my 62 Corvette with the top down isn't every bit as enjoyable as driving my late model BMW...

 

[cat fever]

After my wife walked away from a head on collision in her 2014 with little more than a mild concussion and a few visits to the chiropractor, I won't be putting her in a vintage vehicle. Modern cars wrap you in a cocoon in an accident and more people than ever before walk away from collisions that only a short time ago would be deadly.

Same thing happened to my wife last year. Semi truck turned left in front of her, no time to turn or brake. She was going 55mph, she had a bad concussion and a dislocated elbow but was up and around within a week. Highway Patrol said usually car vs semi there is always a death. She was in a 06 Chevy Cobalt.
I would still take a 70 Chevelle SS for the weekend cruiser though.

 

[3930dave]

After my wife walked away from a head on collision in her 2014 with little more than a mild concussion and a few visits to the chiropractor, I won't be putting her in a vintage vehicle. Modern cars wrap you in a cocoon in an accident and more people than ever before walk away from collisions that only a short time ago would be deadly.

Glad to hear that today's heavy engineering worked. The Finite Element Analysis that leads to no part weighing an ounce more than needed, can also be used to design great crumple zones.

It wasn't all that many decades ago that steering-column design was killing people.

Safety systems have gotten better, but they aren't perfect. Air-bags (meaning other than the Takata defects) are a threat to smaller people, including adults. ABS is not totally the silver-bullet that it is often believed to be.

Rgds, D.

 

[TomSeller]

What I remember about cars from 40-50 years ago was that some parts were overbuilt and some were underbuilt. So you might have a cast iron engine block that was good for 600,000 miles, but the distributor would fail after 30,000. .

I attribute the improvement to the computerized modeling and design accuracy it entails. Once computers were involved, human error was kept in check.

As far as safety, probably everyone has seen this report but it is worthwhile to post in case someone has not. I like classic cars too, but would collect them and drive them in parade rather than as a daily driver.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fPF4fBGNK0U

 

[turnkey4099]

You can have your old cars and update them with newer technologies and have the best of both worlds.

Last old car I had was a 65 Pontiac Tempest wagon, put in a modern 5 speed overdrive transmission, pointless ignition, radial tires, upgraded to newer model disc brakes, upgraded the suspension to a more modern setup, upgraded the power steering to have more feel and quicker ratio. The sky is the limit on what you can do to update an old car with modern tech. I had a 65 GTO that I had updated with fuel injection.

My problem with newer cars is not the technology but the lack of choice on how much you get. The over complication of new cars. My '06 wagon has computer controlled water pump and thermostat. Its gotten to the point that once was a simple mechanical system that cost about $30 in parts has become overly complicated electronically controlled stuff that cost $800 in parts. Not to mention the added cost to replace because you have to disassemble half the engine compartment to get at the parts. Sometimes its worth it sometimes its not.

As far as new cars, they could even be better. I'd love to see more attention go to building reliability over adding features that I don't even want. Hard to buy a new car without all kinds of junk I don't want.

Speaking of overly complicated. I see in hte news that Chrysler Corp has a major problem with the fancy shift stick in the big Jeep and one of the cars. After you shift, the lever returns to a central spot. You can't tell what gear you are in by looking at it. People are having problems tryng to hit park, think it is there, get out and vehicle runs off. Can't shut off engine unless tranny is in park.

What idiot came up with that asininity?