63super88

welp since theres no gas in my work truck which I would usually take to class in these nasty salty road conditions, im taking the olds. this is usually a huge no no for me and my car which has probably hardly ever seen this type of grime, but since its not directly raining im takin it. Do any of you guys just drive yours around, or dare I say 'beat' them around in the salt daily driver? I see lots of older cars doin it these days, and I figure as they say nowadays, yolo.

RandyS

If you have to use it in snowy/salty conditions, I would take it to a car wash and get the 'underbody wash' as soon as you are able after it clears up some.

aliensatemybuick

HELL, no! These olds cars are just ITCHING to rust! All that road salt can get up under the wheelhouses and other nooks and crannies and STAY there, no matter how hard to try to get it all off/out. Then there's fuel and brake lines...I live in NJ myself; I'll take my Jetstar out in the snowy season ONLY after we've gotten sufficient rain to wash the salt off the roads. If at all possible, and you care about it even a little, keep your classic car away from salt.

chip-powell

Sorry, but I'm paranoid about roadsalt and older cars. I wont even take my cutlass out if they are calling for rain.

76 Regency

Don't do it. Like Aliens said, salt, etc will find its way into places you really don't want it in and then what?? I had to switch my cars from my home garage to/from my storage unit and I was seriously considering hiring a flatbed because the roads were such a mess. Luckily, it warmed up and we got a ton of rain so the roads were very clean on the day I made the move so no truck was needed. It was only a few miles but I would not have driven on the salty, slushy roads.

Koda

My two will not go out in the salt. Very rarely in winter, and usually not in the rain, if it can be avoided. My back window leaks in my 72, and there's surface rust inside the sail panels and under the package tray/decklid mount area. When I restore it, that area will get sanded, treated, and resealed.

63super88

Welp I guess I shoulda saw it coming, but it was a pretty salty ride home. not so much when the moisture was frozen this morning, but when it started to thaw the car got a nice salty bath. Im pretty pissed, but only at myself I guess. like you say the nooks and crannies of these cars got those little spots and paint chips that are just waiting to open up and rust out. I tried warm water but without detergent its futile. im gonna try to find a coin op place when it clears up a bit. over the summer I plan to pressure wash the undercarriage and undercoat the chipped/exposed areas, and smear a thin layer of fresh clean grease all over the front end parts. One can only dream of living in a place where these things just don't happen, and a man can be happy outside all year long not just 3 1/2 months.

justinj

Life is too short to drive modern vehicles.

If I had a pristine, show quality example, it would remain parked from Nov 1 - Apr 15, but mine is on the junky side of pristine, so it's seeing a bit of salt.

If it's a museum piece, yeah, keep it inside, but if not... drive it like ya stole it

mike8162

I only drive my rusty GMC in this crap. I won't even drive my BMW(daily driver) until the roads dry. My Olds never even sees rain in the summer.

Nop

For the record:

European long term statistics/surveys/tests from the 80s and 90 have shown that 75% to 80% of the damage, corrosion and aging done to cars is due to the 3-4 months of the year where there's salt on the roads - especially here in Germany.

Now if that's not scary...

63super88

haha I like that one, that's just like the 63 nova 4dr I had, I fixed everything made it run great but left the bodys 'patina' on it and drove it like youd drive a Honda civic, everyday all conditions and it ran great 6cyl 1bbl 2spd made it a great commuter and the stories fahgetaboutit lol. the olds I got now is a timecapsule type car with great orig paint/brightwork/door seals/window felts, election bumper stickers etc, but it does have its rust chips and swirls here and there, no paint left on the engine. its def not a beat it to the ground car, but it is my daily driver when its not salty or pouring rain. the floorboards are solid and I want them to stay that way, im gonna take the bumpers off in the summer wire wheel the insides/undercoat and pressurewash the undercarriage get the wells/frame/floor/driveshaft lookin clean like I did on the nova. the drums/rear/and maybe some heat paint on exhaust can wait for free time later in the season those are fun projects. i wouldnt feel so bad then knowing I sealed up most of the vulnerable areas, and making sure the lines/flexhoses are all in good shape.

63super88

and Nop, I wouldn't doubt those statistics, especially for those who wont wash their cars from October to may cause they think 'its not worth it'. if they only peaked their heads under their cars after its 5th year of that winter neglect lol.

droptopron

Mine goes away before the 1st real snow & stays away until the 1st good rain washes the salts away.

Nop

Even worse: Most ppl thnk it'll harm their car/paint/whatever being washed with clear water and a bit of detergent on the upper side in winter and completely forget about the bottom - Although Mom always said wash top and "downstairs" too!

63super88

it also must be nice when you got a garage/port/overhang to keep it sheltered. I got a thin* cover, and a thick plastic tarp I put over it so its not getting snowed in the doorjams/cabin air inlet areas but it sees moisture, fog, and heavy loads of snow piled on top of the paneling sitting on the cover. I also kind think the winds blowing the covers around isn't helping the swirls and knicks on my paint, but hey short of using money I don't have to garage the car someplace im powerless eh.

BlackGold

Just compare a 30-year-old car in California with a 10-year-old car in Michigan, and you'll never drive a car you care about in winter again.

BlackGold

Does it really do any good to wash a car which is going to immediately get bathed in salt again as it drives away from the carwash? I don't think so, so I don't wash my cars in the winter, unless there's a particularly long dry and warm spell forecast. Even then, the roads are so caked with salt that there is literally a white cloud kicked up by the car in front of you.

63super88

well i mean a quick cheap wash just to get the first few layers off even if its only twice a season still helps that's like saying why shower yourself in the summer cause youll just get sweaty again lol. i knew better than to dirty the car anyway. proper washing, waxing and undercoating/ rust removal throughout the summer months is the only real way of preventing it on daily driving vehicles i guess though right.

63super88

or to just not drive it if you care as the rest of you said lol

Greg Rogers

x2 -no x3 or 4... I would rather pay someone to take me or rent a car or not go to work than drive my old cars in the salt. You will never get the salt out of the nooks and crannies. Underbody wash won't get to it.

1970cs

I agree with the others don't drive, hell if gas is the issue, siphon a couple gallons out of your Olds to get you to the station, I would assume you have a gas station within 30 miles?

I think most people around the great lakes are sick of this crap. I live near enough to the lake and lake effect for us here in Lansing seems to be hitting or a system or the dreaded little clippers. I have been keeping track since Turkey day we have a total of ten days without something falling out the sky.

I wash my new Impala twice a week and still only last maybe 24hrs. before it gets trashed! We do the same on me wife's Equinox which is burgandy erh white head to toe now.

Pat

fbonanno

I used to live in Connecticut. Now I live in New Mexico. Happy Happy, Joy Joy!! Not much salt here or snow, unless you go up to the mountains. Every place has its drawbacks. Rubber parts degrade faster here. Otherwise, everything else on the cars hold up pretty well. Drive it if you have to, but be aware of the consequences.

starfire

This makes a hell of a lot more sense than driving the Olds. If conditions are as bad in NJ as they are here in MI then the salt is only half your worry. The other drivers are likely to crash into your Olds.

63super88

it wasn't that-that bad, not like the whole car is splattered like I said it was just a light spray but 20 miles round trip and some drips from an overpass but she'll live haha. ill take apart the headlights (its amazing the dirt that gets in there on normal clean drives) and maybe touch up the batt compartment and washer bottle area with some rust control black paint. im try to hit the inner frame rails/wheel wells/ lower fenders with some new undercoat and scrub the whole firewall maybe in april. on a lighter note, being a young, ambitious college student im thinking transfering my county college credits to somewhere like Univ. of Cali-Los angeles er something else not arm-and-leg tuition, well known, and out west where I belong in that warm California sun, as the song goes haha. ill do carpet work in the meantime maybe even wait a year change my ID and get in-state tuition, all my friends are doing it. Id drive the olds out there, I bet shed make it just fine doin a nice 65 all the way and stopping twice overnight. Not as impossible as it sounds!