sszewczuk

anyone drive a 442 as a daily?

71 Cutlass

My W-31 Cutlass is a daily driver.

jaunty75

I think it kind of depends on which 442. Are you talking about a '69 or something of that time frame? If so, and if it's in any kind of decent shape, I think it would be foolish to use such a valuable car as daily transportation. You risk theft, damage, and just additional wear and tear. Plus, what would it cost to insure such a car for daily use?

On the other hand, if you're talking about, say, an '87 Cutlass Supreme with a 442 trim package, then probably no problem in using it as daily transportation. You're not talking quite so much value here, so the threat of theft is smaller. Plus, it would likely cost much less to insure. And if it wears out, what has the world lost?

Just to compare values on my two examples, a '69 442 2-door hardtop in daily driver condition is probably worth $10,000 to $15,000, maybe more. An '87 in the same condition is worth about $3,000.

72 w29 all green

I drove mine everyday from 1993-2001, 10mpg and all! Like others have said, wear and tear everywhere, though my car was more like a #3 condition car when i got started and more like a #4 when i finally wised up and bought a 27-30mpg vehicle.

Jamesbo

I drove my 69 drop top 50 miles round trip to and from work for 15 years. Not anymore since around 1995.

sicky olds

when the H/O i had was up and running you bet your *** i drove it as much as i could. but no place that i would have it sit for too long (except work but that is on a military base)

bil

As soon as the snow lets me get to the garage,I use my 65 442 convert as daily driver.Only car I have on the road,the rest of the time I use my work van.Usually from around the beginning of April til sometime in December. ---bil

sszewczuk

I have an opportunity to buy a really sweet 87 442. Very sweet. Very low original miles--32K. Original owner. Has the original paperwork, etc...I love that car just because I grew up with that car and have many good memories. The car is mint inside and out. I would not lock it away but want to drive it everyday--weather permitting. Is it a practical idea? Can I get parts if I need too? Should I worry about gas? I mean ***** my explorer is lucky if it gets 15. The 442 is rated at 18/25-- i know it depends on conditions etc.. I just cant get myself to buy anything new out there----- I can get a good deal on it--- but I have to decide by Friday.

what do you guys think.

jaunty75

You should buy it. With that low mileage, it probably has lots of life left in it for daily driving use. Gas is nothing in the sense that those mileage ratings are not that different from what you would find on a newer car.

Rickman48

My '86 Grand Prix 2+2 with a 305 got a very disappointing 11/15 MPG when new.
Put a 180 thermostat in it when the 195 stuck @ 12k miles, and it jumped to 15/19 and felt like a different vehicle!
K+N, Flowmaster, and Edebrock headers got it to 18/23.
Still can 'tweak' the computer carb vehicles!

jpc647

For what a lot of us spend on the cars, we should drive them as dd. Most of us drive expensive cars daily, and let our 10-15k cars sit in a garage. Been thinking about it myself lately. Just looked at a 2010 Audi A4 in real nice shape. It's worth way more than my cutlass, I'm thinking if I were to pull the trigger on it, I'll drive that on nice days and the 1972 cutlass when it's not so nice out.

stevengerard

yep, but your Cutlass will increase in value as your Audi decreases in value - is a tough one though. The A4 will make your 72 seem like a 1932 car

442scotty

I have 2 65's I intend on driving my modernized one full time (except in winter of course) and drive my low mile 442 on the nice summer days to meets, runs etc.

Cars are meant to be driven..

jpc647

True. The Oldsmobile doesn't seem to increase in value much. When I bought it, everyone thought I did great for what I paid, under 10k. I tried to sell it for 10k, couldn't get it. I don't know.

sszewczuk

I personally think they should be driven. I am not looking to sell it --ever.

sszewczuk

still drive it?

jaunty75

Stevengerard is right. The Audi, while it may be worth a fair amount now as it's only one year old, will drop in value quickly. The Cutlass, while it's not worth as much right now, will at least not lose value, relatively speaking. Yes, they may be more difficult to sell right now, but that's the current economy, and it goes up and down. The value of the Audi will only go down.

One other point to keep in mind is that right now, in 2011, 2010 Audis are easy to find. If it gets smashed up in an accident, you can get another one tomorrow. Try to find another '72 Cutlass like yours as quickly and as easily.

jaunty75

Of course, but not into the ground if they're rare and valuable.

sszewczuk

It seems to me that many of you have older, more valuable Oldsmobiles. I am talking about an 87 442. They have not held their value as many had hoped. For me , its just a matter of just liking the car. I know its 24 years old, but its mint and i should be able to drive it daily for many many years to come. I just figure that life is short--I might as well drive what I like. What good is it stored away. I do not plan on selling it ever. so?.......

jaunty75

Yes, you are completely correct. I mentioned '87 442s in my first post. They're just used cars, and they won't likely ever be considered in the same breath as 442s from 1971 and earlier. What you have there is a nice-condition used car. Drive it, enjoy it, and don't worry that you're decreasing its value. There's no value there to decrease!

71 Cutlass

The owner can drive their car as much as they wish...they own it. A guy just bought a Hemi convertible at Barret Jackson for more than a million dollars. What are you going to do, shout at him if he takes it out, "Hey mister you could wreck that rare car, stop driving it, don't ever enjoy it, and put it back in the garage." Ridiculous. I drive my car everyday, despite the fact there are not a great number of 71 convertibles left. I bought the car to drive and enjoy it and would see it as ridiculous if someone said, "There's a rule, you can't drive cars that are rare."

jaunty75

Hey, don't take it so personally. No one is imposing any rules on anybody, and nobody has proposed doing so. The OP simply asked for people's thoughts on using a 442 as a daily driver, and people are providing them.

Of course you can drive your car any way you like. But there are ways to drive it that preserve its value and ways to drive it that don't. If preserving value is not of concern, then, as the starter at the first tee of the U.S. Open says, "drive away!"

stevengerard

and I agree they were meant to be driven. My 2004 Marauder is a very limited production car, I am not sure if it will ever start to increase in value again but I drive it almost everyday if need be I'll fix it up down the road but as of now its a very nice car fora 7 year old vehicle. The 442 only gets driven on nice days and if it looks like rain I won't take it out, if it does get rained on - so be it that's life.

I saw a Russo auction the other day and a guy bought a rare chevy for around 300k, they asked who would be the first person to be given a ride in it - his answer - no one its being put away. I cringed, what a shame. All that money only to have a trophy car, I can respect and understand protecting it but I guarantee my answer would have been my wife, my kids or best friend, not I'm putting it in my trophy case - makes me sick.

2blu442

I used my 1970 442 as a daily driver until the paint began to flake off and I was walking around with yellow dust on my jeans from the seat foam! The sun damage was killing it and I decided it deserved a frame off restoration so I parked it for now. I do have a 1967 442 that I plan to use as soon as I get the dash restored and back in it. I may think twice about leaving it in the Mall parking lot for a couple hours while I watch a movie. But to work and running around town its much more fun than a new econobox that likely costs much more than what I've got invested in this car. So as others said, it's a personal choice but I enjoy driving these old cars John

72 w29 all green

What, a different "breath" for a '72 442 too?

jaunty75

After four years as its own series, in '72 the 442 went back to being a trim package on the Cutlass. It's always been my impression that, while they're perfectly wonderful cars, the '72 442s haven't historically been held in quite as high regard as the '68 to '71 models.

But I was just trying to make a point.

72 w29 all green

Oh ok. Earlier you said "71 and earlier cars" so i thought you were including the '64-'67 442-optioned Cutlasses too.

jaunty75

Good point! I should have been more specific.

Aceshigh

My 442 tribute is a daily driver but probably not this year with gas so high.
I'm going to gut the engine and trans, clean it up, put my 200-4R in and drive it a little bit.
I am probably going to spend alot more time on my Hayabusa and Harley this year.

Yep.....totally agreed.
The reality is if someone bought an Olds to profit, they bought the wrong car.
Should have bought a GTO or Chevelle for that.

These are still a cheap blue collar muscle car, and it's going to stay that way.
After 40 years, it's clear that it's going to.

jpc647

True, the Audi will go down, but it's got a moonroof, heated seats, air conditioning all the nice comforts. And it's got a 2.0l turbo charged motor that would blow my stock 72 Cutlass out of the water without breaking a sweat, but it is capable of 28 mpg. So it's more fuel efficient, and more powerful than my cutlass. Why would I want to find another cutlass? I dunno, driving a cutlass as an everyday car is just more of an expense and hassle, than anything else. Personally, I'm beginning to think owning one is the same.

I guess I don't understand. They were very expensive back in the day, now they are the "poor mans muscle car?" This makes me sad. All those long days when I was a kid, saving every penny to buy one, now it's "shunned". Maybe thats taking it too far, just thinking out loud.

Higgins

I love the 80's 442, especially with T-Tops. If I could find one as you describe with 32,000 miles for a reasonable price I would snap it up. Of course it depends on what is reasonable.

Aceshigh

It's not "Shunned". 442's are well respected cars through and through.
They're just not as POPULAR as Chevelle's and GTO's.
To me, 1969-1972 442's are the best looking out of all the A-bodies.
Before that , GTO's IMO were.

It's just not a car that brings in the kind of money that the other A-bodies do.
Be thankful, because you can get a fully restored one VERY VERY CHEAP now in this craptastic economy.
It really makes no sense to do a full restoration on one because parts vendors prices have skyrocketed
up to 200% but resale values on these cars has just plummeted.

The only thing that really sucks is the restorations usually far exceed what you'll get back in a sale.
This is true of just about any car, but the variance in greater with these cars it seems.
So get one restored if you can.

Higgins

[quote=Aceshigh
To me, 1969-1972 442's are the best looking out of all the A-bodies.
Before that , GTO's IMO were. [/quote]
Aces, curious as to why you omitted the 1968s when they are only so slightly different from the 69s. What about the 69s do you like better? I like the 68s better myself, even though I owned a 69 at one time, because of the vent windows and no steering wheel lock so the key goes in the dash and the wheel doesn't get hung up in the locked position my 69 did sometimes.
Higgins

sszewczuk

8k? is that a good price?

toro68

Buy it and have a crapbox for a daily driver.

Higgins

To me it would have to be in the $6,000 range for me to stretch my budget to get it. I was offered an 86 Salon last week, nice, clean, rust free but no T-tops for $3,000. That said, if you want the car as much as you say, what's $8,000 if it makes you happy. It's not a fortune. Life is short..
Higgins

sszewczuk

well aren't you nice?

ROBZ442

I drive my 66 442 as a daily from late March through October unless they are calling for terrible weather, it's been caught in a few bad hail storms. I admire the super clean cars at the local cruises but mines not one of them. My car is not perfect and I cannot afford it to be that right now so why not. Another reason is my other my other daily driver is a 3/4 4x4 suburban with a 454 so the price of gas is about equal.

Aceshigh

As for why I omitted 1968's.....it's a personal preference thing but.....
I think the front end is not attractive at all with the headlights spread, grill, and there's no hood scoops.
Every OTHER A-body looked better then a 1968 Olds 442 to me. They botched the front end IMO.


I'm also NOT a fan of single headlight Chevelle's. Anything above 1970 does nothing for me.

The 1969's had the Hurst Olds which IMHO is the best looking Oldsmobile of all time.
But for 442's the 1970 was the best year of all time, and it reflects in it's sales figures.

Hence, why I wanted a 1970 Tribute. I'd sell it in a heartbeat for a 1969 Hurst Olds clone.

stevengerard

I think it was meant as buy the car and then get another car that is a crap box as the daily driver