More fun to be had in a newer safer faster better handling better economy no rust 2011+.
Unless you are planning on a 100% correct show car you can update the 60ās mustang to be safer by adding headrests (roughly $300) and other upgrades in the interest of safety. Iāve got a buddy who daily drives a late model Camaro and keeps the '68 Camaro he has in the garage except for the weekend drives. Get a late model version for regular use and later a 60ās model for the weekend/pleasure driving.
@texases Highway deaths today are about the same as in the mid fifties. Yet the miles driven per year is 16 TIMES that of that era. So the fatality rate per million miles is about 1/16 of what is used to be.
I credit safer cars, better roads and better traffic management. Unfortunately better drivers are not part of the equation.
I own a 98 gt manual. Its been modified and is a blast to drive. It doesnt like the rain too much and can easily get squirrelly if youre not careful. We have a club with about 40 members all late model various years. Loud exhausts and superchargers and things like that. Loads of fun.
Still nothing is quite like the old ones.
My advice is to get an old one. You might have a good bit of work to get it to be a totally reliable daily driver but itd be worth it if you have the money.
If that makes you nervous get a late model and youāll still have fun. No v6ās! The v8 sound is part of the mustang experience. A v8 and manual trans is the ONLY way to go.
In 1980 I had a deposit on a '67 Shelby GT 350 (gold with white stripes) and the price at that time was $8500, it was a decent car, needed TLC. Instead I went to law school and used the $8500 for tuition. Now I see them on Barret-Jackson for over $100,000. As I look back I think I made the right decision, Iād probably be dead from that Shelby Mustang, handled like crap, braked like crap, no safety stuff (yeah, I know what kind of belts it had), but it ran like a scalded cat! I see Mustangs, 'Cudas, Camaros, running around and think . . . who can afford to drive this stuff nowadays? Daily driver? Nope. Car show car, yeah . . . Iād do that. Check 'em out tho, the rust on that era car is incredible! Good luck anyway, have fun with whatever you get! Rocketman
BTW, I owned a '71 'Cuda at that time, only car I ever regret selling. White on white, 383, pistol grip, 15 mpg, rubber in 3 gears, sold it the Summer before school. Maybe Iāll see another someday, my bud the bodyman says I can build one from new parts if I just get a frame and VIN somewhere. Here we go again! Rocketman
I got politely chastised a bit here before on this topic but Iāll risk proposing the idea again.
My idea for a perfect daily driver:
- 64 1/2 Mustang body and styling
- None of that hideous no-bumper & wagon-train wheels appearance.
- Modern front disk brakes
- Corolla 4 banger drive train
- Corolla manual 5 speed transmission
- Modern unibody construction
Thatās known as a āCelicaāā¦
Yeah they had the great safety features of a padded dash, belts and a recessed steering wheel. Not to mention the tank right under. The trunk.
George
Why on earth would you want to drop a Corolla engine into a classic Mustang engine bay?
And which Corolla engine, for that matter?
4A-FE
7A-FE
1ZZ-FE
2AZ-FE
etc.
Better not pick one with stuck oil control rings
Better not pick one with stripped out threads in the block, for the head bolts
Iām not saying this project would be impossible, but it seems kind of weird
If you want a more modern drivetrain in that classic Mustang, why not at least pick a more modern Ford drivetrain?
By the way, didnāt the original Mustang actually have a unibody?
But it wouldnāt be considered modern anymore
An older Mustang is certainly not as safe as a newer model but then again Iād have no trouble piloting one around and not being in a state of terror while doing so. Maybe an upgrade to a 3-point safety harness and motor on.
Safety? Lap belts arenāt enough for you? Iād also be concerned by their maintenance needs and iffy reliability. Cars back then left you fuming by the side of the road much more often. A AAA membership might be a good idea. Or maybe you could fall in love with something newer.
I think one of the most important aspects of safety is getting from point A to point B without being stranded. A breakdown in the middle of a fwy might be more dangerous than not having side airbags or any airbags for that matter. The older the car gets, the more the likelihood of breakdown. It all boils down on how much risk you are willing to accept.
As some others have alluded to, the OP is apparently overlooking the drivability and reliability factors with classic cars. Those who grew up in the age of fuel injection probably canāt imagine the ājoysā of starting and running a carbureted engine in cold weather, or the ājoysā of vapor lock on a hot day. Then, we have the pleasures of 10k ātune-upsā, which were much more extensive in those days than most younger folks can probably imagine.
Warranties on cars were very short in those daysāwith a reasonāand the reason is the relative lack of long-term reliability/durability of those older cars. Andā¦these cars certainly didnāt get more reliable as they aged. Thus, the OPās idea of using one of these cars as a daily driver isā¦Iāll be kindā¦not practical.
As to safety, w/o rehashing the obvious limitations of those old cars in terms of brakes, handling, and chassis construction, I agree with ok4450 that fitting one of these cars with 3-point shoulder belts would go a long way to improving passenger safetyā¦IF you can find chassis metal that is still strong enough for this purpose after 40+ years of rust.
I can think of no place on my Mustang that I would trust as a shoulder belt anchor. They were built with minimal metal, and were rust buckets. Restoring a convertible requires being careful to avoid the body bending while disassembled.
The Mustang was a business triumph for Lee Iacocca. He reskinned a Falcon, which was a minimal compact vehicle, and created something everyone seemed to want.
My brother-in-law lived in the rust belt when he bought his 1962 Falcon. He had to trade it for a 1966 full size because it was corroding dangerously.
Not meaning to start an argument over this, but an older, carbureted, contact point car was not that problematic if tuned properly.
Iāve often seen comments that points have to be replaced every 3-5k miles and that is simply not true IF they were installed properly and distributor cam lube was used. Most contact point sets should easily last 30k miles.
The usual reason for more frequent tune-ups in the old days was because of the lead in gasoline which would contaminate the spark plug tips.
The above option might be better than owning a Cobalt with a failing ignition switch or an Ion with failed power steeringā¦ 
For a weekend fun car, Iād have no problem with a mid 60s Mustang. For a daily driver, probably not.
If safety is a concern, stay away from it no matter what. If you donāt mind the risk, go right ahead.
^
Yup!
All of the folks who say that they want āa lot of American ironā around them are ignoring the absolutely destructive nature of that iron in a car from the '50s, '60s, and '70s.
The most telling portion of the video is the comparison between the interior damage in the modern Malibu and the old āAmerican ironā Impala. The Malibu had no intrusion into the interior, while the old Impala wound up with the dashboard and steering column & wheel driven so far upward & inward that a broken neck would be the likely scenario for the driver of that āAmerican ironā.
Classic American cars are wonderful to gaze at and to fantasize about, and are nice for an occasional weekend drive in good weather.
But, as daily drivers?
Neither practical nor safe.
How could they do that to one of the few remaining 59 Chevys? Not to argue either but Iāve never heard of getting anywhere near 30k on a set of points, and always lubed them. Maybe 10k with several filings.