Can a vintage car be a practical, effective method of transportation?

Well, this question has two sides. Yes, it *could* be practical, but it'll require a lot more of your attention than a similarly-priced, more recent car.

FWIW, I drove a 1964 Ford F-100 for ten years, until I got my newer truck about five years ago. (Still have that Ford.) Yep, it was simple to work on. I did have to scrounge for the clutch linkage at a few wreckers. But I kept him alive until just recently when I got the motor rebuilt. Not for restoration, but because I'd put a lot of miles on that car in 15 years and it wasn't fresh when I got it. Mileage? Pretty rotten- about 12 mpg. But I knew the truck, could hear when it needed a tune up and could do the tune-ups myself. (Though getting to the distributor near the firewall is a pain in the arsky.) I have two manuals- one that is for vans but includes my year and one that stops the year before mine for pickups. I have a lot of tools, but I use them for other reasons, too. I have a lot of time on my back, under the truck. But it's my truck. I have no payments and my insurance is $181/year because I don't carry collision. I spent $200 for the front tires a couple of years ago and $300 for the back tires just a couple of weeks ago. I've got a spare bumper and grill in my storage. I put my old high-zoot radio back in because the original was AM only and I like FM. I'm thinking of new mirrors, but a paint job might come first.

Could you do with your T-bird what I've done with my Effie? I dunno. You will need a manual for sure. If you can find both a Haynes and Chiltons, you'll have two sources of information. You'll need a lot of help when something like the heater core goes bad. You'll need a good floor jack and some very sturdy jack stands. You will never, never, NEVER get underneath a car without jack stands, OK? A timing light and compression tester will be in your future, as will an oil filter wrench and distributor parts like points, rotor and condenser. You'll need some good wrenches. (Keep an eye on OSH or Sears for Craftsman tools. Get hex ones, not the 12-sided ones. More tools will find their way into your tool box. You'll find a gallon of hand cleaner won't last forever. And you'll become familiar with various industrial substances like Permatex and SuperGlue, Bondo, carb cleaner and lacquer thinner. You'll buy rubber gloves by the gross, in a box like Kleenex. And use 'em like Kleenex. Santa will leave stocking stuffers like electrician's tape and a stack of shop towels, not socks and slippers.

And you'll go to sleep thinking about how tight should the wheel bearings be, how to measure brake shoes, and how to clean battery terminals with the tapered brush that you got for a mere $1.79 at the Cheap Tools bin while you were buying Castrol GTX.

OK, the biggest drawback I see is the mileage. A modern car will get you three times the mileage. But if you keep driving this 46-year-old car, you'll never have nothing to talk about.

Lastly- not everyone is as daffy as I am. There's no reason you should saddle yourself with a career (fixing your car) when you could remain blissfully ignorant of internal-combustion principles, driving a five-year-old Corolla. Bottom line is, it's your call. Hope you make the choice that's right for you. Take care!!!

An old vintage car like that would require more maintenance and upkeep because there are no computers in the car and nearly everything is mechanical. That means more parts that wear out and more parts that need periodic adjustment or replacement. Not to mention, parts for a car that is nearly 50 years old will be fairly difficult to come across. Many parts for a car that old are most likely discontinued or will you would need to go through a special aftermarket company, or even have them custom made. Also, driving a car like that would mean paying out the nose for fuel because cars like that were not know for the fuel economy, and with today's fuel prices... if you can afford it, more power to you. The last thing is getting insurance for that car might be difficult because lots of insurance companies either will charge you through the nose for a policy, or will just not insure the car. A car like that is probably best as a weekend recreational cruiser for just having a good time.

the great thing about old cars is you can fix them yourself, if your mechanically inclined. get a repair manual like chiltons for the year of car. i rebuilt a quadrajet carb for my cutlass with one. i own a 70 cutlass s and a 71 duster 340 and would never buy a new car.

i drive a 74 nova to work everyday (40 minutes) rain or shine, it can be done just take care of them

keep the antique car for show but they are not good on fuel economy.

Most absolutely, if you hook it up to a team of horses or pull it with a truck