I love the subject of older cars as 'first cars' and 'drivers'.
Here's my $.02:
If you enjoy working on your own car, older cars (especially British
roadsters) make a very reasonable driver, even for a teenager. I've
owned one (usually as my only form of transportation) since I was 17.
My stepson (now 14) is intent on either an MG, 914, or Corvair as his
first car. I find all three choices to be acceptable.
If you don't want to learn to work on your own car or don't want to
be bothered with performing continuous maintenance, drive something
modern.
The "mean time between failures" on an MGB is going to be MUCH
higher than on a newer Japanese car. First, if you can't do some
simple tasks, any "failure" could be debilitating. However, I've found that
most times, having minimal tools and a little basic mechanical skills
easily get you to the end of your journey. Second, if you have to pay
somebody's labor every time something little needs doing, you'll end
up paying an arm and a leg! BTDT. (On the other hand, having
an old car and no money does tend to teach you basic skills!)
I tend to think of my older cars as extremely reliable, but then I'm
always doing something to one of them.
On a new car, the failures are less often, but from my experience,
the "catastrophic" failures occur with about the same frequency.
(Mainly because ANY failure on a new car is apt to be debilitating
and there are so few of these "major" events on an older car.)
Bill Elliott
Lake Mills, WI
Bunch of cars, but none made this decade!
|