Drive it every day. Day in, day out, rain, shine—whatever. You peek into the garage late at night and wonder what it would take to make your steed a road worthy commuter car. Is it worth it? Do you really want to do that to your pride and joy? Many in our hobby are saying yes. Maybe not to the idea of using their show car for the daily grind into work, but the appeal is there for a nice little fastback or hardtop to add pleasure to the drive. There is nothing like waking up and realizing that you get to drive a Mustang into the office. We know since we do it every day. It somehow makes that routine between eight and five seem more tolerable. Then the other cool thing is that you get to drive it home!
However, there is a level of commitment involved in this daily driver. Oil to be checked, sheet metal to be washed, and parts to buy when the pony breaks—and if the car is older than two years, it will break. Even if you choose to drive a late-model Mustang, you are going to be in a car that gets noticed, particularly if the car is a GT or Cobra. Last month, we covered all the pricing guidelines for the Mustang market via the Cars of Particular Interest (CPI) Guide. This month, we’ll explore what you need to look at when considering a daily driver. In the vintage ranks, there are many things that can get in the way of making a Mustang enjoyable—quirks, if you will. We will try to make these oddities easier to cope with.
All that said, do we think it’s worth it to get a daily driver Mustang? In the immortal words of Randy Savage, “Ooooh yeeah.”
If you are interested in doing a driver, there are some things that you need to know about all the bodies. Vintage or late-model, all have their caveats. Some make better drivers than others, pure and simple. Below are what we think of all the body styles and what the verdict is on daily use. The verdicts are ranked on a scale from one to five. One being abysmal, five being a perfect choice. Keep in mind these are our thoughts only; no scientists were consulted, nor did we phone Consumer Reports and get their opinions.