I've driven several older vehicles, including a 1966 Ford Mustang, a 1966 Ford F100 pickup truck, a 1965 Chevrolet pickup truck, a 1962 Ford Galaxie 500 2 door hardtop, and a 1959 Ford F100 pickup truck. But by far the oldest vehicle I've ever driven was an unrestored 1922 Dodge phaeton. It was surprisingly easy to drive, with the same 3 pedal setup that is in modern cars with manual transmissions and a 3 speed manual on the floor. Of course it didn't have power anything, but it wasn't too hard to turn the wheel. I have evidence that I drove this car (laugh all you want at the mullet, it was the early '90s):
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi167.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fu126%2Fbugo348%2F1922dodge_zps67f12267.jpg&hash=90b76a81711beb32c42639af028a48ebd7d9c96c)
Has anybody here driven anything older?
1966 Chevrolet C-10 pickup truck. 250 cid I-6 with three-on-the-tree.
A goat.
I hand-cranked a 1927 Maxwell sedan. Otherwise, 1967 for actual driving.
My dad had two first gen Mustangs at two different points of my childhood, but I never drove them. He and I each have a 91 Prelude, but I think his was built first. Whichever of them is older is the oldest vehicle I know I've driven.
Can't beat the one mentioned by the OP. Oldest I've ever driven was a 1973 IH Scout II
Valeted a '57 Chevy
My brother's '74 Beetle.
1948 Ford F-1 pickup. For a rig with manual steering the wheel turned surprisingly easy.
Another old car I drove that impressed me was a 1954 Chevy 210. It had the 6-cylinder with factory dual exhaust and exhaust manifolds. For a Blue Flame 6 it got up and moved.
Rick
I drove my uncle's restored 1942 Ford coupe a couple of times. It looked sharp on the outside, but he had a hard time keeping that thing running. I think he finally gave up and sold it.
1977 Plymouth Fury. Was super fun to drive, one of the gasholes of the era.
Quote from: OracleUsr on February 27, 2013, 11:10:51 PM
Can't beat the one mentioned by the OP. Oldest I've ever driven was a 1973 IH Scout II
for me it's either a '74 Scout or a '74 Firebird.
the Scout has easiest manual transmission I've ever driven. (apparently there are two transmission types for it; this one is the that doesn't have the granny gear) first time I drove it, I had to take it home from a repair shop where I had dropped my Escort, and it was parked uphill. I didn't even come close to stalling it, despite having no idea where the clutch break point was.
my friend who owns the Scout could start it in third; the engine is just that powerful.
Did the Scout have the V8 or the half-a-V8 slant 4? My friend and his dad are Scout enthusiasts and both of them own one. I went in their garage once and saw an engine sitting on a stand. I asked my friend what that V8 came out of and he said "that's not a V8, that's a 4 cylinder." I was looking it it at an angle that I couldn't tell half the engine was missing.
Quote from: Stalin on February 28, 2013, 02:01:56 PM
Did the Scout have the V8 or the half-a-V8 slant 4? My friend and his dad are Scout enthusiasts and both of them own one. I went in their garage once and saw an engine sitting on a stand. I asked my friend what that V8 came out of and he said "that's not a V8, that's a 4 cylinder." I was looking it it at an angle that I couldn't tell half the engine was missing.
V8 for sure. I think it's the 302.
Close. 304. 302 was the Ford small block "5.0" (actually 4.9L) engine that was used in everything from pickup trucks to full sized station wagons to high performance Mustangs. Chevy also made a 302, which was only available in the '67-'69 Camaro Z28, and only with a 4 speed manual. It was very conservatively rated at 290 HP. Some experts say it put out over 400, which was very impressive output per cubic inch for its day.
304 it is. Between reading off of Wikipedia, and writing it here, I got a digit wrong.
my friend who owns the Scout has told me the displacement (years ago, in casual conversation!), so I looked it up, and 304 sounded more like what he said than 345, so I went with that.
it might be the 345 for all I know.
Technically, it's a pickup truck, but I drove my grandpa's 1960's era International pickup truck. I can't remember the year, but it had to be before 1965, because mom said grandpa got it some time before her graduation. I'm not even sure when International made pickups.
Quote from: DandyDan on March 01, 2013, 11:20:57 PM
Technically, it's a pickup truck, but I drove my grandpa's 1960's era International pickup truck. I can't remember the year, but it had to be before 1965, because mom said grandpa got it some time before her graduation. I'm not even sure when International made pickups.
They made several including the Travelall (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_Travelall), Scout (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_Scout), K & KB Series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_K_and_KB_Series), L Series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_L-Series), R Series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_R-Series), A/B/C Series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_A-Series), and D Series (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Harvester_Light_Line_pickup). Production of most ended in 1975 with Scout going on until 1980. The light pickups/SUVs seem to have been produced from 1947 to 1980 when IH decided to focus on the commercial trucks only.
We went cruising in my friend's grandma's 1955 Ford, but I don't remember if I ever actually drove it or not. If not, then I'm ashamed to say the oldest for me might be a 1984 or 1985.
The oldest car I've driven was the second car I owned - a '66 Ford Galaxie 4-door - it was a year younger than me.
Quote from: Stratuscaster on March 02, 2013, 11:07:03 PM
The oldest car I've driven was the second car I owned - a '66 Ford Galaxie 4-door - it was a year younger than me.
My uncle had a 1965 Galaxie 4-door (352 cid V-8) which is actually the oldest car I have ever driven.
My uncle has a 1965 Galaxie 500 XL 2 door hardtop with the bucket seats, console, and floor shift. It had a 352 in it but the parts are scattered about my dad's place. My dad originally had the car but he sold it to my uncle.
Once test-drove a 1959 Dodge, with the push-button transmission....my main recollection of it was that half its trunk was rusted out....literally!
1960 Ford Falcon, I think.
Quote from: kphoger on March 02, 2013, 12:24:56 PM
We went cruising in my friend's grandma's 1955 Ford, but I don't remember if I ever actually drove it or not. If not, then I'm ashamed to say the oldest for me might be a 1984 or 1985.
Oops. Scratch that. I know I've driven a 1971 Dodge Ram.
I don't believe Dodge made a "Ram" in 1971.
Quote from: bugo on March 05, 2013, 08:20:14 PM
I don't believe Dodge made a "Ram" in 1971.
Good point. A 1971 Dodge whatever-you-call-it, then. :)
Quote from: kphoger on March 05, 2013, 08:48:27 PM
Quote from: bugo on March 05, 2013, 08:20:14 PM
I don't believe Dodge made a "Ram" in 1971.
Good point. A 1971 Dodge whatever-you-call-it, then. :)
Dodge truck line-up was Sweptline, Custom Sweptline, Adventurer, "the Dude" classed as D100/D200/D300 or W100/200/300 if it was a 4x4. http://web.archive.org/web/20110226103944/http://www.sweptline.com/hist/68-71.html
Unintentionally driven (I was about 4 at the time and I shifted the car into Neutral and the car rolled down our driveway): 1964 Ford Country Squire circa 1969
Oldest vintage car actually driven: test-drove 1967 Buick Skylark 4-door sedan, 330 cid V8 somebody was selling back in 1993.
Oldest vintage car owned: my first car, a 1969 Ford LTD Brougham 4-door sedan w/the base 302 cid V8 I bought in May 1982.
Oldest age car driven: My brother's 1969 Ford LTD coupe (w/the 390 cid V8) circa 2003-2004.
Oldest age car owned: My 1976 Ford LTD Landau coupe (w/base 351M V8) when I stopped driving it in 2007 (when I bought my current 2007 Mustang convertible). I utlimately sold it in 2010.
Oldest vintage car I've ridden in but too young to recall/remember: My father's 1959 Chevy Impala convertible he had until 1968 after the engine caught fire.
Oldest vintage car I've ridden in but do recall/remember: the fore-mentioned 1964 Ford Country Squire wagon my mother had until 1971.
Oldest vintage car I sat in but not ridden in: a 1959 VW my father briefly had in 1977 that he completely disassembled for a project that never came to fruition.
Quote from: PHLBOS on March 06, 2013, 09:15:08 AM
Unintentionally driven (I was about 4 at the time and I shifted the car into Neutral and the car rolled down our driveway): 1964 Ford Country Squire circa 1969
Oldest vintage car actually driven: test-drove 1967 Buick Skylark 4-door sedan, 330 cid V8 somebody was selling back in 1993.
Oldest vintage car owned: my first car, a 1969 Ford LTD Brougham 4-door sedan w/the base 302 cid V8 I bought in May 1982.
Oldest age car driven: My brother's 1969 Ford LTD coupe (w/the 390 cid V8) circa 2003-2004.
Oldest age car owned: My 1976 Ford LTD Landau coupe (w/base 351M V8) when I stopped driving it in 2007 (when I bought my current 2007 Mustang convertible). I utlimately sold it in 2010.
Oldest vintage car I've ridden in but too young to recall/remember: My father's 1959 Chevy Impala convertible he had until 1968 after the engine caught fire.
Oldest vintage car I've ridden in but do recall/remember: the fore-mentioned 1964 Ford Country Squire wagon my mother had until 1971.
Oldest vintage car I sat in but not ridden in: a 1959 VW my father briefly had in 1977 that he completely disassembled for a project that never came to fruition.
I once owned a '68 Skylark, that was a solid piece of metal!
Quote from: djsinco on March 06, 2013, 11:31:20 AMI once owned a '68 Skylark, that was a solid piece of metal!
True. But the '67 & '68 Skylark, as with all other '67 & '68 GM A-body mid-sizes, were two different vehicles.
1967 Buick Skylark
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fstatic.ddmcdn.com%2Fgif%2F1965-1967-buick-skylark-gran-sport-1.jpg.jpg&hash=844b1d295c6f0b1b7ab8a907c2fa04eb91903282)
1968 Buick Skylark
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fstatic.ddmcdn.com%2Fgif%2F1968-1969-buick-skylark-gs-1.jpg&hash=4e84697282ec0f98d8fe12546a7947848ad2b8cc)
Thanks, I never realized I was so unlucky. I remember paying $800 for the car (in 1979,) being hit twice and collecting cash from both other drivers who wanted to keep insurance out of it. I drove it as is for a few years and sold it for a net profit!
Quote from: djsinco on March 06, 2013, 02:51:49 PM
sold it for a net profit!
If only that could be true. With insurance, tags, gasoline, and repairs, cars are basically never a net profit.
Quote from: kphoger on March 07, 2013, 09:22:52 AM
If only that could be true. With insurance, tags, gasoline, and repairs, cars are basically never a net profit.
with the IRS's 55.5 cent per mile reimbursement, it is possible. my '89 Escort ($80 insurance every 6 months, 44 mpg, about $1000 in repairs... over 41000 miles) actually turned a profit for me.
Quote from: agentsteel53 on March 07, 2013, 12:42:14 PM
Quote from: kphoger on March 07, 2013, 09:22:52 AM
If only that could be true. With insurance, tags, gasoline, and repairs, cars are basically never a net profit.
with the IRS's 55.5 cent per mile reimbursement, it is possible. my '89 Escort ($80 insurance every 6 months, 44 mpg, about $1000 in repairs... over 41000 miles) actually turned a profit for me.
True, but you still had to drive an Escort. (That sounds dirty!) :-/
Quote from: djsinco on March 07, 2013, 02:11:35 PM
True, but you still had to drive an Escort. (That sounds dirty!) :-/
I would much rather drive a Crown Vic in that case.
Quote from: agentsteel53 on March 07, 2013, 12:42:14 PM
my '89 Escort ($80 insurance every 6 months...)
What...$160/year in California? I can only assume it's essentially not covered for anything but property damage (one minor accident, it's effectively a total loss).
Quote from: formulanone on March 13, 2013, 02:00:37 PM
What...$160/year in California? I can only assume it's essentially not covered for anything but property damage (one minor accident, it's effectively a total loss).
I was living in New Mexico at the time. and yes, liability only. indeed, someone took it out in a minor accident. his insurance company paid me $269. woo hoo.
Mine is not too exciting at all. The car I learned to drive on was a 1994 Ford Escort 5-door hatchback. It was my dad's car, but I drove it quite a bit for a few years.
It's slightly possible I've driven cars older than that, but it's not likely. Lame I know.
So far, I win with the '22 Dodge! The second oldest vehicle that I've driven (1959 Ford F100 pickup truck) is a contender.
Oldest I've driven is my Grandpa's 1977 Chevy Impala, followed by my parents 1980 Ford Country Squire LTD station wagon, complete with the fake wood grain paneling. Oldest car of my own I've driven was my 1991 Ford Escort, which was also the first car I owned. I still miss that car for some reason.