Picture this: a car that starts and runs well, every time you turn the key. Doesn't cost an arm and a leg every year in repairs. And when it does need a part, you're not gouged on the price. What cars fit this bill?
Picture this: a car that starts and runs well, every time you turn the key. Doesn't cost an arm and a leg every year in repairs. And when it does need a part, you're not gouged on the price. What cars fit this bill?
What era? Sporty car, sedan, wagon? Would you be doing most of the work on it yourself?
I intended the question as a more general thread topic, not geared toward finding "me" a particular car. So any vehicle that fits the bill can be mentioned. Though I will say I'm a checkbook mechanic (so perhaps people can distinguish their recommendations between those good for self-repairers and those good for checkbook-repairers).
Dodge Dart or Plymouth Valiant was the first thing that came to mind. A 318 or slant six won't be fast in stock trim, but they're tough and parts are cheap, and the buy in won't break the bank, either. Other "compacts" (they're boats by modern standards) from the muscle car era - Nova, Falcon, Comet, etc. - are similar, and so are trucks. You're talking about cars that weren't loaded down with expensive options, and were built with cross country road trips in mind. And they're both fairly large - so there's room to reach in and swing a wrench - and simple, which means either low hourly work from a mechanic or easy to figure them out yourself.
Toyota 1st generation MR2 (AW11).
classic japanese or what they call "nostalgic cars"
Some good choices that are reliable..... S30 Z cars. 240z, 260z, 280z. All of them are good. 280z with 5 speed is my favorite, put on 240z era bumpers and you have the best Z IMO. MK2 Supra First Gen Celicas are really popular Datsun 510s are extremely good cars. AW11 MR2 like said above is great if you want 80s classic. They have an amazing engine that can be built to awesomeness and JDM forms exist that are common swaps come with ITBs and sound glorious. Starions are nice as well....
idk if you want modern reliable you generally are looking at 80s cars
what era you want? 60s 70s 80s?
IMHO, if you're planning to be a "checkbook mechanic" - and there's nothing wrong with that - first start doing some research into finding decent classic car mechanics near you. Then narrow your choices to cars they'll work on. If I lived on Whidbey Island, I'd own nothing but 1800's and 122's and VClassics would have no worries about keeping food on the table. 
To be honest, some cars are better than others but in the end it'll be a crap-shoot when it comes to buying an old car. My ex-g/f bought a beautiful '73 Volvo 1800ES - by most accounts the last word in buying a reliable old classic - but it's never run quite right since she bought it, and her general distrust of mechanics meant it was left to me and my meager diagnostic skills to try to fix it (which I never was able to to do). While I replaced damn near everything that could be replaced on it, I think the root of the problem comes from the 10+ years the car sat unused between being restored and her buying it. Conversely, a few years ago I bought a '72 Triumph GT6 - a nice car, but never known for trouble-free driving. I replaced the alternator this Spring, but otherwise I've done nothing to it but change the oil once a year and drive it. If it sits awhile (like a month or so), it'll take a few cranks to fire up, but if I run it regularly it starts easier and faster than my modern cars.
Don't look for a perfect garage queen. Look for a well used and loved car that was driven regularly. I wouldn't say 80's cars are inherently more reliable. My '88 BMW has been one of the most unreliable cars I've ever owned. Again, I made the mistake of buying a car that looked good, but was driven sparingly for a few years prior to my purchase.
I am astonished by the reliability and inexpensiveness of my 63 Falcon.
I'm going to say any mid to late 60's to early 70's Chevy with a small block V8. Those cars are pretty dead nuts reliable and the mechanical parts aren't too expensive, mainly because most of the Repro parts companies have them covered. 283, 307, 327, 350, and 400 are all rather reliable and the transmissions they are mated too are rather reliable too.
corvair
AngryCorvair wrote: corvair
I was going to say this because I know they're reliable, but it seems people who don't know them, get scared away.
+1 on the slant six valiant.
My vote is for a nice C3 Corvette.
Something American. I was shocked at the prices of some of the parts for our Jeep vs. the Alfa.
But then the Alfa starts every time, the Jeep, not so much. If I put some work into it that would likely change.
My old Valiant was pretty much dead-nuts reliable and easy to work on.
What is the range for initial purchase price?
Foxy Mustang. Almost anything between 1985 and 1995 is old enough to be cool and modern enough to be reliable. Anything with points and a carburetor will want regular maintenance or else. My '93 Miata is modern and with A/C yet is 20 years old now. I drove it to work today because it was pouring rain and not in spite of it since I walk to work.
The most reliable classic car I've ever owned is a Triumph TR8. Never had a problem with it. It just goes to show that anything with an American derived V8 is always reliable - even a British car.
Dodge Diplomat.
My 78 T/A easily fits the bill. Nice cold AC, always starts, original and unmolested = reliable with these. Plus, parts are cheap, they have decent power, and the fuel economy isn't terrible with the stock qjet if you stay on the primaries.
Jim Pettengill wrote: Toyota 1st generation MR2 (AW11).
Couldn't agree more Jim. In fact, I agree so much I've been de-mothballing my '85 MR2 over the past few days. It fired on the second crank after sitting for probably two years, and within a few seconds it was running on all four cylinders.
Biggest problem was that the engine harness is starting to dry-rot. It was causing all sorts of intermittent weirdness. $100 bought a nice used harness and that may be this afternoon's project.
Most interestingly, in the time since I've been real involved in the MR2 community, it's become even more restoration and preservation focused. There's an excellent network out there for second-hand parts, and even a few MR2-Specific junkyards.
It's a great choice. Very modern manners in a car that will celebrate its 30th birthday in 16 months.
jg
First generation Miata. A couple more years and they will be 25 years old. It's almost criminal how little I've had to spend on my now 100k miles '91 in the 12 years I've owned it. It has never let me down and it runs lke a race car on all of the road trips we've taken. I've asked about possible replacements on the sister forum and everything pales when it comes to include, fun, convertible, cheap to buy,cheap to run and low maintenance.
Porsche 924
My first gen celica (77) was a peach. Tough to find aesthetic parts for it but mechanicals were toyota pickup (22r up till 94 mostly) so they were easy to source, and the 22r is super reliable. Suspension is basically ae86 corolla so decent aftermarket, and really good handling for the time. I never saw another one the whole time I owned it, and the car was a rockstar every where it went. I so badly wanted to do a 1uz v8 swap, but I never got around to it.
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