Re: Newbie questions about A's

Posted by Bob Johnson on July 21, 1998 at 10:09:58

In Reply to: Newbie questions about A's
posted by Matthew W. Woodruff on July 20, 1998 at 15:04:00

Matthew,
1. Yes the Model A is a reasonable car for your purposes. However there is more maintanance then a modern car. Frequent oil changes, brake adjustments, lubing, etc. You should also be aware that over the years some cars have had inferior and poor fitting parts used to replace original worn out parts. These inferior parts can cause a car to become less reliable.
2. You should stick to a car with a back seat. The rummble seat is not the safest seat. So look for a tudor, 4-door, town sedan, victoria, convertible sedan or station wagon.
3. If you drive the car on a regular basis you should do weekly maintenance or at least monthly. But that is the fun part.
4. Seat belts are a good thing and can be put in most Model As without much trouble. Hydraulic brakes are not needed in a Model A. The mechanical brakes work just fine. The difference is that a good set of mechanical brakes require more maintenance then a good set of hydraulics. The key is that you have a good set of brakes. The weakness in stopping a Model A is that the tires are skinny and there is not much tread on the ground.
5. What to look for depends on what you want to do with the car. In your case I would look for a car that is mechanically sound.
Bob

E-Mail Comment to Webmaster