..i am considering actually using mine as my main car as it just sits there doin nothing. Interested in your views at how costly it could be particualary interested in people form the UK to comment...Its garaged overnight and i wouldnt use it if snow or ice was an issue...Its already done 65000miles and had a good life BEING USED...is it better to keep em goin of garage queen them?
Does it leak in the rain? Does it rain much in the UK ? (joke) I'm sure the car would be just fine as a daily driver, but the interior wear/tear would be pretty severe. Frankly, it'd probably run better if it were driven (at temperature) on a daily basis. Major services, clutches, tires, and the fuel costs would be pretty high.
Mechanically, I think the car thrives on being used regularly. My biggest worry in using the car as a daily driver would be getting another rock in the windshield! That wasn't a pleasant experience. It would be the same thing to suffer a broken headlight, or a broken fog light/turn signal. The darn parts are just HORRIBLY expensive to replace!
As long as you do the maintenance when it is called for the car should be one of the best runners anywhere.
That is a real good point. Would putting a 3M coat on the lenses/lights help? Windshield is a flat gamble.
X-PEL on the lenses would absolutely make a big difference. I'd 3M shield the whole nose and mirrors too.
..mine is the TB so no leak issues .....Plus my insurance has windscreen cover upto 10k....plus both my front fogs are already damaged..LOL.
I've been driving my 348 daily for the past year and a half. Go enjoy it. Life is too short to think about what could have been.
Sweet! i almost posted this exact question but i held back and here it is anyway! Maintenance costs would be a large factor but as you said if you buy a car you would want to enjoy it, not garage it. Just to be on the safe side i would make sure you have backup transportation just in case.
Not sure about the 348, but my 328 likes to be warmed up a bit after a cold start (shifts better, and of course you can rev it a bit). Much as I adore the car, most of the time it's easier to take the Jeep, fire it up, drive off in any weather and park in any stinkin' parking spot that pops up. So, I'd think about the convenice/practicality more than dependability in those occasional patches of rain you get over there. (Or occasional patches of sun - which is it again?)
3 key principles of owning a 348: drive, drive, drive. Sadly, I parked mine yesterday, as we're expecting winter soon. Woke up to 15cm of snow this morning. Later this morning, the wife showed off her NASCAR-style evasive manouvers as an Acura spun out in front of us on the freeway. Missed him by inches. Scary enough in a jeep, never risk it with the red wedge....too much potential for cardiac arrest. Daily driver for half the year is best we can do in the great white north.
Welcome to Fchat 72! I didn't know we had a 348 brother in Calgary. snow already? I dropped my 348 yesterday to get some tires with tread for our winter driving in the great Wet North To answer the original poster though: 348's love to be driven - my only concern is exposing her to more weather than you'd like (they all likely leak a little bit somewhere), more high-risk parking than you'd like with door-dings/etc, and more high-angle driveways than you'd like. I drive mine maybe 90% of the time in the summer and 10% in the winter. We get enough snow, ice, and salt in the winter I wouldn't plan on a 348 as the only car in the fleet. Being stuck in traffic with the lovely V8 being wasted behind your shoulders - somehow just seems wrong. They'll do it all day everyday but I try and avoid it where possible now.
Thanks TJA, I agree, drive it lots. Maintenance cost the same if it's parked or driven, so you may as well enjoy it. I do just as much driving in your province as I do my own. BC has way more twisties. My last trip in the 348 got me home from BC in 2 hours 25 minutes, a new personal best. Subsequent trip in rental car took 4 hours, but that's because of very heavy snow. Good news - ski hills will open early. Bad news - it's a long time 'til spring.
Driving them is key. Venturing down the road of letting a 348, or any car, sit for a long period of time often will cost you more than driving it. Would you rather pay to enjoy your car, or pay to store your car and put your service advisors kids through college.
