Am I an idiot?

No you are not but I would look at the 328
Fuel injectors more power same look (almost) more reliable great Car

 

Will
Welcome & first post. You won't regret it. I own two US 85 QV GTS. One for driving and one for show. Both are well sorted and maintained regularly. They are reliable and fun to drive. I am lucky that I am surrounded by several good 308 mechanics in my area. Last August I drove my driver to Monterey for the Concorso Italiano about 7 hours trip one way without any problems. The only complaint I have is the A/C unit is worthless in the desert. It just can't keep up with the heat from the radiator after 1 hour driving.

 

I don't know where you live, but here's my experience with almost 20 years of ownership of a 328, and using the thing as a daily commuter for about a decade of that.

Mechanically, the late 308 and 328 are pretty solid. Remove the cat if you can to protect against single-bank failure exhaust fires, or replace the ignition system with a modern one.
Remember that the acceleration and braking are worse than the average modern car, and give yourself room.
You'll have trouble seeing around SUVs or even modern sedans, so give yourself room.
The climate control on these are terrible, especially the AC.
Make sure your insurance will allow for daily use.
Older manual transmissions suck for bumper-to-bumper traffic.
Upgrade the stereo, the car is really loud with wind noise and exhaust.
Make sure your insurance has tow coverage just in case.

All that said, there's no real reason why you can't use it as a daily.

 

My two cents, FWIW:
Disclaimer: I don't know nothing about driving in the U.S.A; been there three or four times, but never driven a car there...
But nevertheless I would say that it mainly depends on the roads you will be using and the density of traffic in the cities that you intend to visit or cross.

It's not mechanically that I would be worried, but about the integrity of the car and its/her (depending if you a a romantic = her, or not = its) body.
I own two 328s, a GTB and a GTS, both '89; neither has ever let me down mechanically: always starts first time by any weather, brought me back home everytime; grand total of mechanical troubles in almost 14 years of ownership: one broken weld on a tube on one rear exhaust manifold and one broken alternator belt.
A well sorted car, regularly exercised, should be up to the job: as the old F-14 stickers go: "Anytime, Baby".

Now: I like to ENJOY the car(s) when I'm driving her (them); I must admit that everytime I cross a medium-sized city (French medium sized city, small winding roads in the centers, etc...) I don't enjoy the car because of the traffic: the S.U.Vs that do not see you in their mirrors because the car is so low, the risks in the parkings of dings in the doors, etc...a minor fender-bender that would not only cost a lot, but leave you with a headache for the parts...and the correct body shop.
I still do it, I collect friends a railway stations etc...but I don't enjoy it. I cross the beloved city of Metz from time to time, to visit a member of my family; last time I did it, I counted 37 red lights on a three miles crossing. Not exactly enjoyable, 37 times waiting that the SUV in front of you backs up on your hood...

Mechanically, the car would do it, no worry. Would you ENJOY it? It depends on your itinerary, I guess.

Rgds

 

I second David’s statement, I also have an 84 QV with 88k plus miles and the car is still running strong and running like new car as I drive it often. Once you get a sorted out 308 QV, it is as reliable as a 328 but, like many other cars, if you don’t drive it may or will not run as it supposed to.

 

Driving it every day is fine with one of these.

Actually it is the best maintenance you can do to it

 

Absolutely agreed. These cars are bulletproof proof once dialed in. Just have to get one that is sorted and has a good recent service. Some owners are remiss about proper interval servicing and don’t understand a car with a personality.
Enjoy.

 

Depends on you definition of "not quite daily driver." Drive it a lot when the weather is nice? Yes, I do that. I do agree that the car is unlikely to leave you stranded. And even in traffic I'd rather be in my 308 than my auto-trans commuter.

Winter driving isn't really great, especially rain. The wipers are antiquated and you are in everyone's tire spray all the time and can't see anything. I drive my car as a commuter as much as I can outside of the intense heat or rain and it's a pleasure. I have a GTS which makes both of those extremes even worse. I don't even carry the roof let alone deploy it 99% of the time, so I'm in the sun and the AC can't cool the entire world. And the few times I've driven in the rain the top has a little leakage, the car isn't quite water tight. It drops a bit right on my thigh so I've arrived a tad dampish.

Also only you can judge if you are ok driving a car in the winter that lacks ABS, traction control, yaw control, air bags, crumple zones, etc.

But the dry times are good times.

 

If your daily drive is winding roads with little traffic, go for it! Traffic is no fun even with good visibility, low vulnerability (and low risk of injury), good cabin environment with the right temperature and low noise, little effort to drive with automatic or an easy clutch... Unless it gets driven into or over, the car should be fine— not so sure about you though

 

I drove my '79 308 everyday for 6 years from 1984 to 1990. About 45K miles worth. The only breakdown I had was the factory fusebox melted on a couple circuits which resulted in a tow home.

I still have the car but it isn't a daily driver anymore.

Back in the 1980s, i was only surrounded by small cars on the streets and highways of SoCal, today it seems to be all huge pickup trucks on the roads, which wouldn't make me comfortable in heavy traffic.

Doug

 

From 2008-2018, my '89 328 was a daily driver that went everyplace from trips across country (3) to daily runs to the grocery store and Home Depot. You get interesting looks when you have six 8ft 2x4s sticking up out of the passenger area over the back of the car (roof off). One comment I got that day was, "WOW, never saw Magnum do that!"

The car has never failed to function properly, never stalled/left me on the side of the road. It's been essentially bulletproof - it has been more reliable than a late model Porsche I once owned or the Mercedes my wife currently owns.

 

For me, visibility to other drivers isn't a personal concern; just not something I worry about. But weather is a big factor. As mentioned earlier, it's not a fun car in the rain. The wipers are functional, but barely. Climate control - also not great. With the top on, it's ok in warm weather - but not hot-hot weather, where it becomes "bearable". Top off? Forget it, the AC isn't doing anything to help you. Which isn't much of a problem at speed, but absolutely sucks in city traffic.

I think at best, it's a second-choice-daily.

 

Bullet proof when maintained. Bought my 3.2 Mondial sight unseen in San Fran and drove it home 2000 miles to Connecticut. That was 2018. Bought my 308 GT4 in Wisconsin back in June sight unseen. Drove it home 1000 miles!