When you hear the word muscle car, you get a description of American high-performance vehicles. Some define it as an intermediate-sized car having a large displacement engine such as a V8 engine. These wide and strong body vehicles with rear-wheel drive have been known for more than a decade. Also, the muscle car word is used for the vehicles that were mass-produced in the 1960s and 1970s for drag racing.
Later on, the muscle cars were defined as pony cars such as Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro. As of today, due to changes in technology, muscle cars have evolved. But car enthusiasts still prefer the classic muscle cars. So, if you are one of those who want to own a 1966 Pontiac GTO, 1970 Plymouth GTX, or 1970 AMC Rebel, then you must be considering the factors to own a muscle car.
Should You Buy a Muscle Car
Before you decide to buy a muscle car, make sure that you are considering all the factors of owning a muscle car. They come with an extra expense that you must be able to afford. Muscle cars having big tires, roaring sound, high-performance engines, classic looks, etc. as you see in movies or on the road are fun until you own one.
They Can Be Loud
You know that muscle car tends to have bigger engines than the regular cars you already have. A bigger engine means that it will be having a stronger and louder exhaust depending on the exhaust configurations. Having a loud exhaust can be a fun thing to experience when you are driving on country roads. But when you have a quiet neighborhood, then it can be disturbing for your neighbors.
Well, the good news about modern muscle cars is that they have an exhaust switch. It helps you to toggle between a loud exhaust sound and a muffled exhaust sound. This has been possible by using electronic deflectors on the exhaust. It directs the route of exhaust through the muffle or pushing it around the muffler.
Instead of disturbing your neighbors, you can start the muscle car in silent exhaust mode in the morning. A little load of exhaust sound can still be enjoyed because it won’t be like an electric car. It becomes best of both worlds to have two exhaust sounds at different times.
Insurance Costs Are Higher
High horsepower cars can be more expensive to insure than the lower horsepower muscle cars. Also, it depends on your age and your driving history. The cost of getting your muscle car insured will be depending on what other people have put them through and the total price of the vehicle.
A Corvette costs more than a factory Mustang, so be prepared to pay a little extra for the insurance of your Corvette. Another factor that plays an important role in insurance cost is the materials used to make the car. For example, if you own a Corvette, then you must be knowing that it uses fiberglass body panels, aluminum frame, and carbon fiber door panels, roof, and hood. On the other hand, Mustang uses steel frames and panels.
If you get into an accident or get hit by another vehicle, then replacing the carbon fiber parts will be more expensive than body parts made of steel. Also, if replacing or repairing the parts of a muscle car is expensive than a regular car, then insurance is going to cost you more than before. So, make sure that you have considered the affordability of insurance while owning a muscle car.
Lack Of Storage
You know that a muscle car is not a regular use car that you can use with a family. It is because there is a bit lack of storage space inside. Muscle cars are designed in a way that they look great from the outside but they don’t give much thought to practicality. Most muscle cars are having two doors (coupe). They are having back seats for storage. Also, it might be a difficult task to go to the rear seats.
Some muscle cars are having a decent amount of trunk space but slipping things in can be a difficult task to do. It is because the trunk opening of an old Mustang can be a bit smaller than the trunk space. If the opening of the trunk is a bit bigger, then you can easily store a suitcase in the muscle car’s trunk.
Talking about convertible muscle cars, then the trunk space will be even smaller than hardtop muscle cars. When you remove the soft top, you have to store it somewhere and it goes in the trunk. Hence, the storage capacity in the trunk gets shrink and you might not be able to store a suitcase in the trunk.
Muscle Cars Use More Gas
Most muscle cars with a large V8 engine will cost you more gas than a Toyota Prius. It is due to the nature of muscle cars. They are said to be more performance-oriented than fuel economy-oriented vehicles. Some manufacturers are offering small turbocharged engines that are still able to compete with the old V8 engines. For example, Dodge Demon or Hellcat having more horsepower combined with a supercharger will generate even more power.
Instead, you can go for a V6 or 4-cylinder turbo muscle car but you will be missing the magic of muscle cars with V8 engines.
Muscle Cars’ Gas Is Expensive
You can expect more trips to the gas pump to refuel your muscle car. The fuel is not a normal fuel but premium gasoline. Because of low fuel consumption, you will be paying more and continue to keep the tank full. However, the cost of super fuel or premium fuel as compared to a standard 87 octane gasoline is higher.
Before you decide on buying a muscle car, look for the type of fuel recommended for the specific engine. Whenever you are traveling, you will have to refuel your muscle car with premium fuel. Also, the premium or super fuel will be 20 to 40 cents costly per gallon than 87 octane gasoline.
Tires Are Expensive
The maintenance cost of a muscle car such as replacing the tires is costly. Many people don’t consider it while buying a muscle car. Usually, muscle cars are having wide rear tires. It is because they support a better grip with the rear-wheel-drive setup. To get the most grip, you need to have the widest rubber that can fit your muscle car.
The wider the tires, the more rubber will be needed. As a result, the cost of replacing the tires of a muscle car is more than a regular car. Muscle cars are rated at higher speeds than economical cars. Hence, the high-speed index of tires will be costly. It is because of the reason that manufacturers put more development on a tire that can bear the 200-mph speed than a normal 120 mph speed.
Manual Drive or Stick Shift
Another consideration while buying a muscle car is the transmission whether it has an automatic or manual transmission. Most of the newer muscle cars come with automatic transmissions. If you have never driven a car with a manual transmission, then first you need to learn how to drive a manual transmission.
When you learn to drive a manual car, you must be looking for something that is having 200 horsepower rather than learning it on a 500-horsepower muscle car. As a result, you will be able to drive and control the muscle car with 500 horsepower on the road.
Muscle Car Engine Have Larger Displacement
Most muscle cars come with a large V8 or V6 engine. Large means that they will be having more space inside the engine. Most engines in the United States will be having a number of liters that indicates the engine displacement in liters. The liters specify the amount of internal space. If you are having a Mustang 5.0 V8 then the engine has 5 liters of displacement.
The economical cars are having 2.0 to 2.4 liters of engine displacement. It means that maintaining a large engine will be costly than a regular engine. A larger engine means a spark plug that you need to replace after a certain period. Also, more liters of engine oil will be needed for a 5.0L engine than a 2.0L engine.
Owning A Muscle Car – If You Have Deep Pockets
Owning a muscle car can be a fun thing and a great show-off in the neighborhood. You will experience a high-performance vehicle when you have got the right muscle car for yourself. But, keep in mind that you have to pay more dollars while maintaining, insuring, and refueling the car than a regular car.
Muscle cars of the 50s and 60s can be intriguing. It makes one have customized and fast cars. The roaring sound of a muscle car gives goosebumps to the car enthusiasts but you have to consider the affordability of owning a muscle car. If you have enough resources to keep your car running at the full tank and high maintenance, then why not.