Pinz reliability as a daily driver

[ambjunk]

I've lusted after a Pinz for several years, and am finally in a position to get one, but it will have to be my primary transportation used to get me to and from work every day. I normally only go about 5 miles on local streets to a commuter rail station, but sometimes have to drive about 20 miles on an interstate all the way to my office. Assuming that the Pinz is in good mechanical condition to start with and that I do regular PM per the maintenance schedule, would a 710M be dependable enough for that kind of use? I live in the Denver, Colorado area, so the temp could be anything from about 0 to 100 F.

I would really appreciate any insights from experienced Pinzers. Thanks very much!

[berger]

Hey.

I just saw your post, and I am probably the least qualified to answer as I just bought mine on Wednesday, but if you are looking at an M model, do you feel comfortable leaving the truck at a train station while you are at work? I guess if you are getting a K, you can lock it.

[undysworld]

No.

Check into mhp, climate-control, theft-control, the occasional break-down with a 30-ish year old vehicle, and passenger safety related posts.

We'd just hate to have you buy one and hate it.

They make great 2nd vehicles.

[cowetadirtfarmer]

I absolutely love my pinz but I would definitely not use it for a daily driver!

[edzz]

As much as I like my Pinz there is no way I’d want it as my only vehicle. Think of it this way, would you realy want a Yaesu FT 817 as your only radio?

Give Denis at Linden engineering a call and see if he doesn’t have a Pinz he can demo for you. He should be able to help you decide if you would be able to live with a Pinz as an only vehicle. Not something I’d really want to do.

http://lindenengineering.com/

73

[westernair]

Well I’ll chime in here. I am pretty eclectic as the newest car in my garage is my Pinz. While I drive it regularly, I too would not want it as my only vehicle unless I was taking the city bus to work.
I have chosen my 56 beetle as my daily and the others as backups. At one point in my life I only had a 61 VW bus to drive. I drove her daily for 3 years and every time the damn thing broke down and I was stranded I swore I was going to sell it. I actually started to hate the bus and dreamed of owning a Honda. Don’t do this with a Pinz. Buy a modern vehicle as a primary and when the funds become available get a Pinz to enjoy.

BTW my wife is the smart one, she drives the 2010 Honda Element as her daily and has the 1959 Impala as her play car.

[krick3tt]

I have had my pinz about seven years now and although I have for short periods driven it every day, I would not recommend it as your only vehicle.
I would especially not recommend leaving it completely out of your sight for the period you mention at a park-n-ride area. Too much temptation to mess
with it by anyone.

Virtually any vehicle that is that old is going to have issues with parts and unless you are the psycic-mechanic it may be difficult to know which part is
going to put you down next.

I guess the consensus here is that one not have only one vehicle, especially if it is a pinz. I have also ridden the city bus and although it is an adventure
of undisclosed enjoyment and not anywhere close to the ride of a pinz, it may be your best alternative while you save for that pinz that has obviously
gotten your juices flowing.

Happy trails

[crcpinz]

Mine is not a daily driver, but I try to ride it every day I'm out of the house over all other possibilities, even on beer runs. Keeps it happy. Never had an issue with it or left me stranded, except once I ran out of gas. That said, if I had to go to work every day (I'm retired) I would use public transportation or a modern car.

[GenevaPinz]

If you decide to use a Pinz every day, there will be some glorious days with little traffic and bright sunshine that will make you think you're the king of the road, with an attention-grabbing vintage truck that allows you to cruise with the sides and rear of the canvas rolled up and turns your commute into a very enjoyable moment.

However, there will be other days with heavy traffic, rain, when you're in a hurry, when you will experience a truck that is rather slow, has average wipers, that maybe will drip rain on you when you're behind the wheel, that won't keep you very warm and that has poor rear visibility... If on these days you can just breathe deeply and keep a grin on your face, maybe you can make it work... but there is a risk that you'll end up resenting the truck because what makes it a fun, uncommon vehicle also robs it of the on-road capability of even the most mundane passenger car.

[NoahDL88]

Mechanically, these rigs are fine for commuting, at least one that has been well maintained, and stays well maintained. There are no magic 100,000 mile spark plugs for this truck, the carbs are finiky and the distributor needs regular attention.

If you are comfortable with that then sure, its a great rig for everyday commuting.

I commute 99% of the time on my motorcycle, which is the only way I can afford 4 dollar gas in a rig that gets 8-9 mpg.

If I lived closer, heck yes, I'd drive it a whole lot more, but as it is it has become a weekend car, and I hardly drive my 20 year old subaru, but when I do that old subaru feels brand new, heat, radio, low road noise.


Cliff notes, Do what you want, just make sure you can fix it yourself, and afford the gas.

[Jimm391730]

Yes, these trucks can be very reliable as a daily driver, ONCE you get them "reliable". It often takes quite a while to find all of the 30+ year old gremlins and get them worked out. If you have $$$ and unlimited time you might get the typical issues found and resolved in a month, then you would have a reliable vehicle. Of course it all depends on what gremlins your particular truck has.

Most of us do not use them as a daily driver; therefore it can take a year or better to work the gremlins out as they are found and corrected. This is easier on the pocketbook since the $$$ get spread out over a longer time. Once these issues are taken care of then work on them changes from "gremlin hunting" to more of the normal maintenance going forward.

[waterdog]

i´d looove to drive my pinz everyday,, but the hot weather makes me think , gas prices too !!!, and i dont like to leave it out of my sight, people think that cause is a old vehicle you can lean, climb or step on it the way they want!!!!

[Dreadnought]

1971 Pinzgauer 710K I just have to be different. with the proviso that I am retired and I don,t 'have' to get to the office every day. But I have until recently been using my Pinz as a daily driver, that means a trip down the valley and back 5 kms each way most every day, but also to towns as far away as an hours drive, in very bad cold/snowy conditions and the Pinz never fails to start and in 3 years of ownership apart from changing oil and filters only the axle flexible rubbers have needed changing, even a 200 mile round trip was no problem at all. But, mine is a hybrid it has an OM602 n/a diesel, it is not fast, but anyone who knows this engine will tell you it is probably one of the most reliable and unkillable diesel engines MB ever made, so I don,t have the problems associated with a Benzine engine (no plugs, no points, no carb) I have just started to use my UAZ instead of the Pinz, but that is because it is new but the wife will soon claim the UAZ so I will be back to either the Pinz or the Unimog. Yes I would use it as a daily driver but maybe not in a big city.

[ambjunk]

My thanks to all of you who posted replies. Unfortunately, you confirmed what I had suspected, that a Pinz just really isn't designed for daily on-road civilian use. I guess it's time to have a serious mid-life crisis discussion with my wife...

Anyhow, thanks again, and with luck some day I'll be joining your ranks!

[undysworld]

I guess it's time to have a serious mid-life crisis discussion with my wife...

No, this is just about your need to buy a truck. She will understand, eventually.

It took me two years to justify buying mine.