by "Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
Published 12/26/2017 at 12:57
by "Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
Published 12/26/2017 at 12:57
Tags: Winter beater
; car buying
STARS: 0
I drove my Talon through the snow on Sunday, and let me tell you, high power front wheel drive and coilovers aren’t a good mix in the snow. Not to mention seeing salt all over my clean car makes me want to vomit. I plan to yank the motor for a rebuild in the middle of January, and install my upgraded clutch and other goodies.
That means one thing... I’ll be without a car. It’s time for a dedicated pile that I can use to beat through winter and whenever the DSM feels like breaking potentially.
What are you guys using for a winter slab? Here are my parameters.
Car must be under $2000 dollars.
No rear wheel drive.
Manual transmission option preferred but NOT required.
Fuel economy isn’t important. Reliability is. I don’t want to be wrenching two cars constantly.
Four doors is important.
Aaaaand go.
"TahoeSTi" (tahoesti)
12/26/2017 at 13:03, STARS: 1
Impreza.
"BeaterGT" (beatergt)
12/26/2017 at 13:06, STARS: 1
I had almost the same exact criteria when I was beater shopping years back and went with a 2001 Saturn SL1 with a 5 speed. Paid $1900 cash. Not bad for a car that got 40+ mpg.
"Powershiftmedia-ResidentDSMGuru" (matt-powershiftmedia)
12/26/2017 at 13:06, STARS: 0
How is the reliability of the basic Impreza? I really don’t know much about them. This seems like a good choice. Cheap enough and AWD makes it seem sensible.
"bob and john" (bobandjohn)
12/26/2017 at 13:08, STARS: 0
saturn or a early 2000s corolla.
"lone_liberal" (token-liberal)
12/26/2017 at 13:09, STARS: 1
My favorite winter beater was an old minivan. FWD with some Blizzaks and I was good to go. Big snow berm in the way? Ramming speed!! Somebody slides in to the rear bumper? Shrug and keep on going. Made a good parts hauler too.
"sm70- why not Duesenberg?" (sm70-whynotduesenberg)
12/26/2017 at 13:09, STARS: 2
https://omaha.craigslist.org/cto/d/subaru-impreza-outback/6413412378.html
"interstate366, now In The Industry" (interstate366)
12/26/2017 at 13:11, STARS: 0
Old Civic or Accord. Were 2 doors allowed I would also throw a Prelude in there.
"farscythe - makin da cawfee!" (farscythe)
12/26/2017 at 13:12, STARS: 1
no mudguards no lights and no storage other than me backpack... its perfect for me winter commute (also its fun scaring the absolute crap out of pedestrians as my brakes will wail like a banshee in anything but dry conditions)
"Dusty Ventures" (dustyventures)
12/26/2017 at 13:16, STARS: 1
If you can find an old 2.2 it’ll be solid. 2.5s are a mixed bag
"Dusty Ventures" (dustyventures)
12/26/2017 at 13:18, STARS: 2
Had old Caravan, can confirm. It was an awesome beater until I effectively tore the door off it
"lone_liberal" (token-liberal)
12/26/2017 at 13:20, STARS: 1
And the junk yards are full of them so cheap parts are easy to find.
"Stapleface" (patrickgruden)
12/26/2017 at 13:21, STARS: 0
GM J-bodies. They’re cheap and go through crappy weather pretty well. And if they rust and fall apart, nothing of value is really lost
"Alfalfa" (alfalfa-romeo)
12/26/2017 at 13:23, STARS: 0
Volvo P80 chassis. Get a relatively cared for n/a or lpt model and it won’t let you down. Can be found in manual, but you will have to look. Later examples are awd, but they’re front heavy enough that fwd works great.
"BeaterGT" (beatergt)
12/26/2017 at 13:26, STARS: 2
https://cnj.craigslist.org/cto/d/1998-saturn-sw1-wagon/6437131585.html
Because wagon.
"LongbowMkII" (longbowmkii)
12/26/2017 at 14:08, STARS: 1
A Yaris is a good beater.
"Aremmes" (aremmes)
12/26/2017 at 14:18, STARS: 1
SV10 Camry. Bullet-proof 5S-FE engine. Economical. Simple to work on. Cheap, plentiful parts. Available in brown, wagon body, and manual, sometimes all three. Cheap.
"boredalways" (boredalway666)
12/26/2017 at 14:35, STARS: 0
‘04 Galant
https://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/cto/d/2004-mitsubishi-galant/6428343655.html
‘05 Stratus
https://cincinnati.craigslist.org/cto/d/great-running-and-driving/6438289200.html
‘04 Focus wgn
https://cincinnati.craigslist.org/ctd/d/2004-ford-focus-wagan-auto/6438288723.html
‘96 Corolla 5MT
https://evansville.craigslist.org/cto/d/1996-corolla-5-speed-hot-heat/6431465652.html
‘97 Avalon
https://bgky.craigslist.org/cto/d/1997-toyota-avalon/6438280653.html
‘03 Accord V6
https://columbus.craigslist.org/cto/d/2003-honda-accord/6432937306.html
"TahoeSTi" (tahoesti)
12/26/2017 at 14:40, STARS: 0
The 2.5 NA Motors have some headgasket issues Starting in 2005. Before that, they were pretty good. Look on Ebay buy one from AZ or some state like that and you’ll have less issues with rust and better prices.
"E92M3" (E46M3)
12/26/2017 at 15:02, STARS: 0
I had a totalled XJ as a beater for a while, it was t-boned in the left rear quarter, slid around and hit a telephone pole with the right rear quarter. I put a rear window in it, and 2 junkyard rear wheels on it, and drove it for years. Best $800 I ever spent.
"Victorinoo" (victorinoo)
12/26/2017 at 15:06, STARS: 0
1997 - 2001 Toyota Camry. Unkillable and cheap to buy. They were the best selling sedans of their time, and you can surprisingly find manual versions easily (I know bc I own one!)
"The Snowman" (the-snowman)
12/26/2017 at 15:14, STARS: 1
Impreza outback.
"Captain of the Enterprise" (justanotherdayinparadise)
12/26/2017 at 16:16, STARS: 0
Toyota Corolla or Camry
"BlurpleToyotaDishwasher" (blurpletoyotadishwasher)
12/26/2017 at 19:20, STARS: 0
Volvo 850?
"pip bip - choose Corrour" (hhgttg69)
12/27/2017 at 06:19, STARS: 0
no need for one here