Winter Beaters???

"BrownMiataDieselWagon" (opporamblings) 11/04/2014 at 20:44 • Filed to: None

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Fellow Oppo Decay mentioning his awesome Saab 900 winter beater got me thinking: how many Opponauts living in the snow belt have a dedicated winter beater? I have a few questions:

If you do have a winter beater, what is it? And how much did it cost you? What kind of tires are on it? How's the traction/handling?

I haven't really considered buying a winter beater. My Jeep (my daily driver/only car) + a can of Rustoleum+ new Blizzaks was/is going to be my winter car. Should I even consider getting a winter beater?

Audi for your time

Bandit > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 20:45

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2000 Blazer. $2500. It sucks in winter because it's the 2wd version but I don't care too much about what happens to it.

jkm7680 > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 20:48

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I personally haven't bothered. When I moved from a place with no snow to a place with a little snow I bought an A4 Quattro. Then I bought another A4 Quattro later down the line. You don't really need one if you've already got a capable vehicle.

macanamera > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 20:48

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No. If you have a 4x4 Jeep that runs, and it's on Blizzaks, you do not need a winter beater.

Source: I have a winter beater.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 20:50

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We don't get as much winter as some in Tulsa, but I recently picked up an '03 Pathfinder 4x4 to take over on nasty days this winter. It's in good shape, has 150k, and I spent $5300. Got Goodyear Wrangler Duratracs put on, as I plan on playing in the dirt with it some as well. Will report back on traction/handling in the white stuff...

BrownMiataDieselWagon > macanamera 11/04/2014 at 20:54

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Thanks. I was just somewhat concerned about rust. My previous DD was a completely rusted out YJ and I just don't want that to happen to my first car.

BrownMiataDieselWagon > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 11/04/2014 at 20:56

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Nice choice! Is the set of Goodyears included in the $5300?

Decay buys too many beaters > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 21:08

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As mentioned, 1996 Saab 900, $800, off brand all seasons, traction and handling are just fine for getting up the mountains for skiing.

Funny, I don't live in the snow belt (pacific northwest) but find I need a winter beater for other reasons.

1. My work has the worst speed-bumps in the world, they destroy suspension components. I am 100% unwilling to write off the very expensive shocks on my FR-S due to this (at least not if I can get a whole car for less than the price of replacement shocks)

2. Driving into the city. Portland seems to have a near hatred of cars, basically if you park in the city your car will get beat up (door dings, stupid drivers, people who parallel park by touch)

In the summer I usually ride my motorcycle so can avoid both of the problems above.

DrScientist > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 21:18

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actually this is my summer car, but it did do service one winter from seattle across the cascades and the northern rockies. (i wouldn't subject this rust-prone beauty to the salt in the northeast)

anyway, got a set of michelin x-ice3's for the trip. it handled great through 4-6 inches of fresh snow. only lost traction once on a fairly decent downgrade coming down route 2 out of the mountains. those tires cost nearly a third of what i paid for the car, but well worth it.

if you live in an area that gets any amount of snow, please get snow tires, whether on a winter car or your year-round car, and don't bother with a set of useless all-seasons.

BigBlock440 > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 21:20

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I don't have a winter beater even though I'm in the north east. I do have a cheap(er) DD and a beater truck. The fun car doesn't get driven as often as I'd like though.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/04/2014 at 22:35

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Thanks! Unfortunately not...

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > DrScientist 11/05/2014 at 06:50

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Dude that is one of the single coolest images I've seen. Big props :)

What have you got in it? I6, V12, V8 swap?

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > BrownMiataDieselWagon 11/05/2014 at 06:52

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I'd like to get one. Not because of snow hazard but they salt the roads something fierce here in the UK and I don't want to subject my Jaaag to that. That's partly what my Citroen BX is for, but the heater doesn't work yet and it's not quite on the road so I'll probably have some cold evenings out welding before that becomes a reality...

DrScientist > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 11/05/2014 at 22:57

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v12 of course!

if youre gonna go for it, you might as well jump in with both feet.

That photo was taken on a trip i took with my brother from seattle to helena montana. 7 days total, 4 days skiing in idaho and montana. was trying to bring her home from an around the country road trip: NYC —> LA —> Seattle —> NYC. Girlfriend doesn't like mountain snow driving, so my brother got the co-driver seat for that leg.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > DrScientist 11/06/2014 at 05:22

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Good man! Big fan of the XJS, especially in V12 form. I'd love to get one, but I definitely can't afford the juicyness of the V12. Not when I've got other projects on the go.

I have accidentally bought an 80k mile 4.0 AJ6 though (it was only £100), so I'll be looking for an early 3.6l manual one to swap that into :)

I'll be looking to make 300-350bhp with ITBs, porting a bit of compression and a spangly exhaust system. Should be as powerful as a V12, but lighter :)

DrScientist > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 11/06/2014 at 10:26

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i like your thinking. check out jaguarforums.com there's a lot of collective knowledge over there on the xjs board. and while many of the guys cringe at swaps, i think the 4.0-i6 into an older manual car would only get praise.

and everyone is jealous of a 5 speed... i'll go tinker around with my 3 speed auto and 2.88 diff now :(

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > DrScientist 11/06/2014 at 10:30

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I've been flicking through a couple of the pages there :) looking for evidence of someone trying an AJV8 swap, and a couple of threads on V12 tuning. Not heard many people doing serious work to the AJ6 though. I think the V12 gets a lot of the limelight there.

If you've got deep pockets, the driven man does 5 and 6-speed conversions for V12 XJS' that look very spangly :)