Oppo: Help me buy a winter/trailhead/dog beater!

"RPM esq." (rpm3) 01/08/2014 at 19:21 • Filed to: None

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Is there anything more fun than spending someone else's money? I submit that there is not. Well, Opponauts, help me spend mine! I'm in the market for a winter/bad weather/trailhead/muddy dog beater car, will document the hunt, and would like your input! Between you I'm sure you've owned every car that could possibly meet my requirements, and I'd love to hear your wisdom. Said requirements appear below in the time-honored "who/why/what/where/how" format.

Who: outdoorsy yuppie with a wife and a tweenage kid and a big dog, and probably another dog on the way.

Why: I daily drive an E46 M3 on stiff coilovers. It's not much good in the snow, mud, on rough roads, or even in particularly heavy rain. My dog likes going to a perpetually muddy dog park, and I'd rather not clean mud and scrapes off my M3's otherwise-impeccable leather back seat. I like hiking, backpacking, and skiing and would like something to drive to and leave at trailheads and ski hills.

What: something with four-wheel drive or AWD so it's good in bad weather; decent ground clearance for iffy roads but it doesn't have to be crazy high (I don't plan to do any serious off-roading); a wagon or SUV so there's a good back area for dogs; preferably as reliable as possible, so I don't have to think about it too much. It would be nice if the fuel efficiency wasn't awful, as my M3 and driving style (ahem) are hard enough on my gas budget as it is. In a couple years maybe I can teach my kid to drive in it. Oh, and cheap: my budget tops out at around 3k; although I might be able to swing 4 for just the right one, which probably puts us squarely in the early-to-mid '90s. Ah, my formative years.

About all I've come up with so far is a '90s Jeep Cherokee or Grand Cherokee with the 4.0 6. I'm open to all other suggestions except vans and AMC Eagles. Pathfinder? 4Runner? Volvo wagon? E34 525iX touring, if such a unicorn exists? Please, Oppo, share your knowledge with me and help me spend my hard-earned funds.

Where: the great Pacific Northwest.

How: You tell me what you'd buy in my situation, and I'll go shopping and regale you with the inevitable Craigslist horror stories.

shpuker > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:25

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Obvious answer is obvious. The fastest SUV in the world. (In 1998)

The 1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.9 Limited.

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:25

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Subaru Forester.

WRX engine swap.

Mud tires.

Hoon.

deadpedal > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:27

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crew cab pickup. I'd go F150...

CPT Speedbump > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:27

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Cherokee's are good, 4 runner too

XJDano > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:27

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you guessed my answer

1999xj/ 31's/ 2-3" lift/ front locker

CPT Speedbump > CPT Speedbump 01/08/2014 at 19:30

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First gen pathfinders are pretty awesome too, but good luck finding one with under 100 k miles..let alone under 170 k miles

stuttgartobsessed > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:32

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Range Rover Classic. preferably a three door with coils to replace the air suspension. And a Manual Transmission. And Maybe swap in the Rover 300tdi. Boom.

CPT Speedbump > CPT Speedbump 01/08/2014 at 19:32

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Maybe a Xterra? Get one of the newer ones with the big v6 if so though if looking at them.

davedave1111 > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:32

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I'm open to all other suggestions except vans and AMC Eagles .

That was actually my first thought. OK, no, it was someone else's money so my first thought was Jag XJ and sod the requirements, but after that the more realistic option was the Eagle.

Do it. Eagle. If not, something International Harvester. Or how about a Citroen BX 4x4 under the 25 year rule? Or how about one of these, which have been legal for a few years now:

desertdog5051 > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:40

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The answer is Subaru.

RPM esq. > davedave1111 01/08/2014 at 19:41

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There is this perverse impulse from the dumbest part of my brain to get an Eagle... your "Do it. Eagle." is now going to be echoing in there until I buy something. I blame whiskey.

RPM esq. > stuttgartobsessed 01/08/2014 at 19:43

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I looked at a Country long wheelbase with a coil swap last spring and if I'd had the funds to buy it then it would already be in my driveway...instead of, as it turns out, an apparent Land Rover enthusiast's about a quarter of a mile away (unless it's just a nearly identical one). But that famous Land Rover reliability scares the hell out of me.

RPM esq. > CPT Speedbump 01/08/2014 at 19:43

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Good thought. Hadn't thought of the Xterra.

stuttgartobsessed > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:44

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Yah... I still yearn for a series 2a 109 RHD. With an obscene amount of lights, 2 winches, and many, many spare tires.

RPM esq. > ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) 01/08/2014 at 19:44

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Out of my price range but holy shit does that sound like fun.

RPM esq. > deadpedal 01/08/2014 at 19:45

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Not a bad idea, although where I live they're either utterly trashed work trucks with 250,000 miles or horrendously overpriced. Nothing in between.

RPM esq. > stuttgartobsessed 01/08/2014 at 19:47

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If you're thinking along the same lines as me, it has many spare tires stored on a badass old school roof rack.

stuttgartobsessed > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:48

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Yes! But I want one on the hood (yah I know it makes it a bitch to open) and on the rear door. I also want the front winch to be a capstan winch.

TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:50

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Look for a clean D1 with a manual. Swap in a 300Tdi and it will rust away before it breaks down. Although the V8 in D1 is pretty solid so long as you find a clean one, they're pretty reliable if maintained correctly.

By D1 I mean Discovery Series 1. Also if you find a 04 Discovery 2 with its head gasket already donedone (and coil spring conversion) you'd have a trail ready rig (center diff lock standard) and it's way more comfortable than both the classic and Disco 1.

deadpedal > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 19:59

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yeah, I'd shoot for 850 wagon then...great value...

bob and john > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 20:00

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how about a subaru baja? its based of the jegacy, so if you NEED the extra off roading, u can jack it up.
has a small bed for the dog, holds 5 ppl.

davedave1111 > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 20:15

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You wouldn't have asked on Oppo if you didn't subconsciously want to buy an Eagle.

CPT Speedbump > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 20:18

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The answer is always Miata...?

RPM esq. > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 20:30

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So what about a Volvo 850 or V70 wagon? How expensive are they to maintain?

Textured Soy Protein > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 20:50

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I have a 135is and a '99 Grand Cherokee V8 as my winter car. I like it a lot, but mileage is shit. Highway driving is about 18 mpg. I've been averaging about 14 mpg in mostly city driving on Wisconsin winter blend gas. Every vehicle I've ever had loses at least a couple mpg on winter blend gas.

One of the reasons I went with the GC is I wanted full-time 4wd and as cheap as possible (paid $4200 for it a couple months ago). I like it, but I also wouldn't say that it has particularly nice build quality. It serves its purpose for me though. If you went for one with the I6 you'd probably do better on mileage.

4Runners are nice but the cheapest with full-time 4wd is the '99-'00 Limited or any '01-'02, and all of those were a bit more than I paid for my GC.

The Pathfinder didn't get full-time 4wd until 2005, but the old Infiniti QX4 which is a gussied up Pathfinder does have it.

'02-'04 Mitsubishi Montero Sports also have full time 4wd, but not the older ones. With Mitsubishi resale value being what it is you might find one in your price range.

'98-'02 Isuzu Trooper...but parts might be an issue?

RPM esq. > Textured Soy Protein 01/08/2014 at 21:07

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Thanks for the insightful comment. I think I'm leaning toward a Cherokee or GC 4x4 with the I6.

Chase > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 21:09

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FSJ Wagoneer

Textured Soy Protein > RPM esq. 01/08/2014 at 22:04

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For best mileage look for one that has the Selec-Trac 4wd system. It's got full-time 4wd, can lock the center diff in 4hi or 4lo for rougher stuff, but also lets you switch to rwd to save gas.

ThatWillBuffOut > bob and john 01/09/2014 at 07:56

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Actually, Baja's only seat four. That stopped me from buying one a few years ago.

ThatWillBuffOut > RPM esq. 01/09/2014 at 07:58

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Xterra's having been proving to be fairly reliable. Also available with a manual transmission.

JEM > RPM esq. 01/09/2014 at 08:11

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XTerra was going to be my suggestion as well. Not sure if you could find one in your price range though.

bob and john > ThatWillBuffOut 01/09/2014 at 08:21

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really? I was under the impression the int was the exact same as the legacy on which it was based, which did seat 5....(4 plus driver)

bob and john > ThatWillBuffOut 01/09/2014 at 08:24

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huh. just googles the int. ur right.....
i wonder how hard it would be to rip tht out and stock in a normal legacy seat....

ThatWillBuffOut > bob and john 01/09/2014 at 08:55

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Hmmm... I wonder if someone has done that. Would be pretty neat if that worked. But the back of back seat of the baja is the wall of the bed too. So you would have to combine the legacy and baja seat.

bob and john > ThatWillBuffOut 01/09/2014 at 17:22

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well, unless your hauling 4 ppl on a regular basis, i think the middle person can stant a hard back. or bring a pillow. so you just need to replace the cushion