Just a handful of warm months left. When November approaches, thoughts of barbequing outdoors and driving my Crossfire will be long gone, and I will have settled into an indoors lifestyle. By that time, I hope to have a winter beater, as the plan is to store the Crossfire until after the potholes are filled in the spring. So, I am in winter beater buying mode. Whatever it is, it will be a beater in the traditional sense. It won't be pretty, probably will smell musty, and will have a door sticker indicating a build date several presidents ago. But hell, if it is going to be a piece of crap, then I might as well have fun with it, right? Maybe even stoke my sense of humor a bit? Think of some old cars that might have survived in Michigan without serious rot over the past two and a half decades that could be bought for a grand and change. Then, narrow down your list to only those cars that would elicit sighs and "Yeah right" from onlookers, if a "my other car is a Crossfire" bumper sticker is slapped on the rear end. Here is my list to date:
1) VW Rabbit Diesel Pickup - 50-ish hp in a fwd, unibody pickup. As a truck, it's almost totally worthless. Except for those trips to Home Depot for odds and ends. A friend is selling one, no rot, and at a reasonable price. Clean interior, and 106K on the odo. On E-bay, they fetch surprisingly high prices. Seems hippies soak up the supply for homegrown biodiesel projects.
2) Geo Metro - I want the 1.0L 3 cylinder, with a 5 speed. These cars are not as pathetic as they might seem. If you rev the engine up, it sounds like someone is chasing you with a weed whacker. Or it would, if there exists a four stroke weed whacker. Interior room is not too bad. Huge red plastic hazard light switch button on the first gen cars could be a telling detail, however. And, not nearly as slow as the VW noted above.
3) Yugo GV - Yes, I know it's awful. It's so bad, it has become cliché. But, spares are cheap and not as hard to find as you might expect since Fiat parts fit in most cases. And, that ancient Fiat DNA might actually open the door to some mods. Or, maybe not. Maybe it's just a riot. But really, is owning one of these so bad in this day and age? I mean, we all have cell phones now, so I could always phone up for a lift home...
4) Chevrolet Cavalier - I feel like such a dork in this car. But, my company has one. It's one of the company vehicles that nobody signs out, unless all others are taken. 2000MY car, with 3-speed autobox and agricultural pushrod 4-cyl engine. Good shape, very durable. Could probably pick it up for a song, if I can convince the company that it is just taking up space.
5) Pontiac Fiero - If only because a friend has one, and is building it up. Fun to drive, basic, and plastic bodies mean they don't rust (where it shows, anyhow).
6) Insert your ideas here with an explanation...