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...

 

Ford Taurus - pick up a 97 taurus for about $1500 bucks. Will be nicer and better than any listed above. Not sure what your range is but i considered the above for a beater.

 

I'm grabbing a 1988 samurai from a friend for about $400, runs drives. Its a nice and rusty perfect beater, plus many 4x4 mods.

 

Ooh... Suzuki Samurai. I should add that to my list as well. A friend had one years ago, and if I recall, the carpeting looked like that gray stuff they used to cover speaker boxes with. The carpeting is a big step up from the green stuff the riding mowers are displayed on at Sears, however. Performance may leave something to be desired... The thing tips over, or at least Consumer Reports said so. Then again, they also tell you what kind of cheese or vacuum cleaners to buy, so who the hell cares what they say anyhow?

While we are at it, lets add the Subaru Brat and International Scout to the list. There, that ought to do it for trucks.

Renault Le Car, anyone?

 

I'd pick the GEO just because its the best on gas and is about the most complete opposite of the Crossfire. I'd install some good snow tires on that bad boy and have at it.

My personal beater car is a 93' Regal Custom that has 116K on the clock. My wife and I got the car from her dad who's better half drove it into the ground. We've put about $3400 into the car over the past 2+ years, but it runs and drives great. You can't beat the 3800 V6, so I'd say anything with one of those motors is a good bet as well.

 

Got you all beat, 1989 Sterling 827SLi fastback with only 99,000 miles and in fantastic cosmetic condition inside and out.

 

I have a pretty nice winter beater, its a 2004 Chrysler Crossfire 6-speed. 17 inch wheels and blizzaks, make for pretty good traction as long as the white stuff isn't to crazy.

 

I will be doing the same thing. I got 18" snow tires on some slk rims.

 

Hey, good plan. Gotta keep that Neon in pristine condition. LOL

 

saturn. I never liked mine but it never let me down.
honda. good on gas and just keeps running.
omni, because it is funny.
ford ranger, any 87' or newer, good for winter ok on gas.

 

Oooh man. Honda blandness and Rover quality! Few bought them. Nobody remembers them. I'm sure people ask you, a what?

Here's another great possibility - Merkur XR4Ti. Euro Ford. Lots of fun to drive. Attractive looking. A bargain BMW with a name nobody can pronounce.

 

Same here! But with AT for more fun in the snow *lol*. Just bought a set of Chrysler 18" winter wheels. Winter can start - I'm ready!

 

I got through last winter OK, though the Crossfire did spend a couple of nights out in the cold.

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Due to the curving uphill driveway and the need to occasionally haul large stuff, I'm looking for either a Subaru station wagon or an older SUV like a Jeep Cherokee under $2000.

After 20+ years of driving front wheel drive cars in the snowbelt the Crossfire was a refreshing change. It's a lot more capable in snow than most people would believe but you have to remember to turn the traction control OFF. Otherwise it keeps applying the rear brakes until it stalls the engine.

 

I'm working on a used Ford F-150 4x4 before the snow flies... We have a 2002 Toyota 4-Runner that is great in snow, but the wife usually drives that.

 

juddz, made you comment didn't it?

 

The Sterling? Indeed! I was on the lookout for something odd and preferably European. I was hoping for a musty old Biturbo, a natty Rover 3500, a Renault Medallion, a BMW 325i, among others. The only one I could actually locate and drive in the under 2K range in any condition was the 325i, and the one I looked at was a PIG. Rusty, with a terrible stumble, a loose steering gear, and slack in the shift linkage. No thanks!

A recent trip through northern Indiana led me past a business with several dozen rotting Mercedes Benzes out front, along with the hoped for Maserati and (I am not making this up) a derelict Delorean. I stopped in to talk to the guy, and the place turned out to be a repair shop run by some old eastern European guy. Nothing was marked for sale, but everything in the pig pen was negotiable. The Maserati was not in running condition, as it had major electrical gremlins. No surprise there. Everything else looked like junk. Heck, it was junk.

Best laid plans... in the end, I found a Ford Escort wagon with 122K on it that runs like a top. It doesn't burn a drop of oil, the five speed shifts smoothly, the clutch is decent, and the tires have plenty of tread on them. The interior is reasonably clean, with no tears. Everything works (even the AC), and the light bit of body rust has already been cut out, glassed in, and painted by yours truly. It's actually a nice little car, that I bought for a mere $750. It's not as interesting as what i had hoped for, but perhaps none of the others would have provided day in, day out reliable transportation. And, with the price of gas these days, I am not complaining about driving anything that cuts my expense at the pump almost in half!

 

...with gas being over $3.19, and the Crossfire sitting nearly empty in the driveway, I have been driving the Escort all week. It sux so bad... I sat in the Crossfire yesterday and listened to the radio a bit. I miss blasting to work in it.