Best "temporary" winter car?

Posted by MoparMap@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 40 comments

So after sliding across a bridge into a guardrail last winter and having my car be in the shop for \~6 months waiting for parts to get fixed, I got to thinking about various ways to tackle the issue this coming season. My main issue is that I really don't have space for another long term vehicle in my household, and I also don't want to sell anything I've got (they are pretty much all either classics or sportscars, none of them particularly well suited to winter).

So that being said, my thought was to get an absolute throwaway car. The kind of car that I could park in a junkyard and walk away from without any kind of huge financial loss. Ideally I'd like to keep the budget under $1500 or so. The catch 22 I'm having is that I need to trust this car to handle the worst winter conditions I'm going to see (midwest snow and ice, NE Kansas area) and keep running while also keeping me at least moderately comfortable (like a working heater and sealed cabin). So I don't want something that's falling apart that I'm worried is going to break every time I drive it. I do all my own vehicle work and have no problems fixing something up, but I'd rather not sink a lot of money into something that my goal would be to sell at the end of the season if possible. Best case I could even turn a minor profit, but I have no problems if I don't. If I buy early enough, I can do some minor repair before the season hits.

So yeah, what car would you buy for <$1500 to handle up to 1 foot of snow and the occasional ice storm? Other than a heater, about the only other thing I'd like to have is a radio. I can do without all the other gadgets and gizmos for this car. Maybe oxymoronic to some, but I do have a dealer diagnostic computer for late 90s to early-mid 2000s Dodges, so that might be entertaining as an option as it could make it easier to fix any problems that might creep up.

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Much_Box996@reddit

I bet I can find winter tires for your car. Or new wheels and tires for less than 2k. Even if you get a winter beater you should get winter tires.

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MoparMap@reddit (OP)

It's a 2004 Viper. I've looked. I believe they make Blizzaks up to 285 section width for some Porsches, which would cover the front tires at least, but I'd have to run front rims on the back and I'm not sure the suspension would like that. Someone on the forums actually had a custom set of wheels made to fit snow tires and keep the geometry accurate, but even then trying to drive a car with 2-3" of ground clearance in the snow is not the best idea.

I agree that winter tires on the beater still makes sense and would be something I'd look into. I'm more interested in protecting my current cars from damage than making them more capable to drive in inclement conditions.

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Much_Box996@reddit

You can go to a narrower wheel/tire and it will not hurt anything. Is that what you wrecked last year? It probably has summer tires which are dangerous in snow.

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MoparMap@reddit (OP)

I know I can put a narrower tire on it, it's more having a rim that's properly sized and has good offset to keep the center of the wheel in the same place. If you get the center of the contact patch off from stock it will start loading up the wheel bearing differently than intended, which could lead to earlier wear. The stock front rims are also smaller diameter, so I'm not sure they would clear the brakes in the rear (haven't actually tried, though easy enough to give it a shot). I don't think the offset on them is great for the rear though, so that's a separate issue.

I'm aware of the limitations of the tires that are on it. I tried to drive it in the lightest dusting of snow you've ever seen several years back and I couldn't even let out the clutch without the tires spinning, with zero throttle at all. The incident last year was more of an ice issue that just didn't click in my head at the time. All the roads were dry and it was supposed to be in the upper 30s, but one of the bridges had iced over the night before. I wasn't the only one it caught off guard as there was a car upside down in the road in front of me that I was trying to avoid and a couple in the ditch and shoulders as well. Luckily it was pretty minor and mostly just some cosmetic damage. I don't know how I managed to miss everything.

I've driven it with this model of tire year round for the better part of a decade, so I'm well aware of how they drive in different conditions and know not to push their limits. They are the closest thing to an "all season" you can get for a car like that, but ultimately it's still just a case of "non ideal car for the situation". You can only do so much to make it work and it was a dumb mistake, hence why I'm trying to find a better solution this coming winter now that my commute has changed.

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unwilling_viewer@reddit

There's a handful of Lamborghini's, Ferraris, Porsches and so on round here. On winter tyres. Plus all the classic yank tanks, also on winter tyres...

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Baron_Ultimax@reddit

For 1500 bucks your better off getting winter proper winter tires and making one of your existing vehicles more capable.

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MoparMap@reddit (OP)

That's not exactly the point. It's not so much an issue of capability. I'm more concerned with keeping them out of the salt and away from other idiots on the road in bad weather. I can't even buy winter tires for one of my cars (they don't make them in that size without custom rims, which could cost more than a beater car). The others are vintage cars that already potentially have rust issues I'm trying not to exacerbate.

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SpaceTurtle917@reddit

Yeah, my 97 civic with new winter tires was an absolute beast. AWD won’t help you brake or steer any better, and most cars have plenty of ground clearance for winter.

People that say their car “handles poorly in the snow” just don’t have good tires.

Even when I drove a 1990 BMW 5 series in the winter it was totally capable with winter tires.

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LagerHead@reddit

This right here. If you have the choice, always go with winter tires first. 👍

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jham1496@reddit

If the goal is to sell at the end of the season you'd be better off spending a bit more up front. 3-4k gets you a decent Subaru, sometimes even a pretty nice Subaru. Ideally find one that's had the head gasket done and it'll do what you need all winter and sell quickly after.

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MoparMap@reddit (OP)

That's the tricky part though. The goal would be to sell it, but the worst case scenario would be if it got totaled or was otherwise incapacitated and I had to just walk away from it. It's like a track car. If you can't afford to put it into the wall and light that money on fire, I don't want to do it. Granted, insurance could cover some of that cost if it was a weather related accident, but if the suspension just falls off one day or it throws a rod out the side of the block, that's where it gets a little more difficult.

I'm sure it's a sliding scale though. The more I spend, the less chance the car itself has issues, so the better chance I have at selling it when I'm done.

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funkthew0rld@reddit

Yeah a winter car is still shit if you don’t have the right rubber on it.

Winter tires is the only answer.

You could have something iconic in winter weather like a Subaru, but on the wrong rubber, and you’re still going to bin it into the guardrail.

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MoparMap@reddit (OP)

I would agree, the plan would be to make whatever I get winter capable. Wanting something other than what I have is more about protecting my current vehicles from salt and other drivers and less about them not being able to drive in winter.

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DontEatTheMagicBeans@reddit

If your plan for the winter involves crashing you shouldn't be driving in the winter.

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MoparMap@reddit (OP)

My plan is to keep my current cars out of the salt and away from idiots who might crash into me. I know it's possible to make at least one of my cars better in the winter, but that doesn't mean I want to drive it in the winter for other reasons.

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chibicascade2@reddit

This just sounds like you need snow tires.

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MoparMap@reddit (OP)

That's not really the point. It's less about my cars not being able to drive in the snow and more about keeping them out of the salt and potential damage of other people running into me.

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Traditional-Swan-130@reddit

For that budget you're basically looking at old beaters that still run strong. Early 2000s Subaru wagons or Outbacks are common winter beaters since AWD and heaters usually still work.

Same with old Jeep Cherokees or mid-90s Explorers. They're not glamorous, but they'll get you through snow and ice without you caring about rust or salt

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_no_usernames_avail@reddit

A $1500 car will need $500-1000 in work. I've been buying $2000 winter beaters for more than a decade.

Maybe you find a Late 90s civic with studded snow tires and manual. Will be hard to find one that doesn't need rocker repair. Or an EJ22 not EJ25 based impreza (late 1990s).

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unusualastutepenguin@reddit

Any lighter FWD car with snow tires. Most modern vehicles (if they haven't been lowered) have plenty of ground clearance.

AWD will not help you stop and steer better, winter tires do. And an FF car will have excellent traction in most situations without spinning compared to an FR car.

$1500 will get you some great winter tires and possibly also a wax undercoating to help prevent rust. If you already have an FF car, that would be your safest, cheapest and most practical choice.

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Averen@reddit

May seem obvious, but just keep an eye on marketplace. A recommendation for your situation doesn’t exist. You’ll just have to spot some 4x4 old truck or awd car

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worstatit@reddit

A front wheel drive with studded snow tires.

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WillDupage@reddit

The best snow/foul weather vehicle I’ve ever had was the 1990 Oldsmobile Ninety Eight I inherited from my great uncle.
I’ve had a Saab, a couple Volvos, a Toyota Highlander and a Subaru Outback. The Olds would plow through an unplowed parking lot better than any of them. One winter day the snow was coming down fast & furious and the office closed a whole 15 minutes early (how generous of the Montgomery Burns wannabes that ran the place), and I was having to find my way home through the unplowed streets of Naperville, the Olds was able to pass up all-wheel-drive crossovers and SUVs that were spinning all their wheels trying to go up any kind of incline.
Any front wheel drive H- or C-body with that indestructible cast iron 3800 V6 plopped over the drive wheels should perform as well.

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brokensharts@reddit

1999 chevy tahoe

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mmmhotcoffee@reddit

1997 Chevy Blazer 4x4

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Kootsiak@reddit

I'd look for a running 95+ Cavalier/Sunfire. The real trouble is finding one that isn't completely ravaged by rust.

These are unrefined cars, but tough as nails and very good in the snow. Their only downside in winter is they have big bulbous trunks that love to get a characteristic dent in the middle from being pushed out of a snowbank. You can push the dent back out, but it will happen at least once in these cars lifetime in colder climates.

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sweedishcheeba@reddit

Your looking at a 25-30 year old Subaru or Volvo

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ZeroCool718@reddit

Subaru

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Tony-cums@reddit

Try winter tires.

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EvilCaveBoy@reddit

Winter tires

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FeastingOnFelines@reddit

Get winter tires.

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jasonsong86@reddit

You need good tires that’s what you need.

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CarobAffectionate582@reddit

I did this once when living in norther VT, wanted a cheap winter car.

Went to an auto auction, bought an older Passat for cheap. Put snow tires on it (2nd hand, also cheap). Did fine through a VT winter - way worse than you will see. Sold it in the spring at a profit. There are lots of ways to skin this cat.

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