If it's cheap, it will need maintenance, so I'd get something that parts are easy to find. I'm not sure if older Subaru parts are easy to find, but I've heard they're not.
I'm leaning towards a small truck. They're like cockroaches, so parts are easy to find, small cabin that heats up quickly, and high ground clearance all sound pretty nice to me.
Heat. Tires. New Battery.
novaderrik wrote: i don't know if snow tires are as big of a deal as everyone says they are... i've never ever had snow tires on anything in my 25 years of legally driving, and i've only been stuck in the middle of the road once- in my 93 Lumina... on a 3 foot snow drift in the middle of an intersection- and i've never lost control and gone into a ditch... i did a pair of 360's at 45mph in my 79 Mustang on a perfectly straight stretch of road once, but i wound up somehow going in the proper direction and never stopped moving.. i did put some slightly used Winterforces on my Camaro for some gravel road and frozen lake hooning last winter, but i never used it for commuter duty with those on it.. as to which car to get: the cheapest one with the best battery and hottest heater..
Spoken like a true minnesotan. I agreed. Until i ran snows on my ms3 and the damn thing went beast mode on me. The amount of grip is hilarious.
As far as the corollas, im on my 4th. I prefer the ae92/101 over the 103 (zz engine), but they all crush the white stuff.
That Subaru is now $700.
RE: Saturns... they are OK in the snow, but other stuff will be better if its really deep. As mentioned, their motor is very light so it doesn't do wonders for traction. I would not even consider a single cam car. The DOHC can be had for pretty much the same money (it will boil down to condition), has 25-40 more horsepower and gets very similar mileage with a manual. They are good in that if they rust, it won't be apparent from the outside. You can drive a complete E36 M3box Saturn, but it will still look fine from outside. A DOHC model will be quicker than most of the other cars you've posted.
irish44j wrote: (DC, which is overpriced)
Looked on Craigslist elsewhere lately? DC isn't overpriced. CL is saturated. There are often killer deals and many of them to choose from. A lot of things are overpriced in the DC area, but CL cars in general are not one of them.
Its weird to live in NC and consider buying a car from 'up north', but I often think of snagging something and bringing it back with me.
I'd go with that Escort Wagon. They are little tanks and the wagon has the rear sway bar. They handle pretty well. 14 inch snow tires should be cheap too. Check CL for a set of snows.
I had great luck for 14 years with my DOHC Saturn sedan in snow both in CT and in ice here in KY. The key IMO is having the manual box- it makes it MUCH easier to keep the wheels from spinning.
Honestly though, I think the 2nd gen Prius I had over last winter was better- the front end of that thing was really heavy and it just ignored the foot or so of snow on the ground when I eventually had to drive it. However, they're a bit pricey for a beater...
I look for something that
A) Doesnt make me want to puke
B) I make money on in the spring
Ashyukun wrote: I had great luck for 14 years with my DOHC Saturn sedan in snow both in CT and in ice here in KY. The key IMO is having the manual box- it makes it MUCH easier to keep the wheels from spinning. Honestly though, I think the 2nd gen Prius I had over last winter was better- the front end of that thing was really heavy and it just ignored the foot or so of snow on the ground when I eventually had to drive it. However, they're a bit pricey for a beater...
I've never had problems with wheelspin with an auto Saturn. If you snag one with abs, it has traction control as well, which works well if you are lazy - it retards timing to prevent wheelspin. You can also slowly load the torque converter and put .0001lb-ft to the wheels with the auto, good luck doing that with a manual.
But yeah, I'd take the manual any day.
Our Prius was actually a little bit the opposite of the above. It was a tank in the snow, but in that situation where you want to give it a really really small amount of throttle, it was hard to do because A) electric motor torque right now and B) the gas engine may or may not jump in to help. Its probably a lot more predictable in the 2/3g cars though.
In reply to Appleseed:
I think the escort wagon is the way to go. Tires are $175 on tire rack right now due to stacked discounts. Its in nice shape, parts are common, its newer than anything else on your list, it gets like 4000 mpg (seriously, 38+), wagon utility, and its in very nice shape for the price point. It will also rallycross as well as any other escort/protege. Its a good deal, cheap because who the hell wants a manual escort wagon? Im obviously biased here but thought it was a very fun car to toss around and row throuh the gears. Again, essentially a protege.
Also if youre an idiot and put snows only on the front, your wife will put it in the ditch..hut at least she will be able to drive out of the ditch on her own too. Been there done that.
In reply to irish44j:
where have you seen a forester for <$1500 in the area? point me.
In reply to ProDarwin:
What about an AWD Bravada? I know zilch about them, but this one looks decent. The ad states the engine was replaced under warranty, which always makes me curious as to why.
NMNA:
https://peoria.craigslist.org/cto/5330924021.html
I drove a 98 Escort wagon for over 10 years as my daily in central Minnesota. Winter tires and never had a problem. Inexpensive parts, low maintenance, decent ride and handling, roomy interior. Step daughter crashed it. Still miss it,
I think an awd Bravada is just a tarted up Blazer with no low range.
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