"Winterbeater-izing" the Integra...or???

I've come to accept the fact that thee Mighty Integra is just not going to fetch my apparently ridiculous $1500 asking price. It's getting cold as berkeley here in the North Georgia Mountains, and I'm considering making her my official winter beater. All regular maintenance is done. I'm just thinking it'd be nice to have a non-dicey winter cruiser to tear around town with while all the mouth-breathing numbtards inevitably wad their E36 M3 up and/or post up at home for a few days when it snows this winter.

Neighborhood is pretty dicey. No plows. Lots of twisties and elevation changes. Main concern would just be getting around town; hitting the grocery store which is less than 5 miles away, etc. Work is 40 miles north, and it's pointless to open shop if there's snow and ice on the ground. The snow is not so bad, but due to location, ICE is a real problem. Snow melts and freezes over, OR, rain/freezing rain drops, temp drops, and it's a berkeleying ice rink. It took me 6 hours to drive 40 miles (wadded up 18-wheelers shut down highway,) hiking the last mile or two a few years ago in this scenario.

SO:

Option A: Purchase and mount some snow tires (Blizzaks are on sale for $300 for a set) on spare GSR wheels.

Option B: Chains at ($100 ish???) At which point, do I need them on all four wheels, or just the fronts?

Option C: Open up trade options on CL; Trade for an old Jeep, or hell, maybe even a 4-wheeler, considering I live in a small town and the store is close(?)

What does the hive mind say? Looking for the opinions of seasoned Northerners here. I want to be King of the Southern berkeleytards.

Get a set of Winter tires and motor on. A FWD with Winter Tires is a pretty capable winter beater.

vs Option C - it's the devil you know! Who knows what issues you might encounter with a cheap 4wd!

No brainer: $300 Blizzaks. You'll have more ice than snow down there. Chains are for short distances in deep, deep stuff. You don't need a Jeep.

IMO Chains are overkill. I'd find the baddest set of.winters you can and.rock that. When the world turns into a skating rink, the first ones in the ditches are trucks. Stay low, stay light.

NGTD wrote: Get a set of Winter tires and motor on. A FWD with Winter Tires is a pretty capable winter beater. vs Option C - it's the devil you know! Who knows what issues you might encounter with a cheap 4wd!

My thoughts exactly; "Devil you know." It's already been good to me in the snow on no-seasons. Ice however....

This looks like a pretty rad deal, right?

http://m.tirerack.com/tires/TireDetailsServlet?partnum=965TR5WS70&cpncode=42-8741887-2&srccode=cii_17588969&KEYWORD=tires.jsp_Bridgestone_Blizzak_WS70_Tire&tireModel=Blizzak+WS70&code=yes&tireMake=Bridgestone&GCID=C13674x012-tire&

Wildcard: I may actually have a pair of chains in the basement (free.)

the only thing better than a FWD with "real" snow tires would be AWD/4x4 …

snow tires and laugh at everyone

wbjones wrote: the only thing better than a FWD with "real" snow tires would be a Miata on Blizzaks … ...and laugh at everyone

Fixxored...

In reply to poopshovel:

Re Tire Rack deal - yup jump on that. Up here you couldn't get those for twice that much.

Or...Buy for $200, sell wheels for $50-$100?

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/atl/pts/4753899343.html

Either set is a deal. I paid 400$ for a set of used winters for my Pathfinder, never mind the rims! And yes an Integra on 4 snows can run circles around a 4x4 on all seasons any day. Our commute of 35 kms of back roads is always littered with 4x4s that find the ditches during the winter.

Snow tires and just don't drive in the snow unless you have to.

Post a link to your craigslist ad. (If you have one.)

That cl ad is solid, but I ran into a weird situation where I did the same thing and had to.practically give the wheels away when I was done with the tires. Makes me.gun shy. Either way, you.can't.go.wrong.

Snow tires then dominate local rallycrosses come spring

grafmiata wrote:

wbjones wrote: the only thing better than a FWD with "real" snow tires would be a Miata on Blizzaks … ...and laugh at everyone

Fixxored...

well, Blizzaks turn into plain ol snow tires after a couple of winters, as the super soft outer layer wears off … if you have problems with ice, then they, or several others that offer good ice traction are what you'll want …

where I live, ice isn't much of a problem, when we get snow, it's usually packed or gone in a few days/a week … so my choice has been SnowTrackers (my favorite) or WinterForce that is on the truck now …. can't see the logic in paying for Blizzaks or others of that type

In reply to poopshovel:

I'd just buy those and bolt them on the Integra. Minis and Integras have the same 56 mm hub diameter.

Mr_Clutch42 wrote: Post a link to your craigslist ad. (If you have one.)

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/200x-classifieds/the-mighty-integra-1500-your-lechumpchallengedd-chariot-awaits/76320/page1/

Topped the trans which eliminated the grinding. Put ANOTHER brand new battery in a couple months ago.

If they will fit right on then those Mini rims right on the Integra would be great. Chains are not the answer. You want tires that are built for ice. Firestone Winterforce tires are more built for snow rather than ice. Sure, they are good in ice but some others may be better.

Once you have these good tires on the Integra, you will now have more stopping ability than anyone else on the roads in North Atlanta so I will predict you will then be rear-ended shortly after buying them. If this does happen, hold out for "fair market" on your well running car and pocket $3.5k when that day does happen.

In reply to JohnRW1621:

Huh. Didn't think they were 4X100 but gizzoogle sez:

http://honda-tech.com/honda-crx-ef-civic-1988-1991-3/question-mini-wheels-2665997/

Problem solved.

Poopy,
Just make sure you use conical seat nuts. For some reason I believe the Integra nuts are ball seat.

JohnRW1621 wrote: If they will fit right on then those Mini rims right on the Integra would be great. Chains are not the answer. You want tires that are built for ice. Firestone Winterforce tires are more built for snow rather than ice. Sure, they are good in ice but some others may be better. Once you have these good tires on the Integra, you will now have more stopping ability than anyone else on the roads in North Atlanta so I will predict you will then be rear-ended shortly after buying them. If this does happen, hold out for "fair market" on your well running car and pocket $3.5k when that day does happen.

that's why I said get the Blizzaks if you have ice (or others that are ice rated) … when I mentioned WinterForce, I also mentioned that we don't get much ice here, mostly light to medium snow, that goes away quickly

DeadSkunk wrote: Poopy, Just make sure you use conical seat nuts. For some reason I believe the Integra nuts are ball seat.

this … don't let the rims come loose on their own