Winter Beaters
 

For those in Northern areas..?what do you drive for a winter beater. I was sweating using my clean Z for my first winter ownership. Just bought a 99 GMC Yukon 4x4. ( 125K miles for $1500). Its a tank that will lpow through the salt and crap. The Z can spend much more time in my garage. It will come out to play when the roads are dry and clear however......

Currently on the look out for a winter beater... I'm not going to subject my Nismo to snow/salt! I'll probably pick up a cheap 92-00 Honda.

Suffered the brutality of a Chicago winter in the Z,

Picked up a 98 Protege for $1k last March and has run like a champ ever since, last owner even did the brakes/fluid/oil, and some sensors before handing it off, best money ive ever spent on a car TBH

I kept my Honda Ridgeline for winter. It's an '05 with 120,000 miles. Also part of the reason my 2012 Z only has 28,000 miles. Usually park the Z first of November and get it back out in April.

g37x

Do it right or don't do it at all. It'll take a lot of snow to stop my modded Grand Cherokee.;)

GTI in my sig

2005 grand Cherokee 4.7 121k miles has served me well including through last year's blizzard with 30" of snow.

Not a POS 2013 Civic Si anymore. That's for sure.

Yeah, I tried the "$2500 '02 Grand Cherokee with 180,000 miles that looked absolutely immaculate" last year... never drove that P.O.S. ONCE because it developed all kinds of bizarre, impossible-to-pinpoint issues.

I'm just stealing my wife's Jeep Renegade this winter!

My grand Cherokee did have its problems but they were expected from a 3rd hand car. The thing about it, is that grand Cherokee parts are cheap! My worst repair was the water pump.

One thing I can't figure out is the rpm drop when coming to a stop. Must be a Jeep thing...

I'm in FL so it's more of a year-round beater... but my Ford Ranger was super cheap and serves the purpose... Fills all the practicality gaps I want filled too in that it can carry a lot of crap, but is standard cab so I never have to drive the group... two 2-seater vehicles for me =)

Mustang GT.

I don't go much of anywhere in the winter... :ugh:

They run forever if you do the maintenance. The oil passages clog, the cam bearings wear down and the head cracks if you don't. Mine is basically new since it needed a full rebuild when I got it. I also upgraded the entire suspension. Renegade = don't try any offroading.

I'm buying a 2012 Ford Focus hatch for this winter. This'll be interesting.....

I've got an '01 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 160k miles that I'm going to be replacing this summer. It looks immaculate on the outside, but I think the engine is on its way out. It's got small oil and coolant leaks, plus, one of the front axles is bad and both the rear axle seals are leaking. My dad bought it new off the showroom floor, so I'd love to keep it running, but now it's at the point where it's going to cost more to fix it up than it's worth.

Anyways, the Jeep has been a great vehicle up until now. If you can find a used one that's still in good shape, I'd recommend that.

2004 Chevy Tahoe Z71 4x4 - 230,000 miles and still going strong

Funny thread, I actually think there are very few cars that are better DD's than the Z. I also own a really low mileage E55 but I am always drawn to the Z. It is fast enough for a DD, it is super reliable and handles extremely well, what more would you want?

2014 Juke nismo AWD

My DD and winter car is a 2010 Mustang V6 with 122K km. The car is a workhorse and an extremely reliable winter car. Great in snow too, believe it or not.

It's definitely worth it if you do the work yourself.

My wife's 2005 4.0 MT has 243k miles on it. I've replaced brakes, wheel bearings, 2 alternators, 2 fuel filters, rear axle seals, a tie rod or two, and the shocks/struts... all normal wear and tear. The only weird thing was the pinion bearing failed at one point so I put in a new rear axle from a junkyard. I've been impressed. Especially for a Ford.:eekdance:

EDIT: I also just replaced the AC system that finally failed this summer... forgot about that. Still normal for the mileage.

Glad to hear others enjoy their winter rides. My Yukon is a 6500 lb tank; she aint too pretty but will get the job done. I wont stray too far until I gain confidence it doesnt crap out. Cracks me up its old enough to still have the cell phone antenna through the glass and a phone bracket on the dash. Now if i can fix that dran P0440 code and abs light.......

:yum:

2012 Subaru OutBack with Michelin Ice Grip tires. Its like being crazy glued to road.

Subie OutBacks have been my daily driver/winter beaters since 1997. And a couple of years from now ... I'll own another one.

Gene

I'm seriously considering getting one of these to replace my Jeep! Glad to hear it's been good to you.

Since I'm often stuck in Chicago traffic gridlock, I need an absolutely reliable winter beater. Nothing worse than breaking down on an expressway. I have a well taken care of old Avalon with 70K on it. So far has been very reliable....knock wood. God, is it slow though...plus it's an automatic...yuck.

My everyday car is a TL. Vtec all winter long.

That sucks but cheap/high mileage cars are a gamble like that. Having a 'winter beater' that you're not confident is reliable just isn't worth it to me. When it comes to a second car I'd rather buy something that I'll be happy about when not in the Z vs just getting any cheap car. Last thing I want is to get stuck in the winter because I bought a crap car

no snow here but my backup is a 05 Dodge Ram 2500,,80K miles, absolute bulletproof, Id take it crosscountry tomorrow, 4WD but rarely use it, doesn't snow here..

I'm considering a Durango RT, anyone have any first hand experience with it or know of reliability on them?

2005 Mitsubishi lancer oz rally 5 spd. No traction control. Came stock without a radio but has one now. No neutral safty switch can start it while in gear. Sunroof, bright red. only has had a couple suspension issues like tie rod ends, sway bar links, tire alignment, and new headlight housings. But got car for free so I'll keep driving it and fixing it and so on.

Make sure the front wheel bearings are good other wise nice suv

The Z . It goes fishing with me. A bass pole (one piece) can fit without a passenger.. also found out I can fit a 19in frame mountain bike in the back.. but of course.. no passenger.
Not much snow here. Heavy rain during the winter. Dangerously heavy rain i should say..

Was looking to get a newer suburuururu or a g37 for an all wheel drive option.. but i feel like the Z wont get enough love


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I have had 5 different subarus that have done great in the winter and also two Altimas with snow tires. My kid just got his license, so we are on the lookout for something right now. My backup plan is the 2001 Chevy siverado. IT just cost alot to run. ( ins/plates/gas)

My '11 Z is one of the winter beaters; my wife drives it year-round. It's equipped with oversized winter tires to boost ground clearance. It also has paint protection film applied to numerous areas to resist paint chipping (the perk of having a very good friend who installs film for a living).

I myself drive a '16 GMC Sierra 1500 SLT (a twenty-foot long and six-thousand-pound Standard Crew) year-round, moreso in the winter. It does more than decent in the snow even with its mediocre all-terrain-type tires. The '16 is a 4WD which is my first 4WD truck; previous ones were 2WD. The automatic locking rear differential (not a limited-slip) and transfer case Auto 4WD mode in it allows for a, umm, "hooliganism close to complete abandon" ;)

I have a Infiniti i30 2001 as my winter beater it's great in snow and reliable. It has 215k still runs great..fun driving in snow😆