Best winter car

I like having classics, but winter in Chicago is not kind to them. What would be a cool vehicle for salt season?

Jeep Cherokee, check some of the recent topics on the forum if you're actually interested. Just get one with ABS.

Suby

In reply to Grtechguy:

+1 on the Suby... I've got a 95 Impreza AWD that even though it's got a AT I still love it (220k mi) my Dad had Jeeps for 40 yrs and I like the Suby better (25+ mph)

1980 Celica. 5spd, stock (soft) suspension, 4x4 ground clearance, old school knobby snows. Worked for me!

I use a 88 Corolla AE92 GT-S with a 20 valve and snow tires. I hunt down Subies with it.

My friends who grew up in the U.P. (YouP-ers) of MI used to say that an old style VW Bug was virtually unstopable.

+1 to subaru

you have to beach them with the wheels pretty much off the ground to stop them.

get a wagon for added parts hauling capability

A Volvo 850 wagon has worked for me (fwd) but an old Legacy (awd) is similar in size and wagon utility.

In Syracuse NY (way snowier than Chicago) my weapon of choice was an 81 Camaro with snows on the back. If you know how to drive, it doesn't really matter what you get, just get snows on the right axle at the very least.

Being from the south, I have limited experience with driving in the snow (we get it only about every 4-5 years), but I would think the choice of tires would have as much to do with it as the type of car. Good snow tires and any car with a really good heater seems logical.

I agree, driving on snow covered northern roads is all about the quality of the tire for the situation. In my opinion, it is not until you exit the roads (intentionally or unintentionally) that the 4wd/awd becomes needed.

It really is all about the tires, just like the rest of the year. Its the same as running and AutoX with all seasons versus something sticky.

Miata.

Somebody had to say it.

I used to run an e21 BMW with snow tires and a couple concrete blocks in the trunk. I lived on an unplowed dirt road in New England (plenty of hills). It laughed at snow until it was deep enough that ground clearance became an issue.

I agree that nearly any car with appropriate tires can be fine in the snow as long as the driver is sensible.

Do it. Some older rusty Miata can be had for crazy cheap and some snows would make it just fine.

Actually, if I could add anything else, if you go RWD (which I recommend) get something with a little bit of wheelbase. There will be times where the back isn't following the same line as the front, and a long wheelbase can help you manage it easier. My long bed truck was easier to drive than the Camaro, for instance.

This is why I like RWD snow cars better than FWD. In FWD, spinning the tires means you can't steer. Generally, there will be less spinning, but when it happens, assuming you still need to go (up a hill) you're boned if there is any camber to the road. I've seen many a FWD vehicle slip into a ditch this way. In RWD, you can spin your heart out, and keep both wheel speed and momentum up, but still have complete steering control.

FWD is going to do "GO" generally better, but "TURN" and "STOP" are the important ones

Not to mention drifting (did it before it was named) can be really helpful for hilly situations and momentum. I would wing the Camaro sideways at 45 or so and let is slide into the intersection - on the gas the whole time - to keep up enough momentum to make it up the hill. It's a little fun too.

Good point on tires. I was thinking more about salt than snow and what would be either resistant to salt (they are putting so much down it's changing the salinity of local water supplies) or a fairly cool vehicle that's semi-disposable after the body rots off. I've got a 73 ford bronco with a fiberglass body, but it's more of an off-road machine and actually is a handful on the street - but will get itself out of the ditch really well.

BMW 325 ix. Buy one that's already "seasoned" by the mid-western winters, add some tires and have some fun.

I put over 100k miles driving a Nissan 240sx all over Metro Detroit in plenty of snow. Quality tread on All Seasons (not winter snows) and I never had a problem. That car was a very predictable slider.

I did spend a few years driving a short wheelbase cargo Astro van in the snow. With its heavy duty springs it required about eight, 60lb sand bags in the rear just to get the rear end to "sit" a little. Overall, it was a pretty scary vehicle in bad weather.

Oh, the body is the easy part! Get something that you can nearly see through.

Nothing is going to last. NOTHING. NOTHING!!!

My pops (in Syracuse) has put new brake lines on CARS FROM 2002!!!

Get something that you don't care about. It will never last. Ever. A DMC-12 was about the closest thing you could find to actual corrosion protection, with the SS body and epoxy dipped chassis, but that stuff costs money, and he didn't sell any as a result.

They call 'em winter rats for a reason. Find one of the 78 quadrillion crapmobiles for sale, get a great set of snows (had great luck with cooper) and drive it for 1,2 maybe 3 winters. Rinse, repeat. Don't spend more than $1500 - just buy something that will pass a smog and safety (if you have them), swap the tires, and move on. If you totally hate it, wrap it around a tree after the spring thaw. I think a '79 Caprice Classic with a 305 sounds perfect.

this is what you need: http://chicago.craigslist.org/sox/cto/1377970031.html or http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/cto/1380459724.html

I dunno about where you guys live, but we get a couple weeks of fairly bad weather a year. The first major snow/ice, I've noticed that almost every single vehicle on the side of the road, in the ditch, upside down is rear wheel drive. New Mustangs, Crown Vics, pickup trucks, etc. Now, sure, if they had real snow tires, they might do a whole lot better, or if they stayed home, better yet, but that's why I went with a FWD vehicle. I grew up in SoCal and I never even saw it snow until I was 19 years old on a ship in Long Island Sound. I like the FWD with snow tires. Works for me.

I rate how bad the road conditions are by the number of wiped out vehicles on my morning commute. A 10 is a real bad one, but I've seen a 18. I don't count vehicles just on the side of the road. They have to be sunk down to the axles, upside down, half the side ripped off, etc. before I count them.

You have to know how to drive. That's a prerequisite to be on the GRM forum. Not to mention, I told you were I drove. Pull over and ask the psychopath who just flipped over (who the hell does that anyway) if he/she knows how to drive.

I presume the OP does, hence the RWD recommendation.

Brains, Ballast, and proper rubber will get you through the white stuff. Chevy S-10 86-93 RWD 2.8 V-6 5-spd FTW

JFX001 wrote: BMW 325 ix. Buy one that's already "seasoned" by the mid-western winters, add some tires and have some fun.

Exactly what I did. It was rusty and hail dented when I bought it, but it has AWD, heated seats and starts on the button no matter how cold it is outside. Perfect combination. Ten years later it's still soldiering on, a little rustier than it used to be but surprisingly not that bad.

It depends on how well your local roads are plowed. Are you in rural Greyslake? Do you live on a road that doesn't get plowed all that often? If so, ground clearance is an issue, and I'd go with a truck (Jeep Cherokee). If your driving is mostly on well plowed, paved roads, the Subi idea is a good one, or (dare I say it) an AMC Eagle! They are basically free, stout, and will go through anything.

In any case the Midwest winters are horribly cruel to any car. Get something cheap with a good heater and defrost, and most important get something you don't give a damn about. If the salt doesn't get you, another driver sliding around very well might. Keep your good car(s) for the nicer months.

I grew up in Chicagoland and made due with anything from a 77 Impala to a VW Scirocco. FWD is better at getting going, but good tires on pretty much anything should due. A light car is nice because if you get stuck in a snowbank, you can push it out yourself!

I'd avoid ponycars, powerful rwd cars, or pickup trucks. Weight over the drive-tires is a good thing on the slippery stuff. My father had a 90 Supra Turbo and it was nearly undriveable whenever the roads got nasty. It may have been the worst winter car ever.