Thinking of buying a winter beater

[KrillBee]

Originally posted by: BUTCH1

Originally posted by: KrillBee
im also debating getting a winter beater. my reason is that my current car a 96 nissan maxima is already starting to rust on the rocker panels, and its beginning to eat into the subframe. i dont want to do any more damage to my car, so I'm thinking about buying a cheaper car that i just dont care about.

only problem is, im not sure what kind of winter beater to get and how much to spend? whats the price point that gives the most bang for the buck? a 300 dollar running car? a 500 dollar car? 750? 1000? more?

It's allready 10 yrs old and rusting, it IS a beater. Bondo up the rust and your
all set...

just pack a bunch of bondo in there and hope nothing more happens? lol!
that doesnt seem like it would stop the rust. like seriously, my subframe will be shot soon if i dont do something! then I'll have a bad body with good innards, thats no good.

Originally posted by: thedarkwolf


Think you already have a beater with you maxima . It really depends. One of my best beaters was FREE cause it broke down in my driveway. If you can work on your own car and know what to look for you can get way pretty cheap.

yeah, i know but i love this car and it only has 130,000 miles on it. Runs wonderfully. I dont want to see this thing fall apart soon.

 

[BUTCH1]

Well I guess the Bondo route would not get the best results, to do that any rusted
sections must be cut out and be replaced, could be a lot of welding and a lot of $$$$
How is the rest of the car?? ( tranny, int.,electrics ect). If there in good shape it might
be worth fixing the rust. Consider buying a Haynes or chiltons manuel and doing maint.
and repairs yourself. Good luck.

 

[FoBoT]

i gotta get my winter beater fixed up and start driving it

 

[Theguynextdoor]

lol my Winter beater is a stang. Two years. One of them got hit in the worst snow storm on I-57 (I'm in IL too) going to Chicago only semis were on the road. I merged off a ramp doing about 20-25 saw a semi approaching me from behind he wouldn't get into the other lane. After what seemed like a long time I decided to get in the other lane. I gas it just a smiggin and instead of getting in the other lane the wheels just spun around in the 9 inches of snow. This put me sideways going 30-35 now. The semi passed me on the other lane and I could see him through my front windsheild.

I fought the wheel until I could get it straight again. When I finally came to a stop on the side of the road I took a breather. Then started to make my way out. Just tapping the gas a little bit the wheels made my ass-end fall off the side of teh road and there I was stuck.

 

[Fayd]

Originally posted by: Theguynextdoor
lol my Winter beater is a stang. Two years. One of them got hit in the worst snow storm on I-57 (I'm in IL too) going to Chicago only semis were on the road. I merged off a ramp doing about 20-25 saw a semi approaching me from behind he wouldn't get into the other lane. After what seemed like a long time I decided to get in the other lane. I gas it just a smiggin and instead of getting in the other lane the wheels just spun around in the 9 inches of snow. This put me sideways going 30-35 now. The semi passed me on the other lane and I could see him through my front windsheild.

I fought the wheel until I could get it straight again. When I finally came to a stop on the side of the road I took a breather. Then started to make my way out. Just tapping the gas a little bit the wheels made my ass-end fall off the side of teh road and there I was stuck.

semi driver is lookin at you sayin "ametuer..."

 

[RossMAN]

What's a pilot bearing and why does that sound expensive?
http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/car/242074243.html

 

[eldorado99]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
I'd say to go ahead and get a winter beater, but definitely NOT that one.

Originally posted by: Auryg

Originally posted by: DougK62
In my experiences, if you buy a car for less than $500 you have about a 50/50 chance of it making it through the winter.

My old '88 Grand Marquis made it through two..would have made it through atleast one more. It was only 400 dollars.

Don't get me wrong though..if the thing wasn't HUGE, it would have been scary as hell to drive in the winter. RWD, extremely heavy front..not good.



It was fun when I wasn't in a hurry and there were no cars around though

My 77 Grand Marquis made it through two winters, and would have kept going
It was only $350, and I sold it for $300 after those two years. It did take that 460 V8 a little while to warm up, though

It took a while to warm up? Must have had a bad thermostat or something, I have always found big blocks warm up quicker if anything, certainly not any slower... I don't mean any disrespect or anything, just curious.

 

[thedarkwolf]

Originally posted by: RossMAN
What's a pilot bearing and why does that sound expensive?
http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/car/242074243.html

http://www.carcare.org/Manual_Transmission/pilot_bearing.shtml

 

[uberman]

I just think its funny after reading this thread. I've got 2 studded snow tires I paid $240.00 for. I have them on Craigslist for the third time at $20.00 for the pair. They were only used one season, and I'm selling them in California where you can't use them. Damn geography. You guys would be set.

 

[Colt45]

vw golf II maybe. Cheap, fwd, easy to fix. Just make sure it has half decent tires and it should be fine. I'd get a 5spd too, just because I don't trust autos.

mebbe something like this if you could get it a bit cheaper. http://chicago.craigslist.org/nwc/car/241895155.html
There should be junkier ones around for less.

Or you could get some cheapass winter tires, and throw sandbags in the trunk

 

[KrillBee]

Originally posted by: BUTCH1
Well I guess the Bondo route would not get the best results, to do that any rusted
sections must be cut out and be replaced, could be a lot of welding and a lot of $$$$
How is the rest of the car?? ( tranny, int.,electrics ect). If there in good shape it might
be worth fixing the rust. Consider buying a Haynes or chiltons manuel and doing maint.
and repairs yourself. Good luck.

the rest of the car is great, interior and performance of the car is wonderful.
however, the exterior sucks. paint chippin everywhere (someone got a maaco paint job on this thing before i bought it), and rust in other places (right by spoiler, a little around one of the rear wheel wells. and plenty of rust on the bottom of the car.
I just know that frame rust is bad though, and i want to make sure my car doesnt die a premature death (by snapping in the spot where the rust is)

i have a haynes manual. i also have a nissan maxima service manual.
i dont have any welding skills though, or a place to do that at.

 

[thedarkwolf]

Originally posted by: KrillBee

Originally posted by: BUTCH1
Well I guess the Bondo route would not get the best results, to do that any rusted
sections must be cut out and be replaced, could be a lot of welding and a lot of $$$$
How is the rest of the car?? ( tranny, int.,electrics ect). If there in good shape it might
be worth fixing the rust. Consider buying a Haynes or chiltons manuel and doing maint.
and repairs yourself. Good luck.

the rest of the car is great, interior and performance of the car is wonderful.
however, the exterior sucks. paint chippin everywhere (someone got a maaco paint job on this thing before i bought it), and rust in other places (right by spoiler, a little around one of the rear wheel wells. and plenty of rust on the bottom of the car.
I just know that frame rust is bad though, and i want to make sure my car doesnt die a premature death (by snapping in the spot where the rust is)

i have a haynes manual. i also have a nissan maxima service manual.
i dont have any welding skills though, or a place to do that at.

Por 15 is your friend

 

[KrillBee]

Originally posted by: thedarkwolf


Por 15 is your friend

ive heard of that stuff before, you kinda just paint that stuff on right? and it fights rust?

im going to need a LOT of that, lol. i should probably just replace the sheet metal.

 

[BUTCH1]

I once had a 73 grand torino (ala, the dude's car from the Big Lebowski) and the
frame rust got so bad I had to junk it. Sad because the 302 V8 was running just
fine...

 

[KrillBee]

Originally posted by: BUTCH1
I once had a 73 grand torino (ala, the dude's car from the Big Lebowski) and the
frame rust got so bad I had to junk it. Sad because the 302 V8 was running just
fine...

i know, its really sad that the frames on cars dont last that long. i wonder if they make them that weak on purpose just so that we'll be buying newer ones soon.
like you'd think my 96 maxima would have lasted longer without rusting.

 

[BUTCH1]

I guess if you live where they salt the roads a lot you could try to keep the
frame clear of ice and such at a car wash or by useing a garden hose with warm
water. I live in Daytona where it's legal to drive and park on the beach but i refuse
to park on it, i'll park a block or two away and walk rather than risking getting fine,
salty beach sand near my brakes or rotors...

 

[KrillBee]

Originally posted by: BUTCH1
I guess if you live where they salt the roads a lot you could try to keep the
frame clear of ice and such at a car wash or by useing a garden hose with warm
water. I live in Daytona where it's legal to drive and park on the beach but i refuse
to park on it, i'll park a block or two away and walk rather than risking getting fine,
salty beach sand near my brakes or rotors...

the car washes at gas stations are so expensive down here. seriously its like 7 bucks to get a wash with the under spray. i have to decide how often im going to wash it this winter. it seems like to be effective id almost have to wash it every day. because every day i drive it, salt will get on there from the roads and the air.

there are those cheap membership places, where they use grimy wipers to wash down the car, and cause more damage in the long run, lol. my paint never was that scratchy until i went to one of these places.

 

[thomsbrain]

old subaru or toyota.

 

[BUTCH1]

Originally posted by: thomsbrain
old subaru or toyota.

I'll give credit to the japs for comeing up with some of the finest drivetrains
on the planet. Hell my brother had a 92 accura integra that went to 260K and
still ran fine. Rust however knows no brand loyalty so the best bet would be to put
the car on the rack for a thorough inspection and estimate to repair the rusted areas
and also check frame integrity.......