Looking for a winter beater car around $5K

[ultimatebob]

I'm looking for a somewhat reliable used car that would be good in a New England snow storm for around $5,000.

I traded up from a (very boring but economical) Chevy Cruze to a (gas guzzling but totally awesome) Ford Mustang GT a few months ago, and I dread the idea of having to drive that poor car in the snow.

I was thinking that a Subaru Impreza might be a good idea, or perhaps an old Ford Explorer. What do you guys think?

 

[dasherHampton]

Your question kind of made me think "What if I needed a similar car?" so I went to the local Craigslist and after clicking through just a few pages I saw dozens of cars at or around $5000. If you're ok with CL you'd have lots of options.

The one I saw that caught my eye as far as "Winter car" goes was a 2007 Audi A6 Quattro. Someone wanted like $5500 for it.

I know, I know - you'll most likely have to live with the Service Engine Soon light on the entire time you own it, but I had an early 2000s A6 Quattro and it was a great car for me. Gave me over 100,000 miles with no major issues.

They're fantastic in the snow. I always felt completely secure, even in very bad weather.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Old Volvo.

They're terrible in the snow, until you learn how to drive a RWD car with narrow snow tires.

 

[lxskllr]

Anything with all/4wd. Your price range is kinda low, but something like a Santa Fe should be doable. Maybe a truck, but around here, they're run into the ground at the $5k mark. They hold their value well.

 

[pauldun170]

I'm looking for a somewhat reliable used car that would be good in a New England snow storm for around $5,000.

I traded up from a (very boring but economical) Chevy Cruze to a (gas guzzling but totally awesome) Ford Mustang GT a few months ago, and I dread the idea of having to drive that poor car in the snow.

I was thinking that a Subaru Impreza might be a good idea, or perhaps an old Ford Explorer. What do you guys think?

Unpopular opinion from someone who has been driving in the region for decades.
You already have a fun car. You need an appliance with the right rubber for the conditions.

Get the newest Corolla with the least amount of miles for 4,500.
Use the remaining $$$ steel wheels and snow tires ( cheap steel wheels that fit the cheapest size of the best best snow tires you can find on tire rack.)

Super cheap to own and maintain. Fairly roomy for the class. Once you get over the plastics you'll discover that it will be tight as a drum for years.

 

[ultimatebob]

Your question kind of made me think "What if I needed a similar car?" so I went to the local Craigslist and after clicking through just a few pages I saw dozens of cars at or around $5000. If you're ok with CL you'd have lots of options.

The one I saw that caught my eye as far as "Winter car" goes was a 2007 Audi A6 Quattro. Someone wanted like $5500 for it.

I know, I know - you'll most likely have to live with the Service Engine Soon light on the entire time you own it, but I had an early 2000s A6 Quattro and it was a great car for me. Gave me over 100,000 miles with no major issues.

They're fantastic in the snow. I always felt completely secure, even in very bad weather.

Oh no, not going that route. Been there, done that. I used to own an Audi A4 (3.0 Quattro). It was great in the snow, but the parts for it cost a small fortune.

 

[ultimatebob]

Unpopular opinion from someone who has been driving in the region for decades.
You already have a fun car. You need an appliance with the right rubber for the conditions.

Get the newest Corolla with the least amount of miles for 4,500.
Use the remaining $$$ steel wheels and snow tires ( cheap steel wheels that fit the cheapest size of the best best snow tires you can find on tire rack.)

Super cheap to own and maintain. Fairly roomy for the class. Once you get over the plastics you'll discover that it will be tight as a drum for years.

Ya know, I've heard people saying good things about Honda Civics with snow tires as well. I kinda wanted something with AWD, but maybe I should think about going that route.

 

[dasherHampton]

Oh no, not going that route. Been there, done that. I used to own an Audi A4 (3.0 Quattro). It was great in the snow, but the parts for it cost a small fortune.

I can understand your thinking. Just remember - A6s are a great deal more reliable than A4s, especially from that era. No one should ever buy an A4 older than 2012.

And that's not just general info, it's specific info from people I know who exclusively drive Audis.

 

[Kaido]

Ya know, I've heard people saying good things about Honda Civics with snow tires as well. I kinda wanted something with AWD, but maybe I should think about going that route.

Might be tricky to find one that fits the budget, but ESC on modern cars is absolutely amazing. Like 80% as good as AWD. My last Kia Soul had it & it made winter driving in a FWD car like driving through mud. AWD still has a definite edge, but I'd imagine a FWD car with ESC & snow tires would be a killer combination. The government has a list of pre-2012 cars that are equipped with ESC:

https://www.safercar.gov/Vehicle-Shoppers/Resources/Vehicles-with-ESC/

You can see how good it is at 2 minutes into this video: (watch the whole thing if you're not familiar with ESC, it's only a few minutes long)

One of the biggest reasons I opted to go with a Mustang as my DD (even in winter) is that it has ESC & is actually pretty great in the snow, despite being RWD. Granted, I'll probably get some winter tires & throw some bags of sand in the trunk, but still

 

[crashtech]

In my area it'd be either a Subaru, Tahoe, or Explorer.

 

[Kaido]

I traded up from a (very boring but economical) Chevy Cruze to a (gas guzzling but totally awesome) Ford Mustang GT a few months ago, and I dread the idea of having to drive that poor car in the snow.

Hey, welcome to the Mustang club! What year is yours?

 

[mindless1]

I was thinking that a Subaru Impreza might be a good idea, or perhaps an old Ford Explorer. What do you guys think?

You could sort-of split the difference with an AWD Mazda Tribute AKA Ford Escape, those have stability control around '08 '09 which you should be able to just swing with a $5K budget if buying from owner instead of dealer.

I wouldn't focus too much on a particular make, model, or year though, rather looking for a cherry with low miles and garage kept, whatever it might be. You can find a dozen of any particular thing but the cherries are picked up quick so you need cash ready when you're looking at ads.

 

[Yuriman]

I drive a Honda Insight in Vermont's mountains. It has low ground clearance and is very light. I've never gotten stuck. Plenty of people here drive Priuses. Honda Civics are also very common.

Basically, any car will work, just get snow tires. A Corolla will have a lower cost of ownership than an Audi. An older Fit is also a nice choice.

 

[ultimatebob]

Hey, welcome to the Mustang club! What year is yours?

I got a brand new 2018 model. Kinda killed my car budget, though, which is why I gotta keep my winter beater cheap.

 

[Kaido]

I got a brand new 2018 model. Kinda killed my car budget, though, which is why I gotta keep my winter beater cheap.

Congrats! I just picked up an '18 Ecoboost myself! What color did you get?

 

[pauldun170]

Ya know, I've heard people saying good things about Honda Civics with snow tires as well. I kinda wanted something with AWD, but maybe I should think about going that route.

Stick to your budget and remember that snow tires will get you through the snow and help with ice.
I recommend finding the least maintenance, reliable car at that 5k price point.
If you find an AWD car that fits the bill then go for it. If you find a fwd car that's in great shape, easy to maintain and work on then go for that.

Tires are what matter for the north east. Not drivetrain.

However...if you just WANT an AWD car and you are trying to justify it with NE weather then just get one. just keep in mind that AWD car at that 5k price point is going to come with additional costs over the length of ownership. Seals, sensors, external condition, rattles.

 

[ultimatebob]

Congrats! I just picked up an '18 Ecoboost myself! What color did you get?

Ruby Red. It's a beauty!

 

[ultimatebob]

You could sort-of split the difference with an AWD Mazda Tribute AKA Ford Escape, those have stability control around '08 '09 which you should be able to just swing with a $5K budget if buying from owner instead of dealer.

I wouldn't focus too much on a particular make, model, or year though, rather looking for a cherry with low miles and garage kept, whatever it might be. You can find a dozen of any particular thing but the cherries are picked up quick so you need cash ready when you're looking at ads.

Nice choice! My wife had a 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid, which she replaced with a Honda Pilot after putting 220,000 miles on it. That car was a tank, and had almost no problems at all. There is a good reason they use them for New York Taxis.

 

[Kaido]

Ruby Red. It's a beauty!

Awesome! Mine is Royal Crimson. You get the 4 or the 8? I've really been enjoying mine so far!

 

[ultimatebob]

Awesome! Mine is Royal Crimson. You get the 4 or the 8? I've really been enjoying mine so far!

I got the GT Premium package, with cream leather and the 19" wheels. The reason I want to buy the beater car is to prevent this from happening again:

The Snow/Wet Traction mode worked surprisingly well, but there is just something about this picture that just screams "Bad Mustang Owner" to me.

 

[ondma]

Might be tricky to find one that fits the budget, but ESC on modern cars is absolutely amazing. Like 80% as good as AWD. My last Kia Soul had it & it made winter driving in a FWD car like driving through mud. AWD still has a definite edge, but I'd imagine a FWD car with ESC & snow tires would be a killer combination. The government has a list of pre-2012 cars that are equipped with ESC:

https://www.safercar.gov/Vehicle-Shoppers/Resources/Vehicles-with-ESC/

You can see how good it is at 2 minutes into this video: (watch the whole thing if you're not familiar with ESC, it's only a few minutes long)

One of the biggest reasons I opted to go with a Mustang as my DD (even in winter) is that it has ESC & is actually pretty great in the snow, despite being RWD. Granted, I'll probably get some winter tires & throw some bags of sand in the trunk, but still

I have to disagree about stability control. Yes it is a great feature to prevent losing control under certain conditions, but it doesn't really help in preventing getting stuck or really even help stopping distances. Even antilock brakes help maintain control but don't do much for for stopping distances. A couple of years ago, I got a car with anti lock brakes, stability and traction control and honestly it is not much if any better in snow than my civic with none of those. What matter in getting thru snow is ground clearance, tires, and fwd or awd.

 

[Midwayman]

I have to disagree about stability control. Yes it is a great feature to prevent losing control under certain conditions, but it doesn't really help in preventing getting stuck or really even help stopping distances. Even antilock brakes help maintain control but don't do much for for stopping distances. A couple of years ago, I got a car with anti lock brakes, stability and traction control and honestly it is not much if any better in snow than my civic with none of those. What matter in getting thru snow is ground clearance, tires, and fwd or awd.

ESC isn't magic, but its been proven to stop a little fishtail from turning into full blown off road excursions. In terms of snow driving I'd rather have it than ABS simply because in loose surface conditions like snow no ABS is often better than ABS.

An impreza would be great, but in snowy regions they tend to be way overpriced. I'd be thinking more about sedans that came in it but aren't what people usually think. VW 4motion cars. I know golf had it on some models. Maybe others. Ford fusion came in AWD. Maybe the old ones are cheap enough now?

 

[pauldun170]

Whats sort of commute will you be using this thing for? How many miles? Terrain\elevation changes...
How important is MPG to you?

 

[BurnItDwn]

Imprezas make good winter cars, but, 5K likely will get you something very old with very high miles.
1nd and 2nd gen Foresters are very similar to the imprezas of the era and you may find a better price if you expand the scope of your search to include them.
The non-turbo forester has head gasket problems usually around 125k miles, so, make sure it's already been done if you are going to consider one.
Legacy and Outback from the era were the "premium" platform, and if you find one of them in your price range, may wish to give them consideration as well.

The tribecca was more or less universally disliked, and it might be wise to avoid.

 

[ultimatebob]

Whats sort of commute will you be using this thing for? How many miles? Terrain\elevation changes...
How important is MPG to you?

My commute is about 8 miles each way. It's mostly flat.

If I cared about MPG, I wouldn't have traded in my 40 MPG Chevy Cruze Eco for an 18 MPG Mustang GT