I have a 2000 lincoln ls sport 5spd .I was driving It just on the weekends but my Isuzu pickup blew the headgasket for the second time in 3 years & i refuse to put it back on the road .But I live in Ontario Canada & our Winters are brutal and the put so much salt on the road you car looks like a cracker so I want to get another winter beater . What's your guys status ? I'm only doing this because I don't plan on buying another NEW car for a least 5 years so i gotta do what I gotta do. :headbang:

Buy a $150 car that has working heat, and throw it away in the spring.

Buy a $150 cracker car that has working heat, and throw it away in the spring.

:I

:I

Yea I goto local salvage auctions to pick up a winter beater every year... fix it up alittle and usually sell it for abit more once in done using it.

Well, we here in AZ. We drive our summer cars because there is no winter. :N Its just a little colder. I havnt seen snow here since the first year I was here in 97'. But if I needed to buy a car for winter becasue of the salt and what not. I would just buy some cheap beater. . .

I plan on driving mine. I am leasing mine and I don't plan on having it for to long.

Drove mine all last winter with no problems....'cept it was hard to find in the snow.

Use mine primarily as a ski vehicle. Make 6-10 trips to Vermont each winter (250 miles each way). Over snow covered roads and up one mountain pass. With four good snows never had a problem. Car is a Black 2000 five speed manual without traction control. Currently has 63,000 miles and looks fine. During the summer I use my bike.

I could see owning a beater to commute in but cars are meant to be used and at my average of 20,000 miles per year it will be worn out before it gets real ugly.

For reference the Lincoln replaced an XR4Ti that was used for the same purposes and needed to be retired after 280,000 miles at 16 years of age.

Well, around here the salt they throw on the pavement is a real killer. Most cars don't last 15 years. And by "don't last," I mean they turn to rusty piles of shiat. I love my Mark, and if it started to rust on me, I'd be very disappointed. So winter beater it is.

Use mine primarily as a ski vehicle. Make 6-10 trips to Vermont each winter (250 miles each way). Over snow covered roads and up one mountain pass. With four good snows never had a problem. Car is a Black 2000 five speed manual without traction control. Currently has 63,000 miles and looks fine. During the summer I use my bike.

I could see owning a beater to commute in but cars are meant to be used and at my average of 20,000 miles per year it will be worn out before it gets real ugly.

For reference the Lincoln replaced an XR4Ti that was used for the same purposes and needed to be retired after 280,000 miles at 16 years of age.


Thats what I have an 87 Merkur XR4Ti, with 135,000 miles and still running strong. What made you get rid of the XR. Those are some tuff little 4 bangers. Was you XR stock or modified. If you want some info on the XR go to www.merkurclub.com, or www.turboford.org, and all the info you need is on www.merkurdesktop.com

Thats what I have an 87 Merkur XR4Ti, with 135,000 miles and still running strong. What made you get rid of the XR. Those are some tuff little 4 bangers. Was you XR stock or modified. If you want some info on the XR go to www.merkurclub.com, or www.turboford.org, and all the info you need is on www.merkurdesktop.com

Stock except for a T5 tranmission. At 280,000 miles it was getting tired (no real engine work needed during the time I owned it other than replacing a rusted freeze out plug, pan gasket and valve cover gasket), rust was getting to be a problem. Even if the body was fine it was time for me to move on. Great car, great owners support. With no rust probably worth $1000 with rust I got $200. Most of the time I lived in upstate NY (either Hudson Valley or Rome where it snowed every day).

I understand people getting beaters to commute in but I don't drive to work (walk to train) so my mileage is all peasure driving so I can't see driving a beater for pleasure and as I said in 10 years the car will be 14 years old and have over 250,000 miles even if prestine resale value will be low due to mileage. So I'd rather just use a good car until its gone.