So I bought my 8 last june/06 and I plan to store it for the winter, my old car I just got back from my mechanic cause it had to be fixed. Anyways I haven't driven my old car for the whole summer and I am not used to it anymore, my old car is a 95 corolla.....first my left foot keeps searching for the clutch, my left thumb keeps going to the steering wheel to adjust the volume, the seat doesnt hug me like my 8 does and it feels like Iam sitting in an old mans chair, suspension feels splashy....On a positive note at least I dont worry about where I have to park the car

 

Sweeeeet ride dude...my winter beater is a '95 Daytona!!

 

anyone else own a winter beater? and what kind of car is it? O yea my right elbow was also searching for the console while driving my corolla lol

 

hey...my beater (non-winter specific) is a 1991 Chevy Corsica with about 45% paint coverage and 170,000 miles

runs good though

 

I use my old '90 Eagle Talon Tsi as a winter beater.

AWD and snow tires make winter driving in Winterpeg a breeze.

Chris...

 

I use to own a 91 Tsi .. awesome car .. great in the winter with good tires.

My winter ride is a 94 GM Sonoma with more rust than paint

 

THis is my winter beater. On the plus side it does have a new engine

 

lol 91 ford tempo..

 

What exactly is the purpose behind the use of a "Winter Beater"?
You are either an enthusiast or you're not.
Driving a beater for 4-5 months of the year to preserve a Mazda is just plain stupid.
It's a freakin' mazda - not a mclaren.
Drive the thing like you stole it - rain or shine, snow or slush.
Hail and black ice are really the only things I dislike.

If you enjoy bikes - then clearly there is a reason to put the thing away in the winter.

But 4 snows, 50-50 weight distribution, LSD - and aside from deep snow, and the slightest of inclines - it really isn't all that bad in the winter.

In Toronto - winter roads are either dry, or salt stained wet 99% of the time.

Can you tell me why most highway patrol vehicles still use the RWD Crown Vic?

Winter Beater = Stupid
Especially if you are leasing the car.

I still have my AWD Tsi Talon for really nasty snow though - makes getting into and out of street parking a breeze.

 

I disagree. If you have another vehicle around that you can beat on in the winter, it helps reduce wear and tear on the car. And not just the regular wear and tear.

Even if you lease the car, it's not so much an issue of you having an off and going into a hedge (or worse) - it's more of whatever everyone else on the road is doing. It sounds trite, but it's always someone else's fault, right? The less time you spend in dicey conditions in your ride, the happier you (and your ride) will be. Besides, most of us would take our 8s out if the conditions weren't super slushy/icey/crummy in the winter, anyway. I know I'd rather be in the 8 than any other car in the garage...

Umm, and it's somewhat a contradiction to declare winter beaters as 'stupid', and admit that you have an AWD TSi Talon 'just in case'. But that's just my humble opinion!

 

Winter beater = not stupid
Winter beater = no rust on RX8 (unlike winter beater with much rust)
Winter beater = Nice summer car stays nice
Winter beater = much better RX8 resale value

Chris...

 

I still drive my 8 in winter but only on those rare cold days when the roads are dry and clear of SALT ... yeech hate salt.
I use the 4x4 Sonoma truck as a beater because it's there, I didn't go out specifically and buy it for a beater

I also hate the sound of sand, gravel and salt (did I mention I hate salt) bouncing off the hood of my car. They put alot of it down on the roads once you get past Highway 9

 

I drove my Jeep automatic 'winter beater' just yesterday, and my hand instinctively went to the stick. Chuckled at myself every time I did it.

The salt/sand blasting we get all winter is a good reason to have another vehicle.

 

YT1300: I know it was a contradiction to say that I have a Tsi. I thought it would be funny. Although the TSi at over 330hp is not really much of a beater.

My point is this.

1. The RX8 isn't ever going to be a really highly valued classic car (unless it is kept prestine).
2. Driving it in winter vs. not driving it in winter will not affect the resale value much at all - unless you garage it for 30 years and pull it out as a classic. A car will depreciate solely on age alone - km's and winter driving are secondary.
3. The enjoyment I get driving the RX far outways the damage I am inflicting due to the canadian winter.
4. I look at driving another vehicle as lost opportunity cost. The 8 is depreciating whether I drive it or not. So I might as well just drive it and Zoom Zoom.

How about this scenario?

Road trip planned - 5000km.
You can rent a car for $20/day with unlimited km's, or drive your precious RX-8 the same amount of km's at 4x the cost.
Rental Car Costs - Just Gas and $20/day
RX-8 Costs - GAS+Oil+Brakes+Tires++++++++

Now - I will take everything back if your winter beater was a 911C4S or Turbo, or Sti, or RS6, or....(fill in any awd monster car)

Point of it all is to NOT limit your fun to just nice weather.
That's what the sissy motorcylcle people do.

 

For my job I'm always driving around all of Michigan working on the transmission power lines and for the winter I need a beater even during the summer I need a beater just to get to some of the towers or stations that we work at. I use a 96 blazer 4x4 that could probably die on me at any time but until then it will always be my beater.

 

Nice argument Rotator...I was on the fence personally, but you make a compelling point. I'd like more information, can I subscribe to your newsletter?

Each to their own though. My RX8 is my only car, so I will be driving it through winter. If I had the option of a second car I'm sure I would be using that on the some of the worse days.

 

To me, My rx8 is my mcClaren. It's all relative.
Though I lease it currently, I love it. Have loved it since concept. When lease is up, I will be refinancing it to own it. Therefore I am looking ahead as I want to keep it as prestine as possible for as long as possible. If that means that I will miss out on driving it a couple months a year to have it last in great condition for that many more years later, then what the hell.

I will be driving my 94 Mx6 in the winter.
Front wheel drive, 164hp V6. With some blizzaks on it, it's actually quite excellent in the winter.
I would be pretty damn pissed off if I drove my 8 in the winter only to be wacked by some dumbass who doesn't know how to properly drive in the winter.

On the flip side, admittedly I am interested to try it out in winter conditions. DSC LSD and RWD sure sound like a lot of fun! :P

 

Personally I've parked the 8 the last three winters and driven the '90 Camry. I've even rustproofed it before all three winters. I will have to drive it this year though, the wife's got her driver's licence so she'll be driving the camry. I don't want to buy another car so I'm gonna reluctantly drive the 8 this winter.

Just so no one gets their panties in a knot over this. I've winter driven rwd drive cars before so I'm not scared of the fun that I'll have. What I hate most is that the underside of the car will suffer a bad case of road-rust. I just remember going to my brother's garage and looking under the miata that I was winter driving and seeing the effects that the rust had on it. If I look under the 8 today, there isn't a speck of rust there and it saddens me knowing what it's gonna look like this time next year.

Edit.
On a side to this post.
I've made it to the '100-post' club! Yippeee!

 

I have a few friends who told me to drive my 8 in the winter and to not worry about the costs of keeping my old car, I know the 8 is a great car to drive in the winter, but my only thing is the amount of salt that we throw on our roads some days its not even that bad and there is like a layer of salt/sand on the road so thick its like the road has not been paved.....I dont think I could live with myself hearing all that crap hitting my car

 

I drive my motorbike in hail, rain, and in -15 C weather in Calgary. It's funny to see the looks of all the cagers.

"Sissy" is someone like you that needs cruise control, heated seats, steering wheel controls, auto locks, auto windows, A/C, oh, and a huge protective shell around you while you drive around talking on your cell phone and sipping your cafe latte

 

Speaking of the amount of salt on the roads....am I wrong, but I thought I read something last winter about the roads in the GTA being sprayed with a new type of liquid to keep the ice away rather than the usual tons and tons of sand and salt?!?!
Is this true? If true, is that stuff just as harmful to the car?

 

Rotator, I see what you mean...

I also find it funny to drive a 330 whp AWD vehicle in the snow, mind you.

I don't think you need to have an expensive car to warrant a winter beater, however. If you figure out how much you're likely to drive over a given period of time, it doesn't matter if you have two cars or six, you're still going to drive the same amount of distance. If you want a convertible for top-down driving, the 8 for carving up twisty roads, at a 300 whp STi for winter rally driving, and if you can afford it, then why not?

Hmm. STi in the winter. I could probably sell it as a 'safe winter car', no?

 

I have heard of something like that i don't know if toronto is going to implement that, i live in richmond hill so i think this municipality will still use salt/sand

 

Motorcycle in winter? Spiked Tires?
Where is the Late holder?

An issue no-one has really brought up is safety.

I would think that the 8 - is a much safer place to be in the event of a collission than many of the "beaters" we are discussing here - especially the bike.

The salt does suck.
My car was rusting within the first month of salt covered roads - think icing cake in Toronto.

Where I would really have a hard time driving the 8 is places where they use tons of sand or pea gravel.

I understand many rural areas are known for spraying this crap all over the road.

Sure you don't get rust - but your paint and windshield take an absolute beating.

 

Won't help with the gravel, but does with the rust: Counteract Electronic Rust Protection

No drilling, no goo