Do I do it?

[MoeBawlz]

So I am currently in the market for a new car. Im young and have a fair income to play with. I really dont want to go crazy on a daily driver though since I have the 68 Camaro as the project/toy. Anyways as of now I have a deal ready for a 1999 Camaro SS with 18,000 miles on it for 14k which is the blue book value of the car. I like the car, but I dont know about it as a daily driver as the car is large in my opinion and I live near chicago so I deal with something that many of you probably have no idea about, its called winter and snow.

Im also looking into a 2003 Mustang GT which suits me as a daily driver car better in my opinion and I can get aftermarket parts for dirt cheap from my friends who all are into Mustangs.

Any opinoins? other options of cars that are fun and sporty? Anything at all.

[LowBuckX]

Get an Escort or a Chevette. They are performance Power houses and cost very little. :hammer:

[Elusive R]

I don't think either car - Mustang or Camaro, would be good in the snow. Have you driven an LS1 Camaro before? I drive my dad's '99 Z28 M6 every now and then and have done some long road trips in it and you get used to the long nose very quickly and it stops feeling large - it's just an illusion. Plus, it's fast and can be very fast with mostly free mods (low 13's/high 12's). My dad's has only a K&N filter and has run 105.5 mph in the quarter. But I'm a biased Chevy guy...

Ryan

[hdesign]

2 words-Subaru WRX....great performance, good gas mileage and you can get AWD for snow. There's tons of aftermarket mods (that aren't ricey). Yeah, I know it's not a traditional domestic musclecar but those things are rockets! Probably better build quality too....sorry guys.

[Steve1968LS2]

2 words-Subaru WRX....great performance, good gas mileage and you can get AWD for snow. There's tons of aftermarket mods (that aren't ricey). Yeah, I know it's not a traditional domestic musclecar but those things are rockets! Probably better build quality too....sorry guys.

I loved my WRX.. only prob was that it was gutless on the top end.. fun ride though. Especially in the rain :)

[hdesign]

I've heard that too...kinda surprising actually. I always thought those buzzy little 4-bangers were all top end. I'd remove the ridiculous 3 ft tall wing on the back too.

[camaro608]

do the camaro

[Ralph LoGrasso]

Neither the mustang or camaro is going to fair very well in the snow, but as far as performance goes, the camaro wins hands down. It's a MUCH faster car, the old GTs are slowww. LS1 F-bodies are the best bang for the buck cars out there right now, test drive one of them and you'll probably want one.

However, the WRX is a better suggestion as far as a car that needs to get around in the snow, etc.

[Steve1968LS2]

I've heard that too...kinda surprising actually. I always thought those buzzy little 4-bangers were all top end. I'd remove the ridiculous 3 ft tall wing on the back too.

25% drivetrain loss due to the AWD..

[Ralph LoGrasso]

A lot of the WRX's speed is attained off the line because of the AWD. They launch really hard, but after that the power dies down real quick.

[MoeBawlz]

I figured you were gonna say that about the two cars... I drove the SS and did like the power behind it, and definatly hands down wins the performance aspect over the GT, but the GT felt more like a daily driver car to me. I will have to check out the WRX, Id love to get into an STi but chances are that wont happen in my range. Thanks for the input.

[Rick Dorion]

I wouldn't worry about WRX top end in real-world street driving. The lower end power, all wheel drive and winter performance put it on my short list. I regularly see them in wagon flavor for high teens a few years old.

[zero g]

You already have a hotrod. I would get a truck. I love mine and would be lost without it.

[6'9"Witha69]

You already have a hotrod. I would get a truck. I love mine and would be lost without it.Good Idea. And trucks tend to keep you out of speeding (at least more than in the Camaro).

[MoeBawlz]

Im not a huge truck fan, the only truck id get myself into is a 69-72 chevy C-10 which I use to have back in high school but even that got me into trouble. The truck needed a motor and all I had was a 400 hp crate motor laying around.

Ill have to look into the WRX a little, havnt had a chance to drive one yet. If anyone has other good suggestions I would appreciate them, I had also considered an SRT-4 but then again its still a Neon and its still a Dodge (have had bad experiences with Dodge products in the past/present)

[DusterRT]

I've got a '98 Neon R/T I'll sell ya cheap! :look:

[Hrod382]

The only reasons I didn't buy a new Camaro was the insurance and most importantly the fact that it sucks in the snow. I personally wouldn't buy one unless I had the money to fork over to get a winter beater.

[MoeBawlz]

14k isnt bad at all for the Camaro I was looking it, its got 18k miles on it so itll be around for a while. I could still afford a winter beater too, but at the same token I already have 2 cars, I dont need a third in my driveway.

Also its kind of that whole I already am building a money swallowing toilet, I dont need another money pit to get myself into.

[DusterRT]

Find something a little older that's cheap..you'll be able to throw a lot more money at your project (ie, that monthly payment, the extra cost of full coverage insurance, hopping the new car up...). Or at least that's what I'd do..focus on the task at hand!

[hdesign]

Find an off-lease Cobalt SS. You can probably get one for dirt. I've heard nothing but great things about them. As previously mentioned, you already have the hot rod, get something to save money on gas that's reasonably cool to drive that won't be in the shop every 2 weeks. The insurance on the Camaro is gonna kill ya!

[formula]

Do you really want another sports car for your DD? I mean, why not get something comfy and good on gas to tool around in, that you won't want to mod, so that you can focus on your camaro?

Just a thought. I want a 97 formula, preferably ws6, for a DD, but I refuse to buy one because it will keep me from finishing my 78.

[ProStreet R/T]

Cheap, find a tdi VW golf. Super reliable, well built car, and they get like 45mpg no matter what you do. Tint it out, put some 17's on it (which don't cost much at all) and roost it around.

If you want something a little nicer maybe an AWD Audi A4?

If you really just want a winter beater for 15k find a pre 2002 cummins ram 4x4, with a manual trans. Insurance is dirt cheap, should be 18-22mpg, and with the manual trans it will decompose before it breaks down. The dodge auto trannies are a bit sketchy though, i'd avoid them, especially on a diesel. It's a $3k rebuild if you have a problem with it, and even then they aren't good for much over 150k miles at a time.

[ACEFOOTER]

The brakes are very impressive on the WRX as well!

[surlyjoe]

Think about a b-body. 94-96 caprice, impalla ss, roadmaster, fleetwood. Lt1 power, good mileage, cheap to repair, tough, can pull a car hauler and the buick and cad have nice interiors. A bit of a sleeper which can be good for a dd.

[wantahertzdonut]

F-body cars SUCK in the snow. Expect to get stuck a lot. Wide tires and low ground clearance don't do good in the slippery stuff.

Mustangs have a little more ground clearance but are extremely nose heavy, once again bad in snow.

WRX's are cool too, but you'll have to put premium fuel in all the time. Not that big a deal, but something to keep in mind. Honestly for a daily driver, do yourself a favor and get a Civic. You'll never need to work on it and the mileage is way better than the Camaro or Firebird both in town and on the highway. Plus insurance is cheap. It'll put more money towards the project car.

[ssdeuce]

I just bought a Mazda 6 5 door for my daily driver. 2.3L 4cyl 5 speed. It's fun to drive not gonna impress you with raw power but at $2.70 gal I like it's 30MPG that I'm getting every tank.