second car

[Aren Jay]

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[cyclopsram]

A black Crown Vic PI of 2003 vintage... put on 4 studded snows and away you go for about $3000..

[Raudermaster]

+1 on another Panther.

[finster101]

WHAT IS A WINTER CAR? :beatnik:

[mrjones]

My winter car here is a Mustang convertible - it's too hot to drive it in the summer!

[RoyLPita]

+2 on any panther platform vehicle for the winter.

[Ken]

An F-150 with a 5-speed and posi rear. Goes through anything, start spinning the tires, just put the clutch in. Plus you can haul whatever all year long!

Ken

[Canadasvt]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/Canadasvt/26c7488d.jpg

[Canadasvt]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v285/Canadasvt/4eab8d93.jpg
Steels and snows. The Marauder is great in the deep stuff and fun on those icy roads in Calgary. Plus the engine starts every time and there is plenty of heat.

[Joe Walsh]

I'm not a 'fan of Japan'....
But
My 2005 Subaru Legacy GT wagon (AWD 250 HP turbo DOHC 2.5L) is a blast to drive year round, great in the snow and cold:
Full time AWD with limited slip.
Heated seats, heated mirrors, heated rear window, and heated wiper blades.
Really nice leather buckets, ''Paddle shifting" automatic, Mid 14s and gets 25+ mph!
Its a sweet looking car too...not your typical goofy looking Subaru.

My Marauder is still more fun to drive, but it is now saved from snow and salty roads.

[quota]

Have an GM LSE 2003 as a winter car. Studded tires. I live in Quebec. Got stuck only once in my parking yard BUT the F-350 of the snow remover got stuck too. And the second snow remover who came to help had just to slightly push me while he had to use chains + one hour time for taking his colleague out of my yard... Besides, I had lots more fun with my GM than my wife with her Outback Subbie...

[Aren Jay]

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[cyclopsram]

Usually when it is very cold, the traction is better... crunchy snow is easy to drive on...The studs work well on ice giving good braking and directional control...the soft slush and fresh warm snow... 20 degrees above or so is greasy....My 2000 GM with her tap dance shoes on goes around all the little darlings in their fwd nipponese sliders...

[larryo340]

I use my GM all year long, for winter it gets 16" steelies front and rear with winterforce snow tires. I have yet to get stuck. It is fun passing the ricers and some SUV's, you gotta see the look on thier faces as the big boat passes them:D .

You won't believe how many people say "why snows and why four"
I tell them "wouldn't you like to stop and turn also"

[Aren Jay]

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[n3fvg]

A black Crown Vic PI of 2003 vintage... put on 4 studded snows and away you go for about $3000..

I agree, I might go for one a little older so if you bang it up you won't be upset! 2003's in this area are going for about $6000 though. You can get a '99 for around $3000 though

[Aren Jay]

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[Aren Jay]

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[99SVT]

You should get an F-150 from around 90-95 w/ a 5.0L V8 or a 4.9L I6, 4x4 preferrably. You can buy one cheaply, the motors last and are cheap to maintain, you can haul stuff with it, and you won't be out much if it someone crashes into it. you can also just park it on the street and leave the Marauder in the garage.

On the flip side, Marauders with winter tires are very good in the winter, I drove mine to Calgary during one of those late snowstorms in the beginning of March, the 2nd I think. Between Edmonton and Leduc alone there were 30+ cars/SUVs and 2 tractor trailers in the ditch that I drove by doing the speed limit with no problems and with 4.10 gears. the car has a long wheelbase so it's stable and predictable if the back end does comes out. The weight distribution is better than you'd expect with the long overhang in the back, so there is a lot of weight over the back wheels for traction. Add in traction control and ABS and it makes a good winter car.

[ctrlraven]

Marauder all the way, I mean it's "thee car" it begs to be driven. :bows:

I opted for the beefy tires 235/70-16(front) 255/70-16(rear) plus gained an inch of road clearance.

Caps off
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a164/ctrlraven/marauder/PHOT0046Medium.jpg

Caps on
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a164/ctrlraven/marauder/PHOT0049Medium.jpg

[Aren Jay]

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[Aren Jay]

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[Aren Jay]

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[Aren Jay]

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[HwyCruiser]

Get an old Ford pickup and a set of chains. Everyone needs a truck.

[ckadiddle]

A friend of mine, the one with the towncar, suggested that I should consider getting a 03 Marauder Black for winter, or as a second car. I was thinking maybe a Police Interceptor. There is a local dealerhsip who constantly has Police Intereceptors for sale cheap. How different is a Police Interceptor from a Marauder?
PI horsepower is slightly above stock CV but less than Marauder. Some of the parts are heavier duty than standard CV in order to stand up to the long hours of idling and abuses of PD service. I was researching PIs to buy and tweak when I discovered Marauders. :) PI should be a good serviceable winter beater.

[Eric91Z]

I drove my MArauder for 2 Iowa winters with no issues. I had a set of 16" steel wheels (CVPI wheels) that I ran the Pirelli's on and never had any issues.

Now, this was not by choice and now I have a daily driver/winter beater: '03 CVPI. I like my cars big and comfortable. I highly recommend another Panther car. And since this one is an '03 I can continue to use my Pirelli winter tire setup on this car. And the Marauder can stay parked.

While I love driving the Marauder and miss it when not in it, I also have plans of keeping it for a long time which means I want to keep miles low and less wear and tear of the winter months.

Find a cheap CVPI and call it a day then you don't have to worry about the Marauder and the other idiots on the road in the winter.

[Aren Jay]

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