Bring It On - Winter Driving Series

[PMREdmonton]

I have some questions regarding the "Winter beaters":

• With all the modern safety equipment available on many newer cars, why would people even consider "saving" their nice new car when it fact it could be saving them?
• If a winter beater is in fact a total POS car (structural problems due to rust, bad brakes, etc...) why wouldn't the govenment just get them off the road and treat their drivers the same way as drivers acused of "racing"?
• Which is better: To be seen in a nice car stuck because of no proper tires or to be seen in a not so nice car having no sticking issues?

I agree with you about the stupidity of the "winter beater".  Winter is when you want the safest car to drive which means modern safety technology - esc, ebd, disc brakes, abs, air bags, crumple zones, ...

I also think the same thing applies to when the teenager wants to use the car.  You don't necessarily have to get them a big car, SUV or something with a lot of power.  But I would suggest getting them something with esc, good crash ratings and a bunch of air bags.

[PMREdmonton]

What pocket change do they have left after making the payments?

These people don't make payments. They pay cash. As in brown bills. Stacks of them.

Not necessarily - alot of them might finance through the auto company if rates are good as many people with alot of financial assets are not always very liquid.  If push comes to shove, most can get a prime LOC to use, though.

[Honda Owner]

Not necessarily - alot of them might finance through the auto company if rates are good as many people with alot of financial assets are not always very liquid

Not these people. This particular (large) Asian ethnic group is very averse to borrowing money. They save. Every dollar that a child receives from the day he/she is born to the day they are married, including the money they make working, goes to mom, who squirrels it away.

And when they get married, both sides use the money to pay for a house. Cash.

It's a totally different culture, really.

[PMREdmonton]

Not necessarily - alot of them might finance through the auto company if rates are good as many people with alot of financial assets are not always very liquid

Not these people. This particular (large) Asian ethnic group is very averse to borrowing money. They save. Every dollar that a child receives from the day he/she is born to the day they are married, including the money they make working, goes to mom, who squirrels it away.

And when they get married, both sides use the money to pay for a house. Cash.

It's a totally different culture, really.

I've seen some of what you're talking about in my culture but probably not to that extent.  However, I know alot of fairly wealthy people through my line of work and most of them have lots of their assets tied up in their businesses - they can get money if they need it but often would need to liquidate something which may not be advantageous at the exact moment they want to make a major purchase.  Most of them have large LOCs they can use and then when the timing is right will liquidate them and pay off the LOC.  Alot of them are also more than happy to take a low interest rate loan if available on a big ticket item as it is good for cash flow.

[Black Hatch]

I have some questions regarding the "Winter beaters":

• With all the modern safety equipment available on many newer cars, why would people even consider "saving" their nice new car when it fact it could be saving them?
• If a winter beater is in fact a total POS car (structural problems due to rust, bad brakes, etc...) why wouldn't the govenment just get them off the road and treat their drivers the same way as drivers acused of "racing"?
• Which is better: To be seen in a nice car stuck because of no proper tires or to be seen in a not so nice car having no sticking issues?

I agree with you about the stupidity of the "winter beater".  Winter is when you want the safest car to drive which means modern safety technology - esc, ebd, disc brakes, abs, air bags, crumple zones, ...
I also think the same thing applies to when the teenager wants to use the car.  You don't necessarily have to get them a big car, SUV or something with a lot of power.  But I would suggest getting them something with esc, good crash ratings and a bunch of air bags.

RX-8 = Winter Beater? 

Hey it has heated seats and traction control/DSC 

[initial_D]

Other than the low ground clearance, the RX-8 makes a darn good winter driver! Throttle control oversteer at will ...

[initial_D]

I have some questions regarding the "Winter beaters":

• With all the modern safety equipment available on many newer cars, why would people even consider "saving" their nice new car when it fact it could be saving them?
• If a winter beater is in fact a total POS car (structural problems due to rust, bad brakes, etc...) why wouldn't the govenment just get them off the road and treat their drivers the same way as drivers acused of "racing"?
• Which is better: To be seen in a nice car stuck because of no proper tires or to be seen in a not so nice car having no sticking issues?

I agree with you about the stupidity of the "winter beater".  Winter is when you want the safest car to drive which means modern safety technology - esc, ebd, disc brakes, abs, air bags, crumple zones, ...

I also think the same thing applies to when the teenager wants to use the car.  You don't necessarily have to get them a big car, SUV or something with a lot of power.  But I would suggest getting them something with esc, good crash ratings and a bunch of air bags.

My original post with the Winter Beater comment was a bit of a sarcasm. All that money, all that techno into a Porsche, yet, what I got out of that post was " do not get the car scratched ...winter tires too expenisve" ... These people are so friggin fake, and the 'sh!t image" thing is more important than their own safety.

[tpl]

I am always suspicion of people who pay in cash.... real money that is, not "cash as in not borrowing any". I assume that they are laundering it  or that some of it is fake.

[gottarondo]

I had the weirdest winter driving experience yesterday.  I turned into a side street that, like most I've seen the past week, had two pretty clear wheel ruts with a centre heap - most of those centre heaps have been shaved by undercarriages and I can mostly clear them, with just occasional contact.  This one seemed to be a bit too high, and also too hard for me to shave any further.  The last bit of snow has been heavy and to make it harder the melt has started here.  I think I literally floated up the street on my undercarriage.  I had absolutely no traction as I started up the street and then the car started weaving incredibly, not dangerously since I was making progress and staying in the ruts but it was like I was rowing, with tires touching down on first one side, then the other.  It's probably a good thing that I don't know all of what is under there that I could have damaged.

OTHER than that I have to say the Rondo has done quite well in the snow, even on (gasp!) its stock all-season tires (couldn't talk my husband into snows this year  "too expensive" happens to the working class too).  I did get stuck a couple of times in deep snow parking on side streets, but a little shovelling did the trick.  I was even pleasantly surprised at snow driving with an automatic - turns out it can be done.  I had to move the Suzuki, the resident M/T, this morning, and had more trouble rocking that out of some snow than I do with the Rondo.

[initial_D]

Stuck my car on a frozen lake yesterday. Snowed for 30 hrs the day before, and it was +5C. The surface of the lake was very 'soft'. Even with AWD + snow tires, the car would not move. Good thing I had some hardwood floor boards (sample from 2 years ago, didn't clean out the trunk), and a portable shovel.  Otherwise it is a long walk to get help, not sure a tow truck will come onto a lake.

[safristi]

...Trixie and I saw the whole thing.............bummer..Dude.................

[initial_D]

Though Trixie was a blond?!, Saf. She sure has blossomed since you aired her out last summer ...