Daily Driver/Winter Beater reccomendations

[robs400]

I currently have an 04 GT and a 93 Notch (4cyl...dont get excited). I drive the notch everywhere because it gets decent mileage and I just like the car, doesnt hurt that I paid next to nothing for it either.

I did however just buy another house, and the house has most of the finishing work to be done it in still so it would be handy to have a truck, AND the driveway for the house is really steep and since I live in New England there is no chance that anything 2wd is making it up it.

I dont drive far to work so mileage doesnt concern me too much, however I do make a trip back to NY (3hrs) every so often to see my folks and want something that I am not scared to drive there. I dont need a full size truck so I was thinking of something small like a ranger or even a cheaper model cherokee. I dont know much about these tho so am looking for any input you guys might have. I'd like to spend no more than 6-7k.

 

[snake134]

yea, i would go with the cherokee as well

 

[MonkeysL]

i'm picking up a 90 camry this weekend (i hope). i've looked at prizm, metro, aveo, civic, vw, and pretty much every other small high mileage vehicle. most you can find for under 3grand (besides aveo)

 

[MonkeysL]

yea, i would go with the cherokee as well

cherokees and all other jeeps get HORRIBLE gas mileage.

 

[robs400]

The mileage thing doesnt scare me too much. I dont need a full size truck tho, and if I do, we have one at work. I would be okay with something that gets between 17-20mpg. What abuot the cherokees with a 5spd and straight six, do they still get bad mileage. I;d really like a late model ranger, with the 2.3 DOHC and 5spd. They are actually kinda quick. But I need the 4wd.

 

[MonkeysL]

The mileage thing doesnt scare me too much. I dont need a full size truck tho, and if I do, we have one at work. I would be okay with something that gets between 17-20mpg. What abuot the cherokees with a 5spd and straight six, do they still get bad mileage. I;d really like a late model ranger, with the 2.3 DOHC and 5spd. They are actually kinda quick. But I need the 4wd.

check what rear end the ranger has. if it is the 4.something stay away if it is the 3.something it would be better than the cherokee

 

[FromGTtoSVT]

Ranger would be a good choice, while Jeeps do last for ever resale on them is rediculous as a result. You could pick up a used 4cyl ranger for short money becuase most people who want a truck for towing need a 6.

however i would also recomend a Subaru....i have had two for daily drivers...cant beat AWD in the winter time.

 

[sunburned]

My cherokee with stock 3.55 gears and 32" tires gets around 17-18 mpg. A little less than my GT, but I don't have much problem with it. You definitely won't have any problem with snow, just ask SID.

I got my '98 Cherokee with a 3" lift, 32" tires and 91k miles for $5100. Its an auto with the 4.0L I6, which is apparently pretty durable. A friend of mine just got his '98 with 127k miles for $2700. Look on www.jeepforums.com and you'll find some great deals on stock and modded XJ's. Just make sure you get the C8.25 rear, not the Dana 35. Since you'll be driving on the road in the snow quite a bit, look for the NP242 transfer case that has a full-time 4x4 setting. The NP231 is good also, but only has part-time 4x4.

What I got for $5k:

Search on here, there are a lot of Jeep discussions.