Welcome to Found, a series where classic goods are handpicked by Gear Patrol‘s writers and editors and are ready for a good home.
A winter beater is an automotive sacrificial lamb. A dirt-cheap conveyance to be bought on the cheap, driven into a sea of salt and slush, then abandoned in spring. Sure, it’ll save your nicer car from the hell of winter, but you’re still stuck with a machine you don’t like very much for a few months out of the years.
Instead of treating the winter beater as a cheap-as-dirt commodity to be used up and tossed aside, spring for something a bit more premium. Pick up something that’s actually enjoyable to sit in and drive. Take care of it and use it for more than just one winter. There are plenty of luxurious and fun-to-drive cars that can be found on the cheap and equipped to take on what winter can throw at them. Just don’t forget the winter tires.
2000 Audi A8
What we like: Yes, it has Audi’s vaunted Quattro AWD system and, yes, it’s one of the A8’s selling points as a luxury car apt to handle winter. But the first-gen A8 is also notable for being the first production car ever to utilize an aluminum space frame. Here’s a science lesson: when it comes into contact with oxygen, an aluminum develops a thin surface layer of aluminum oxide which keeps the main structure from oxidizing, meaning snow and salt won’t dissolve an A8 to a rusty heap of its former self.
From the seller: Recent service done. Brand new timing belt and water pump service; brand new alternator; brand new battery.
Milage: 72,538
Location: Stafford, TX
