Just some newbie questions

[keons5]

Okay, heres the deal,

I'm looking at a Toyota AE86 GTS that is locally forsale. It needs some body work and it has a bit of rust. It runs/drives but the clutch needs to be replaced. He is asking $500, but I think I could get him down to about $350-$400. Once I got the car I would obviously work on the exterior, replace the clutch, rims/tires, and refinish the interior. Then I would focus on the performance aspect: coilovers, headers, exhaust, ect. I'm looking to put preferably about $1800-$2500 overall.

Questions:
1. My largest concern is a ~2000lb RWD car on Michigan roads. Am I going to get stuck every two seconds and hate myself for buying the car? My friend has a Camaro and he could'nt even make it to school today because we got three inches of snow.

2. Do you think I could get it in decent condition by doing the work myself and purchasing many used parts for the amount of money I stated before?

3. Is a Toyota AE86 GTS a good choice of a car? Cheap parts? Reliable? I have heard many good things about handling/performance, but because of the roads should I go with a FWD car? Are there any other cars I should check out?

Thanks a lot guys, I appreciate it

Collin

[Eircamae86]

Best place to ask this question is on dorikaze.com
But I recon you are luck to get a GTs at that sort of money, Camaros are shit as with almost all American Car (not trying to be offensive, its just true), but the corollas are over 20 years old now so I cannot asure reliabilty, maybe 15 years ago.
Id buy it along with narrow tyres for the snow & the LSD should help in the slippy conditions, if not it will put a smile on your face

[NoHachi]

Hi,

(1) I have seen AE86s with ski's on their roofracks running high up in the mountains of Nagano alongside 4wd subaru's and other stuff. I don't think Michigan gets much worse, but you'll have to run snowtires or chains. Take a look at some of our local snowracers on the site as well.

(2) This one is completely dependent on your own skills. The bodywork can get very expensive if you have to let someone else do it. Performance modding is quite simple on 86s, so no prob there. Replacing the clutch is a bit more involving..mostly something that you would like to do in a heated shop.

(3) It depends..it is an excellent choice for a 20year old car..they are 20 years old though, so you are looking at eventually replacing all the regular wear parts.. No-problem if you can spread it out over a longer period, but it can add up if you have a car that hasn't been taken care of and needs immediate replacement of all these parts..So I guess it would depend on the previous owners.