gowyn

Hi all,

so I bought a 2000 TT to use as a daily driver, save some money on fuel and a little bit more fun.

Question I have is I also have a 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser which I was going to sell and pocket the money but now I'm thinking to keep it and run it in the winter instead on driving the TT.

I could buy snows and rims for the TT and I'm sure it will be fine but I'm more concerned about it's age and reliability over the winter than it's performance.

So I guess my questions is should I just keep the TT for a summer toy or would it be reliable enough to run year round, especially being twelve years old?

Thanks.

cheeba

Reliability is primarily a function of maintenance. There are plenty of 50-year old cars still running perfectly – even ones that were quite poorly engineered from the factory – because their owners took care of them.

So, is your TT in good running condition? If it is, then it's fine to run in Winter. With the same tires, it will certainly outperform your FJ (except in ground clearance ). Some nice points about Winters in the TT: the engine runs rather hot so it warms up quickly, and the interior volume is very small so it also get warm rather quickly.

Throw on some studded Winters, and have fun ripping by puzzled drivers in their SUVs and jacked-up trucks while they struggle to stay on the road with their crappy All-Seasons The car also has inherently good weight transfer dynamics due to its low centre of gravity (think of how quick maneuvers on a low friction surface like snow/ice will 'toss' the weight around, causing the tires to lose grip and the car to slide); throw some good coilovers on it gets significantly better.

amlaw

My 03 TT has 270,000km and it's a great car for the winter. I have 16" alloys with good winter rubber and it sticks like glue.
Just keep up with maintenance and the car will reward you.
Yes, it's not the cheapest car to run; but bear in mind this was probably over $60,000 dollar vehicle when new with taxes. Therefore parts are more expensive.

I've also been running the REVO chip for over 150,000 and my average mileage is around 700km per tank. Guage says 6.7l/100km average. My best tank this summer gave me just over 800k!!!

Who needs a diesel??

Andy

wallyr25

I use my TT more in winter than in summer (when I can ride my bicycle to many places). I put on 4 16" winter tires (Dunlop Wintersports) and drive it to Whistler on those snowy mornings. It's mostly SUV's and trucks in the ditches on the way up. And my skis fit inside the car.

crazybohunk

Hi there,

I have almost the same circumstances.

I have a Audi TT 225 and a 2004 Toyota 4runner limited v8.

So it sucks fuel in winter.... well it sucks fuel period.

However when some red neck local yokel bashes into me in winter with his jacked up 4x4 rig rocket I won't be squished like a bug.

That's why I park my TT for winter.



Randy.