Please wrote your favorite beater cars in reply. I think my favorite beater car is.... 1999 TOYOTA COROLLA! Cheap, Reliable, and also significantly durable! (Sorry for poor english, I am korean....)
A good beater should be cheap to buy and run, durable and simple enough to be fixed by the owner himself. The first category cuts out big engines and body-on-frame 4x4s. The second cuts out cheapo economy car that are past their "date of expiration" and most Japanese stuff (for rust). The third cuts out most remaining luxury cars. I can't speak about stuff outside Europe and America, but in these two: In Europe: 80s/90s VAG diesels. While their American owners likely wouldn't have given them proper care, it's easier to find a decent Golf, Passat or 80 in Europe. Besides that, there's the rather well-rustproofed Peugeot 205. Both: Mercedes 190 and Volvo 240/740/940. It's easier to find well-maintained examples of both in America, but the fuel consumption of them might be too high for an Euro beater. America: FWD A-Body and H-Body cars by GM. It's hard to come by one and fuel it in Europe, but in America, they fare much better and it's easier to keep fueling them. Also, the categories of: "I'm a lucky bastard who lives somewhere where cars don't rust much." - Late 80s/early 90s Hondas have a lot of fun-for-the-buck and are quite reliable. Also try the reliability of the Mazda 323/Protege and Nissan Sentra/Sunny. "I need a really cheap-to-run car, durability be damned" - In Europe, you'll get a lot of space for your money in the Daewoo Matiz. If you're American, the Chevy Cavalier and cousins or Dodge/Plymouth/Chrysler Neon will cheaply get you from A to B. But which is the best? The answer is - all of them are, and none are, at the same time. It depends on what is on your local OLX/Craigslist/whatever feed, and how much you're willing to spend.
