Burg3r

Hi all

we are in the USA having moved in august baby on the way a months time. We have bought a Nissan Rogue AWD for getting about during winter we live up state New York.

After tense negotiations I have been allowed a second car with my wife using the rogue when the baby arrives. selfishly I’m wanting an American muscle or at least something that’s not the norm in the Uk! Does anybody have experience with cars that fit the bill (20ish miles to work) and suitable for taking back to the UK in a few years time I’m entitled to one shipment back and intend to use it!

Pulaski

I'd go with a Mustang GT - very American but very driveable, available with a manual transmission, and not excessively large/ wide, so should do OK in the UK, and it's an all time classic, an everyman's car and a collector car rolled into one. Mine is a 2002, but I am hoping to add a new one within 2-3 years.

There are other alternatives that are "more American", but I suspect will feel oversized if you took it back to the UK. ..... The only other car I would consider that loosely meets the "American muscle car" stipulation, would be a Corvette, but one would cost you about 50% more than a Mustang.

Burg3r

Thanks for the reply what would you say is a good cut off point for miles for a mustang? I’m an engineer so can take of most thing but I’ve got to have confidence in getting me back abs forth to work.

mrken30

If you want something sporty, Camaro, Challenger SRT or just a Charger. It all depends what you want. We just have to make do with our minivan that does 0-60 in 7.8s, not exactly fast, but ok for 6300 lbs of vehicle. But with kids, it's certainly much easier. I believe they stopped selling MPV's(minivans) in the UK a few years ago. We went for safety instead of coolness.

SpoogleDrummer

Are you set on a car or are 4WD pickup trucks an option?

mrken30

I have always found trucks and car seats not very compatible. But good question, what exactly are you looking for? Putting a rear facing car seat in the back of a coupe every day is not fun.

civilservant

Honestly looking at an 'American Muscle' is not a very clever idea given your stated location. I wouldn't want to be driving a Mustang, with all that power and small tires on roads that are icy or snowy.

I would endorse the above and look at a 4WD pickup. Doesn't have to be a half ton (F150 size) but I would look at the Chevy Colorado or a GMC Canyon.

Burg3r

no I’d be open to a truck but my wife is just under 5ft so it needs to be suitable for her to get in and drive on occasions. I’m wanting something that’s a little different as much for quirkiness than anything else

civilservant

Honda Ridgeline

markonline1

I have the new Mustang. They aren’t very American at all. You can tell it’s been built with the European market in mind. I also had a 2007 mustang. Amazingly American. Felt like a big car, interior was something you’d never find back home and had a great retro feel. The new mustang however, is leaps and bounds over the older models, in both interior quality, but more importantly road manners. The new mustang just out performs the older model on the road in every way, and by huge margins.
If you truly want something different, take a look at the challenger. It’s a big car, and doesn’t handle that great, but I’ve never driven like it before. Everytime I started it up, I’d have a huge grin on my face and it would stay there until I got out the car. That car would never see the light of day in Europe, but it’s a huge retro car that’s as American as it comes.

Pulaski

One of the regulars in the Canada forum has (had?) a Mustang and drives (drove?) it all winter long, but on winter tyres, and swore it was just fine to drive in the winter. To your point, mine on non-winter tyres in New York was undriveable in snow, but thankfully it only snowed once the year that I was there.

Pulaski

Well my 2002 has only about 65k on it, but Ford V8's go on for ever - it's basically a truck engine, and the boredout motor in a pickup will do 200k+. Obviously it depends what your budget is, but I wouldn't be scared off by 100k miles at the right price, though as per Markonline above, the current model is likely the one you should be going for as a daily driver.

That said, here's another thought - get yourself any ol' car for commuting for now, but then pick up a fourth generation Mustang 1993-2002 (the generation I have) 6-12 months before you leave (I don't recall what the cut off is to avoid VAT on an import to the UK). It's going to have higher mileage, but there are a good number available with manual transmission for $10k-$12k and under 100k miles, and compared to a few years ago they appear to have become somewhat collectable as the prices are higher than the last time I looked.

excpomea

Are you set on taking a car back to the UK?
If so make sure it's something that would ultimately be desirable back in the UK.
Personally I would go for a later model corvette.
I seem to recall you need to own it for 12 months to avoid import duty / vat ect.
I shipped a Harley back a few years ago for a student of mine, he had owned it 18 months over here so avoided any tax issues.

civilservant

I missed the 'take it back to the UK' part when I read the OP.

Yeah you really don't want a large pickup truck on UK roads.

Pulaski

That's a good idea, but again, I would consider only acquiring it ahead of returning to the UK (far enough to avoid the VAT/ duty issue), not to use as a daily driver throughout his time in the US.