Looking at a Festiva this weekend, new to the game

[WmWatt]

Salt only works around the freezing point to melt ice and snow. At -20 it's useless.

The Festiva doesn't have the weight and power to punch through wind and drifting snow. I recall driving a small car (Dodge Colt) across the praries stuck behind a big RV. Every time I tried to pass I got up even with the front, hit the head wind, and fell back. They don't call them a sh*t box for nothing. An added plus of a bigger vehicle is the heat thrown off by the engine to keep your feet warm.

[jawbraeka]

I'm lost. Throw some snow tires on the front, and you are GOOD with the Festiva as a winter car. I live in an area that gets 24" in 24 hours at least a few times a year. I have passed big trucks with 4wd many MANY times that had slid out while the Festiva just kept on going. The short wheel base keeps it from side sliding very much. EVERY bit of weight that the car DOES have is right on the front axle. If you put chains on it, it'd climb a tree.

Man i'd love to see that.. a Festiva climb a tree.

[Movin]

Festies are horrible winter cars, I would not even think of using it for such.
They however are great snowmobile towers and love embarrassing pick ups
trying to keep up!

[GenevaDirt]

Festies are horrible winter cars, I would not even think of using it for such.
They however are great snowmobile towers and love embarrassing pick ups
trying to keep up!

You and WmWatt are killing me...lol.

The Festy is a GREAT car in the snow. I have no issue at all running in the area I live...big time snow belt area in Ohio. So long as you have decent tires the car drives like a snowmobile through the snow. As others have stated...it out does a lot of other vehicles that are supposedly more equipped to drive in the snow. As far as heat WmWatt...I have no issues with heat in my Festy's. A proper working system with the right thermostat in it and it will heat you right out of the car. And in the summer...the AC is awesome too.

[DriverOne]

Re: Looking at a Festiva this weekend, new to the game

You and WmWatt are killing me...lol.

The Festy is a GREAT car in the snow. I have no issue at all running in the area I live...big time snow belt area in Ohio. So long as you have decent tires the car drives like a snowmobile through the snow. As others have stated...it out does a lot of other vehicles that are supposedly more equipped to drive in the snow. As far as heat WmWatt...I have no issues with heat in my Festy's. A proper working system with the right thermostat in it and it will heat you right out of the car. And in the summer...the AC is awesome too.

I've been through two ice storms in my Festiva. The snow sticks, thaws, freezes, and turns the road into sheet ice. I pass people on the highways like it's dry, really and truly at 60 miles an hour. You should see the pickups and SUVs' reactions! They damn near run off the road! Too funny! Stupid SUV drivers here... I drive an ice skate!

[Bert]

I was a courier a few years ago and got caught up trying to deliver stuff in some horrible snowstorms. Traffic would come to a complete standstill. Me, I'd climb the curb and run down sidewalks or bust through unplowed alleys and parking lots to get around all the stuck cars. Festys have no problem going through fluffy snow 6 inches deep. Most newer cars are so lo-slung and with low front air dams that they become plows and gather the snow in front of them. The key here is to get the best snow tires you can. In Canada so-designated tires have a snowflake emblem on them. The evolution of the tires and the technology involved is amazing. Run snows in the summer and they wear out in a jiffy.

[hotfordcat]

Only issue I've had with winter driving in South Dakota and Montana is the car's light weight. Driving thru slush or a puddle will tighten up your ol' brownie hole in a hurry. Hydroplaning at 60 mph is no fun if you're not expecting it.

[Bert]

Hello folks,

This weekend I'm going to look at a Festiva to possibly buy. I live in Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada. I've owned a few cars and I always hit up the forums to get some info from people who know the car inside and out.

So I wanted to ask you guys, what should I look for when checking out a Festiva for the first time?

First, a little info on the car the buyer has relayed to me via email. The seller is the original owner. He bought the car new in Alberta and drove it up to Whitehorse and it has spent it's whole life here. The car is a 1993 model with 200,000 kms. 5 speed manual. If you want to see the ad search on Kijiji Yukon, can't miss it, there's only one haha.
Thanks guys! If Festiva's are all you guys make them out to be, who know's, I might even make the trip down to Westiva next summer! haha

Peace in Christ,
Colin

The "Peace in Christ" quote has me worried, seeing as most vintage auto fans tend to curse "a blue streak" when they're spent 4 hours in trying to do what is supposed to be a Haynes Manual 30 second incidental/sideline operation. Crossing yourself is not going to make much or any difference in toying with Festys although using the Lord's name in vane often does make rusted car parts co-operate, or break. And at the very least vent off steam from an over-heated and become-even more agnostic/atheist owner.

[TominMO]

For better heat at super-low temps, you can block the grill and bumper openings. But having said that, I must also add that Festys should only be driven during early fall and late spring, about three months of the year. Any other time and they are very unreliable, and likely to explode at random moments. During those three months of driving, tho, they will be awesome chick magnets for those nurturing female types who feel sorry for you because you are driving it.

[Tommychu]

Re: Looking at a Festiva this weekend, new to the game

The lower Rad support is structurally the most important part of the car. It is also a semi-common rust point. If you see any significant rust there, especially where the tranny crossmember bolts to it, you will have problems and you should run as far and as fast as you can.
At that mileage, it will be leaking oil. If it's not then the PO was very prudent with maintenance. The shifter will be at or close to the point of falling through the floor, but that's a super easy fix.

Most of the serious issues with my car have happened in the spring and summer (Calgary doesn't get fall, we go from summer to full-on winter in about 6 days). I've driven it for 3 winters and the biggest issue with that has been the lack of heat. Also an easy fix but I bought it as a swap candidate so it was a moot point for me.

Also, watch for kinks in the throttle cable at the TB end, or you will have an unintentional cruise control that kicks in at 4000 RPM and holds there until the return spring can fight it off.

[colinsk8s]

Ok guys, I just got back from looking at the Festiva. Here's the run down.

First of all, wow, I'm impressed by the acceleration! This thing shot to 100km/h quicker than my Accord! The engine started easily at -15 (the owner had a block heater and battery blanket plugged in when I got there). Overall I've got little concerns with the engine, the owner claims the oil and filter is changed every 5000kms. I asked if he's changed the timing belt (remember this is the original owner) and he said no. Anyone have an idea of when those like to break? I know it's non-interference, but still, I don't want the inconvenience of it breaking on me.

The transmission shifted quite well, hardly any play in the shifter and all the syncs felt good. Reverse worked well too.

The suspension was a little less controlled than what I'm used to on my Accord. The rear seemed really easy to move up and down, but not loose or anything. The right front coilover was quite noisy, almost like it needed lube, but it was tight as well. I drove over some really rough roads and there was no excessive noise or loud bangs, so I'm thinking the suspension should be ok for now. Any experience with a squeaky front coilover?

Brakes worked good, only concern there is the parking brake had to be pulled all the way to engage it, so that needs adjustment.

The tires were a bit concerning. They were 145/80R12s. 3 were winter tires with less than 25% left, and one was a nearly new all season. The 3 winter tires had some pretty bad weather cracks, so I'm guessing they are at least 10 years old. I did some reconaissance afterwards and went to Canadian tire to see if they could get me 12" tires, and they said absolutely not, the smallest they had were 13". So I might have to get so 13" steelies with the same bolt pattern or maybe order tires online.

The body was pretty weathered with lots of small dents and a few small areas of surface rust at the bottom of the doors and hatch, but from a distance it looked good in original bright blue paint. The engine comparment was really clean, no rust at the strut towers. I opened the hatch and checked under the trim and it was all perfect, no signs of moisture getting into the trunk. All the glass was perfect, and there was even headlight lense protectors which had cracks but saved the headlights beneath them.

The lights all worked, but the only weird thing was when you turned the 4 way hazards on, only the right blinkers worked. And sometimes after turning the 4 ways off, the blinkers didn't work until you turned the 4 ways on and off again. Weird, any idea what could be the culprit?

The interior was pretty clean. Lots of headroom for my 6'3' body! The seats looked well used with a few tears at the seams. The carpet had barely any stains. The sliding passenger seat needed lube, it was hard to get it to kick forward and slide back. It had an upgraded deck with 4 speakers in stock locations. The owner put in a digital tach right below the speedometer. Both front windows took alot of effort to roll down and up, probably needs lube too.

Other general facts: the car has 272,000kms, alot more than the 200,000 his ad said. Hmm. I asked the owner about repair history, and he said recently the CV boots have been done (sure enough, no knocking at hard turn). Exhaust has been replaced. Brakes have been done. No mention of wheel bearings though, but I heard no sign of them, so I think they are good for now.

I hit 120km/h on the hiway no problem.

Conclusion: So I told the owner I would buy the Festiva on the condition that it passes a mechanical inspection. If it needs minor repairs, I will still buy it but that will affect the price. If the mechanics discover major problems, I walk away and it only costs me the price of the inspection. We have not agreed to a price yet, we are waiting till the inspection is done next week.

So I open the floor to your opinions or concerns or advice on my rundown on the 1993 Festiva. I wish I had my camera on me, I would've take some pictures for you all. If all goes well I will join you as a Festiva owner next week!

Peace in Christ,
Colin.

[purg3d]

Seems Bert isn't too far away, and could perhaps help locate a nice set of snow tires.

Sounds like a good festy. I'm having a similar problem with my blinkers, but have yet to trace wires.

New seats is an easy fix, just check out the threads "escort seat swap thread". Prelude seats also work with minimal mods.

[crazyrog17]

I think at their age, high mileage on a Festiva might be better than super low mileage. Just think, the car has been driven less than 15000km (9,000 miles) a year. You made no mention of the clutch, but I assume with the distances up there, it hasn't suffered too much stop and go traffic. That is high miles for a timing belt, buy one and keep it in the car until warmer weather. You'll have one in case the original breaks and they're not impossible to change on the side of the road. The hazard switch probably needs cleaning or replacement. Not bad, and it'd be dead nuts simple when you pull off the steering wheel on your variable wiper upgrade... you're going to want it.

I hope the inspection goes well, congrats on the find!