Pick A Little Red Runabout: 1993 Dodge Shadow vs 1997 Pontiac Sunfire

You must have noticed that gas prices are on the rise. For those of us with an entire fleet of vehicles with huge engines, that top number on the pump at the end of a fill-up is starting to get disturbing. It’s almost never worth actually buying another car to save gas money, but it is enough to get you thinking small. So today we’re looking at a couple of cars with more reasonable fuel consumption.

It was not my intention yesterday to stack the choices so a Ford would beat a Toyota; it just worked out that way. I liked the comparison because both were RWD coupes with manual transmissions and forced induction. In the end, it looks like most of you came to the same conclusion I did: the Supra was probably the better car – before it got messed with.

I do like that Thunderbird, though. I have a soft spot for fast Fords of that era after some extensive seat time in a Taurus SHO that my dad owned. I imagine this T-Bird would be a similar proposition. I’m still not crazy about the automatic seat belts, but I’d prefer them to a daily reenactment of The Trashed & The Spurious.

I don’t know exactly when or why I started disliking red cars. I’ve had more than a few, and for the longest time I didn’t care that much. It might have been when I got my Miata, and noticed that every single other Miata on the road was red. And then when I went to look for a winter car to complement it, I found a nice little Plymouth Neon, which was also – you guessed it – red. Maybe I just got sick of it. But it’s definitely a strike against either of these that they’re the color they are. Let’s see if you can see past the color of either of them.

1993 Dodge Shadow America – $3,500

Engine/drivetrain: 2.2-liter OHC inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD

Location: Pinckney, MI

Odometer reading: 90,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives well

The more I look at this car, the more “off” it seems. I try to give sellers the benefit of the doubt, but I do need to point out a couple of discrepancies here. The seller has this car listed as a Shadow ES, but it isn’t; it’s a stripped-down “America” model. It even says so on the back. But the America was discontinued after 1992, and this car is listed as a ’93. So there’s a chance that they got both the trim level and the model year wrong. Is there anything nefarious in it? Probably not, but check that VIN on the title carefully.

The Shadow America was a special low-cost base model, with no options. It’s powered by a standard 2.2 liter K-car engine with throttle-body fuel injection and a five-speed manual transmission. If you know Chrysler engine bays of this era, you know that the big empty space on the passenger’s side is where the air conditioning is supposed to go; the America model didn’t come with it. I do see a power steering reservoir cap, at least. We don’t get any more information about it besides “great driving,” but I guess that’s what counts.

The stripped-down theme continues inside: there are no power options, and plain gray plastic trim everywhere. Cheap, ill-fitting seat covers adorn the front seats, and there’s no telling what condition they’re in underneath. I do see an aftermarket stereo in the dash, which is undoubtedly an improvement over the stock AM/FM radio.

It has a rear spoiler that looks original, which must have been an option, and the lower body cladding from an ES model, which hopefully wasn’t added to hide rust. Better take a peek underneath. Also, in case you aren’t aware, the Shadow is a hatchback. There’s a surprising amount of room back there if you fold the seats down, too.

1997 Pontiac Sunfire SE – $1,500

Engine/drivetrain: 2.4-liter DOHC inline 4, four-speed automatic, FWD

Location: DeWitt, MI

Odometer reading: 202,000 miles

Operational status: “It’s been sitting for 2 years and fired right up”

This is funny – I know exactly where this car is. I’ve driven by it a bunch of times. Unless there are two red Sunfire convertibles with white tops in the small town of DeWitt? Probably not. If it is the one I think it is, it’s one of four or five cars in the driveway, which may explain why it has been sitting unused for a couple of years. A less-practical car like this often gets relegated to fourth-car status, and if nobody needs it, it just sits there until someone finally decides it’s time to let it go.

The Sunfire came with a couple of different engines. This one has a 2.4 liter twin-cam four-cylinder, an evolution of the famous Quad 4, backed by a four-speed overdrive automatic. It has a whopping 202,000 miles on it; somebody had some fun with this car. And even though it has been sitting, the seller says it sprang to life with no issues. It’s probably best to change all the fluids right away, though, and get the battery tested. Cars don’t like to sit for too long.

The interior looks decent, if a little dirty. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen those headrest-only covers before; they look weird, and I don’t quite understand the purpose of them. The convertible top works fine, as do all the windows, but sadly the air conditioning does not. It could be fixed, of course, if you decide it’s worth doing so.

It looks decent outside, and the seller says it has “minimal rust.” Judging by the cars I’ve seen around here, I think that’s about as good as you’re going to get. It has a “couple pin holes” in the top, which should be able to be sealed up well enough. The front tires were replaced shortly before they stopped driving it, but check the date codes on the rears to make sure they’re still viable.

Either one of these would make a good inexpensive runabout, the sort of car you keep minimal insurance on and drive to save money on gas. With one, you get the added engagement of a manual transmission, and with the other, plenty of fresh air when you want it. Sure, there’s a price difference, but probably not quite as much by the time you talk one of them down and spruce the other one up. So which one will it be?