Consider a trip to Florida. Buy Ben's car for about $9k and drive it home.
2002 Porsche Boxster
http://986forum.com/forums/boxsters-sale-wanted/64432-bens-2002-boxster-sale.html
I worked on Lake Michigan (USCG) for a couple years in the early 1980s. On that water near Chicago this time of year was probably the coldest I have ever felt. If for some reason you don't buy Ben's car, you won't regret the trip to sunny Florida.
Ben has a decent reputation documented on the forum and I expect that his car will meet your expectations.