You must have missed the part where I advocated a simple spade. I would have said long-handled (builders) shovel but they can be hard to fit neatly into a trunk or behind a seat.

I'm also cheap. I'm not impressed by name-brands or gimmicks and don't think that anyone 'gets what they pay for'. I've seen too much high-dollar gear fail and, even more commonly, reveal itself to be no better than gear sold at half the price. Often less.

The really good news is that even department store camping gear is far better now than it was ten years ago. I've seen backpacks selling for less than $100 that are functionally as good as stuff sold by major names for $300 and up. If your careful and selective you can get high quality, reliability and durability for short money.

Also while snow shovels designed for and typically sold to campers and skiers are indeed pricey the ones sold at hardware stores in snow country are not any more expensive, sometimes cheaper, than a 'builders shovel'.