Tips For Driving on Snow and Ice
10-19-2006, 12:30 PM
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Tips For Driving on Snow and Ice We've all gotten stuck in the snow. We stayed at work too long or had to go out last minute for things we needed before blizzard. Before we knew it, we were stuck in six inches of snow. Here are five great tips for keeping it moving when the snow flies.
(1) Snow tires, snow tires, snow tires. Nothing works better for tracking through snow than snow tires. Regular all weather tires pack up instantly, giving no traction at all. Tires made for snow have deep and wide grooves to vent snow. Snow tires are made from softer compounds to give better traction.
Planning is essential here. Snow tires should be in your garage and ready to go, mounted on basic steel rims. I like to pick them up at the junkyard cheap. If you can't get both rims and tires there, just get the rims and wheel them over to your favorite tire distributor.
Get all four tires for the best traction, if you can afford it. Otherwise two for the drive wheels will have to suffice.
(2) Add weight to the drive wheels. Many vehicles are rear wheel drive with the engine and transmission weight up front. With little weight in the rear, wheels easily spin out. If you can't find any sandbags in your garage to fill up the trunk, get creative! In the worse case you could stock up on bags of dog food or kitty litter, and it can double as a traction getter on ice and snow.
3) Ride the brakes! This is something you don't want to do normally. Riding the brakes will just make your engine work harder to get you the same distance AND wear them out.
When you push the accelerator, only one wheel pushes the car forward - the wheel with the least resistance. In our case, this is the wheel spinning on the snow. If you find yourself stuck on snow or ice with your wheel spinning, try holding down the brakes slightly. This will restrict the spinning wheel and transfer the power to the other. By keeping slight pressure on the brakes you can make both wheels work to pull you out of the snow.
(4) Don't rock the car!
Sometimes people are tempted to shift from forward to reverse quickly when stuck in snow. This rocks the car as far forward and backward as it will go in the snow 'trench' it's caught in. Rocking the car is a recipe for automatic transmission failure. The transmission is overloaded when it is asked to quickly transfer its momentum the other way. If rocking the car results in an automatic transmission rebuild, it could easily a cost you one thousand dollars.
(5) Stay at home. Sometimes the best tips are the easiest! Why spend two or more hours extra on a snowy day commute? All you do is risk damage to your car and put your life in the hands of hundreds of ditchbound motorists. What a great day to see if you can work from home. Enjoy sledding with an inner tube instead of your car!
(1) Snow tires, snow tires, snow tires. Nothing works better for tracking through snow than snow tires. Regular all weather tires pack up instantly, giving no traction at all. Tires made for snow have deep and wide grooves to vent snow. Snow tires are made from softer compounds to give better traction.
Planning is essential here. Snow tires should be in your garage and ready to go, mounted on basic steel rims. I like to pick them up at the junkyard cheap. If you can't get both rims and tires there, just get the rims and wheel them over to your favorite tire distributor.
Get all four tires for the best traction, if you can afford it. Otherwise two for the drive wheels will have to suffice.
(2) Add weight to the drive wheels. Many vehicles are rear wheel drive with the engine and transmission weight up front. With little weight in the rear, wheels easily spin out. If you can't find any sandbags in your garage to fill up the trunk, get creative! In the worse case you could stock up on bags of dog food or kitty litter, and it can double as a traction getter on ice and snow.
3) Ride the brakes! This is something you don't want to do normally. Riding the brakes will just make your engine work harder to get you the same distance AND wear them out.
When you push the accelerator, only one wheel pushes the car forward - the wheel with the least resistance. In our case, this is the wheel spinning on the snow. If you find yourself stuck on snow or ice with your wheel spinning, try holding down the brakes slightly. This will restrict the spinning wheel and transfer the power to the other. By keeping slight pressure on the brakes you can make both wheels work to pull you out of the snow.
(4) Don't rock the car!
Sometimes people are tempted to shift from forward to reverse quickly when stuck in snow. This rocks the car as far forward and backward as it will go in the snow 'trench' it's caught in. Rocking the car is a recipe for automatic transmission failure. The transmission is overloaded when it is asked to quickly transfer its momentum the other way. If rocking the car results in an automatic transmission rebuild, it could easily a cost you one thousand dollars.
(5) Stay at home. Sometimes the best tips are the easiest! Why spend two or more hours extra on a snowy day commute? All you do is risk damage to your car and put your life in the hands of hundreds of ditchbound motorists. What a great day to see if you can work from home. Enjoy sledding with an inner tube instead of your car!
10-19-2006, 04:56 PM
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Originally Posted by SilverSierra
Whats Snow?
<-------Houston, TX (it was 93 yesterday)
<-------Houston, TX (it was 93 yesterday)
10-19-2006, 08:28 PM
#4
I've driven my 2002 Z28 daily (in Ohio) since I bought it. I keep snow tires in the rack, my car is lowered and I don't usually even add weight to the rear, but it helps if you have something to stick back there. Torsen diff's are good in the snow, one of the things they do quite well.
Run narrower snow tires than your standard tires (215/55-16, or I run 235/45-17's to clear my brakes). You want them to cut through the snow and not float on top.
Important:
Nothing stops well on ice.....
NOTHING.
Be safe.
Run narrower snow tires than your standard tires (215/55-16, or I run 235/45-17's to clear my brakes). You want them to cut through the snow and not float on top.
Important:
Nothing stops well on ice.....
NOTHING.
Be safe.
I only just had to start wearing pants 
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10-21-2006, 09:41 AM
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um, I wouldn't drive in snow. But hey, gotta get to work somehow right? Good think about my job, if they call me to tell me not to goto work, I still get paid and don't have to take a vacation day!!! How cool is that?
But being from Dallas/Ft Worth, we don't get snow THAT often.
But being from Dallas/Ft Worth, we don't get snow THAT often.
10-21-2006, 10:10 AM
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i have only seen snow a couple times in my whole life. i will never drive in it again. thats why i like SA. the whole time ive been here(almost 3 yrs), ive seenit snow once. like an 1/8th of an inch.
10-22-2006, 07:32 PM
#13
Snow... here in good old Syracuse, New york we get it by the foot. Ive driven in about a foot and a half but thats about it. I think around 1994 we got like 3 1/2 feet of snow that closed the city down, LOL!!!! As soon as it snows the first time the Formula goes away for a solid 5-6 months (plenty of time to mod).
10-22-2006, 11:29 PM
#15
Ideally you want all 4 tires to be snow tires.
I disagree with the OP's statement about putting snow tires on the drive wheels if going with 2 snow tires only.
What good is having snow tires back there if you can't steer the car....
If you're only going to put on 2, you might as well not put any on at all. But if you must, I say they should go on the front so you can steer the best.
In addition, of 4 snow tires, those with the most thread should go on the front as well for the same reason.
I disagree with the OP's statement about putting snow tires on the drive wheels if going with 2 snow tires only.
What good is having snow tires back there if you can't steer the car....
If you're only going to put on 2, you might as well not put any on at all. But if you must, I say they should go on the front so you can steer the best.
In addition, of 4 snow tires, those with the most thread should go on the front as well for the same reason.
10-22-2006, 11:38 PM
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I live in albany ny, and when i get my ls1 f-body i will probably use it in up to 6 inches of snow b/c my gf uses my neon. But i work at a hospital so i can call in with notice and i can always use the neon and return it back to her in the morning. Some other suggestions are to carry a small shovel and some sand/ salt in case you get stuck. Drive slow take your time and brake early.
Never panic if you start to slide, let go of the pedals and make sure that the drive wheels are facing where you want to go.
IF you are going to drive your performance car in the winter as i might have to i would really suggest going to a driving school for winter driving.
Never panic if you start to slide, let go of the pedals and make sure that the drive wheels are facing where you want to go.
IF you are going to drive your performance car in the winter as i might have to i would really suggest going to a driving school for winter driving.
