WhiteKnight '01

Let me explain. I drove my Camaro for two weeks in the northern Indiana winter. I lived most of my life in Indiana and spent over 4 years driving in those winters, with 4 different cars. A RWD T-bird, had all season tires by the way, still got stuck several times, my Camaro, had summer tires though, so I deserved it.

Also had a FWD Monte Carlo and a FWD Sebring, those did a lot better, and both had all season tires.

Now, if you have no other choice and the F-body is your only car, then yeah, you'll have to make due. But I kind of value my car, and don't want to submit it to all the salt on the roads around that time of year.

justin455

This will be my 12th Indiana winter that I've driven and I've never gotten stuck anywhere in snow. Not even when I used to live out in the boonies where you were lucky for the road to get plowed...and it only did get plowed because the local farmer was either bored or feeling generous with his tractor.

This was in anything from various FWD GM sedans, Dodge Ram Van, 1975 Chrysler Cordoba, and even my old AWD Talon with summer tires. That one was the worst because it was about 4 inches off the ground, but still, I never got stuck. You just gotta know how to do it, I guess.

WhiteKnight '01

Guess it's different for everyone. But if you lived all 12 years of your winters in Indianapolis, it's a lot different from Minneapolis like the OP asked about, or northern Indiana where I lived. We get lake effect snow here, average 85 inches of snow per year, where central Indiana gets about half that, if memory serves me right.

Driving a RWD coupe through 3-6 inches of snow, and drifts close to 1 foot deep is not plausible...maybe doable with lots of struggling, but I would avoid it at all costs.

waterbug1999

iTrader: (3)

Its gonna be close to impossible to drive your TA in the winter up here plus it will get full of salt and real freakin dirty... Best thing to do is store it and get a beater car until ur able to get something better.

I moved up from Texas 8 years ago thinking the same thing, im soo glad i listen and didnt try to drive the TA, i backed it out of my garage to move it and i couldnt get it back in it was so slick. I bought a 4 wheel drive truck for 8 grand till i got something better.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Sounds like you never tried doing this with skinny Blizzaks and some extra weight in the trunk. Chicago can get hit just as bad as northern IN; single storms as heavy as 25" in recent years and lots of lake effect as well. 3-6" of fresh snow is no problem for an F-body with an experienced driver and the proper tire/weight setup. I actually wouldn't even call 3" a challenge at all with the setup I was driving on. Once the snow gets packed down from heavy traffic and no plowing it gets a bit tougher, but still doable.

TransAmMan

I've lived in Colorado, Kansas, and Nebraska all of which get decent amounts of snow, maybe not to the level of Minn but we get a decent amount. The first thing as others have mentioned get decent tires, take your foot off the gas and I've noticed second gear starts really help too. A sandbang or two in the trunk helps as well. I noticed when I had people riding in the back it would move easier. First and foremost however don't get stuck going on a steep hill. If it's snowing out plan your route according and if you can work from home DO IT!

At the end of the day however you need to realize that it is a sports car, RWD, has a ton of torque to boot and that you have maybe 5 inches of clearence on that car. At a certain point you arnet' going to be able to drive it anymore in the snow nor is it safe to do so outside of doing donuts in your local walmart parking lot *I've never done that of course*

Just my 2cents

justin455

Nope.

calgary_z28

Here's my advice:

3 M bra for the front to protect the paint.

Get your car undercoated/rust proofed.

Use winter floor mats.

Wash it every one to two weeks max. Spray out those wheel wells and underneath.

Start in second gear if you need to.

Studded 225's and a 6 speed here and I haven't had any close calls.

waterbug1999

iTrader: (3)

u studded ur tires?

Endersshadow

iTrader: (1)

He's in Canada. In some areas you have to have studded tires there.

JeremyKrauss

Something else to consider when it comes to winter beaters: some insurance companies may offer a discount for putting your vehicle into storage. I've got USAA and have kept my Camaro in storage while I work on it. When it's time to drive her again, I'll go to their website and remove it from storage.

CJDZ24_Z28

iTrader: (75)

A cheap 96+ Ford Exploder. I picked up a 2002 even though i got used to 16 years of driving in NJ snow which was inly bad some winters. Having a suv also makes it easier to haul parts!

why87

I have a Bonneville for winter duty. I drove an F-bod through two OH winters. With good tires, it's damn good in the snow and pretty fun too.

TransAmMan

Should also mention if you've never driven in the snow before to go into an empty parking lot somewhere and do a crap ton of donuts. Not only because it's insanely fun but because it's a good place to get a good idea on how your car handles in snowy situations. Ever heard the term 'feel your car'... that's essentially what you are doing. Learning how much you can 'push the limit' when taking a corner based on how fast your going. Or finding the best way to stop when the road is covered with snow, etc etc etc.

When I was 16 the first time it blizzarded it *we lived in the outskirts of town* my dad told me "Son go outside drive around the the next couple hours." I asked him why and he told me "that's the only way your going to learn how to drive when you need to know how to drive" and that still sticks with me.

z-maro

iTrader: (18)

Just make sure the parking lot doesn't have "islands" in it. My buddy was doing this with his mustang and went right over one when I was in the car. With the snow and light conditions you couldn't even see that they were there.

FiredUpZ28

I drive an 87 Camaro V8 auto in the snow. Snow tires, snow tires, and it also helps to have SNOW TIRES. I dont even have any weight out back. Just the tires. Firestone Winterforce on all four corners and its basically unstoppable. A little wheel spin on and uphill but thats about it.

LSTransAm11

Why would you guys say that driving his ls1 in the winter is a good idea, especially for someone that has never driven in snow for that matter? OP, store your car through the winter, pick up a cheap cavalier, civic, or whatever and save yourself some headaches.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

It's a perfectly fine idea with the proper tires, if he doesn't want to buy a second car and isn't worried about deterioration of the F-body (some people don't plan to keep these cars forever and just don't care about this).

I can't understand why some people seem to think this is such an impossibile thing to do. Several of us have done this with the proper tires, and it's not at all impossibile and rarely even difficult.

calgary_z28

*Forgot to mention: but make sure to keep a good 2-3 coats of quality wax on the paint and re-apply every couple of months. And be very , very careful when drying your car off after washing it in the winter. You can do more harm then good with remaining grit swirling the paint

I also installed a diesel truck oil pad heater. Works great for those of us who park outside. These cars don't like to start below zero even with synthetic..at least mine doesn't! Literally dies unless I hold the gas at 2 K rpm for ~2 minutes after starting w/o plugging in!!

LSTransAm11

Im not saying it is impossible because if I absolutely had to I am sure it could be done but by the time you buy $200 rims and $500 worth of tires, he could add 500-700 and be better off putting that money towards a cheap beater with good tires that will do better in the snow than an f-body can. He will also be preserving his fbody and not have to worry about somebody hitting him during the winter. Either way, good luck OP... you're gonna need it for these MN winters.