Seems to me that nobody has had any problems with RWD besides the op. Im in Colorado and we get a good amount of snow, the best thing i can tell you is to ease your acceleration, go under the speed limit, learn to use your brakes properly. Steer into the slide with no accel at first then ease into accel once you are beginning to straighten. Give yourself a few car lengths between cars with the car in front of you. Pull out with straight wheels then turn after you're moving. And yes you will need snow tires, I get a lot of hardpack and ice so I run studs, you dont need them in most cases, but where i live there is usually an inch of ice in most roads for the winter. You will basically drive defensively.

 

I've debated about getting a set of "Auto Socks" just for their rare situations in Kansas City. They're about $80 per axle and are good up to 30mph on snow/ice. Apparently they're extremely easy to put on (about 30 seconds) and work quite well.

http://www.autosock.us/Producttest.asp

 

^Never seen those before!

 

They'll be perfect for getting me in my hilly neighborhood if the street in unplowed or covered in a few inches of dry powder snow.

http://www.tirerack.com/videos/video...s/autosock.jpg

 

I always used to run snow chains on my mustang....but they sucked! I still got stuck! Why!






eDIT: not my car....it's a joke

 

^Wouldn't it be beneficial to have them on the back?

 

Was a joke.........not my car.


Yes, the owner put the snow chains on then wrong wheels.

 

[QUOTE=Mustang5L5;5441595]I always used to run snow chains on my mustang....but they sucked! I still got stuck! Why!



HAHAHAHA! LMFAO! I guess somebody doesn't know their own car. This is 2 funny!
thanks for that picture

 

JUST making sure

 

I have the tires that came on my car...crappy Michellin tires that I've researched and aren't all-season tires. According to TireRack.com's reviews...out of 10 stars my tires get a 2.
As I mentioned, my '99 Mustang GT got around 100x better than my G35 and those weren't all-seasons either. My issue is that crappy all-season tires for 235/45/18 are at least $170 a tire. I'm not impressed with the G35 at all in the snow. The traction control is pointless.

Dave, what kind of tires are you running?

 

The traction control is actually very nice on our cars. It makes no difference what kind of snow assist driving you have if your tires can't get traction, though. Get snow tires and then see how well your G will plow through snow.

 

I know a lot of people say rwd + snow tires and I agreed it's a good combo. What others haven't really talked about is if you live in snowy areas and you need to parallel park. For example it snowed a lot in New York City this winter. A few times over a foot of snow. If you were to parallel park into a spot with cars in front / back of you, the rwd + snow will not get you out. Awd will. I've never gotten stuck pulling in and out of a spot with up to 12 inches of snow (possibly more).

Rwd+snow gets you on the go and pulls you home to your driveway but if you live in metropolitan city where you have to parallel park in deep snow (6+ to 12), then it's a no-no.

 

^Yes, I hear you there. In deep snow, my car will get stuck if im moving slowly.

Best bet is an AWD with snow tires.

 

michigan just got hit pretty good with some snow.. i just put on Continental CONTIEXTREMECONTACT DWS all seasons last week and they are doing just great without sandbangs in the trunk...FTW!

 

That's a very good point you almost never hear anyone mention.

I drove 10+ years with RWD and snow tires, so i know it can be done with no issues. While driving is okay, parking is the part that makes me nervous. Most often a few days after a storm, the roads are still messy and when you part on a sidestreet, there is usually 1-2 feet of deeper loose snow you basically have to throw have the car on top of. So, what happens if you purposely put 1 rear tire in snow, and 1 on pavement...and you have an open differential? You spin the tire stuck in the snow since you are trying to push through deeper fluff rather than packed snow on the roads. A limited slip does help here, vs an open diff

Same issue with the end of your driveway. If you live in a metro area, the plows tend to plow in the end of the driveway with heavy snow. Come home late at night in a storm, and you gotta get through. Sometimes with RWD, you get the front wheels stuck and the car tries to just plow the front wheels through the heavy snow rather than roll up over it. It's even worse if you manage to get the fronts through and then get the rear hung up.

I know i frequently hear "You don't need AWD, just get snow tires", but those two examples are situations where 4 wheels pushing are better than 2 wheels. It makes parking easier, and it makes pushing through the "plow wall" easier when all 4 wheels push.

I run All-seasons now on my AWD. Have the Continetal Extremecontact DWS on them. Just this AM, I made the mistake of driving down a road that was not plowed, so there were 6-8" of messy piled snow everywhere. I thought I would get stuck, but was pretty impressed that the car easily pushed through the snow without too much fuss.

But yes, snow tires DO make a difference, but AWD does make some situations a little less stressful with those other 2 wheels to assist.


PLUS, those of you who drive 4WD trucks. What do you do in the snow if you want to turn and the truck goes straight? You give it gas! Powering the fronts helps turn the vehicle if you start to understeer when trying to turn in the snow.