[335BOY]

Originally Posted by joewalton

+1

Take it from someone who found out the hard way the two rules of winter driving:

1. There is no substitute for snow tires.

2. The phrase "but I live in ________ and we barely get snow here and I have all wheel drive" is a game of Russian roulette.

I almost died because I bought in to the car companies mythology that AWD can spare you of the inconvenience of swapping out your rubber twice a year. Never again. I live in NYC metro too, every November the winter tires go on, every March the winter tires come off.

There is no technology that can replace snow tires no matter where you live or how infrequently it snows.

BEST post I've seen on this subject. You need to copy and paste each fall! Most people don't get it.

[RayYay]

Thanks for all the replies guys! I would love to get another set of winter tires but I live in a hi rise so I don't have anywhere to store em. I was thinking about getting all seasons but honestly the 4 years I've been here there have been prob a total of 4 days when I saw lots of snow on the ground. Next time it snows, I think I'll just take the subway, screw this haha

[335BOY]

Originally Posted by RayYay

Thanks for all the replies guys! I would love to get another set of winter tires but I live in a hi rise so I don't have anywhere to store em. I was thinking about getting all seasons but honestly the 4 years I've been here there have been prob a total of 4 days when I saw lots of snow on the ground. Next time it snows, I think I'll just take the subway, screw this haha

Its the TEMPERATURE of the air&road that makes the most difference not the snow. Summer tires and all season tires won't grab like winter tires. You can be as "careful" as you want but what happens in a panic stop? You go about 30 feet farther on all seasons than you would on winters (even on dry roads) from 40 mph. Thats an accident. Most tire guys will store your second set for you. Don't waste your dough on all season tires. Summer and winter is the way to go.

[fecurtis]

Originally Posted by RayYay

I'm originally from CA so I never experienced driving in snow, until today. I have a MT 435ix with 18" performance tires and wow I was sliding all over the place, while driving very slow at 10-15mph. I couldn't brake properly and was sliding while turning at times. Note, I live in NYC and just got hit with that snowstorm last night. Even with my xdrive.

I realize it has to do with my tires. Didn't even consider all weather when I got the car...thought xdrive would be sufficient. Just curious, what type of tires do you guys use in snowy weather?

Ray
Snow driving newb

You're from Cali so I guess I'll let it slide (PUN). We got hit with the same snow storm yesterday. I don't have xDrive because its unnecessary so my 335i is RWD. I drove in about 2-3 inches of snow and I was fine in my 8 mile commute to the office (nevermind it took me 2 hours because people can't drive in the snow). I could easily pass, merge, accelerate and most importantly stop.

The most important thing I can tell you is to get a nice set of winter tires. You don't need AWD to handle the snow (doesn't even help you come to a stop), what you do need is winter tires. All seasons, in my experience, are garbage. Summer tires are obviously extremely dangerous to drive on in the winter time. In driving yesterday, I just smiled looking at all these morons stuck in a ditch or the M5 I saw hit a GS350 or the Maserati GT stuck on the side of the road or the C63 I saw that was completely unable to get any traction whatsoever once our light turned green. These people likely had all season tires...the guy with the C63 AMG obviously still had summer tires.

It's weird, people really overlook how critical tires are to the performance of the car and how safe it is to drive. It's literally the only part of the car that touches the ground so I'd argue it's the most important component of the vehicle.

So get a set of winter tires, you'll have no issues at all in the snow.

So the ideal set up is summer tires for the spring/summer (superior grip and performance in dry and wet conditions provided it's warm) and winter tires for the winter. In VA fall doesn't really get cold enough to warrant swapping out the summer set for the winter set. All season tires are garbage, "jack of all trades master of none" sort of thing.

EDIT: I see you live in a condo. Find a tire shop that will store your tires for you during the off season. I can't stress enough how important it is to have winter rubber. The scariest moment of my life behind the wheel was when I was too lazy to swap out summer tires and got hit with a snow storm several years ago. That was the longest 7 mile drive of my life and I was incredibly lucky that I didn't hurt myself or anyone else. You can "try" to get by with All Seasons but it's just not worth it. It's not worth the risk.

EDIT 2: Or duh just take the subway, lol I'm a dumbass. I could do that too but I'd rather have the flexibility of being able to drive somewhere if I want to. I did see that you seem to have summer tires, in which case replace them ASAP with all seasons if you don't want to deal with the headache of swapping them out twice a year because even when it's not snowing, driving on summer tires in the winter is dangerous. The compound that makes summer tires so sticky freezes at around 40 degrees so you're basically driving on hockey pucks at that point.

[fecurtis]

Originally Posted by Polo08816

I had a 2008 Subaru Legacy GT with Continental DWS tires.

My 2014 335i M Sport with Michelin X-Ice Xi3 handles worlds better than AWD + snow-biased all seasons.

It's not even close.

I had an Infiniti that was RWD and with Conti DWS tires, they left much to be desired. I've got Blizzaks on the 335i and they handle snow like a champ.

EDIT: I see you're from the Baltimore area and saw your dash cam vid, was that the Baltimore Beltway you were on?

[300hp]

Originally Posted by RayYay

Thanks for all the replies guys! I would love to get another set of winter tires but I live in a hi rise so I don't have anywhere to store em. I was thinking about getting all seasons but honestly the 4 years I've been here there have been prob a total of 4 days when I saw lots of snow on the ground. Next time it snows, I think I'll just take the subway, screw this haha

Exactly. Just park your car when there is snow on the ground. Once the snow is cleared you are all set. I went through last year's polar vortex on my summers and only had to park the F30 for maybe a total of 7 days.

Snow on the ground is your enemy with summers, once that enemy is off the streets its business as usual

[ynguldyn]

Originally Posted by RayYay

Thanks for all the replies guys! I would love to get another set of winter tires but I live in a hi rise so I don't have anywhere to store em. I was thinking about getting all seasons but honestly the 4 years I've been here there have been prob a total of 4 days when I saw lots of snow on the ground. Next time it snows, I think I'll just take the subway, screw this haha

If you have summer tires, replacing them with all-seasons would be stupid. All-season tires suck in all seasons.

Any decent mechanic will store your winter set and do twice-yearly swaps for a small fee.

"Haha" is the least appropriate reaction in the situation.

[ynguldyn]

Originally Posted by 300hp

Exactly. Just park your car when there is snow on the ground. Once the snow is cleared you are all set. I went through last year's polar vortex on my summers and only had to park the F30 for maybe a total of 7 days.

Snow on the ground is your enemy with summers, once that enemy is off the streets its business as usual

All the way to the first patch of black ice.

[300hp]

Originally Posted by ynguldyn

All the way to the first patch of black ice.

Lol. Agreed but if you travel on roads with heavy traffic the guys with the winter tires will have cleared that up by the time you get there. Just travel late in the day and on heavily used roads.

Any other time I use my truck.

Each person has to asses their own risk here but given his situation I think he is making the right choice for him and playing it safe.

[fecurtis]

Originally Posted by ynguldyn

If you have summer tires, replacing them with all-seasons would be stupid. All-season tires suck in all seasons.

Any decent mechanic will store your winter set and do twice-yearly swaps for a small fee.

"Haha" is the least appropriate reaction in the situation.

Safer than driving on summer tires in the winter time. Ideally he'd follow our advice but if he doesn't want to for whatever bizarre reason, all seasons year around would be the second best option. Since he can just use public transportation (the subway) if it snows.

[Polo08816]

Originally Posted by fecurtis

I had an Infiniti that was RWD and with Conti DWS tires, they left much to be desired. I've got Blizzaks on the 335i and they handle snow like a champ.

EDIT: I see you're from the Baltimore area and saw your dash cam vid, was that the Baltimore Beltway you were on?

Yup. I usually take I-695 East from the White Marsh area to Route 10 or I-97 on my way to Annapolis. The highway portion of the video was Route 10.

[capt_slow]

Originally Posted by RayYay

Thanks for all the replies guys! I would love to get another set of winter tires but I live in a hi rise so I don't have anywhere to store em.

Once your old set is home, rinse them off and put them in bags. Then take them up to the condo and stack them in your living room. Add another piece of cardboard or hardwood on top and you got yourself a lamp table.

If you buy the tires new (from anywhere), get road hazard certs from Discount Tire/America's Tire and they will throw in free winter swaps.

[Huz-Z]

Take it from a guy who has driven through 35 long and tough Canadian winters (and my part of Canada is THE snowiest) - heed ALL the excellent advice on this thread!

Some other advice:

1. SNOW means SLOW! Its better to arrive later than planned than not at all, or having you or a passenger injured in an accident.
   
   Before Driving:
2. If its snowing heavily turn on your full head / tail lights so you can be seen by others.
3. Let your car warm up so that it responds smoothly.
4. Clear snow from all windows, head lights and brake lights.
5. Turn ON the rear window defogger.
6. Run the fan on DEFROST and keep the fan a little faster than normal so your windshield stays clear.
7. Keep your windshield cleaner tank full and keep a spare bottle in the trunk so you can clear away salty road spray. Use -45C windshield cleaner
8. Clear snow off the roof so it does not slide down over your windshield when you slow down. Seen many an idiot here do that. Tsk tsk.
9. Clear snow off the rest of the car so it does not blow up and obstruct your windows.
   
   
10. Find an empty parking lot and, away from light poles etc - practice snow driving.
    
    When Driving:
11. If your car gets into a slide - foot OFF the gas and brake and STEER GENTLY to regain control.
12. If the left back swings out - STEER GENTLY LEFT until you get control back.
13. If the right back swings out - STEER GENTLY RIGHT until you get control back.
14. Always go gentle on the gas and brake.

ALso, people with good snow tires on an AWD vehicle need to remember that while you can have excellent traction for driving and steering in the snow, the car is still going to behave like a FWD or RWD car for the most part when you apply the brakes. So don't get all cocky - drive slowly even if the car can go faster so you can stop effectively.

And allow LOTS of stopping room.

[fecurtis]

Originally Posted by Huz-Z

Take it from a guy who has driven through 35 long and tough Canadian winters (and my part of Canada is THE snowiest) - heed ALL the excellent advice on this thread!

Some other advice:

1. SNOW means SLOW!
   
2. Find an empty parking lot and, away from light poles etc - practice snow driving.
   
3. If your car gets into a slide - foot OFF the gas and brake and just STEER GENTLY to regain control.
   
4. If the left back swings out - STEER GENTLY LEFT until you get control back.
   
5. If the right back swings out - STEER GENTLY RIGHT until you get control back.
   
6. Always go gentle on the gas and brake.
   
7. If its snowing heavily turn on your full head / tail lights so you can be seen by others.

To add, no matter what tires you have, black ice will put you into a ditch or worse if you aren't careful.

A good way to know if there's a threat of black ice is, if you can, look at the tires of other cars driving in front of you (this is assuming the roads are wet and temps are around freezing):

-Lots of water being kicked up by tires = low risk of black ice
-Some water being kicked up by tires = medium risk of black ice, the water may be starting to freeze on the road
-No water being kicked up by tires = water on the road is frozen, drive carefully

[puma1552]

Originally Posted by 300hp

Snow on the ground is your enemy with summers, once that enemy is off the streets its business as usual

The temperature is the enemy more so than the snow. Summer tire compound virtually plasticizes below 45 degrees - the tires become hard as rocks and it really is, as mentioned, like driving on hockey pucks. Dry road and summer tires in sub-45 degree weather? Good luck.

Even if you take the summer tires off, if they are stored in a cold climate such as your garage, they will develop cracks and need to be closely inspected in the spring when you go to put them back on the car.

[Earthmaster]

The only points I'd like to add (pretty consistent with most of the above posts):

All-season= No season tires, these things get significantly worse performance as the tread of the all seasons get lowerer. At 6/32 your in dangerous territory in the cold, while in the summer its fine. So while driving in the winter with new all seasons may be an option, people that do really need to be keen on how much tread is on your all seasons. With actual winters 6/32 will most likely be alright to get you through a season.

Even in Canada people still believe that all seasons are passable in the winter. These people are usually the ones that end up attending what we call the summer car meets in a ditch in the dead of winter.

The worst is when the first snow fall hits and people are either in the ditch or driving like a snail because they haven't gotten their winters on. I had mine early by mid-late October and I was cruising through every snowfall like a boss.

The difference that winter tires make is beyond any AWD can offer hands down.

[aksi]

When i lived in Alaska for 2 years.. I thought i could get by with all season tires that came with the car(2010 civic si). I am originally from Maryland and had no problem driving around with all season back then. When the roads started to freeze up, i was making a slow right turn and the car slid out like i was having understeer, almost hitting a car that was coming out of that street.
Went to costco that very weekend, waited in line from like 4am to get a spot, got x-ice studless tires on.
No problem whatsoever after that. Also having manual car helped to launch without wheelspin.
Winter tires do make big difference. They said colder it gets, it sticks better with the ground.

[Huz-Z]

Another HUGE risk for us in winter is carbon monoxide poisoning of persons in an idling car with the windows rolled up. Its not uncommon for folks to start the car to let it warm up while you clear the windows of snow and there is a passenger inside. If there is snow obstructing the exhaust or piled around the underside of the car, persons inside the vehilce can be quickly overcome with tragic consequences.

Please read this article and heed its advice.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfou...edez-1.2890026

From the article:

""For prolonged idling in a vehicle it will usually take a number of hours but it depends on the circumstances. For example, if the vehicle has been backed up and the exhaust is in a pile of dirt or a pile of snow, and the exhaust is obstructed, then it can happen quite fast."

'The bottom line' is not sitting in idling cars
LeDez said that a vehicle doesn't necessarily need to be an older model or have faulty exhaust to post a threat, either.

'So many people die from carbon monoxide poisoning in vehicles, the monoxide detectors aren't that expensive, why isn't it offered? Why don't we have them in our cars?'
- Dr. Ken LeDez

"Vehicles are meant to be driven, they're meant to be moving, and that flushes carbon monoxide fumes away all the time, so cars are not designed to be idled for long periods of time with people sitting in it, that's just the bottom line."

LeDez said people idle their cars more often in winter, but the cold temperatures add a threat, creating what he calls a "cool-air cocoon" around the vehicle, trapping the gases inside.

One of the most important ways to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning, according to LeDez, is ensuring a working detector in homes and sheds. He added it's something he'd like to see manufacturers install in vehicles, as well.

"I've never seen it [in cars], and I don't know why. So many people die from carbon monoxide poisoning in vehicles, the monoxide detectors aren't that expensive, why isn't it offered? Why don't we have them in our cars?"

LeDez said the number of deaths due to carbon monoxide poisoning last year "almost amounted to an epidemic," but he hopes this year people are more aware of the dangers and take appropriate measures.

He added that while operating a generator, people need to ensure their shed or garage is properly ventilated — and just opening a door isn't enough. LeDez said people should avoid sitting in idling vehicles, and ensure they have functioning detectors installed in their homes and garages."



Safe driving!

[tunjik]

I live in Denver, CO and have a 2012 328i RWD and have been doing fine with my Blizzak LM-32. I put it in ECO-PRO mode and take it easy and have no problems in the snow. My wife has a 13 328i xDrive with the stock Michelin All season tires and slides a bit. We will take my car in the snow over hers. Next year when it is time to replace the Michelins we will get snows for the winter driving.

[300hp]

Originally Posted by puma1552

The temperature is the enemy more so than the snow. Summer tire compound virtually plasticizes below 45 degrees - the tires become hard as rocks and it really is, as mentioned, like driving on hockey pucks. Dry road and summer tires in sub-45 degree weather? Good luck.

Even if you take the summer tires off, if they are stored in a cold climate such as your garage, they will develop cracks and need to be closely inspected in the spring when you go to put them back on the car.

Here we go again with the alarmists.

Ok I will take the bus and the subway when it's less than 45 and park the car. I am probably much safer than anyone driving on winters.

[Polo08816]

Originally Posted by 300hp

Here we go again with the alarmists.

Ok I will take the bus and the subway when it's less than 45 and park the car. I am probably much safer than anyone driving on winters.

Tell that to this guy: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...icle-1.2012658

[fecurtis]

Originally Posted by puma1552

Even if you take the summer tires off, if they are stored in a cold climate such as your garage, they will develop cracks and need to be closely inspected in the spring when you go to put them back on the car.

Yeah...no.

You can store them in the cold, so long as they are able to warm up again before you attempt to install and drive on them again.