Cars For Alaska (to rent, to buy, shop)

[bongo]

There's a Land Rover dealer on Gambell:
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[malagagirl]

I think one of the problem with Anchorage drivers is that there are many people coming from less spectacular places so once they get surrounded by so much stunning beauty they pay more attention to the scenery than to the road ahead of them. Or, in some cases, they are just clueless. See attached image recently taken in downtown Anchorage as evidence.

[TL551]

LOL That is quite a picture!

[richelles]

I saw a driver in Florida get out of her car, put the nozzle into the tank, walk around the car and get back in the car and then drive off. The pump started to follow her and bent over before the fire started. I was leaving and did a real drag start to get away from the scene. A look back in the rear view mirror showed a fire so I kept going. Wonder how this one happened?

[Diablo72]

Originally Posted by warptman

Put a set of studded tires and they'll be fine. Anchorage has every type of car imaginable and every type of car made.

Studded tires

That is simply bad advice. It is what people told me when I moved to Anchorage and is just wrong. It is obvious you don't know the answer to this so you shouldn't be participating.

While the new paving has helped there are still many problems.

Vehicles with low profile tires also have hard/ sport suspensions. This will limit the snow/ ice tire one can purchase. The person asking the question might be okay, they might not.

The freeway used to have ruts in each lane (this has largely been fixed). My vehicle would follow the ruts and it was very difficult to drive as you could fight the ruts or let the car wander. It wouldn't climb out of the rut but it would surf from side to side as if the driver was intoxicated. Fighting the ruts was very difficult as the suspension, tires, and steering was taking inputs from the road instead of the steering wheel.

Anchorage roads have excessive frost heaves/ pot holes, gaps/ seams, and tar fillings. You simply can not avoid them or drive around them all. When you hit them you will know it. Sport suspensions are not designed for this abuse and it makes for a very uncomfortable ride. It also destroys your vehicle.

When the ice packs on the road it can be like driving on a rock hard, unimproved dirt road. Every vibration will be transmitted through the vehicle cabin as well. For the person asking the question find a dirt road where you live and drive on it at 40-50 mph. If you don't like it you have a problem.

[warptman]

Are you a moderator? I, a life long Alaska resident can't reply to a thread? Nice...I'll leave it to you, the new to Alaska expert.

[Nephler]

Warpt is completely correct, any car will do in Anchorage, even without studs. The main thing is to be careful, drive slower then normal, and watch out for the other drivers.

Anchorage is really no different than any other northern city as far as driving in winter goes.

[Diablo72]

Originally Posted by warptman

Are you a moderator? I, a life long Alaska resident can't reply to a thread? Nice...I'll leave it to you, the new to Alaska expert.

Don't take offense. If you are goint to voluntarily provide information start putting effort into giving the right information, not just information. Responding with "I have lived here my whole life" isn't validation. I am sure that you know more than one or two idiots who have lived in Alaska their whole lives, do you take their word as the tuth? When people make plans based on information that you don't understand but none the less provide that is wrong. Please try better to provide the correct answer.

[stiffnecked]

The two cars the OP mentioned will both accomodate studded tires. Once the streets get ice and snow packed a 2 wheel drive car will greatly benefit from studs. That's a proven fact.

Warpt was correct in the information he gave out. It might not apply to you but you weren't the one asking the question.

[akck]

Originally Posted by Diablo72

When the ice packs on the road it can be like driving on a rock hard, unimproved dirt road. Every vibration will be transmitted through the vehicle cabin as well. For the person asking the question find a dirt road where you live and drive on it at 40-50 mph. If you don't like it you have a problem.

When I lived in Oregon, I regularly drove on a gravel road where the top speed was 15-20 mph because of all the wash boarding. During the winter, I could go 55 mph on it because of the packed snow and ice.

Maybe it's time for you to replace your suspension. I've been driving on said packed snow/ice and while I can hear the tires vibrating, the ride is smooth as driving on bare pavement, except for the few times where you could feel the car sliding on ice.

Just about any car can be driven here in the winter. Some cars are safer and better able to handle the conditions than others. The most important thing on how well the car will do on the road is the ability of the person holding onto the steering wheel.