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I remember my buddy in high school had a Ford Escort. That thing was only FWD and even without snow tires we just plowed through what seemed like everything and I cant remember a single time we ever went off the road or got stuck.
I grew up in the Lake Michigan lake effect snow zone, and my first car was one of those Ford Escorts. It was pretty much a soda can with a go kart engine inside. And then it had 'real car' brakes, and was awesome in 4" or less of snow, slush, ice, you have it. My theory was that econoboxes of that era were typically so lightweight that they didn't get bogged down in slush and also had significantly shorter wet/icy braking distance and better maneuverability than heavier cars and SUVs did.
Parents still live up there, and have a Buick Enclave and a Subaru Forrester, both with all-weather tires, in their garage.
I grew up in the Lake Michigan lake effect snow zone, and my first car was one of those Ford Escorts. It was pretty much a soda can with a go kart engine inside. And then it had 'real car' brakes, and was awesome in 4" or less of snow, slush, ice, you have it. My theory was that econoboxes of that era were typically so lightweight that they didn't get bogged down in slush and also had significantly shorter wet/icy braking distance and better maneuverability than heavier cars and SUVs did.
Parents still live up there, and have a Buick Enclave and a Subaru Forrester, both with all-weather tires, in their garage.
Well, I have no idea how some folks in this thread can't drive without a SUV in snow country. In the late '70's when it snowed a lot in Northern NY and Burlington, VT, I drove a RWD Pinto station wagon. During the winter I had snow tires without studs, and so most people I knew. In fact, in the '70s an AWD car was a rarity unless it was a European car such as some of the old Mercedes. These were RWD, and when one of the front tires would spin, the transfer case (if I well remember) would engage the front wheels.
Back then it used to snow quite a lot, even in NY city, but we drove RWD vehicles without any trouble. I have been living in the interior of Alaska where the roads get covered by ice for days or weeks at a time, and not all drivers use AWD vehicles. In fact, there is a combination of vehicles such as FWD, AWD SUVs, AWD cars, a bunch of trucks of all kinds. We have high schoolers driving FWD cars, while this old timer (me) drives a FWD Toyota that wears a set of Blizzack tires.
The driving conditions near Anchorage and vicinity are nothing compared to the ice conditions of the interior, and as I said above, we have all kinds of young and old drivers happily driving FWD cars on the ice roads...without any trouble. And yes, I can run circles on ice with my FWD car around any AWD vehicle that wears the wrong tires. There was a time, long ago, when FWD didn't incorporate stability/traction control, so one had to be very careful driving on ice. Nowadays one still have to be careful, but the traction systems incorporated on FWD cars are amazing compared to what old automobiles had.
The tires are the main link to traction, not the automobile. It's the tire that provides the grip on the road, not the vehicle. With the proper tires for road conditions, driver's experience is the second most important factor.
I grew up in the Lake Michigan lake effect snow zone, and my first car was one of those Ford Escorts. It was pretty much a soda can with a go kart engine inside. And then it had 'real car' brakes, and was awesome in 4" or less of snow, slush, ice, you have it. My theory was that econoboxes of that era were typically so lightweight that they didn't get bogged down in slush and also had significantly shorter wet/icy braking distance and better maneuverability than heavier cars and SUVs did.
Parents still live up there, and have a Buick Enclave and a Subaru Forrester, both with all-weather tires, in their garage.
My life experience is that short wheelbase lightweight cars aren’t great on unplowed slop. They want to float up on it so you have the usual hydroplane issue. My VW GTIs with snow tires were really good snow cars but kind of white knuckle passing traffic in the unplowed left lane. On the flip side, the lighter weight made for much shorter braking distances and much better traction in corners. My long wheelbase and heavy SUV was the opposite. It was solid in the unplowed left lane but the sheer weight of the car made for poor braking and cornering. Very bad on black ice. I ran studded tires to compensate for that.
I run Nokians on my Outback. From the ski area parking lot to my driveway is a downhill left turn. The Outback is 500 lbs heavier than my old GTI and has the same tires. With the GTI, I had much better braking performance and I occasionally slide past my driveway in the Outback.
My point is that there is no one “best” snow car. An FWD car with snow tires is fine until it bottoms out.
My life experience is that short wheelbase lightweight cars aren’t great on unplowed slop. They want to float up on it so you have the usual hydroplane issue. My VW GTIs with snow tires were really good snow cars but kind of white knuckle passing traffic in the unplowed left lane. On the flip side, the lighter weight made for much shorter braking distances and much better traction in corners. My long wheelbase and heavy SUV was the opposite. It was solid in the unplowed left lane but the sheer weight of the car made for poor braking and cornering. Very bad on black ice. I ran studded tires to compensate for that.
I run Nokians on my Outback. From the ski area parking lot to my driveway is a downhill left turn. The Outback is 500 lbs heavier than my old GTI and has the same tires. With the GTI, I had much better braking performance and I occasionally slide past my driveway in the Outback.
My point is that there is no one “best” snow car. An FWD car with snow tires is fine until it bottoms out.
This very closely resembles my experience as well.
I grew up in the Lake Michigan lake effect snow zone, and my first car was one of those Ford Escorts. It was pretty much a soda can with a go kart engine inside. And then it had 'real car' brakes, and was awesome in 4" or less of snow, slush, ice, you have it. My theory was that econoboxes of that era were typically so lightweight that they didn't get bogged down in slush and also had significantly shorter wet/icy braking distance and better maneuverability than heavier cars and SUVs did.
Parents still live up there, and have a Buick Enclave and a Subaru Forrester, both with all-weather tires, in their garage.
I had a FWD 1991 Ford Probe that was a tank in the snow.
Tires back then had taller side walls and were skinnier overall than on modern cars. They were able to bite down into the snow better compared to modern cars tires which are more apt to ride on top of the snow back.
Maybe because all seasons are not better than summer tires in snow and ice
Are you kidding? High end summer tires become solid blocks below 40 degrees giving you nearly zero traction. They come standard on high hp cars for a reason. Continental DWS all seasons handle all conditions well.
It looks like the northern states will have an especially long cold winter. I'd appreciate any suggestions for a vehicle in cold and snowy weather. Also, we will be moving to a very rural area of Northern Wisconsin, so this vehicle will not be a short trip/city vehicle. No worries about traffic jambs, parking, etc.
Chevy Tahoe, hands down. Mine went almost 300,000 miles on and off road, and through water, completely submerged in the Florida swamps, twice. That's a long story though, one best told over beers.
SS
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