New to Maine- What type of vehicle? (Strong, Princeton: how much, maintenance)

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by Gerania

I've been on black ice. Not very often, so it's always a surprise. Whee! As long as you don't panic and hit the brakes, it's not too bad.

My dad always had chains in the trunk during the winter.

In the hope that when you hit a patch of black ice you slide into something soft, those chains can help a lot to get going again.

[umograd83]

Any Subaru. My husband loves his CrossTrek.

[phoenix02]

In planning for my move to Maine, I bought a 1999 Diesel Suburban 2500 2wd. I needed a family hauler that would handle a large trailer to tow my shop and personal belongings form California with us.

After some research and thinking, I sold it and bought a 2000 Excursion. V10 gasser so I didn't have to worry about it starting in winter, almost 12k tow capacity, and 4x4 for the snow with better ground clearance than the Suburban.

My plan is to get a undercoating done and swap to good all terrain tires before we move. Good all terrains that handle mud should work just as good with snow, and allow me to have one set of tires instead of 3 season and winter tires separate.

[Submariner]

Originally Posted by phoenix02

... After some research and thinking, I sold it and bought a 2000 Excursion. V10 gasser so I didn't have to worry about it starting in winter, almost 12k tow capacity, and 4x4 for the snow with better ground clearance than the Suburban.

My plan is to get a undercoating done and swap to good all terrain tires before we move. Good all terrains that handle mud should work just as good with snow, and allow me to have one set of tires instead of 3 season and winter tires separate.

Since you are in California, have you driven through Tioga Pass on Hwy 120? Chains or winter tires are required. They will not let you attempt it with 'all terrains', 'mud' or 3 season tires.

Down in the 'snow-belt' region they get a lot of precipitation from 'lake effect', snow storms are known for dumping 2 to 3 foot of snow all at once. This region is basically "Grand Rapids-Detroit-Cleveland-Toronto-Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse-Ithaca-Scranton-Albany-NYC-New Haven-Hartford-Springfield-Worcester-Providence-Manchester-Boston". Not very much of Maine dips down South into that region.

The deepest fresh snow I have seen has been 14 inches. Usually the 'worst' snow storms we get around here will peak at 8 inches. And you will only see that in your driveway, within an hour of the storm ending the roads are cleared. You really do not need a lot of clearance for winter driving in Maine.

all terrain tires do not have the proper design for snow or ice. Mud tires will only benefit you for off-road mudding.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Six or eight years ago, we got 15 inches of snow on Thanksgiving day, from midnight to that noon. Then it was sunshine in the afternoon. Your Excursion is just what you need when you arrive at home and the plow truck has dumped 2 feet of snow at the mouth of your driveway. You don't want to park your vehicle in the road while shoveling that heavy hard packed snow. It is not worth the risk.

[Jellybean50]

Following this...

I was going to trade in my 2003 Tundra - which needs some repairs, has 116K miles - and get a new Tacoma before i move. But i've had some advice to keep the Tundra, which i was already contemplating. I usually keep my Toyotas til almost 300K miles but i was hating to pay for repairs for the Tundra, even tho i love it.

I did hear to get it undercoated; and if i buy something NEW, i will have to pay that big fee each year, correct? I forget the name of it. But if your vehicle is older, the fee is much cheaper i believe.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

You don't need to undercoat every year. Just check every year and touch up as needed. Some years you don't need to recoat anything.

By the way, the best oil to use if you go the motor oil route is used oil from a diesel truck. It is thicker than that 5w-20 and other thin car oils. Do the deed on a warm dry day. Then drive down a dusty road. your undercoat will last a lot longer and with the powder dust thickener it will not drip on your driveway. This procedure is the reason there are still Model T cars that run in Maine.

[Maineac]

I believe, although I'm not 100% sure, that such activity is illegal disposal of waste oil in all New England states except maybe NH.

[OutdoorLover]

Good tires make a big difference in snow. For a year-round tire (versus two sets), I think far and away the best thing is the Nokian WR G3 - company is in Finland and has two test tracks - one is above the Arctic circle and the other is still northerly and refrigerated, so they can test winter tires all year round at their R&D facilities. They work much better in snow and ice than conventional all season tires, and they also handle and brake better, are quieter and last longer than conventional snow tires.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

It is not illegal. It environmentally responsible. "Reduce, Re-use. Recycle" Many repair facilities provide this service.