Does it help to have weight in your trunk for a front wheel drive car when driving in icy conditions? (SUV, brakes)
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Weight helps guys. It's simple physics. Increasing the weight of the car increases the force the tires exert against the road surface, leading to more traction.
It's not quite that simple. That extra weight also impacts other vectors. Because of the extra weight, additional traction is needed for braking, turning, and acceleration, thereby offsetting any traction advantage gained by adding the weight. If adding weight increased traction, race cars would be as heavy as possible.
Localized weight is a different matter. By adding weight above the driven wheels, the front/rear balance of the vehicle changes, which will aid traction - on those wheels only. Adding weight to the rear of a FWD car will decrease traction on the front wheels because the weight is shifted to the rear (off the driven wheels). As the car accelerates, the front end will lift, resulting in less traction to the front wheels.
It's not quite that simple. That extra weight also impacts other vectors. Because of the extra weight, additional traction is needed for braking, turning, and acceleration, thereby offsetting any traction advantage gained by adding the weight.
If you quoted my entire post rather than just a snippit of it, you'd see I already said the same thing.
A couple of relatives recommend putting a couple 40 pound bags in the trunk to help keep traction in icy conditions. I know this is often suggested for rear wheel drive vehicles but does it really help when driving a front wheel drive car?
The answer to the original question is NO.
If ice is the main concern get stud snow tires. But remember ice is ice. And going too fast with or without stud snow tires can end up with an accident.
If you quoted my entire post rather than just a snippit of it, you'd see I already said the same thing.
OK, I'll bite. Here's the final sentence of your original post:
"Now the question is, can you put ENOUGH weight in the back of a FWD to make a meaningful difference in traction? In this case probably not, because any traction benefit would be negated by the increased braking distance needed for a heavier car"
The word "probably" is what led me to the conclusion that you don't quite understand the physics involved. There's no "probably" about it. Adding extra weight to the rear of a FWD car will never increase traction to the front wheels and will (as you noted) do nothing for braking. If you magically managed to create a perfect 50/50 weight distribution, handling would improve, but that's the only potential upside I can think of and it's probably not worth the loss of traction available for acceleration (since there would be a smaller percentage of the vehicle's weight on the front wheels).
Weight helps guys. It's simple physics. Increasing the weight of the car increases the force the tires exert against the road surface, leading to more traction.
Now, a RWD car will obviously benefit more from weight in the trunk than a FWD car does, because those are the drive wheels.
Now the question is, can you put ENOUGH weight in the back of a FWD to make a meaningful difference in traction? In this case probably not, because any traction benefit would be negated by the increased braking distance needed for a heavier car.
Putting weight in the trunk (behind the rear axle) reduces loading on the front wheels, which is the opposite of what you want
in a front drive car you do NOT want to be adding weight to the trunk. this will change the weight distribution and actually take weight OFF the front end where it is needed the most.
adding weight to the trunk works in front engine/rear drive cars by moving the weight distribution towards the back of the car where it is needed in slippery conditions.
i had a front wheel drive sporty car once where the slightest bit of mud or snow on an incline with the front up higher than the rear resulted in near zero traction. driving backwards up a hill usually worked for me.
NO. Get winter tires. Check TR and CR for the best ice performance.
One set of winter tires I had some years back, Bridgestone REVO1, had unbelievable ice traction. They were not studded. Most winter tires will give you some advantage on ice.
Studs will do best on ice, but in every other condition they are compromised.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RayinAK
With a FWD car most of the weight from the powertrain is on the front wheels, and that's the main advantage of a FWD over a RWD vehicle when driving on ice. What you want to do is to have a set of winter tires for winter driving. In the interior of Alaska I use a set of Blizzak tires on a Toyota Corolla for winter driving, and have not trouble at all on the ice-covered roads. Since in here the winters are very long and extremely cold, these tires stay on the vehicle from October through April.
If you could tell us in which area of the US you live, then people responding to your question could provide the responses you want. In some areas you could use a set of all-season tires designed with a bias toward ice and snow. All depends on where you live.
Quote:
Originally Posted by unit731
The answer to the original question is NO.
If ice is the main concern get stud snow tires. But remember ice is ice. And going too fast with or without stud snow tires can end up with an accident.
Best to slow down in slippery conditions and in the right line if cars are passing you , still remember to steer in to the direction you want to go when you do slide on ice , and let up on the gas at the same time , and your car will straighten up where you want to go ......... Some people get stuck in deeper snow and hit the accelerator and end up in the ditch or pin wheels slide
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