Snowpocalypse now

easy

Really interesting thread guys.

I agree with everything Lums said in the first post. I grew up in the heart of the peak district, lived a couple of miles away from the nearest village, and so my early driving winters gave me plenty of experience of how to do this. Back then (late 70's-early 80's) I had an old style mini - they are superb in snow - as long as they don't get grounded - and I also kept a spare set of wheels with winter tyres on, I didn't know anyone else back then that did that.

Now we live in the suburbs, and I'm astounded at how many people make such a god-awful mess of driving in slippery conditions. Also get quite annoyed at the guys who parp me when I pull out of junctions gently and slowly - You don't know when you might catch an icy patch, and making a sharp right turn quickly will send the back end sliding, even in a front-wheel drive.

vaio

Mr_Toad wrote: »

......In the end I decided to take it places just to see if I could......

Yep, that rings a bell with me and others on this thread I'm sure.

If we were children it would be called "playing", as we are adults it's called "investigating the capabilities of the car under differing road conditions" (but still feels like playing)

Welcome to the world of winter tyres

DaveF327

Lum wrote: »

1. BMWs and other RWD cars: If you're going to use a pair of snowsocks or chains, they go on the back wheels. This includes the 1-series but not the new Mini.

Just to add, if you are on a gentle incline and find the car slides sideways instead of forwards, pressing the accelerator to the floor for 30 seconds at a time is just wasting fuel as well as your blonde brain cells. Save both as you need all you can muster for the rest of your journey.*











*and to explain to your husband why his head gasket is now f***ed

vikingaero

easy wrote: »

Really interesting thread guys.

I agree with everything Lums said in the first post. I grew up in the heart of the peak district, lived a couple of miles away from the nearest village, and so my early driving winters gave me plenty of experience of how to do this. Back then (late 70's-early 80's) I had an old style mini - they are superb in snow - as long as they don't get grounded - and I also kept a spare set of wheels with winter tyres on, I didn't know anyone else back then that did that.

Now we live in the suburbs, and I'm astounded at how many people make such a god-awful mess of driving in slippery conditions. Also get quite annoyed at the guys who parp me when I pull out of junctions gently and slowly - You don't know when you might catch an icy patch, and making a sharp right turn quickly will send the back end sliding, even in a front-wheel drive.

I would argue that the summer tyres of the 70's were more akin to the winter tyres we have today.

These days cars have been skewed too much to sportiness and bling bling phat alloys that are there to impress the neighbours and utterly useless in ice/snow.

shammyjack

vaio wrote: »

Yep, that rings a bell with me and others on this thread I'm sure.

If we were children it would be called "playing", as we are adults it's called "investigating the capabilities of the car under differing road conditions" (but still feels like playing)

Welcome to the world of winter tyres

Had a good PLAY today while trying to impress the virtues of good winter tyres on my son and daughter .

Both of them well impressed but strong hints as offspring do that I should help them purchase due to lack of funds .

Lum

DaveF327 wrote: »

Just to add, if you are on a gentle incline and find the car slides sideways instead of forwards, pressing the accelerator to the floor for 30 seconds at a time is just wasting fuel as well as your blonde brain cells. Save both as you need all you can muster for the rest of your journey.*

Good job I'm not blonde or I might get !!!!ed off at this post.

Agree with the point you're making though. When people do this they're just polishing the ice to make it harder for the rest of us.

DaveF327

Lum wrote: »

Good job I'm not blonde or I might get !!!!ed off at this post.

It wasn't aimed at you, by the way, more at the kind of people that you get frustrated about too, such as the BMW drivers who put snow socks on the front wheels

From experience, the ones who drive with their foot glued to the accelerator tend to be of a particular gender and hair colour :A

Lum

The BMW thing was really because BMW are the only mainstream RWD cars still in production.

Both me and my GF have been managing just fine in the snow this year, better than most around this way, so I still disagree with you on the gender thing, however.

colino

Still struggle to believe that, especially on a money saving site, and our maritime climate, the buying of winter tyres ever comes up as a worthwhile suggestion. This winter we only have two private cars in the driveway and unusually they are both rwd, auto and sitting on fat, low profile tyres. Even living in Scotland the conditions still rarely, if ever, make driving impossible. Things grind to a halt round here when the, "ladies who lunch" set have a brief go driving their ultra low mileage image buggies, get a fright and then abandon them blocking the many hills round here. No amount of additions on either car, other than a helicopter, will improve the situation and kitting out these cars at a £1k each for a handful of days of "entertaining" travel doesn't make sense.

DKLS

Have just been out in the wifes 350Z shod with summer rubber and all was fine on the main roads, some of the side roads were a bit slippy but the empty car GPs car park was great lots of over steering fun.