Comments on: Winter Driving 101

By: The Lone Sysadmin » links for 2007-01-04

The Lone Sysadmin » links for 2007-01-04 — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 06:24:17 +0000

[...] tecosystems / Winter Driving 101 Had to be said. When I’m driving in winter with my Jeep it isn’t the snow or ice I’m afraid of, it’s the other drivers. [...]

By: Geof F. Morris

Geof F. Morris — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 01:42:51 +0000

You should see the rednecks down here in their SUVs and Z71s trying out their “skills” on the rare times when it snows here in Alabama. I always tell people around here, “I can drive in snow, but I sure as hell am not going to do it around here with all these Bubbas.” You can almost hear the calls of “Hey y’all, watch this!” and “Hey, hold my beer!” if you lean out the window.

[Thankfully, it's hardly snowed since I moved to the South, and even far less since I moved to hilly North Alabama. I think I've only been forced to get out in it one time.]

By: sogrady

sogrady — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 00:03:43 +0000

Mike: well, i really seem to be in the minority here, but i’m a confirmed fan of front drive on cars. i had it on the Taurus for winters in MA, NH, and ME and it pulled me through many a bad storm. maybe not dozens of blizzards, but then i’m not Canadian

i never found front offered illusions of control; i’d skid with it, but far less frequently than with rear. maybe it’s just the type of rear drive vehicles i’ve driven – sports cars and a truck.

great tip re: washer fluid, as well.

Bryan: not sure i could do this, b/c i can’t stand being in a car that’s too hot. like the idea on concept, though. wipers are not terribly effective, and can burn through your fluid in a remarkably short span of time.

dbt: respectfully diagree. having driven front, rear and four wheel drive, i find the latter far superior to either of the other drive options. designed for snow or not, it’s effective in it in my experience.

it’s no panacea – as Mike mentioned, it does nothing for you re: stopping – but it allowed me to get out of a parking space yesterday that i would have been stuck in with front drive.

By: dbt

dbt — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 23:47:05 +0000

4wd isn’t really designed for snow per-se, there’s a reason it doesn’t make much difference. It’s pretty useless unless you’re driving off-road.

By: Bryan Cantrill

Bryan Cantrill — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 23:44:23 +0000

That wiper fluid tip (which is a good one) reminded me of one thing that has helped me in the past: putting a tremendous amount of dry heat on the windshield by using the front defog and A/C simultaneously. If you can avoid having to use your wipers by having snow essentially evaporate on contact, you will avoid the additional refraction induced by streaking on the windshield. This, coupled with an old Ella Fitzgerald CD, saw me through the four hours it took to drive the 100 miles from Baker, NV to Delta, UT in the middle of a driving blizzard at night on a lonely highway. (And for whatever it’s worth, I don’t recommend this experience to anyone — but if you look at Baker, NV on the map, you’ll see that I didn’t have a hell of a lot of choice…)

By: Mike Milinkovich

Mike Milinkovich — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 23:25:38 +0000

I’ve lived in Canada all my life, so I even trying to remember how many blizzards I’ve driven through is pretty much impossible. Dozens at least.

I *hate* front wheel drive cars in the snow. IMHO, FWD just gives the driver a false sense of security. The illusion of control where none exists. RWD definitely gives you lots of feedback that you’re driving in slippery conditions.

That said, all three (‘88 Chev 2500, ‘00 Nissan Xterra, ‘02 Volvo XC70) of my vehicles are either 4WD or AWD.

My personal list of tips for driving in snow are:

* Get some real snow tires! All season radials are a joke. Especially when it gets cold.
* 4WD or AWD really do make a huge difference (but you still have to drive slow! 4WD doesn’t help you stop at all.)
* Manual transmissions are a big help — especially if you don’t have 4WD
* Make sure you have lots of window washer fluid — you’re going to need it. And if you can, make sure you have winter wiper blades. Being able to see out your windshield is definitely helpful.
* Did I mention you have to slow down? I mean really slow down?

By: sogrady

sogrady — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 22:52:54 +0000

Jonny: i’m assuming you mean that the cars are going off the road b/c they’re not following rule #2 but yes, have already seen that today with a truck up on a median b/c they couldn’t stop.

Mike: i really should pick up some chains. particularly given some of the places that i tend to travel to up here, not to mention the inconvenience of snow tires that you mention.

Bryan: will definitely pick up chains now. as for the center of gravity, couldn’t agree more. i don’t like driving trucks for precisely that reason. the subaru’s are great; i drove one through a snow storm from grand lake to fort collins at one point with no issues whatsoever. good little snow cars, with a bit more clearance than i have.

Paul: interesting. i can’t imagine trying to drive a rear drive car around anymore after having been on front for so long and now with four, but maybe i’m missing something. when i bought my Volvo last year, one of the first things i did was rule out rear drive cars.

agreed on the snow, and there’s also the driver component to deal with. from what i’m told, storms that hit the south are worse simply b/c no one’s trained in driving in snow.

By: Paul Brown

Paul Brown — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 19:52:56 +0000

I’m with @Ron on the rear-wheel drive and the use of compression braking. (The cars of my teenage skiing years were all rear-wheel drive.) If you’ve got a manual transmission (so that you can use a higher gear for *less* traction), you’re even better off.

Different kinds of snow (moisture content, etc.) and topography also complicate driving. It was easy enough to get around in Chicago with 4-6 inches on the ground (even before the salt trucks were out), but that much snow in the Northwest makes things impassible.

By: Bryan Cantrill

Bryan Cantrill — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 19:43:58 +0000

I agree about chains. I never used them growing up in Colorado, but one is forced to use them here in California (where the snow quantities are much greater and the snow itself is wetter) — chains make a huge difference. I always carry them in my car now, and have donned them in Colorado more than once. (In particular, on an absolutely nasty black-ice ascent of Vail Pass.)

One thing you forgot to mention: center of gravity. Anyone who bought that SUV because they thought it would be better in snow will one day join those other SUVs in the ditch: the high center of gravity makes them much more difficult to control on ice. I’ve always thought that the optimal vehicle for inclement weather is a Subaru wagon: 4WD, reasonably high clearance, long wheel base, low center of gravity. And indeed, I’ve never seen a Subaru spun out on the median — where I have seen countless SUVs spun out. (And have actually been a passenger in one myself; not so fun…)

By: Mike Olson

Mike Olson — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 18:19:22 +0000

Carry properly-sized chains and know how to put them on. Even if you have 4WD, chains make a big difference in poor conditions. I like chains better than snow tires; you just use ‘em when you need ‘em. Whenever you’re out in snow, space is your friend. Leave plenty of room between your car and those around it.