Rear wheel drive

[AndyP & Lenore]

What's folks opinion on how rear wheel drive cars handle in the snow and ice.:confused:

A.

[stoney]

badly even in the wet they can be a handfull but good fun as long as you only put the power on when your wheels are poniting straight

[Craig]

I know of people who own Lexus IS200 and BMW 3 Series who just don't take them out when there is ice and snow on the roads as they cannot get any traction and find them gambling with their lifes... :eek::thud:

When asked if they would have this as their only car if they lived in an area that can get snow and ice - they said NO. ;)

[DerekM]

There are 2 things here firstly, tyres - wide tyres are no use; put on proper winter wheels and tyres and they'll be fine.

Secondly, in these days of electronic assitance, people seem to forget that the laws of physics still apply, and don't drive according to the conditions.

Prime example is the X5 driver with 20 inch rims and a handful of acronyms slithering all over the carriageway.

[Scottie]

I know when I lived with my parents out side Dunblane up a 4 mile single track road my 5252tds wouldn't make mutch past Kilbryde Castle:ragin: had to use snow chains. I know dad used to put bags of cement in the back of mums car/s to try and help in saying all that rear wheel / front wheel when the conditions are that bad it disnae really matter which you have.

Ice and hills with my 525 was a laugh when I dropped my pal of down at the houses behind the Woodlands Hotel Dunblane trying get back up the wee hill:ragin:

Normal main road driving it was fine and snow and ice just took my time.

[The Dogfather]

Proper snow tyres make all the difference, I had a set of 17" 215/45 Nokian WRG2 on my my 2.0 Sport MX5 and it was fine. We have 5 inches of lying snow and as long as I didn't floor it no problems at all with traction.

The same tyres are on my clubbie

http://www.newminiscotland.co.uk/forums/picture.php?albumid=66&pictureid=305

[RyanK]

My dad used to have a Mercedes cls amg, he stuck on some winter tyres along with some replica alloys for the winter time and he said that in the snow the car used to handle incredibly well for rwd

I don't think the snow tyres did much use in the ice though!

[AndyP & Lenore]

There are 2 things here firstly, tyres - wide tyres are no use; put on proper winter wheels and tyres and they'll be fine.

Secondly, in these days of electronic assitance, people seem to forget that the laws of physics still apply, and don't drive according to the conditions.

Prime example is the X5 driver with 20 inch rims and a handful of acronyms slithering all over the carriageway.

PMSL. We used to have an X5 special edition with 20" rims and ultra low profile tyres. We never had to take it on snow, which is just as well 'cos I was pretty sure it would be more like skiing than driving.:eek:

A.:D

[AndyP & Lenore]

Hmmmm. Differing opinions then. It would probably be a 1 Series 120D. Not really wanting to start messing around with different tyres for winter whe there are usually only 3 days of snow a year down in the sleepy borders. However, we'd still rather have a car that can handle the snow if it fell while we were away. If you know what I mean.

A.

[Scottie]

Hmmmm. Differing opinions then. It would probably be a 1 Series 120D. Not really wanting to start messing around with different tyres for winter whe there are usually only 3 days of snow a year down in the sleepy borders. However, we'd still rather have a car that can handle the snow if it fell while we were away. If you know what I mean.

A.
I never had a problem with our two 120d autos we had while up at Inverness.

Snow and Ice the roads were always salted.

Took it easy on our own wee road down to the house.:thumbs up:

[AndyP & Lenore]

I never had a problem with our two 120d autos we had while up at Inverness.

Snow and Ice the roads were always salted.

Took it easy on our own wee road down to the house.:thumbs up:

Cheers Fi. It's one possible option.

A.

[Colin]

Grip wise in snow I would say they are pretty much equal, if you have the right tyres on.
Having experienced both I would say front wheel cars are easier to control.

I remember driving my Dads Carlton in the snow that was interesting, back end kept wanting to pass the front. :eek:

On ice you are just a passenger no matter what car you are in (unless you have spikes) :Whistle:

[The Dogfather]

Andy, winter tyres give better grip even without the snow as they don't harden when the temp drops.

[euan]

I've never had a problem in the 3 series, but then we don't really get a lot of snow down here. Get a lot of rain though, and the DSC is very good if you do forget and boot it. It amazes me sometimes just how little it takes to kick in. Oh, and decent tyres makes a HUGE difference, you can really feel it on the 3 when the tread is getting down.

My brother leaves the RX8 locked in the garage when the snow comes, but then he lives at the top of a hill and I've seen him have to leave it at the bottom until the roads were gritted.

I'll also second the X5! I used to have the choice between my old mans X5 or his classic mini on winter tyres - classic was the chosen car every time. Just had to keep my gloves, scarf, hat, extra jumpers on :D

So I'd say - with the right tyres and driving style you'll be fine.

[Hamish]

RWD is definitely more of a handful in the snow, ice driving is a lottery regardless of FWD or RWD.

My road car is an S2000, normally around "snow" time I'll use mine as little as possible, mind you, it has no traction control or any gadgets to keep it straight and the tyres are pretty wide on it which doesnt help.

Even around this time of the year, when the leaves are falling it is twitchy.

Hell of a good fun if your in the mood for a bit sillyness though :D

I think the width of tyres has a lot to do with it though, the S2000 is really bad at tram lining through standing water, had a horrible spin just north of kinross services on my way back from Aberdeen one night due to aquaplaning :blush:, bit of a wake up call really :idea:

[ianking]

Andy

Currently driving a rear wheel drive and I have to say that in the dry it is fantastic. The turn in that you get on the corners is fantastic, rear wheels doing the drive and front doing the steering. When its wet I dont drive as hard but then again nobody should no matter what car you are in as braking times are reduced etc.
The electronics keep me in check in the wet anyway.
I have switched the electronics off a couple times in the wet to have a wee bit fun (ask your brother as he was behind me on your last run, had it side ways on the big roundabout before Clovenfords)

I have not had any snow yet with the 130 but to be honest the roads all get cleared and gritted.

When I had my 120D Sport (man) I had it over the winter and I was working in St Boswells. It used to get me there fine. I was only stuck once and that was going up to my Mums. the hill is super steep but to be fair front wheel drive stuff was getting stuck as well.

If you want a wee shot of my 1er then you are welcome. Its a manual mind.

[Gismo]

Am i reading this right?? you're considering buying a car exclusively for snow conditions??
If so, you've already said it yourself, we only get about 3 days a year where you could use it, i wouldn't bother, you've already got a decent snow mobile, well, in fact 2, your mini's :thumbs up:

[ianking]

Yeah I agree with Alan that MINIs are actually really quite good in the snow. They will be a fair bit better than the 1er I have to say.

[AndyP & Lenore]

Am i reading this right?? you're considering buying a car exclusively for snow conditions??
If so, you've already said it yourself, we only get about 3 days a year where you could use it, i wouldn't bother, you've already got a decent snow mobile, well, in fact 2, your mini's :thumbs up:


Yeah I agree with Alan that MINIs are actually really quite good in the snow. They will be a fair bit better than the 1er I have to say.

Naw, naw, naw, naw.:frown:

We're looking to change the FL2 'cos we really just don't need it anymore. No longer tow and no longer have a dog to carry around. So, looking for something to replace that which still has 5 doors for the few times we ferry any Parents around. But it would be nice to have something that will handle the snow reasonably well, if we're gonna change.

Driven in the snow in our Hyper Blue MINI on 17" rims and it was a bit mental tbh.:yes nod:

A.:D

[Scottie]

Andy

Currently driving a rear wheel drive and I have to say that in the dry it is fantastic.
When its wet I dont drive as hard but then again nobody should no matter what car you are in as braking times are reduced etc.
.


Well that will rule Andyp out then from memory he does not slow down for rain.:p:laugh::laugh::laugh:



(need to hunt for that thread he started a good few months back):smilewinkgrin::smilewinkgrin:

[Scottie]

Naw, naw, naw, naw.:frown:

We're looking to change the FL2 'cos we really just don't need it anymore. No longer tow and no longer have a dog to carry around. So, looking for something to replace that which still has 5 doors for the few times we ferry any Parents around. But it would be nice to have something that will handle the snow reasonably well, if we're gonna change.

Driven in the snow in our Hyper Blue MINI on 17" rims and it was a bit mental tbh.:yes nod:

A.:D

what about a nice AWD motor like the Audi All Road :cool::cool: the 3.0tdi is very nice.

[mini saltire]

I think if you have a rear wheel drive car and it get away from you, it is easy to regain control. If you have a front wheel drive it is harder, unless you are able to power your way out of the slide. 4WD is the best for snow driving but everything is equal on ice.

[C.Noble]

I used to have a Senator 3.0l 24v years ago, the best car I ever owned by far and the best engine... ever :smilewinkgrin: IMO.

It was rear wheel drive and great fun in the snow... until you actually wanted to stop show boating and actually get somewhere, then it was a pain in the ar$e.

Coming off roundabouts sideways using all available road is fun when you mean it :yes nod: and no one is about, but not so much fun when there is, say a truck, coming the other way! :blush::frown::blush: