Car for the Mountains

[Hunthigh1]

Yeah. Most people keep the tires in the garage or shed.

The most important thing here is the driver. When you get a bad snow day go find a large vacant lot. Deliberately oversteer and break the car loose. Play with braking in turns and over braking. Learn to steer into the turn when your rig breaks loose. This should become instinctive, if you have to think about it you are not practiced enough.

We practice so many things in life to become better, yet not many practice driving in bad conditions. These instincts developed from goofing around like a high schooler in a parking lot can save your life. My antics as a dumb young kid driving like an a hole in wintertime whipping donuts actually have made me a much better driver in adverse conditions. You develop the “feel”

You will find that your 4 runner breaks loose easier than a front wheel drive car and is much more prone to slide the rear end Especially when the car has snow tires on it vs at tires on the runner.


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[MTHunter20]

The most important thing here is the driver. When you get a bad snow day go find a large vacant lot. Deliberately oversteer and break the car loose. Play with braking in turns and over braking. Learn to steer into the turn when your rig breaks loose. This should become instinctive, if you have to think about it you are not practiced enough.

That's great advice. I'm definitely gonna do that. I think it'd be helpful for me and my wife. I've driven in snow a handful of times and done ok, but we don't get snow often enough to be proficient driving in it here.

 

[hodgeman]

That's great advice. I'm definitely gonna do that. I think it'd be helpful for me and my wife. I've driven in snow a handful of times and done ok, but we don't get snow often enough to be proficient driving in it here.

I moved from TN to AK over twenty years ago, consider that the snow in the west is much different than the heavy, wet snow on the east coast. So the snow you're thinking about driving in isn't what falls out west which tends to be drier, less dense and much more prone to blowing around...and there's just a lot more of it. Probably the biggest surprise was driving on snow for months at a time- it just never melts through the winter.

In some ways it's easier, in some ways harder. That said, I haven't owned a 2wd anything in 2 decades. I've had a Legacy and currently have a Crosstrek in the fleet- very easy to drive in bad weather. I've had a handful of SUVs- currently a 4Runner and a string of 4wd trucks- currently a Tundra. The Subaru is easier to drive until the snow gets really deep.

Best vehicle I've owned for day to day winter driving? An AWD Toyota Sienna...yep, a minivan. Heavy, even weight distribution front to back, and low power to weight ratio...it went in snow like nothing else I've owned.

 

[NW307]

I'm with the anti subaru crowd. I dumped more money into keeping my 08' outback on the road than the last 4 high mileage toyotas I own or have owned combined. CV axles, head gaskets, airbags, It would never stay aligned and ate tires like crazy. It still drank oil after the $2500 head gasket "maintenance". Yes is was good in the snow but it only got mid twenties in gas mileage which is kind of ridiculous for a four cylinder car. I might have got a lemon but there is definitely a reason you see a lot of them for sale. I'd definitely look at an awd toyota or honda!

Whatever you end up with, give yourself plenty of time to get where ever your going and drive for the conditions. My job requires that I go to car crashes and I can't tell you how many times I've heard "But I have snow tires" or "it was in 4 wheel drive"...

 

[Inkoosikas]

Toss dedicated snow tires on any car and you should be fine for the most part.

Usually it’s the nut holding the wheel that makes the biggest difference. Take it slow and steady and you will make it to where you are going as you pass by 4wd that are upside down in the median.


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Very much this^^^ I used to live in AK and 90% of accidents in the winter were from Military personal from the southern states who never drove in the snow before.