I did not make it tonight
#1
I did not make it tonight
NYC is experiencing a winter storm right now and it has been forecasted to be about 12", it has been expected since last week and I thought the city was well prepared. Nope, almost all roads are not plowed and the road was not salted enough.
I had no fear though since I already have snow tires on, stayed at work until 7pm and drove 2 miles to get some food, it was a nightmare, car has no traction what so ever, even in snow mode i'd feel the tail fishing a bit, with the slightest pressure on the pedal and going 7mph. There were a downhill and I was so feared of losing control, I had to keep the foot on the brake all the time while trying not to lock it.
I did not risk it and parked my car on the street, and called a friend to pick me up.
What I don't understand is, why my car did so poor with snow tires, that some cars with all season traversed with relative ease...my colleague did fine on his q5 on all season, my friend did fine with his g70 on all season.
To be fair, on the short way home, there were quite some cars struggling, namely a m4, probably on summer tires hopelessly spinning tires in the middle of the road, and some fwd eco boxes can't get up a hill.
One of my friends commented" you got snow tires that can't handle the snow". Im so baffled, I got these sotto zeros last year and they are at most half worn, I have no idea why it drove so poorly.
I had no fear though since I already have snow tires on, stayed at work until 7pm and drove 2 miles to get some food, it was a nightmare, car has no traction what so ever, even in snow mode i'd feel the tail fishing a bit, with the slightest pressure on the pedal and going 7mph. There were a downhill and I was so feared of losing control, I had to keep the foot on the brake all the time while trying not to lock it.
I did not risk it and parked my car on the street, and called a friend to pick me up.
What I don't understand is, why my car did so poor with snow tires, that some cars with all season traversed with relative ease...my colleague did fine on his q5 on all season, my friend did fine with his g70 on all season.
To be fair, on the short way home, there were quite some cars struggling, namely a m4, probably on summer tires hopelessly spinning tires in the middle of the road, and some fwd eco boxes can't get up a hill.
One of my friends commented" you got snow tires that can't handle the snow". Im so baffled, I got these sotto zeros last year and they are at most half worn, I have no idea why it drove so poorly.
#2
Stay safe, sounds like you guys are getting hammered w snow. How old are your snow tires, not tread but how old by the date code I saw you bought them a year ago but that means nothing if they were approaching expire date. Tires can harden over time. What are you driving? Awd? Rwd? I dont take mine in foul weather, so thats all I got. 😉
Last edited by 19FRG; 12-16-2020 at 11:48 PM.
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19FRG (12-16-2020)
#4
I will be checking the tire age tomorrow, they have been on for a month, also drove them all winter last year, they felt good, I actually prefer the ride they provide, soft and supple.
Tire pressure should be good, I check them regularly, unless the sensors have gone bad and gave me false reading.. Speaking of which, the rears seem to be not holding pressure very well, I pumped them to 38 front 41 rear on a 49 degrees day a week ago, now they are at 36 front and rear (last checked earlier today around 32 degrees).
I might have my expectation too high, roads should be plowed tomorrow and I will try it again.
Tire pressure should be good, I check them regularly, unless the sensors have gone bad and gave me false reading.. Speaking of which, the rears seem to be not holding pressure very well, I pumped them to 38 front 41 rear on a 49 degrees day a week ago, now they are at 36 front and rear (last checked earlier today around 32 degrees).
I might have my expectation too high, roads should be plowed tomorrow and I will try it again.
#7
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#8
I grew up on Michigan's west coast. Not quite Buffalo but still pretty good for lake effect.
I would take AWD and good A/S's over RWD and snows any day. The Q has Haldex I think. The G is an X? The M probably wasn't an X.
I typically ran Sotto Zero's when we lived in A2, avoided Blizzaks because they felt too squiggly on dry roads.
Haven't had a chance to play with the F in the snow yet but I'm not expecting much with the huge rear tires and no ground clearance, even with the AWD.
I would take AWD and good A/S's over RWD and snows any day. The Q has Haldex I think. The G is an X? The M probably wasn't an X.
I typically ran Sotto Zero's when we lived in A2, avoided Blizzaks because they felt too squiggly on dry roads.
Haven't had a chance to play with the F in the snow yet but I'm not expecting much with the huge rear tires and no ground clearance, even with the AWD.
#10
As others mentioned - see if tires over-pressurized, see if tires older than 6 years.
The next time you get stuck in such situation - drop tire pressure by a lot. You can't do high speed driving on nearly-flat tires, but it improves snow (and sand) handling.
#11
#12
#13
I suspect the OPs expectations are too high. At 1-3” an hour, plows and treatments can’t keep up. Our NWS Winter Storm Warning here included ‘travel may be nearly impossible’ at the height of the storm.
#14
NYC is experiencing a winter storm right now and it has been forecasted to be about 12", it has been expected since last week and I thought the city was well prepared. Nope, almost all roads are not plowed and the road was not salted enough.
I had no fear though since I already have snow tires on, stayed at work until 7pm and drove 2 miles to get some food, it was a nightmare, car has no traction what so ever, even in snow mode i'd feel the tail fishing a bit, with the slightest pressure on the pedal and going 7mph. There were a downhill and I was so feared of losing control, I had to keep the foot on the brake all the time while trying not to lock it.
I did not risk it and parked my car on the street, and called a friend to pick me up.
What I don't understand is, why my car did so poor with snow tires, that some cars with all season traversed with relative ease...my colleague did fine on his q5 on all season, my friend did fine with his g70 on all season.
To be fair, on the short way home, there were quite some cars struggling, namely a m4, probably on summer tires hopelessly spinning tires in the middle of the road, and some fwd eco boxes can't get up a hill.
One of my friends commented" you got snow tires that can't handle the snow". Im so baffled, I got these sotto zeros last year and they are at most half worn, I have no idea why it drove so poorly.
I had no fear though since I already have snow tires on, stayed at work until 7pm and drove 2 miles to get some food, it was a nightmare, car has no traction what so ever, even in snow mode i'd feel the tail fishing a bit, with the slightest pressure on the pedal and going 7mph. There were a downhill and I was so feared of losing control, I had to keep the foot on the brake all the time while trying not to lock it.
I did not risk it and parked my car on the street, and called a friend to pick me up.
What I don't understand is, why my car did so poor with snow tires, that some cars with all season traversed with relative ease...my colleague did fine on his q5 on all season, my friend did fine with his g70 on all season.
To be fair, on the short way home, there were quite some cars struggling, namely a m4, probably on summer tires hopelessly spinning tires in the middle of the road, and some fwd eco boxes can't get up a hill.
One of my friends commented" you got snow tires that can't handle the snow". Im so baffled, I got these sotto zeros last year and they are at most half worn, I have no idea why it drove so poorly.
#15
I grew up on Michigan's west coast. Not quite Buffalo but still pretty good for lake effect.
I would take AWD and good A/S's over RWD and snows any day. The Q has Haldex I think. The G is an X? The M probably wasn't an X.
I typically ran Sotto Zero's when we lived in A2, avoided Blizzaks because they felt too squiggly on dry roads.
Haven't had a chance to play with the F in the snow yet but I'm not expecting much with the huge rear tires and no ground clearance, even with the AWD.
I would take AWD and good A/S's over RWD and snows any day. The Q has Haldex I think. The G is an X? The M probably wasn't an X.
I typically ran Sotto Zero's when we lived in A2, avoided Blizzaks because they felt too squiggly on dry roads.
Haven't had a chance to play with the F in the snow yet but I'm not expecting much with the huge rear tires and no ground clearance, even with the AWD.
yeah completely forgot how wide these tires are, time to roll with 4 skinnies on!!? those cars that did well all had awd and narrower tires, the g70 had the widest on the rear of 255.
Not sure how this winter will turn out, if there are more snow forecasted, I should keep some ziptie style plastic snows chains handy and see how it handles. Don't care a single bit scratching the rims, these ugly stock rims are the definition of a winter beater.
#16
Me too (South Haven.) ‘76-77 and ‘77-78 winters were fun for a 13 year old, except for the paper route. Good place to learn how to drive (or how not to drive) in a lot of snow. Got to drive our MG Midget one winter in high school - that was interesting.
I suspect the OPs expectations are too high. At 1-3” an hour, plows and treatments can’t keep up. Our NWS Winter Storm Warning here included ‘travel may be nearly impossible’ at the height of the storm.
I suspect the OPs expectations are too high. At 1-3” an hour, plows and treatments can’t keep up. Our NWS Winter Storm Warning here included ‘travel may be nearly impossible’ at the height of the storm.
I firmly believe in "you need two of everything in opposites". As in summer tires and winter tires, summer car and winter car. Heck, we run a morning boat (for slalom) and an afternoon boat (for surfing) in the summer.
Get yourself a nice AWD ute.
#17
@Ray Ray I didn't see whether you were in rain and snow mode?
You mentioned that the snow tires were half worn? That is a red flag...many snows lose grip when worn that much. There might be two different wear indicators among the tread blocks. How close were you to the 'higher' one? (Don't go into the slush to measure right now. That assessment should be done at the start of snow tire season. For ow, stay .)
Stay Safe!
You mentioned that the snow tires were half worn? That is a red flag...many snows lose grip when worn that much. There might be two different wear indicators among the tread blocks. How close were you to the 'higher' one? (Don't go into the slush to measure right now. That assessment should be done at the start of snow tire season. For ow, stay .)
Stay Safe!
#18
Before I purchased a winter capable vehicle, I used a (modified) E46 M3 for all seasons. During that time, I used a few different brands of winter tires. While the versions of these tires that I used are older today, the Sottozero's of that era were the worst of the ones I used by far. They were terrible. I don't know which winter tire manufacturers have sizes for the F-Type but the Sottozero's are on the lower side for winter performance.
#19
Yes I was in snow mode, rpm hovered around 1k, i had to use more brake than throttle. I also used normal mode with DSC off to back into parking spot, as the ~6" snow pile besides the curb wasn't moving anywhere.
The tires should be at MOST half worn, I got them last winter and did at most 5k miles total, granted there is the occasional peel out and a little bit of burn out, who can resist!!?
I do have to check it physically to be sure, and the dash TPMS might not be accurate, i will measure those and report back, doesn't seem like im heading out today though, the white stuff is still coming down.
Im thinking everything is fine and my expectation was too high, I will report back when I have the chance to drive it afterward with plowed, possibly icy roads, as the temp will be quite cold for the following days.
The tires should be at MOST half worn, I got them last winter and did at most 5k miles total, granted there is the occasional peel out and a little bit of burn out, who can resist!!?
I do have to check it physically to be sure, and the dash TPMS might not be accurate, i will measure those and report back, doesn't seem like im heading out today though, the white stuff is still coming down.
Im thinking everything is fine and my expectation was too high, I will report back when I have the chance to drive it afterward with plowed, possibly icy roads, as the temp will be quite cold for the following days.
#20