tips on getting out of the snow
 

this morning i woke up to my car snowed in

after cleaning the snow around the car, specifically rear tires, i still couldn't get the car to move....the wheels were just spinning, i wasn't going forward, or backward
then i ended up getting some cat litter and sprinkling quite a lot in front of the rear tires, this seems to have worked, as the car was finally free

so i'm looking for tips on how to get the car moving when stuck in the snow, and what products should i get to help out in situations like this?
don't think i want to lug around a bag of kitty litter in the back, or do i?
going to crappy tire later today

p.s. the car has winter tires on
also i believe i remember reading somewhere to turn the traction off when stuck......is this correct?


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You absolutely want to haul around a bag or two of cat litter in the trunk. First it adds extra weight on the rear wheels, and second you can spread it in front of the and under wheels to get traction like you did in this case.

Traction control is very situational. Sometimes it is an enormous help in slippery conditions, occasionally it holds you back. Just tapping it once puts it in a getting unstuck mode so to speak, it automatically goes back to default after you exceed something like 20 mph. Just try not to let the tires spin, polished wet ice is hard to get away from.

Honestly though, keeping a bag of kitty litter with a cheap plastic cup to spread it isn't a bad idea.

you can also go to lowes or any home improvement store and get traction sand. a couple of 70lb bags in the trunk will help. winter tires can also make things a little eaiser.

I carry
 

A little red shovel in the trunk. Best mod I have done to date.

Try using second gear and a lot of clutch slip.

Turning traction control off can help in very loose and slippery snow but only if there isn't ice on the ground. Allowing a little wheelspin does improve traction in deep loose snow by kicking out some of the snow between the tread and the ground.

I have also used carpet strips, pile side down, with success.

The problem with fresh wet snow is ice on the ground under the snow.

Snow tires work by grabbing and holding snow in their treads which then freezes to and grips the snow on the road surface. The limit is reached when the snow won't freeze to the ground. Snow tires self clean their treads as the rotate. All season tires tend to hold the snow.

Finally, Michelin Ice are not as good in snow, ironically. They really are designed to be optimized for ice grip. Where you are this is good not bad but you do have to be patient in fresh warm snow.

For the Michelin Ice I'd suggest try for minimal wheelspin by modulating the clutch and using the highest gear that will work ,usually second.

You will find reverse is the most difficult gear to use to get unstuck, ratio is lowest (highest number )

I literally got stuck in a flat parking lot yesterday, stock tires are unimaginably bad in the winter.

This works wonders. If your stuck in a sudden snow fall with no equipment, just put floor mats under your tires and it'll move. Obviously, don't try this if you have weathertechs lol

I wonder if pushing the car manually would help too since the car is so light.

You do realize
 

They are summers.:bonk:

Carry a small shovel and kitty litter, sand, small gravel, etc.

You should absolutely turn off the traction control when stuck. This happened to me last winter when I had parked on the street and a snow plow hade made a snow "lip" around my car. I also have winter tires on but needed to rock it back and forth (which is easy with a manual transmission) and then eventually get a push. It was also hard to "plow" through with the front end being so low as it just digs into the snow if it's piled up in front.
I also have put 4 70lb sand bags in the trunk for traction (weight), and as other's have said, kitty litter works just as well.
A little shovel might also be a good investment.
I personally think the BRZ/FRS are horrible winter cars....the traction control system is sub-par compared with other RWD vehicles I have owned, and the super light weight is just not suited to any winter conditions at all! I made my chioce and only have the one vehicle, but I will be saving up for a 4wd winter vehicle as it is just not woth the spin out/getting stuck headaches!
One question for (brzr).....why is your forum name and your license plate say brzr if you drive a Scion FRS??????? :iono:

Ironically, it's the Torsen that makes this car tricky to drive in winter (or the wet for that matter). The chassis and weight distribution are fine, as is the 6 inches of ground clearance (the car looks low and you sit low but it is still properly high off the ground in stock form), but the Torsen has a 4:1 bias ratio which is a lot, very tight.

Just btw we have excellent portable shovels here made from heavy duty plastic, lexan or aluminum. No need to go for steel. Rona and home despot both carry the Quebec designed and made fold flat scoop type trunk shovel and shy ski mountaineering shop sells excellent avalanche shovels suitable for heavy duty shovelling (it is often thought avalanches are soft snow, not correct, if you've ever skied across one you will know they set up like concrete once they stop, don't let your friend carry a wimpy shovel, lend him yours....).

Two tips on cat litter: 1) make sure you don't get the clumping kind! 2) put it in some kind of container with a cover rather than leave it in the bag, else you risk a trunk full of loose litter!

carpet strips are a great idea
i was looking at some rubber strips yesterday and didn't feel like paying $40 for just one.......but i'm sure i can find some garbage carpet strips somewhere, and use those

my tires are hankook w409 i-pike, first time using that brand

too bad it's illegal to use studded tires here

but the floormats idea is pretty great when you have nothing else to use

i'm loving the car in the snow, once it gets going heh

yes....the plates.......
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showt...95#post1009295

no, the litter is not the clumping.......it's one of those wheat shells, flushable types, and worked well i guess

having a trunk full of litter would suck

Let us know how effective they are. Hankook ice bears got good reviews.

The W409 is a great deep snow tire but struggles a little in the ice, which it seems is what you were having problems with. The snow around the car will just act as a wall to get over while your tires fight to grip anything they can.

For ice, you need something like the Blizzak WS70 or Conti ExtremeWinterContact. Both have more sipes to help grip the ice.

And like others have said, flip track off or go to sport mode to gain some control over the car in these conditions.

Did you shovel that snow on the front? I'm amazed you were stuck, that is nothing. I've never been stuck in the snow in my car and I drove through some heavy crap.

So what I'm thinking here is:
You definitely want to turn off Traction Control in a few inches of snow, or you'll get nowhere...as you found out.

in snow pretty good.....but as this is my first rwd i can't figure out how they compare to my old michelin ice i had on my golf......yet
they are quiet, which is nice
my husband has some pirelli winter tires that are noisy as hell......don't like that

oh yeah.....all the snow was shoveled away before i tried moving the car. especially around the rear wheels...

once i moved the car i could see tires were sitting on two blocks of ice

That's often the issue: when you park the warm tires actually create that ice. In really bad conditions those warm tires also create little cups which hold onto those tires.

You can help your grip by putting sand, salt or gravel on both sides of the rear tires and spin them a bit to get it worked under the tires.

The plate makes sense now.....apologies :D
I have had many different vehicles (both FWD and RWD) through many different winters and here are some of my favorite tires.
I have had 2 types of Brigestone Blizzaks (can't remember which model(s) exactly), and both were excellent. I also had a very in-expensive set of General tires as well and they were just as good, if not better than the Blizzaks!
I have also had Continental Winters and now the Michelin X-ice.....both leave me wishing I had one of the first two I mentioned. Just my opinion from my experience.
Have fun out there in the white stuff....going to be a long one.........

In my experience the Continental ExtremeWinter Contact is the best snow tire you can buy, better than any Bridgestone. Check this out:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=167

Note that the Conti outperformed the Michelin in every meaningful performance test except ice. Bear in mind that the ice test is done on a hockey rink so unless you drive a Zamboni.....

I've got Conti ExtremeWinter Contacts now.

Not bad - I just regret going down to 16s a little bit...

For everyone turning tration off, I would suggest simply toggling into sport mode if this is your first RWD car. It'll save you in the event something goes array but will give you that little bit of extra human control over the car for the drive home in the afterwork mess.

How so? This is what I drive on and aside from the hideous look of 16" steel wheels, this is a much better combo than a 17" option would be. Tire flex in winter is king.

Going down a size helps a little on ice but hurts a lot all of the rest of the time.

Not worth doing in my opinion but it is just opinion. Depends which is your priority.

A more important choice is studless rubber or performance winters.

What he said.
I guess the stock wheels and tires are just much more confidence-inspiring so it takes some adjustment.

I'm sure once we see some serious ice or snow, I'll appreciate it better - but for now, everytime I take a turn even a little bit faster, I'm reminded that these tires are nothing like the stockers.
Not a fan of the subpar wet/dry performance - which is why I'm considering going back to 17s next season if I find the 16s are overkill this winter.