Winter Driving?

[Suberman]

Originally Posted by 7thgear

no, i'm thinking of building a 3-or-2-piece enclosure to mimic the trunk floor using plywood and hardwood. Maybe 6-8 inches deep. Filling that with concrete and let settle, cover with plywood, and wrap the whole thing in felt once done.

removable, re-usable for future winters, and retain use of trunk.

At last, a concrete solution to an otherwise theoretical problem.

Might be pretty exciting in a crash...

[Suberman]

Originally Posted by 7thgear

yes, steep icy inclines will murder this car, unfortunetly... you'll need a bit of luck and momentum to get out of them

there are a few roads i avoid for this reason when the snow gets really bad.

i'm currently working on an aesthetics friendly trunk weighing option

Au contraire mon ami, weight transfer effects from driving uphill are similar to putting concrete in the trunk.

Driving downhill is far more difficult and dangerous, especially with extra weight in the trunk!

[Kfresh23]

Originally Posted by 7thgear

yes, steep icy inclines will murder this car, unfortunetly... you'll need a bit of luck and momentum to get out of them

there are a few roads i avoid for this reason when the snow gets really bad.

i'm currently working on an aesthetics friendly trunk weighing option

I put 4, 50lb sandbags in the trunk. They dont move around at ALL and I still retain a good amount of usable trunk space (for groceries etc).
Yesterday I drove up a VERY steep hill by my house that was complete ice. There were actually vehicles sliding down towards my car as I EASILY drove up it. I had no choice as I was already halfway up so I chose to just weave around the sliding cars. Also went past a truck with 4WD spinning out near the top.
This car just doesn't cease to amaze me in winter driving conditions. I would take it anywhere (and have!), without worry or concern. I would even promote it as the most fun, safest RWD sports car for winter driving!! Are there better ones out there??? Yes, but not RWD, or nearly as much fun!
Put some sand bags in the trunk and get out there! The gas mileage difference is very minimal.

[7thgear]

Originally Posted by Suberman

Au contraire mon ami, weight transfer effects from driving uphill are similar to putting concrete in the trunk.

Driving downhill is far more difficult and dangerous, especially with extra weight in the trunk!

if this was true, any uphill climb would settle the rear end by an inch.. would it not... mon fraire?

[PMPB]

Originally Posted by 7thgear

if this was true, any uphill climb would settle the rear end by an inch.. would it not... mon fraire?

I believe Subaru said that the vertical CG was about 18.1" above the ground...

See attached img

[7thgear]

neat!

now would be interesting to know aproximate suspensed weight of the chassis

[daiheadjai]

Originally Posted by Suberman

Au contraire mon ami, weight transfer effects from driving uphill are similar to putting concrete in the trunk.

Driving downhill is far more difficult and dangerous, especially with extra weight in the trunk!

I actually always wondered (googled but to no avail) - if I'm going up a steep icy hill, but my tail steps out and i begin to slide back..... what can be done to recover?
Or is it an inevitable conclusion that the car will swap ends or slide down sideways?

[HunterGreene]

Originally Posted by daiheadjai

I actually always wondered (googled but to no avail) - if I'm going up a steep icy hill, but my tail steps out and i begin to slide back..... what can be done to recover?
Or is it an inevitable conclusion that the car will swap ends or slide down sideways?

Not sure, but once you loose traction on an icy hill, the best you can hope for is that you don't hit anything on the way back down.

The best advice I can give on these kind of things I learned when I was but a wee lad: Keep your momentum uphill. Whatever you do, don't stop, and pray that the guy in front of you doesn't stop, or you 1) wont be able to get started again, or 2) slide back down the hill and cause a multi-car accident.

So, the other best option, if your nose is no longer pointed uphill, is to use physics to your advantage. Take the car out of gear and apply the parking brake. This locks up your rear wheels and allows your fronts to move. More friction being at the back now, your front will eventually swing downhill (can be assisted by steering to force it). Once your nose is pointed downhill again, you can release the parking break and attempt to navigate.

Granted, this is a thought experiment. Attempt at your own risk. Just seems to make sense to me!

[Suberman]

Originally Posted by daiheadjai

I actually always wondered (googled but to no avail) - if I'm going up a steep icy hill, but my tail steps out and i begin to slide back..... what can be done to recover?
Or is it an inevitable conclusion that the car will swap ends or slide down sideways?

Well, tail step out and sliding backwards are two different things. I do recall turning a Nissan Spec V Sentra with its Torsen and fwd (on high performance summer tires!) on a steep and narrow snowy driveway by setting the handbrake and goosing the gas to slide the front around to face downhill.

This don't work with rwd.

With TC fully on you won't experience this combination of slide sideways and backwards. The TC tricks the Torsen into biasing more torque to the wheel with grip. The secret is to ease the throttle to minimize the TC interference and give both rear tires a chance to grip.

One drawback of LSD including the Torsen torque bias diff is both rear wheels can spin simultaneously. This is both an advantage and presents a challenge.

[PMPB]

Originally Posted by daiheadjai

I actually always wondered (googled but to no avail) - if I'm going up a steep icy hill, but my tail steps out and i begin to slide back..... what can be done to recover?
Or is it an inevitable conclusion that the car will swap ends or slide down sideways?

The sliding friction of the tire is less than the static friction, as I'm sure you are aware. So if the drive tires start to slip and you've lost your forward momentum your main goal is to try to regain traction. Clutch in, and slowly brake to see if the car can be brought to a stop. (ABS doesn't really function on sheet ice).

If not, just turn the wheel the front end just swing around easily given the weight distribution, and the fact that car turn really well while going backwards!

[FR Sports]

Has anyone experienced difficulty engaging 2nd gear when it's really cold? Does changing the transmission oil help?

[daiheadjai]

Originally Posted by Suberman

Well, tail step out and sliding backwards are two different things. I do recall turning a Nissan Spec V Sentra with its Torsen and fwd (on high performance summer tires!) on a steep and narrow snowy driveway by setting the handbrake and goosing the gas to slide the front around to face downhill.

This don't work with rwd.

With TC fully on you won't experience this combination of slide sideways and backwards. The TC tricks the Torsen into biasing more torque to the wheel with grip. The secret is to ease the throttle to minimize the TC interference and give both rear tires a chance to grip.

One drawback of LSD including the Torsen torque bias diff is both rear wheels can spin simultaneously. This is both an advantage and presents a challenge.

Yeah, that was one of the first things I noticed in the FWD to RWD transition... Handbrake shenanigans don't happen the same way...

[Frost]

Originally Posted by daiheadjai

Yeah, that was one of the first things I noticed in the FWD to RWD transition... Handbrake shenanigans don't happen the same way...

Really? On my first RWD car (coming from a Corolla), my first impression RIGHT OFF the bat was "Wtf is that feeling... no more torque steer?".

Granted the Corolla wasn't THAT bad but the fact that my MR2 had none was hilarious! I had driven standard Imprezas before and even then felt some torque steer but the MR2... that was a super enlightening moment.

[J-Cam]

Originally Posted by FR Sports

Has anyone experienced difficulty engaging 2nd gear when it's really cold? Does changing the transmission oil help?

Yes I have experienced this as well. I find if I double clutch 2nd until its fully warmed up it eliminates any issue.