winter driving

[gily25]

Originally Posted by mediumbrown

Aside from winter tires don't forget to load your trunk with some road salt, it'll add weight to the rear and be readily available in case of emergencies! (dual purpose vs sandbags)

Sandbags and recovery goodies are a must and there's plenty of room in that trunk, figure you won't worry about weight cause you can't go very fast anyhow. Used mine to pick up mulch and soil the other day; I'd recommend the Impreza trunk liner to catch any lost sand.

I might take her out a bit in winter but I kept my Jeep so I wouldn't have to do it daily. I would advise anyone new to this size car in the snow to hit a parking lot and try your skill (during an early snow) before hitting the road.

[execoll]

Same as above only in Mississippi, summer = melting, winter = not so melting.

Snow? That white fluffy stuff that falls when its cold? Never seen it but I have heard it does actually exist.

[Laika]

I was completely determined to drive this car in the snow/year round but now with the situation I'm in...I have a backup car so I think I'll just keep my BRZ parked and covered up in the winter time.

[Shagaliscious]

I am going with the Blizzaks, still not sure if it'll be the WS70s or LM-60s. Winters aren't bad here in PA, but with a RWD car I feel like maybe I should just play it safe and get the WS70s. I have yet to drive a RWD car in the snow.

[whateatsrabbits]

Im DD'ing mine 2 and Like most of you Im going to need some snow tires. We should try and get a group buy going, like 4 snows on steelies. because I dont want to spend much. Also need to find the smallest steel wheel that fits the car. Smaller wheels = cheaper and cheaper tires.

[Chuynh207]

I remember the blizzard we had last October. I drove around in my STi afterwards, with the stock summer tires on. It was no biggie lol.

I convinced myself, and after looking at multiple reviews, will be buying the General Altimax Artic tires for this winter. I'll be driving very conservatively, so if I still end up crashing or losing traction quite a bit, I'll post up a warning.

[Areddi]

Originally Posted by whateatsrabbits

Im DD'ing mine 2 and Like most of you Im going to need some snow tires. We should try and get a group buy going, like 4 snows on steelies. because I dont want to spend much. Also need to find the smallest steel wheel that fits the car. Smaller wheels = cheaper and cheaper tires.

I would be interested to hear what the smallest wheel that fits is as well.

[DaJo]

Originally Posted by whateatsrabbits

Im DD'ing mine 2 and Like most of you Im going to need some snow tires. We should try and get a group buy going, like 4 snows on steelies. because I dont want to spend much. Also need to find the smallest steel wheel that fits the car. Smaller wheels = cheaper and cheaper tires.

For snow tires, you would actually need to spend the most, please don't cheap out... Most people overlook how important the tires actually are when it comes to slippery road conditions. Tires are the ONLY thing that keeps you gripping to the ground in control, and not to mention it's the only thing that is inbetween the road surface and the vehicle itself. Even AWD vehicles need the right tires, the AWD system is only as good as the tires themselves. If the tires are bald/summers, all 4 wheels will slip regardless.

[2gnt2wrx]

I'm going to buy some used 07 wrx wheels and yokahama w drive tires for this winter. I hope my choce works for the upcoming southern WI winter.

[Bristecom]

Originally Posted by Chuynh207

Last winter was a joke. I hope this winter will be the same, so that way I can look at all my friends who told me "New England winters are horrible!" and be like "You lied, it ain't s**t out here!!!"

In all seriousness, I had Michelin Pilot PA3s on my STi and it worked wonders. Not sure how it'll be in a RWD car, but probably going to get the same tires again (except in 17s now)

Yeah, I have Michelin Pilot Alpin PA3's on my Eclipse GSX and my dad's Evo X MR for winter. They are very good all around tires but the only problem is that they flex a lot more and don't have as much grip when warm/hot.

But I would definitely recommend winter tires for rear wheel drive. All seasons just don't cut it for snow in my opinion. But if you live somewhere that just gets really cold but rarely sees snow, you may be OK with all seasons.

This is a dilemma for me too. At the moment, I plan to just keep my Eclipse GSX with the winter tires for snow days. But it may be too much of a hassle to keep two cars around like that. So if I sell my Eclipse, I would buy some nice wheels and put some Pilot Super Sports on them and then put some Pilot Alpins on the stock wheels for winters. That would cost like $2500 though...

Oh well, I have about a year to think about it.

[No Quarter]

Originally Posted by 2gnt2wrx

I'm going to buy some used 07 wrx wheels and yokahama w drive tires for this winter. I hope my choce works for the upcoming southern WI winter.

This is what I am thinking also. I have some relatively new 16" Blizzaks that were on my CRZ. I was hoping some stock wrx 16" will fit the FR-S. Does anyone know for sure if they will fit with clearance over the calipers and proper offset??? Any input would be appreciated!

[wheelhaus]

My BRZ will be a year 'round driver in Colorado. Fortunately enough, Denver doesn't get as much snow as people presume. The snow that does accumulate is either packed quickly and/or plowed within hours. Every few years we get a huge dump that causes issues, but it's rare.

I've used Dunlop Wintersport 3D's in the past, and they worked great in the snow, but still managed to maintain decent dry/warm grip and response without feeling too mushy or soft like most snow tires do when the temp rises. I've had them on several cars, including my Evo IX and WRX. Using them for 5-6 months each season, they would last 4-5 years easy.

[whtchocla7e]

Do we need to have something re-calibrated when putting smaller/larger wheels on the car?

[roddy]

Originally Posted by whtchocla7e

Do we need to have something re-calibrated when putting smaller/larger wheels on the car?

As long as the outside diameter (or rotations per mile) of the tires are the same or very close...no. A different diameter will cause your speedometer to be off a bit, but will not likely cause any major issues.