Got a 98 f150 here, with allseason tires on it.
No problem with about 500# of sandbag ballast over the rear axle.
The ground clearance makes the f150 a better rwd vehicle in the snow than a car.
My girlfriend has a shitty 00 neon, that thing gets stuck every single time, its so low to the ground that the frame gets stuck on the snow.
Two words… POLICE CARS.
Crown Vics and Caprices. And those are cars that have to be on the road 24/7/365, regardless of weather.
You need the right tires and you need to understand that rwd will oversteer with throttle. There is no doubt FWD is easier and more idiot proof in the snow, but if you are anywhere above incompentent when it comes to driving skill you can drive a RWD vehicle in the snow.
Or, to put it another way, if you’re one of those street racers who is constantly posting about how hard street racing is how much skill it takes, and how you constantly miss shifts etc stick with FWD.
the weight over the rear axel will help somewhat with traction, but the added weight will cause more spinouts. if youre going to add weight, put it in the backseat.
Like Bad News Mini said…most Lexus’s are RWD…and the drivers of them are inexperienced doctors and lawyers who don’t understand vehicle dynamics for shit. They get by fine, with snow tires. Lexus has a HUGE storage area saved, so Lexus owners can store there snow tires over summer, for free. Snow tires and RWD will make you golden. Don’t be afraid. Hell, as for adding weight…I’ve gotta add weight to my FWD NEON, cause the rear end is very light. I don’t think the drive of a vehicle matters as much.
Exactly, it’s a bit odd at first because it’s a bit reversed in the snow compaired to FWD
(Ex. Throttle = oversteer)
But once you understand what you can/can’t do with it it’s not bad at all. Just takes some getting used to. Personally I enjoy RWD/AWD in the snow over FWD.
atleast someone else pointed that out
exactly correct, they shoudl all behave about the same with a somewhat competent driver, plus when you do what to haev some responsible fun RWD>*
i think my spinouts were caused by driving around corners while on throttle to much, i hit some ice out of no where and once you lose it completely its alot harder to get the car to stop than if the brakes locked up while the car is going straight. even though i had snows on the rear, they were wintermark magnagrips (shittiest snows made) i think with some dunlop graspics on a car[all 4] ( good performance to cost ratio) it would be no problem to have a fun rwd car in the snow
i use my 300ZX in the winter - its fine, buy it off me for a lot of money.
then you could buy some new boots
:tup: I bought these for my Saturn last year. Very good snow tires…from my view. I’d buy them again. They are even good in mud/dirt. Yes, I would know.
So its better to be decelerating, coasting, or at least very light with the throttle through corners on ice/snow with rwd to prevent spinning out?
I’m reassured with the overall response, I think with good snow tires and a bit of practice I’ll be fine.
I am looking at 240sx S13 fastbacks, love the look.
get GOOD tires and rwd is way way way better… plus you wont ever stay in on snowy nights.
learning to drive rwd in slippery conditions will make you such a better driver.
heck, last week i was driving in bad weather and i dont have great tires on my 240 beater, i took my eyes off the road to put a pair of gloves on for just a second and i ended up at a 45 degree angle at 50kph on a street with ditches on both sides… i freaked the hell out of a dude in oncoming traffic in a BELL service truck…
however… a couple flicks of the wheel and throttle and a few more fishtails later just so i could enjoy it and i was back on my way.
if i hadnt had so much experience or if i was in a fwd car i would have ditched it and be looking for a new beater right now… i would have been late for work too.
I was thinking the same thing… I can oversteer the hell out of my neon with the ebrake. even on cold wet pavement…
controlable winter driving always depends on the tires used. and the weight distribution of the drive tires. I4 FWD cars with skinny front tires are much safer IMO than a awd top heavy suv.
You consider that better driving?
The better driver would have been paying attention to the road and maintained poitive control of the vehicle at all times, and not ended up in the situation in the first place.
I used to have a 2WD Ranger in high school and it worked great in the winter.
A couple hundred pounds in the back and a set of snows and it drove great.