4x4 For Snow + Ice

peasant

Satts wrote: »

I think I would feel safer in an AWD car or a pemanent 4x4, but I don't want a big monster.

Other than the obvious SUV's / offroaders this would leave:
Fiat Panda 4x4, Fiat Sedici, any Subaru, Audi quattro

There also would be AWD versions of other cars (Renault Kangoo Trekka, Mercedes 4matic, VW 4-motion and the odd Japanese import) but they'd be rare and hard to find here.

Satts

thethedev wrote: »

A bit of a wild notion, but how about picking up an older wee suzuki of some sort and holding onto it in case of emergencys?
Cheap tax and insurance.

Yes, this has crossed my mind. Maybe buy something and just tax it for 3 months of the year.

JohnBoy

my thoughts.

tyres, tyres, tyres.

get a set of proper winter tyres, consider ice/snow tyres even, ideally get a spare set of rims from a breaker, order some snow tyres online and get them fitted locally and then come the spring just swap back to your regular tyres. it's the done thing in many countries around the world, and when you factor in that you're not wearing out your summer tyres over the winter they shouldnt actually even cost that much extra.


get something with full time 4wd. in mixed conditions, which we get a share of here, it's a bit of a dose swapping in and out of 4wd every time things get iffy. (for fear of damaging the transfer box)

it's nice to know you're in 4wd in case there's ice just around that bend.



I was in 2wd cos there was no ice on the road outside my house. sadly there was sheet ice a few hundred yards down the road. being in 4wd would most likely have prevented this from happening




(and yes, before someone points out, driving slower, not changing gear just when I did, leaving earlier, are all other factors that would have probably helped too)

JohnBoy

For what it's worth, this is my suggestion.

this:
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201001349779144/sort/priceasc/usedcars/make/skoda/fuel-type/diesel/page/1/keywords/4x4/postcode/bt487nn/radius/1500?previous=/search/results/usedcars/postcode/bt487nn/radius/1500/make/skoda/keywords/4x4/fuel-type/diesel/page/1/sort/priceasc&logcode=p

plus

http://www.camskill.co.uk/products.php?plid=m11b0s703p5859

or similar, should make for a pretty decent compromise

E39MSport

IMO nothing except specialist (studded etc) tyres grip on ice. I lost control twice on ice in my cruiser running BFG KO's. OH lost it in a starlet on the same piece of road.

the mucker

thethedev wrote: »

Here in the highlands of Scotland Subarus are king.
Tough reliable cars and well able to handle all but the deepest snow.
:P

Would agree with this
Full time four wheel drive excellent road manners The outback is probably the one to go for. Petrol legacy/outbacks are getting cheap because of the thirst and high tax on 2.5l models.

Newer diesels from 08 on are hard to find and still pricey. Drove one last year and fell in love. No low ratio gearbox any more though.

KoNiT

ye scoobie.. I know it's sliiiightly out of the OP's financial range but..

http://www.videosift.com/video/The-world-s-fastest-snowcat-A-Subaru-Impreza-WRX-STI-one

:eek:

adamaca

I think any 4x4 with serious tyres will do the job you want.

Something to bear in mind is that all 4wd does is give you traction, that is to say it only has advantages when your foot is on the throttle.
Its not gonna do anything when your foot is on the middle peddle.
So if you go into a bend and suddenly hit black ice your going into the ditch period.:eek:
Similarily if your driving on snow and a car pulls out in front of you or you brake too late for a corner its not going to help. Remember all cars have 4 wheel brakes!
The best thing for grip and stopping power in bad conditions in fact any conditions is good tyres.

If the vehicle is only going to be used on road then as I said at the top any 4wd with serious tyres will do the job.

So my advice would be choose somrhting with 4wd that best suits your needs the other 350days of the year, and keep a set of snow tyres on rims in the garage.

peasant

adamaca wrote: »

Something to bear in mind is that all 4wd does is give you traction, that is to say it only has advantages when your foot is on the throttle.
Its not gonna do anything when your foot is on the middle peddle.

Just to be a stickler here ...

As long as you drive with some foresight and slow down instead of using the brakes, an AWD vehicle also has double the grip on slowing as it has on accelerating.

(This is where the low gearbox can come in handy. On a really steep, icy hill you put it in first low and just ease it down on its own momentum, never touching the brakes.)

Deer Hunter DL

the best thing for snow and ice is a light car with good snow tyres

JohnBoy

E39MSport wrote: »

IMO nothing except specialist (studded etc) tyres grip on ice. I lost control twice on ice in my cruiser running BFG KO's. OH lost it in a starlet on the same piece of road.

snow/ice/winter tyres, the non studded ones, will grip far more on ice than regular summer tyres that we all run here in ireland.

life goes on in icy countries all over the world thanks to these types of tyres, they're made from much softer compounds than summer tyres and contain far higher levels of silica.

Satts

JohnBoy wrote: »

snow/ice/winter tyres, the non studded ones, will grip far more on ice than regular summer tyres that we all run here in ireland.
life goes on in icy countries all over the world thanks to these types of tyres, they're made from much softer compounds than summer tyres and contain far higher levels of silica.

I rang a couple of local tyre dealers today to ask about winter tyres.
The response was that they only sell tyres for Irish conditions,
I asked where have you been for the last six weeks ? They just started laughing. Would probably have to buy them online and get them fitted locally.

It looks easy enough to get snow chains online, but very hard to get studded tyres. I know this sounds extreme but I'm looking at all options so we have a good chance of getting to the hospital if we need to.

I know studded tyres sounds extreme but if you traveled up and down the steep icy hills I travel, in first gear(going down hill) with no excellerator and you still skid, an AWD car with studded tyres sounds like heaven.
Also, I work 12 hour shifts, going to work at 7-7.30am and coming home 8-8.30pm, with a good chance of being below zero at both these times.

JohnBoy

Oh yeah, I'd be highly surprised if anyone in ireland had winter tyres available.

we drive on what the rest of the world calls summer tyres, not even all seasons.

the likes of camskill and eiretyres will have winter or snow tyres with reasonable delivery charges.

http://www.camskill.co.uk/products.php?plid=m11b0s0p0

studded tyres are for compacted snow and long term ice only, they're illegal afaik in ireland anyway. snow/ice tyres, with a set of snowchains in the boot for worst case scenarios would see you well covered I'd imagine. anything beyond that and you may as well get a snowmobile

101sean

I think you'll finded studded tyres are illegal here.

On the tyre front, my sister had some new tyres on her car recently and got some Firestones with a softer compound and more grooves/sipes, while not a winter tyre they are better than the usual motorway biased semi slick tyre. This was from a small country tyre place that can beat all the main chains on price.

CJhaughey

Studded tyres are not illegal here.
There was a guy working for the NCT who made an inquiry about them as they were fitted to a car and the upshot was they are legal according the DOT.

Deer Hunter DL

i put a set of remould snow tyres on my car for the snow they only cost 25 euro each fitted , no studs in them just normal snow tyres they are great i can go almost everywhere my landrover can go in the snow , the only thing stopped the car was the snow up the the front bumper