mmmmkayyy. Mad, mad drift session, doughnuts and all, in the ski area parkinglot.
In a p30 chassis 27' class a RV.
mmmmkayyy. Mad, mad drift session, doughnuts and all, in the ski area parkinglot.
In a p30 chassis 27' class a RV.
In reply to Giant Purple Snorklewacker:
But did she come visit you in the middle of the night? 
Grew up in the snow here, driving a RWD Olds on all-seasons. Spent a lot of time sideways.
Snow survival stories...
I did drive over Donner pass in the Targa Miata five years ago. It was in four cylinder guise at the time, but it had no heater or sound insulation. Well-worn RA1s, rally suspension set for track work (I was on the way home from Laguna Seca) snow on the side of the road and in surprising places, and it was dark. No cell phone, driving solo with ear protection. Pretty hard core, but unplanned.
I also drove another Miata over Vail pass in a fairly significant snowstorm on some worn Toyo T1Rs. I had enough traction to maintain speed, nothing more. Not part of the original plan. Come to think of it, that same car (on the same tires) got caught in a snowstorm on Monarch pass (much steeper and twistier) on the way home from a track day a year or two earlier.
Smart? No. But sometimes you do what you have to do.
The only time I've actually managed to get stuck in the winter was when I was sleeping up in the National Forest near Telluride and it snowed overnight. I drove off the road on my way out because, well, you couldn't tell where it was. This was in a Subaru with snow tires, but traction wasn't an issue - although it sure was easier to get out of the ditch after a bit of digging thanks to having more traction available.
I had to abandon the 4th gen Camaro at work once because it couldn't get its lardy ass out of the parking lot on fat, worn summer tires. Wasn't stuck, just trapped.
If I KNOW I'm going into snow, I'm in the Grand Cherokee with snow tires. Or maybe the VW Westfalia, also on good snow tires. I like to equip myself with the best tools for the job given the choice. Driving in the snow on the wrong equipment is a sign of bad planning.
A few days ago, the 225 Toyo R1Rs came off the turbo Miata and were replaced with 175 Hakks. Because it's a whole lot more fun that way. Although the AWD GTX on snow tires was even better.
A single axle bobtail truck does really tight doughnuts. Pop the parking brake at speed to initiate the hooliganism.
My win was during the ice storm apocalypse of '03 my entire region shut itself down (Kentuckians struggle with slippery roads) the morning everything was going to hell I was working at the hospital and just drove on in (2wd explorer sport on Michelin LTXs). Only after I got there did I discover how bad everyone thought the roads were and less than 30% of the staff showed up to work.
My lose was in my '91 eclipse on Goodyear Eagles (maybe a year old, only new car I've ever owned) zooming around a cloverleaf in the winter I discovered that black ice bites, HARD. I slid into the guardrail pretty hard and do $2500 worth of body damage to my baby.
Austin Mini, 10 by 4.5 inch bald Canadian tire bias ply cheapos and a box of coils because Lucas. As long as you never had to stop and didn't snow surf too much and even then you could lift or push out. Oh yeah a really long insulated screwdriver to bridge the starter solenoid. I did that for two winters then I bought snows for the front and I was a winter god.
irish44j wrote: It's winter. Youtube is rife with vids of Joe Blow in his M3 on snow tires pulling away from some poor schmuck in his WRX with bald summer tires. Nobody will admit that they drive an AWD car with deep-tread winter tires - because that's pretty boring, right? But everyone will freely tell of how they dominated "the Blizzard of XX Year" in their 240SX wearing corded Hoosiers, with a broken heater, no weight in the back, all while wearing shorts, a t-shirt, and flip flops. Because we all know we're "just that awesome"So let's have it out, right here, right now and pre-empt the snow-driving arguments for the next three months. Who is the true winter-driving God here? GO. I'll start: e30 on star specs. I totally owned my cul-de-sac.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDSTVuek6KU&list=UUZDzORFSilgFFHMqcT8uyIA
LOL … screw that … I had Kelly SnowTrackers on my winter beater Impreza … that car was so I could get around in the snow … not play in it
but I will post this video (enjoy)
http://www.racer.com/videos/item/112140-nurburgring-nordschleife-on-board-in-the-snow
EvanR wrote: I call bad tires, and I'd bet a nickle they were Michelins. The problem with Michelins back then is that the tread would never wear down, so they *looked* good, but when they got old, they were hard as rocks. Volvos were meant for snow. They have a lot of snow in Sweden, you see. I made it through many a Michigan winter with RWD Volvos and Scandinavian-made snow tires, like Nokias, Gislaveds, etc. I pulled a lot of SUVs out of the ditch back then.
I'm sure you're right. I know there was only a few months left on the lease when winter hit, so buying new tires wouldn't have been a financially great idea. It had sort of a tricky clutch also, which made starting without wheelspin hard sometimes (even on dry pavement).
Drove my Mustang through all the snow/ice storms we've had in Michigan this year on the stock summer PZeros (2/32" of tread). Oh yeah, my town doesn't plow, ever, they just let it melt and I have a 90 mile commute. Summer tires are perfectly fine if you're comfortable being sideways the entire time and doing a 720 spin taking an off camber corner in a parking lot at 5mph! You just have to be creative.
When I got home the other day, the car wouldn't stay in my iced over driveway with the parkin brake on, it would just slide down into the street.
irish44j wrote: I sit there and watch a guy in a yellow 350z who has it absolutely floored trying to get up this hill. I watch for about 5 minutes. He never lifts. He is moving at about 1mph. He finally gets to the top where it flattens out and lets off as if he's exhausted from the effort. It was truly impressive that he got up the hill. Even with AWD and wintersports it was pretty damn slippery for me.
THIS.. don't lift. If you keep you're foot in it you stand a much better chance of making it through.
It's a winter night in 1979 and I'm in my clapped out Datsun 510. It's freezing rain so hard, the defroster is giving me a 8" hole in the ice and even my Cibie e-codes are iced over. My girlfriend and I are driving through this crap to go to a friend's wedding across the state the next day. I figured I could make it since I was an awesome driver and my car was wearing fancy Metzler Magnet winter tires with awesome blue tread.
Turns out neither were true. A gust of wind was all it took. Blew the car off the road into a 20' deep dredge cut. It dropped in square, landing in about 2' of water and ice. The girlfriend was fine, I hit the wheel with the bridge of my nose, neatly breaking it. The first wrecker that showed up couldn't get it out - it just slid on the ice. They had to bring out a second wrecker and chained it to the first one.
Fortunately, the awesome purple and black shiners I had in both eyes went really nicely with the tux I had to wear at the wedding...
The daily driver / STS car in winter mode...
The answer is always MIATA!
Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Um... I grew up driving in snow. I like it. I have done many retarded things. Some turned out really poorly. Some were so awesome, I can't even believe it. Mostly, it happens and I just deal with it using the best equipment I have at the time. Is that what we were going for here?
Same here.
My only amusing "caught out with the wrong car/tires" story was a pre-run near Jim Thorpe, PA I did a number of years ago for one of my ex's runs with our old MINI club. For some reason, she couldn't do the drive to remind co-leaders of the route, so I led the pre-run in her car - a '03 MCS shod with Goodyear GSD3 summer tires. After the run, I went to a friend's house for some dinner and afterwards, found the car and street covered in +1" of snow/slush. She lives on a hill and it's a steep descent to the main road to get out. I expected to slide around a lot, but it didn't turn out too bad. Made it back to her house in NJ without incident.
Sanchinguy wrote: I figured I could make it since I was an awesome driver and my car was wearing fancy Metzler Magnet winter tires with awesome blue tread.
I've never heard of those tires, but suddenly I really want snow tires with awesome blue tread :)
Apexcarver wrote:
psh, the answer is always e30, as proven by your choice of wheels
Grew up in Maine and my first car was an F150, 2wd. Good learner, that.
The GVR4 with all seasons what darn near unstoppable in the winter. When it got really deep I fitted the rally tires for extra ride height and bite.
The FD once got stuck in a flat parking lot with just a light dusting.
The GTO does okay with proper snow tires but even in dry conditions you have to be conservative with the throttle with them on :)
My first car was a 74 Camaro. On worn out all seasons. Got my license in January, in Michigan. That winter was an equal mixture of driving heroics and using my dad's 9N with chains and a plow to go "de-snowbank" it from my latest driving failure. I learned how to drive in the snow, though.
Oh since we're sharing our worst... I had just moved to Virginia, about a dozen years ago now. There was a snow storm and we got about a foot of new snow. I decided to take the GVR4 out for some fun with my now g/f. It was night, roads were abandoned.
Did the usual parking lot donuts, drifting through turns, etc. Came back home, making the right hander into the development I had just moved into. Spot 4 unplowed lanes of perfect powder and set up a fast drift using up all available real-estate.
Halfway through my perfect drift, there was a Galant-shattering crunch as I hit the hidden median I didn't know about under the snow. The resulting devastation included two broken wheels (folded right up under the car), broken axle, the steering knuckle broke off at the strut mount, bent strut, bent front and rear subframes, control arms, etc.
Took a bit to fix the car. My pride, a bit longer. SWMBO is still with me after that, and still trusts my driving. Another reason she's a keeper!
I'm from Minnesota. I win by default. /thread.
Not terribly spectacular compared to some. I think it was around 2009 when Atlanta got hit by a surprise snowstorm while at work. At the time, I had an '86 Corvette on all season tires that were almost completely bald. Just drove it home very carefully and slowly. There was about 3" of snow on the roads by the time I made it home.
In reply to Giant Purple Snorklewacker:
And here I was thinking the girl's name was Snowbanks until the last sentence or two.
I drive my cars in the snow on ALL-SEASONS.
Oh, the humanity.
I worked as a lot boy for a local Ferd dealer when I was a lot younger. Whatever craptastic "performance" tires came on Mustang GT's back then made them absolutely useless and terrifying in any kind of snowy conditions and I always giggled at the mooks who that the all season rating meant they could actually be safely used in the winter. Worst though was having to drive an early 90s, F350 crew cab, 2wd truck from Red Deer to Edmonton on hwy 2, distance of ~150km, in a snowstorm with whatever fleet spec all seasons on it. I have never been more sideways, scared and doubtful that I will make it home than in that thing, never had I seen a vehicle with such a penchant to get sideways and then neither have the traction or steering speed to hold/control said slide. I was 19 and after the about 4 hour drive, normally take a bit over an hour, I was drained, physically and mentally.
Keith Tanner wrote: Grew up in the snow here, driving a RWD Olds on all-seasons. Spent a lot of time sideways. Snow survival stories... I did drive over Donner pass in the Targa Miata five years ago. It was in four cylinder guise at the time, but it had no heater or sound insulation. Well-worn RA1s, rally suspension set for track work (I was on the way home from Laguna Seca) snow on the side of the road and in surprising places, and it was dark. No cell phone, driving solo with ear protection. Pretty hard core, but unplanned. I also drove another Miata over Vail pass in a fairly significant snowstorm on some worn Toyo T1Rs. I had enough traction to maintain speed, nothing more. Not part of the original plan. Come to think of it, that same car (on the same tires) got caught in a snowstorm on Monarch pass (much steeper and twistier) on the way home from a track day a year or two earlier. Smart? No. But sometimes you do what you have to do. The only time I've actually managed to get stuck in the winter was when I was sleeping up in the National Forest near Telluride and it snowed overnight. I drove off the road on my way out because, well, you couldn't tell where it was. This was in a Subaru with snow tires, but traction wasn't an issue - although it sure was easier to get out of the ditch after a bit of digging thanks to having more traction available. I had to abandon the 4th gen Camaro at work once because it couldn't get its lardy ass out of the parking lot on fat, worn summer tires. Wasn't stuck, just trapped. If I KNOW I'm going into snow, I'm in the Grand Cherokee with snow tires. Or maybe the VW Westfalia, also on good snow tires. I like to equip myself with the best tools for the job given the choice. Driving in the snow on the wrong equipment is a sign of bad planning. A few days ago, the 225 Toyo R1Rs came off the turbo Miata and were replaced with 175 Hakks. Because it's a whole lot more fun that way. Although the AWD GTX on snow tires was even better.
Yeah, I'm not proud of this:
I grew up in the snowy lower Adirondacks. Learned to drive before there were "snow tires". Worst thing I ever happened was with my 2002 Liberty. I was driving on bare roads, in two wheel drive. Then I hit a patch of wet snow in a shaded section on a slight curve. Rear end got loose. No counter steering helped. White knuckle time to avoid going off the road. It still had the stock Goodyear tires. , SRA I think. When I got home I ordered a set of snow tires. Now, after driving on winter tires for quite a few years, I will never go back. Note: For those that have a problem with traction control and stability control, Add four winter tires. Helps a lot.
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