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Snow driving - RRS td6-

4K views 17 replies 9 participants last post by  pl626 
#1 ·
I live in the Washington DC area and we have had 24+ inches and more to come overnight. I live on a country road that will not be plowed for a few days. I am an off road newbie - no real experience. Any recommendations? I am assuming that raising rhe suspension to high and switching the transmission to snow/gravel/grass is the best course and would appreciate any coaching.
 
#2 ·
In 24 inches of snow no setting or height is going to do any good. You would be pushing snow with your grillwork. You most likely are not outfitted with proper snow tyres anyway. Stay put and stay safe.
 
#3 ·
^^x2. I'm in McLean and we have that much or more, thanks to wind. I have been out and I can tell you there is no reason to come out right now. Stay home and let the road crews do their work. Too many fools on the road are just getting in the way.


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#4 ·
I've lived in the Rocky Mountains for Several years now and driven through blizzards far worse, including as they were happening on 10,000ft mountain passes. The best advice I can give you is this. 1) Snow tires. Your RR will be no better than a Honda CRV without snow tires. 2) Take it slow. Leave lots of room and plenty of time for all movements. MOST important thing is to stop early with at least 3-4 car lengths between you and the car in front of you at each stoplight. That way when the fool behind you breaks to late and slides on the ice, you have plenty of room to quickly pull forward and get out of the way. I've been rear ended in snow before and the people usually didn't have insurance :/ 3) Get chains if at all possible. 4) If you do start sliding don't make any sudden movements, go light on the steering wheel and let go of the gas and DO NOT jam the brakes! You've already lost grip and any of those movements won't do anything except make it harder for the tires to regain grip. Let the tires use their engineering and design to regain grip as they were designed to. Hope all this helps!
 
#5 ·
There is a huge difference between driving mountain passes and trying to make out onto a street with 2 feet of snow that has yet to be plowed. All of your points are valid once you are on a an open road... but you have to get there first. :thumb:
 
#8 ·
Use your engine to brake not your foot. Downshift to 3rd or 2nd on downhill slopes or if you want to slow down.


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#9 · (Edited by Moderator)
key is to make slow movements. accelerate slow and brake slow. when going up a snow covered hill, try to use momentum then apply steady throttle the rest of the way.

of course put it into snow mode, but the car will figure that out even if you forget. yes raise the suspension to be safe.

good luck. the stock tires really are crap in the snow.
 
#10 ·
Thanks for all the responses! I guess I should not be surprised that even the standard, non performance tires are not good for snow. Set of snow tires means four other wheels, storage, etc - sounds great for locations that get consistent, substantial snow. DC area, not so sure. All we do here is panic and clean out our supermarkets. :)
 
#11 · (Edited by Moderator)
Hey Dog---I am going to get a set of OEM 20s with some Nokians for next year. Not sure if you use your RRS as a daily driver here in DC, but having a set for December to March is worth it in my opinion. I'll likely go this route next year and ditch our Lexus snow-beater. The area around River Road was crazy last night. There was a couple Jeep Wranger drivers out who got stuck and blocked the plow trucks.

Please don't take what I said the wrong way in my post above---I'd hate to have a neighbor get hurt out on these nasty roads. I know I went off-topic a bit and didn't answer the question you asked. All the snow shovelling affected my brain:)

Shoot me a PM and we'll meet-up for coffee sometime in the area. We can share info on the local shops.
 
#14 ·
1. Go to refrigerator and get several ice cubes,
2. drop into nice crystal glass,
3. Pour over ice copious quantities of a quality whiskey of your choice,
4. Sit in comfy chair near heater,
5. Enjoy.
6. Repeat - until desire to leave nice warm house subsides.
 
#17 ·
It should be mentioned that if you look at the science, winter tires are actually intended for more than just winter driving. Many summer performance tires will even say not to use in temps below 45 degrees (some even higher). Even decent all seasons, the rubber can really firm up in cold temps and loosen grip. Winter tires are designed to cope with the lower temps including reduced road noise, better handling, better wet performance and yes of course snow as well. When I was in Luxembourg it was the law that starting in October EVERY vehicle required winter tires. After 4 years of winter tires, I've become somewhat of an evangelist haha
 
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