winter tires and never drove rwd.

im89

i have an altima coupe im planning to trade it in..i want to trade it in at the end of december but if i get the z i would have to put winter tires on it. I just want to know how big a differences is driving a rwd car with snow tires than a fwd with all season. I never drove a rwd car before. I just dont want to buy the car and the snow tires and still be stuck with a car that i couldnt drive. Don't know if it makes a difference but I will be getting. 7 speed auto. (live in ozone park new york)

spearfish25

The car drives very well in the winter with snow tires. Keep VDC on for safety, drive responsibly and slowly when indicated (like when it's snowing), and you'll be a-OK. The only limiting factor might be ground clearance for deep snow on unplowed roads. However, I never had any problems and we got 50" of snow in Chicago during Dec and Jan last year.

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2013 Cadillac V-Wagon, RIP Z

im89

thanks...is there any reason majority of the people i ask say its a bad idea?(except tire rack and this forum) They make it seem like driving a rwd car is snow is crazy. Some people that had rwd cars said there cars did 360's in snow or it just get stuck. Is it the vdc or the traction control that helps?

nogoodname

Keep the revs low and no hard accelerations... Should be fine.

Jeffblue

the only thing more risky about rwd in snow vs FWD is turning whilst under power and sudden acelleration. Stopping a RWD is the same as stopping FWD or AWD. Stopping a RWD car with snow tires in snow is going to be easier than to stop a FWD car with all seasons.

i plan to drive my Z this winter with snow tires (dunlop wintersport m3's) on the stock 18s. However, if iwas you i'd try and wait until after winter to get the Z. just b/c its not a very fun time to enjoy a new sports car. but you gotta do what you want to do. if i was you i'd probably end up just getting it asap but yea, with snows on the stock 18's you'll be fine.

ChrisSlicks

With snow tires on the Z you will out brake and out handle the Altima with all seasons in snowy conditions. FWD's are easier to drive because you can mash the gas pedal at any time and not get into trouble but in reality are inferior to RWD cars in snowy conditions because you can only steer the car with one end. With RWD cars you can steer the car with both ends by modulating the throttle input. It will take a bit of practice if you've never done it before so try and find some quiet spots to practice before you have to deal with traffic. The VDC should keep the car going straight most of the time and will limit wheel spin.

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Jeffblue

i agree don't listen to chris. he drives with slicks all winter.

im89

ok so once i have vdc on, traction control, and snow tires i should be good. i dont know how much time im actually going to have to practice because when it snows i have to go to work. in terms of rust and maintenance to part what do you guys do after it snows? just give your car a wash?

Jeffblue

go to one of those car washes that are DIY, and hose down the underside of yoru car and all the suspension etc. When you pickup the car, see if you can get the dealer to 'winterize' it, maybe they spray some BS magic spray on the bottom that helps prevent corrosion. probably does nothing but its worth asking about. i understand that some people never want their cars to see rain or snow. but the reality is that these cars arent' just going to fall apart if they get wet, cold, muddy, or covered in salt. As long as you keep it clean every week or so, you should be ok. you know how many beaters there are out there, driven all winter, all year, that haven't been washed in years? and they run just fine. don't worry about it too much

chiblk370z

RWD is not a huge issue in snow. If it was, cops wouldn't drive Crown Vics.

Just drive smart and get some decent snow tires.

crash1369

Well this is a rude awakening, never drove a rear wheel drive car... For SHAME!

As long as you are confident in your driving ability you will be fine, you are on the right track in getting snow tires. Common sense will be your saving grace and if you think the weather is to bad or your not comfortable just stay home and wait it out. realistically the weather isn't really ever that bad out there, the bigger issue is just the tight spaces in NY more then anything. Personally I absolutely hate front wheel drive, Especially in the snow. Most people will tell you you're a fool becuase they don't know any better they just regurgitate the same misinformation other uninformed people tell them. Up until very recently everyone drove rear wheel drive cars all the time, and the majority of people still do. Some don't even realize it Most people don't ever turn their four wheel drive on, so their driving rear wheel drive and trucks are generally worse since they don't usually have much weight over the back wheels.

I would suggest the "Performance" snow tire category, since most of the time there won't be any snow anyway and then you can at least retain most of the Z's superior handling characteristics and enjoy your car a bit more.
As mentioned find an open area and practice! Turn off the VDC and just slide that bitch around for awhile so you know what to expect and can learn to control it. With the VDC on you won't have much to worry about but where FWD will just slide off the road a RWD car will want to spind around if you were to loose traction, but again that is what VDC is there to help prevent.

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im89

I know it's a damn shame...hopefully that will change. I thought about all of this and thought to myself there has to be a way. But it's kind of discouraging when you speak to people you know personally an they tell you they wouldn't do it.

crash1369

yeah I've been driving for 12 years now, the first time I ever drove was in the dead of winter, in a rear wheel drive car, that had absolutely no weight in the rear. And many sports cars since then, so I am not new to driving in inclement conditions or cars like this but still every person who has seen it tells me the same thing like I just can't possibly know what I am talking about.

Again common sense will be your biggest advantage, just be easy on the throttle. If you feel the back starting to slide that's your indication that you need to back off a little. Try and maintain momentum whenever you can it will help getting up hills and slippery stuff. The snow tires will help allot there though since they get much better traction then all terrains and especially the summer tires that come on these cars.

Another thing allot of people do and will suggest is adding weight in the rear of the car to help gain traction. You could probably put some of the flat type gym weights in the back where the spare tire would be or something of the sort. I don't ever put any weight in my cars though, something about loading up my tiny sports car like a mini truck and driving around like a low rider all winter...
Besides I like to swing my cars out sometimes

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c41006

I drove my old g35c in snow and ice with summer tires once... not fun but can be done

im89

So crash what do you feel safer driving a fwd with all season tires or rwd with snow tires?