belliott69

iTrader: (3)

if you drive it sensibly you'll be fine and if you can't drive an impreza in the snow, some advanced lessons may be in order. go more places off road and in snowy weather then in my discovery can some times.

wrx287

iTrader: (8)

I disagree. These were my tyres and i had no problems at all.


It depends how compitant the driver is. I done an ice driving course in Sweeden

urban

iTrader: (1)

Yes to a degree it does depend on the driver.

However, once the threads fill with snow then thats it - and that won't take long.
BRING ON THE CORNER!

I like to think of myself being a reasonable driver (Done a bit of rallying etc)
But if you start off up the snow covered road driving like "Look at me with my AWD, aren't I just ******* briilliant - out of the way FWD boy!"

You'll be getting pulled out of the ditch/fence/trees or whatever at the first corner

What sort of tyres are those by the way

wrx287

iTrader: (8)

They were 215/35x18 Toyo T1r's. As you will agree,as long as your smooth on all the controls,i.e throttle,brakes ect you shouldnt have any problems. If you go in to a corner at excessive speed then you accept the concequences. Like the Range Rover driver i followed on the way up to where the photo was taken

bodgeit

Skinny tyres (snow tyres or others) are better than wide ones,thats a fact but as long as your not tryin to race, your Scoob is MORE than adequate.The keyword is dont try and race...

richie001

iTrader: (3)

Drove my Impreza in the snow last winter and had no problems,just took my time and drove smoothly.

Gary C

My 53 plate STi was a pig in the snow.

Tyres unsuited with very little grip, and the suretrac diff being torque biasing does not lock up on snow, while the rear and center diffs mean you tend to spin a front and end up under-steering initially under power. Would have loved to try it with decent tyres.

I could jump my Manta B with 155 M&S tyres & basic stage suspension in the snow, a much more fun car.

Of course the snow conditions do make a huge difference. Very cold snow tends to be much more grippy than wetter warmer snow as it tends to melt less at the tyre/snow boundary.

In Russia at -40°C in 2005 it was suprising how much grip a car had on snow, more like driving on sand.

motorola222

I wish it just bloody snow so I can see what happenes. Message all those thinking of driving on snow with eagle f1's!!!. START PRAYING!! there hurrendoes in snow.

BMWhere?

ABS works fine in the snow, its the tyres that don't work! Get yourself a set of winter tyres and you'll never go back!

I love all the "I don't need to do anything, I'm a great driver" comments! Lets hear you say that after you knock some kid over!

Adam K

every year same thing... Search the site!
WRX287, if you've been to Sweden for a crach course in winter driving maybe you'd know that there's the law here to have winter tyres in winter conditions. And for a reason!
And here we generally think that "continental" (not the brand, but as in contrast to ''scandinavian" non studded winter tyres) winter tyres are non-freezing temperature wet condition tyres (e.g. michelin primacy or pilot alpin/x-ice).
For UK use I'd still recommend "continental" winter tyres (maybe not for scottish use) since you do have mostly wet conditions. But I strongly recommend using winter tyres during the winter. If nothing else you save your high friction tyres and flashy rims for the summer

Edit: "impreza" and "snow" gives a few pages of hits:
https://www.scoobynet.com/wheels-tyr...now-tyres.html
https://www.scoobynet.com/driving-dy...less-snow.html
https://www.scoobynet.com/scoobynet-...w-driving.html
https://www.scoobynet.com/non-scooby...ving-tips.html

chrisdicko

iTrader: (21)

I've got my pilot alpin on now Not needed them yet, but may do on Friday when I go on Holiday.

I tried the snow with my Eagle F1's last year.......what a load of ****e they were!

BMWhere?

If its consistently below 14 degrees, then you already need them! They will always perform better than summer tyres when its cold or wet!

motorola222

constantly under 14 degrees???? That's the united kingdom done for then.

chrisdicko

iTrader: (21)

I'll be in Slovakia for xmas day, then will pootle round Europe a bit as well. It's law I believe to have the tyres on anyway

BMWhere?

Lol! I have vague memories of the UK being warmer than that in the Summer, but that was before all this global warming started

The recommended upper operating temperatures for winter tyres in around 14 degrees, compared to the lower operating temperature for summer tyres of around 8 degrees. So, once temps consistently drop below 14 degrees (around November time), then it makes more sense to run winter tyres. When temps get back above 8 degrees (around March/April) then its time to swap back to the summer tyres!

Plums!

The rule.... narrower tyres have more weight pressure per square inch (Stiletto effect) helping to bite into the snow studs or no studs!
But winter tyres (preferably as narrow as possible) will give you a huge advantage, at below 7 degrees the rubber on your summer tyres becomes too hard and loses it's suppleness reducing grip in all conditions Dry, wet or snow.
AWD is an advantage for winter conditions but it needs to be used right....
Climbing should be straight forward,
Cornering go in steady and light pressure on accelerator providing drive and traction to all 4 wheels. (just don't go nuts with the power!)
Descents and slowing Use engine braking ( Select low gear disengage clutch) to control all 4 wheels.... and use light braking!

I Agree with Axel enjoy your cars but lets not put anyone else's lives at risk!

Cheers,

Plums.....

burbling1

iTrader: (1)

The only thing an Impreza can do better in the snow than 2wd cars is accelerate, end of.

firebug

iTrader: (3)

my uk98 brakes are probably the worst brakes ive had on a car , there crap in the snow , they lock up way too easy. i try not to touch them at all but might try and unplug the rubbish abs as a lot of you have said to. its annoying getting stuck behind people doing 10mph aswell .. . inferior 2wd!! ha.

The Rig

iTrader: (13)

you wanna ride in these condition on a gsxr !

not fun

agree with all thats been said,take it steady,have some fun in an area with some run off and dougnut away (car parks/empty retail parks etc)

rbaz

iTrader: (1)

What do you understand what AWD is/does?
As said above its the wide summer tyres that cause problems try driving a 2WD car with tyres the same width in snow the Impreza will do more than accelerate better.
All those that don't understand splash out on some cheap rims and get some proper snow tyres. (and lift/soften the suspension if you can mine was like a snow plough )

Quasi Modo

Does it make any difference to your insurance?
It's just that alot of insurance companies seem to see any changes as suspicious.
Why would you want to have more fancy tyres on than your average road user?
You know what i mean? you have good intentions but they still see you as suspicious.

gallois

which is not a bad thing, as any car that gets stuck in snow, gets stuck whilst accelerating......the end.

rossyboy

iTrader: (8)

Not true. They can climb hills in the snow that 2wd cars cant (unless they have skinny tyres).

I took great pleasure last winter sailing up a hill past all the 2wd cars that had given up at various stages on the way.

Quasi Modo

The Impreza has advantages over other cars on most surfaces except for ice, nothing grips on that. maybe that's why the standard ice in an impreza is so bland?

Adam K

Burbling1 is pretty much right!
The awd helps gaining speed and not getting stuck.
For cornering or braking there is no advantage to 2wd.
Maybe, if you learn to handle it, you can use engine braking, which would be more than a 2wd can. But beware of letting the clutch bite too sudden since you can easily lose all traction, and contrary to the ABS it doesn't open up when that happens.

BMWhere?

Wow, I'm impressed by all the experts on here that know everything about driving on snow but have never even tried to drive with winter tyres! Very impressive!!

WAKE UP PEOPLE!!

There is nothing wrong with the brakes/ABS in snow. AWD is a massive advantage, accelerating, cornering or engine braking. There's only two things that don't work in snow... the tyres and the idiot driver who thinks he's too good to fit winter tyres!

cyrusgod

iTrader: (1)

Got some Bridgestone Blizzaks out here in Japan and they make a huge difference.. picked up some Legacy Rims cheap (about 8000yen) but the tyres (even last years model) set me back 60000yen! *Just over 400 quid.. They wanted double for this years model EEEEKKK!

Still,everyone uses them over here as it is freeeeezing (-2 right now) and the ground is covered in snow.. you would be an idiot not to, doesn't matter how good a driver you are.. without good tyres... I think you have to by law possibly.. not sure why they are not more popular back in the UK.. I hear Germany uses them a lot more but has similar winter conditions.. Stubborn Brits we are!

fivetide

iTrader: (1)

I disagree. I had Nokian winter tyres on last year and she would still lock up very easily in snow/ice conditions. The ABS struggles. I couldn't say I noticed the car being too different but last year was the first year of real snow with the car and the first for winter tyres. This year budget means sticking with the FK452's that are on the car now and i will continue to drive slowly and carefully when needed.

You are not telling me winter tyres have a magic way to stick to ice because they don't. They afford more grip when it is wet and cold but on ice without studs you are sailing into a ditch unless you drive carefully winter tyres or no.

5t.

cyrusgod

iTrader: (1)

"The siping in the Blizzak tread design improves ice traction dramatically. From a distance the tread blocks look solid but upon close examination there are separations or slots much like a pre-sliced loaf of bread. As tread blocks put pressure on the ice, a thin layer of water forms which is the primary reason gripping on ice is so difficult. The Blizzak tread block sipes open to give this water a place to go, which allows the rubber to grip the ice. At the same time, these individual slices of tread block provide more edges to increase grip."

Worth a read.. Bridgestone Blizzak Tire Review

Yox

been out in my 96 wagon, which is auto, today. No major problems other than the lorries and vans blocking the A21 south of Tunbridge that stopped me getting to work.
Came home via small 'B' roads and some unclassified ones. Car went great all the way.
Slow, smooth and steady wins the race for me today