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No worries, mate Posted by Ari [Email]  (#2847) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Ari) on Wed, 8 Dec 2004 06:26:11
In Reply to: Winter Driving, Alex, Tue, 7 Dec 2004 13:43:16 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
There are some dynamic handling differences between the 900 and 9000, but nothing major. I tend to think the 9000 feels a little 'flatter' than the 900, with less body roll. The 9000 feels bigger even though it's 6 inches shorter than a C900.
As a lifetime resident of CT, except for four year spent in upstate NY, I'm not overly worried about the snow here. First, it doesn't snow that often. Really. And when it does, the main roads tend to be clear within a couple of hours of it ending. Side roads can take a little longer. During the storm roads can get ahead of the road crews, but again, short of a major Nor'Easter, they do a decent job.
I think the 9000 is a great snow car. The three keys to decent snow driving are (1) a decent driver, (2) decent tires, and (3) a decent driver. When it comes to the driver, yes, it would be great if we all went through a professional 5-day intensive winter driving course, and could expertly handle 4-wheel drifting on ice and snow. But the biggest part of driving on snow and ice is DON'T BE STUPID. Traction is reduced on ice and snow - therefore, it takes longer to stop. It's also harder to turn. Driving on snow and ice is like high-speed driving - plan ahead and don't make any sudden moves. This doesn't mean you should lock up and panic. If you want to slow down, do it in a straight line, not in a turn. Don't enter a turn quickly - do your braking before you get there.
In the very few times when you get stuck in snow in Ct, the trick is don't drive fast, leave plenty of space, and don't panic. It's just snow for gosh sakes. Our parents and grandparents drove in cars with twice the weight and half the dynamic response, driving the rear wheels, without ABS, on tires with less grip that your space-saver spare, and they didn't end up in the ditch every 300 yards. And no insult to our ancestors, driving skills are just about as good (or bad) now as they were 30 or 50 years ago.
As to tires, a decent set of tires is fine. Is it nice to have a set of four fresh snow tires? You bet. But I drove to my brother's wedding one January in a major snowstorm with just a set of all-season P4000s, and the car was fine. If you have a set of decent tires with decent tread, as long as they aren't some high-performance summer tire, you should be fine. Yes, you can't hang it out quite as much as if you had studded Nokian Snow Commander 5000s, but you can still get to the store without major incident. If your tires are good enough to drive in heavy rain where hydroplaning is a risk, you'll be fine. Just dial down the speed.
A lot depends on where in CT you'll be. On the coast, chances are you won't see snow, or no more than a couple of inches. If it gets really heavy, you and the rest of the coast isn't going anywhere. If you'll be in the North East or West (the 'hills'), you'll see more snow.
posted by 192.249....
, Wed, 8 Dec 2004 06:26:11 <-- Viewing This Message
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