Re: Mustang GT and Snow.

I'm in northern Illinois. The Mustang is horrible in snow, but I know people who swear that Blizzarks make a huge difference.

We got by last year by using the Mustang very little, but now we have a third car, so this winter the Mustang will be stored.

I live north of Boston, in a town with hills and a fair amount of snow. I get by with my '98 GT in the winter by keeping a set of four snow tires (on separate wheels), and swapping over twice a year.

For snow, the height of the tire is not critical, but the width is: narrower tires exert more pressure on snow and tend to dig down better to the pavement.

I have 245/45ZR17s for fun, and 215/60QR16 Blizzaks for snow. The difference in tire height means that my speedo reads slower than actual speed by ~3% with the snows on.

Snows on the rear help you get started. Snows on the front help you get stopped and help you turn. If you like all three capabilities, then get snows F&R.

A Mustang with snows will probably suffice for moderate driving around ManyApples and its suburbs. But, if you plan on winter trips to the boonies, or to the tundra north of ManyApples, then a Mustang may provide more excitement than you want.

snipped-for-privacy@someemailaddress.notcom wrote in news:38qdhv0m1k53dmf231kl389ljp7d5qt815 @4ax.com:

If there is 2 feet of snow on the roads, you won't be getting anywhere fast in any vehicle.

You certainly can drive your rear wheel drive convertible sports car in the snow. Good snow tires are a must though.

No, it won't work as well as a 4x4 or a fwd with snow tires, but it certainly can be done, and is done every winter by thousands of mustang drivers.

Darren.

A good set of snow tires will suffice for winter driving. I live in Saskatchewan and we get as much as or more snow than Minneapolis does on average and we still get around using the same vehicles we do in summer. A

4x4 is nice just after a snowfall but your average car will work just as well if it has a good set of snow tires and an open diff. A closed diff. makes it really hard to keep in a straight line. Also, as some people mentioned already, a narrower tire does help cut through the snow and get a little traction on ice.

Just my 2 cents.

Kirk

Chris1 opined in news:

facetious SYLLABICATION: fa·ce·tious ADJECTIVE: Playfully jocular; humorous: facetious remarks. ETYMOLOGY: French facétieux, from facétie, jest, from Latin factia, from factus, witty.

I've had a horrible experience last winter here in maryland .. I was stranded for 5 days ...I have a stock v6 ... maybe snow tires would have helped ... but frankly speaking ... its a rear wheal drive ... and no matter what you do, you will experience difficulties ... I am the slowest and always the last car in the winter .... during summer, the cops are usually chasing me so you can see the difference.. I would not move just for my stang ... :-D but if you have to ...then take it with you, try it in the winter with snow tires and chains and other equipment ... if it doesn't work out, buy another car and keep hte stang for the summer ....

btw, are u desi ?

- SS

The key thought in Chris's message is that winter tires make all the difference. Technique has little to do with it. I struggled through five winters on Firestone SZ50s, every winter waiting at least once for the AAA tow truck to get me home. In fresh snow, the front tires don't roll; they just plow until the accumulation is too much for the drive tires, which takes only a few feet. It might be the tread pattern, but I think it's more likely that the the tire compound is just too slick in the cold temps. Blizzaks are good; the difference is night and day in the snow.