Originally Posted by engin_ear

I COMPLETELY DISAGREE with this, assuming you're implying that you don't need snow tires. You can get yourself easily KILLED if you don't realize what's happening with your car. All you need is to get in one sticky situation on a highway and you're done. You really need to properly prepare the CAR for wiinter drivng, I don't care if you're Bob Bondurant. The GS does NOT handle like any old rear wheel drive car, esp. not a '76 Caddy. Hey, I had a '74 Cutlass with 4-barrel carb, and I never had the problems I had in the GS. You also can't do EVERYTHING slowly because you get forced into ugly situations that you did not plan to be in. Traction control and ABS help, but not much on unexpected ice. The engine 'snow' mode is very helpful, but won't do a damn thing to help braking or steering out of trouble.

For the GS, you need winter tires, otherwise it's a gamble. Summer tires lose traction way too quickly, and all-seasons just don't cut it. I run Michelin Pilot Sport A/S most of the year, which is arguably the best all-season, GREAT in the wet, and it can't cut it in the winter snows. You need highly siped tires like Blizzaks, Michelin Pilot Alpin, Pirelli Wintersport, etc. with the proper winter tread compound. ANY added weight in the trunk will help, weightlifting free-weights work well, since the weight doesn't tend to shift around if the car gets loose. Me, I bought an extra set of stock wheels with winter tires to run in winter, they don't look that great, but I like my life. The car handles horribly without them.

This shouldn't stop anybody who's serious from getting a GS. The benefits greatly outweigh the minor winter drawback.