Chpsk8

Yeah if we get 2 feet I take the truck! (actually only seen 12" max here recently, but you know what I mean.) I like dring the GS in the snow. I'm always amazed at what it will go through. My neighbor got stuck in the street on Monday in his 05 Jetta. He was spinning away like a fool. We pushed him out, then he got stuck again. Finally after 30 minutes of pushing him around he got it ito the driveway.
I walked back to the GS. Slipped it into drive, drove through all the crap he was stuck in, and up into my garage. He just sat there with his jaw on his toes. I poked my head out of the garage and yelled over "it's RWD! " Then went in the house.
This morning I heard him spinning and spinning at 6am. I saw the plow guy push him up the street with a couple other buddies. I left for warok and had no problem getting up the street.
A set of Blizzaks, a light touch on the throttle, and a little skill goes a long way.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Here are a few winter threads I have bookmarked (you could also find these by using the search feature on our forum - please give it a shot ).



https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...hreadid=102940 (Recent Experiences)
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...threadid=97253 (NE Driving Recommendations)
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...threadid=30388 (Snow and Ice how to)
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...threadid=75306 (What to do with snow & ice)
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...hreadid=103160 Winter setting for wiper blades

Jugg_head

My wife drives a Porche Cayenne (6cyl ), and its great in the snow, but I still think the GS has its merits as a viable winter beater.

GUNRU-GS4

I roll my GS400 all winter long with no problems. I have the stock 17"s with a brand new set of Michelin Pilot Alpin PA2 snow tires. I've also had Michelin Artic Alpins and Michelin X-Ice snow tires, they all have worked good. And no I don't work for Michelin.

Lubs

I'm in Toronto and took the GS through it's first winter. It's been a mild one, but it's seen some white crap. I invested in stock 16s and Pirelli Snowsport 240s. They're good enough in the snow and controllable on ice. I don't mind them in the dry either.

The GS is definitely not ideal for snow driving, but it's definitely doable. You just need to baby it more.

Vette Boy

I drive my GS430 all winter long, here in Chicago. I haven't had any issues, works fine, esp with traction control and SNOW mode. I do find it's important to have tires with a good snow rating. I bought Michelin Pilot AS, they work great for any snow here.

jonathancl

Pardon me, but don't you use studded tires?

Without snow tires, the GS is no good in anything buy very light snow.
With regular (not studded) snow tires, you still have to be very careful.

engin_ear

iTrader: (1)

I found Pilot Sport A/S are only good for light snow. Once you get more than 2 inches - fuggettabboutitt, as we say here in NJ. Don't get me wrong, Pilot Sport A/S is the best tire made IMHO. Just not for heavy snow, it doesn't bite enough, and not enough siping.

Had the Pirelli Wintersport 210's, they're decent. Takes the car from impossible to drive in snow to decent level.
Beginning of this winter I got Dunlop Wintersport M3's. Awesome freakin' tire. Better handling in dry than Pirellis by a mile. Cheaper than the Pirellis too!
Permanently solved the problem by buying an '03 4Runner.

diamondmit

You should get a convertible for the sun, a truck for when you have to carry stuff, a 4x4 for the snow, a van for carrying lot's of people, a sports car for going fast, etc, etc.

For most people that's not a practical path to follow.

If you have any driving skill whatsoever, put snow tires on the car (I use Dunlop M3's and love them, but I give up some snow performance for better dry-road performance; others rave about Blizzaks in the snow, but give up some precision on dry roads), and you'll be able to drive through just about anything. We had at least 6 major snowfalls in the Boston area this winter and I drove through all of them at their height with no problems at all. Major roads, minor roads - just use common sense...set the "snow" button (slows the electronic response to throttle inputs to mute the torque that our engine delivers) and drive like you're trying to get good mileage - slower than usual, with gentle braking, cornering and accelerating.

Spinning the tires going uphill is not a problem from an engine damage standpoint - comments above notwithstanding. Why would you think this would introduce engine damage? What is the engine doing that is different from any other driving condition. Have you ever seen a drifting contest? OK, not a great comparison. Spinning your tires however is particularly useless if you aren't spinning them for a purpose. Since you're talking about snow, you generally never want to spin your tires. You'll need momentum to begin your climb up the hill, and you should apply just enough throttle continue forward progress WITHOUT spinning your tires. If you cannot do this, it is OK to spin your tires, but not wildly (the speedo shouldn't be reading 70mph). Hey wait a minute - your traction control should not allow this anyway. Have you shut this off?

Sounds like you should take a winter driving course. Check with AAA or a local driving school. Also, you might work on car control in a wide open parking lot, covered with snow. Spin your tires while moving forward and turning the wheel. You'll learn how to feel the car's weight transfer and control it.

Good luck, and don't worry about hurting you car. It will do much more than you suspect

dd

GWELEX

Why yes I do, Hankook Zovacs 401's on stock 16" rims, I also mentioned that tires were part of the equation for a GS to be one of the best RWD drive winter cars around. I'm not so sure that studded tires are neccesary, there are several very highly rated studless snow tires available. My beef with those are the soft rubber compunds used in order to get that traction, thus tread wear is substantial. Our winters are so long, (studded tires are legal from Oct thru April), that these soft compound tires are shot by the end winter. I hope to get at least 2 winters out of my current set, next year the rears go to the front and visa versa. You are correct, without proper tires that GS isn't going anywhere in the snow and ice.

engin_ear

iTrader: (1)

I had a couple of problems with the logic in this post.
Biggest one is that spinning tires continuously, in spotty traction, creates heat - in the tranny and differential. If you do this excessively you can toast one or both of them. Drifting cars, and high perf cars, are intentionally built with trannies and diffs that can handle it better, and they use better fluids that won't break down under heat and stress. The engine itself is not likely to be damaged. Toyota products are usually better than say, Chrysler, in this regard, but not immune.
The other thing is that if your GS is near and dear to you, it's a helluva lot easier on your stress meter to have a 4x4 winter beater, which doubles as something you can carry stuff in without worrying about ripping leather seats, etc. I've been in some downright dicey situations with my GS in the snow, and went clear off the road in my 88 Supra WITH snow tires.
You're point is well taken though, if you drive carefully with snow mode and good snow tires, it's usually not too bad. Still have to watch out for the morons doing 70 in their Expeditions.