1) I am thinking about getting '07 IS350 and was wondering if any of you guys had any problem driving in the snow since it has 306hp/277ft-lb under the hood??

2) Usually RWD cars with lots of power will have bad handling in the snow due to traction, but is this correct with the IS350?

3) Does VDIM help at all in the Snow?

 

You will have problems in the snow. I did. Check back around December/January threads for lots of real world discussions, in KY will probably have to get all-seasons or snow tires if 07 is anything like 06.

 

It's kinda frustrating coz those tires are mad expensive when you use it for couple of months!

 

my winter tires went on in december and i removed them in march. i'm getting plenty use out of my summer tires. i have three add'l sets on my garage floor.

 

I didn't have any issues with snow... Oh wait... I have an IS 250 AWD.

Honestly, IS 350 with the right tires should do just as well as the IS 250 AWD 99% of the time in the snow. Heck, the IS 350 is lighter than my car. It's all about knowing how much power "you can get away with" to your rear wheels and you should be fine. kensteele has given you excellent advice too.

Cheers,
Kermee

 

I didn't have "problems" per-say, but if I didnt GENTLY accelerate from a standstill, I wasnt going anywhere! I had my summer tires replaced with all-seasons when I purchased the car, but I still found that if I didnt take things really slow, the car felt like it would lose traction..much more so then my maxima.

 

Plan on getting snow tires or for the 3-5 days a year, or leave the car at home.

Do a search since it's hard for people to find aftermarket wheels (17-16") to put snow tires on that clear the Brembo brakes of the 350.

I will be putting snow tires on my 250 on the stock 17" rims and getting a set of summer wheels/tires/sensors.

VDMI/Trac will go off all the time when you are trying to get to speed (test drove 350 in a inch of snow/slush)(VDMI will prevent the backend from coming out and does a good job). I would get the 350 and tell the dealer you want all season tires on your 18" wheels. That will cut leaving the car home to probably 1-2 days where you actually get over an inch where you live. Or get some cool summer wheel package

 

Instead of buying snow tires, I have a Jeep. I recommend you do the same, especially if you have to be at work during inclement weather. A IS350 has no business in the snow, ice, & slush.

 

I had a BMW 330ci before I bought my IS.

I had a snow tire setup on the BMW which helped GREATLY. It still wasn't perfect, but it did help.

I bought the AWD version of the IS because of the fact that now I don't have to worry about a staggard wheel rear-wheel drive setup in the winter time. BMW does offer the Xi version, but the new 3er is disgusting looking.

 

my 350 with snow tires were excellent. better than fwd with all season by far.

the dunlop sportmaxx are no good with ANY snow.

 

The key is snow tires. Low profile tires on any car will be a mess in snow.

 

So has anyone found 17" wheels that will fit the IS350? I'm getting ready to buy my snow tires and would rather not have 18" winter wheels. If anyone has 17" wheels that clear the brakes on the IS350 please post the name of them.

 

Why not get the OEM 17" wheels?

 

I just bought an extra set of the OEM 18's. I can put snows on those right? They don't HAVE to be smaller, do they?

 

There are plenty of 17" wheels that will fit, including the OEM 17's. Why not just go to www.tirerack.com....