So this will be my first winter with a SC or even a convertible. What do you guys do? Drive year round? Or they going into storage soon. It's starting to get chilly at night with the wind so can't really drive with the top down without the sun anymore. I find the seat heaters average and too bad they didn't put a heated steering wheel. Even with the side windows up the wind still buffets pretty hard.

 

I feel for ya…we were blessed with early top down weather and we hope it should continue for the next six months…is W = to Wisconsin?
if you store it, make sure you prepare for rodents and put it on a trickle charger

 

My 2006 SC does not come out of the garage when it is raining much less snowing. I have a 1990 Ford Bronco II 4 X 4 that is mint and that is my daily driver unless the weather is just right. Of course I will drive my wife's 2010 LS 460L when it needs gas or washed and she says it ok.

Dennis

 

I'm in Northern VA. Don't have space to store Scarlett.

In the winter I drive it every day unless there is snow.

Often times with the top down.

 

Excellent question AVSRacing. I was thinking about the same thing. They put a ton of treatment on the roads here in Ohio. Rodent protection, and trickle charger are good ideas. Any concern with flat spotting the tires? Mine is going in November 15 and won't come out until March 15. I'm using a friend's barn and he will have me blocked in until Spring and I won't be able to move it at all until then.

 

Top down weather here in South Carolina year around . We have 2 other convertibles as well .

 

We normally drive ours year round, except when the roads get salted. I wait for the rain to wash that off if I can. I keep bags of cheap cat litter in the trunk in the winter for weight. Taking it easy with the ECT on Snow mode I can get along better than the jacked up 4x4s riding on 22" rims with street tires who try to do 80 in an ice storm. We live in the country and I've never gotten the car stuck. Don't forget that most cars used to be rear wheel drive and people got by fine as long as they were careful.

Regarding rodents, when Covid shut everything down my wife's work switched to WFH and mine stopped entirely. The car sat in a detached garage for at least six months. Mice made a nest in the trunk from stuffing under the liner and laid babies on top of the cabin air filter inside the glove box. I fed them to the chickens. The tires got flat spots from sitting so long and the battery got so dead a charger couldn't rescue it. I drove the car a few times, then things locked down again and we went out of state for a while. During that time, a mouse died inside it and when we finally got back it was pretty ripe inside. I had to leave the top down in the hot sun for a couple days to cook the stench off the interior. Fortunately, you can't even tell. Even though I drive it often, now I leave one-way traps near the car to tempt the pests away from it. They're always trying to nest in the tractor and lawn mower, too. I can just blast those out with a leaf blower, though.

 

Poopy,
Be careful with rodents infestation. They can damage your wire harnesses and that is not fun.

 

I'm in the PNW so its more Rain than the occasional snow, I just unexpectedly picked up a LS430 UL so we will see how that does for the winter duties.

 

I live in upstate New York, and it starts snowing in November so my 07 SC goes in storage just before Halloween. I have never driven mine in the snow, but I have been told by others that they are not good in the snow. Put it away and buy a junker for the winter.

 

For a whole bunch of reasons, I don't drive mine in the snow.

I've got an '05 Pilot that is the snow meister

 

SC + LC are stored for the winter. ES w/ cross climate2's is my winter daily and RX is the wife's daily so we got the winter's covered. Highly suggest you DO NOT drive the sc in the snow. It can be done... much like i can probably listen to my wife for an hour... but its pointlessly challenging

 

Thanks for posting this AVSRacing. Does anyone have any suggestions for a Canadian who has no choice but to drive it in the winter... besides "Don't".

 

get really good snow tires, make sure there's enough ground clearance and then pray.

The traction on the rear shouldn't be so bad because the top is quite heavy and she's got a lot of junk in the trunk. if you get stuck, try lowering the top (coolest guy in alberta 4 sure) to add even more weight to the rear tires. Also there's a snow mode... HA!

 

Jay, I’m here in Chicago and I daily drive my SC year round. I do switch to winter tires Nov 1. I have found the traction to be great with snow tires and I have had no problem driving during a snow storm. But, caution and a gentle foot on the gas is required. No different than any other car in the snow. My SC drives better in the snow with winter tires than my other front drive cars with all season tires.

Enjoy the ride year round!

TjZ