Anyone have any tips on Driving my new rear wheel drive sports car in the snow?

Question

it's a 2008 MX-5 (Miata)

Answer 1

First, avoid driving in the snow unless you absolutely have to. Plan your trips. Get winter tires..

* Bridges and overpasses freeze first, so always slow down and avoid sudden changes in speed or direction.
* Keep windows clear.
* Keep your speed steady and slow -- but not so slow that your car gets stuck in deeper snow.
* Use your brakes cautiously. Abrupt braking can cause brake lock-up and cause you to lose steering control.
* To make Antilock Brakes work correctly, apply constant, firm pressure to the pedal. During an emergency stop, push the brake pedal all the way to the floor, if necessary, even in wet or icy conditions.
* If you get stuck in snow, straighten the wheels and accelerate slowly. Avoid spinning the tires. Use sand or cinders under the drive wheels.

Answer 2

Well, it depends on how much snow you are talking about, and a few other factors.

First among these is tires. You can buy tires for th winter that will improve traction, such as the Michelin Alpine series.

Then, too, as long as you are planning to drive conservatively, youcan throw some extra weight in the trunk to improve traction. Some people use sandbags, which you can then also use to provide extra traction if you get stuck. When I used to drive an old 59 rear-wheel drive Mercedes I preferred bags of gravel as, if they got torn they did not make such a mess in the trunk.

I drive a Jaguar XK8 all winter, but I live in Washington D.C., where it does not snow a great deal. It has traction control and does pretty well until the snow gets deep, and then the lack of ground clearance makes it difficult.

The problems typically with sports cars are lack of ground clearance, too little weight transfer to the rear axle and too wide of a tire. Typically you need to dig down to get traction and with too much rubber on the road the pounds per square inch of downward force diminishes. The wide tires that aid your cornering are a detriment when it comes to snow traction that can only be compensated for by adding weight over the drive wheels. But remember, when you do this the car's neutral handling in turns and braking is compromised by the changed weight distribution, so you must drive much more conservatively.

Answer 3

One of the best things to do is to put sandbags in the trunk/hatch. The more weight you get over the rear tires the better. It is a really bad idea to drive rear-wheel in snow and in the area I live in people drive sports cars in the summer and front-wheel drive in the winter. Drive very very slow, lots of weight on rear tires, you will have a lot of trouble going from a still position to driving uphill it may be impossible. Good luck and remember the faster you drive with hardly any weight on those rear tires the faster you will spin out.

Answer 4

Exactly what these guys said. All great tips for winter driving and RWD. Check out www.tirerack.com or some similar site for winter tire packages.

I had Summer/ Winter tire sets that I would switch out on my daily driver '91 300zx. It felt like flying a Cessna plane just above the roads when anything over 2-4" fell.

Get used to feathering the gas and tapping the brakes in turns, and if you slide...steer into the turn and learn to use the gas or brakes to shift the vehicle weight/ balance transfer to where you need it most, over the front tires for steering (under braking), or over the rear for killer grip and sideways fun! (under acceleration).

Man I miss driving that ride! Had to retire it for a practical family car, the Envoy 4x4. Errgghhh! It's my fair weather car now.

Answer 5

After the first snow take your car to a big empty parking lot and practice.

Get a feel for how your car responds to different situations.

Try accelerating fast. Then try slowly accelerating.
What happens when you brake real fast? When you try to turn while breaking. Try different ways to straighten out your car while it's spinning. What works best?

Bring a mature upstanding citizen friend with you so that when a cop comes by he'll believe your practicing and not just screwing around.

Answer 6

Follow the advice about practicing in an open area.
The only way to learn how to control it is to practice.

The answers that included practice also have other very good recommendations.
But, there is one more.
If you do add weight to the rear (good idea), have your headlights adjusted. The weight will lower the rear and raise the front of your car. Your headlights will point upwards, blinding oncoming drivers. They won't be in the best spot for you, either.

Answer 7

I drive a rear wheel msutang so tips....drive hell under the speed limit in snow, dont make too sharp of turns try to faollow through smooth, and dont burnout at green lights...in the summer all the above apply :) VRRROOOOM

Answer 8

Put some weight in the trunk. a bag of cement a couple bags of kitty litter. ( if you get stuck you could put it under the tires for traction)you need some weight in the back cause all your weight is in the front with the motor and all.. make sure you have good tires. I drive my thunderbird in the winter.. with 4 bags of kitty litter in the trunk..

Answer 9

Take it out to a large empty parking lot and test your limits. Get a feel for how the car handles in slippery situations. Test your turning abilities, get used to correcting oversteer and understeer, stopping, ect. Get some good winter tires on all four corners. That is what I have done, and it really helps to know how your vehicle feels and behaves. Take it slow at first, and watch out for lampposts and other obsticles.

Answer 10

Be very cautious, drive slow, don't gas it, and if you can, put some weights (bags of sand) or something in the back to weight it down.