[independent 68]

after about 6 months fighting with myself over the handling of my wrx in the snow and rain ive finally given up and decided that, as much as i love my sooby, this car is straight up terrible in snow. awd or not my light little jetta, and before that my A4 (both fwd) were significantly better in bad conditions. i just put on brand spankin new snow tires on my rex and i still slide and fish tail much easier than any other car ive ever driven. when im losing control on 4 day old snow thats not even slick i know im in trouble (on brand new tires)

...just had to tell some1 this before i die on the way up to the mountains today

 

[[email protected]]

after about 6 months fighting with myself over the handling of my wrx in the snow and rain ive finally given up and decided that, as much as i love my sooby, this car is straight up terrible in snow. awd or not my light little jetta, and before that my A4 (both fwd) were significantly better in bad conditions. i just put on brand spankin new snow tires on my rex and i still slide and fish tail much easier than any other car ive ever driven. when im losing control on 4 day old snow thats not even slick i know im in trouble (on brand new tires)

...just had to tell some1 this before i die on the way up to the mountains today

What tires do you have?

My 06 with contiextreams was unstoppable.

I havent found anything that can put the STI with TS810's into an "unavoidable" or "unsafe" situation.

 

[OGB]

after about 6 months fighting with myself over the handling of my wrx in the snow and rain ive finally given up and decided that, as much as i love my sooby, this car is straight up terrible in snow. awd or not my light little jetta, and before that my A4 (both fwd) were significantly better in bad conditions. i just put on brand spankin new snow tires on my rex and i still slide and fish tail much easier than any other car ive ever driven. when im losing control on 4 day old snow thats not even slick i know im in trouble (on brand new tires)

...just had to tell some1 this before i die on the way up to the mountains today

You can always trade it in for an '08.

 

[independent 68]

You can always trade it in for an '08.

somehow i dont think thats going to make too big of a difference

 

[rr1911]

weird very weird

 

[OGB]

the 08s have VDC, it kicks ass.

 

[independent 68]

weird very weird

why do you say that?

 

[Yossarian]

the 08s have VDC, it kicks ass.

Using the brakes to go faster certainly is brilliant. I imagine the open rear diff is what will reduce the asshappiness factor the most as compared to earlier models.

 

[TheJ]

I'm guessing you learned to drive in the snow in something other then AWD, no?

Is it possible that you may need to alter your driving style to achieve the success you desire?

 

[RayfieldsWRX]

Is it possible that you may need to alter your driving style to achieve the success you desire?

+1

 

[jeffmm06]

i thought the same, obviously if you gas enough around a corner you'll lose it, but then again ive never driven in colorado weather. I did great when i got 4inches dropped on me, i love watching the car with RWD spin tires and not move from a stop and the awd just gets up and walks away like nothing.

I love it.

 

[blackzwrx]

Like you said(OP) you have driven FWD cars. You are not used to driving any car with the rear wheels under power at all. So yes you can slip and slide even though you have AWD. I can do it in the snow easily with one tap of the gas. You just have to learn how to be easy on all the pedals in the snow. You have AWD, but if you gas it around a turn, you will kick the rear out a bit. I have a extreamly hard time believing that the WRX/STi sucks in the snow and should be traded in for that reason. In fact I think that you the driver should be traded in by the car. :rotfl: <------dont take too personaly, just making a small joke.) You prob need to change your driving habbits.

 

[colorado_okie]

I have to agree with the OP on this one. I live near Vail, CO and have been a little suprised with my Scooby in the snow. Granted (granite:rotfl, I was used to driving a 4wd truck with mud tires. It is getting easier though. My night time, white out driving conditions are not nearly as harrowing as they were when the snow started. I've got some conti all-seasons on there now, perhaps thats the issue. Maybe I'll do snow tires in January.

It is getting easier though.....probably just because I'm still new to the car.

 

[yashuone]

i would think that it's more of a driving style issue as well. i've been in the northeast for the majority of my time on this planet and snow, ice, sleet and slush are all part of the deal in this region. I've driven many cars in the snow from toyota 4x4's to mk1 mr2's and have always found the subarus i've owned or driven to be more than capable in the white stuff. that said, the wrx was tricky for me at first because i was not used to the power to weight ratio. i'd never been behind the wheel of an awd vehicle with so little mass but an abundance of power. my second vehicle right now is a blazer which is also quite apt in slick conditions but being more than a bit heavier it drives far differently than the subaru, i guess you could say it is much more tame. very little gas in the wrx can get all wheels moving and if you tend towards a foot of lead your control will suffer. the car has an ecu but a human is the brain that matches vehicle response to environmental conditions.

 

[rayfound]

I think the biggest thing is the rear-end power for you. With FWD, even in low traction, you point the wheels where you want the car to go, hit the gas, and even if the wheels spin, it eventually gos where you pointed. in RWD or AWD, pointing the wheels isn't enough, you have to be ready for the back wheels to step out and put you into an oversteer situation (like RWD).

Usually its just a matter of getting used to controlling the car in a bit of a skid, and going really easy on the throttle when turning.

Like another poster here said - AWD will help you get going, but there is no drivetrain that helps you stop in the snow. Slow Down, accelerate slower, and try to stay off the throttle in the corners as much as possible. Do everything slow. Brake slow, corner slow, accelerate slow.

Also, it may help if you keep in a gear higher than you would normally like. for example, if there is a corner coming up that your mind tells you to downshift to 2nd, try keeping the car in 3rd so the throttle response is a little slower, and you don't have as much torque when you come out of the corners and start speeding up again. A little bogging of the engine is better than sliding through a corner because you had more torque than you need and stepped out the rear end.

 

[68sprintb]

give em some break in time too, when they're brand spankin new they still have some assembly lubes and oils to keep em fresh. regular tires need like 250-500 miles to break in fully, i have no idea what snow tires need.

 

[Mikie13]

Like another poster here said - AWD will help you get going, but there is no drivetrain that helps you stop in the snow. Slow Down, accelerate slower, and try to stay off the throttle in the corners as much as possible. Do everything slow. Brake slow, corner slow, accelerate slow.

Also, it may help if you keep in a gear higher than you would normally like. for example, if there is a corner coming up that your mind tells you to downshift to 2nd, try keeping the car in 3rd so the throttle response is a little slower, and you don't have as much torque when you come out of the corners and start speeding up again. A little bogging of the engine is better than sliding through a corner because you had more torque than you need and stepped out the rear end.

Excellent advice...playing with gears and using them to your advantages is key

Keep the engine speed lower and it will help you keep traction, thus helping you not tear the ass end loose.

 

[WRXcruiser]

the subie does fine in winter weather so long as you dont get speed happy. ive driven from CO Springs to Vail through the scenic mountain passes on bald all season tires with no problem (including going down switchbacks). from vail i went through Utah, Oregon and Washington mountain passes. the key to my success, i had a full car load in cargo and passengers and i took my time. never lost traction in the many times ive done winter driving.

i find that anything above 35mph on bad roads could be costly. even though it feels ok at 40 im afraid it could end poorly

 

[RDB81]

My subie saw its first real snow this week, and i was impressed. I have never owned something that was any good in the snow, so i have gotten used to driving slow and safe in the white. It was definitely fun as well, being able to kick the back out a bit, but still be under control. I guess the point i have is i saw 4 or 5 cars off the road coming home from work friday, and i made it back safe and sound.

 

[gil]

The only other car that feels safer in the snow than my rex is my wifes mountaineer awd (but the rex is a lot more fun)