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Winter Advice?

5K views 23 replies 13 participants last post by  tr3y92 
#1 ·
I have a 2008 Cobalt LS Sedan. Being 16 and having got my license in April, it's my first time driving in the winter with a small car. (When I had my permit, my dad always had me driving an SUV in the winter) And honestly, I'm not sure what I need to do. I live in Michigan, so the snow can get pretty bad up here.

My question is, do I need to get winter tires? If so, what kind should I get? The car also doesn't have Traction control or ABS. How much of a difference will this make for winter driving?

Thanks for your help!
 
#3 ·
Yes, you need winter tires. And since you are basically being thrown to the wolves, so to speak; go slow, leave plenty of space between you and the other people, increased stopping distance, keep looking for anything or anyone that can cause a wreck.

BE CAREFUL
 
#5 ·
Firestone winterforce or brigdestone blizzask. And seriously since your so young I would maybe even read some articles a out snow driving or practice in a parking lot. You'll be amazed how different driving and especially stopping a car in snow and ice can be. But above all drive slow. Nearly all accidents in the snow can be avoided if people just slow down
 
#6 ·
You can go to tirerack.com or discounttire.com and enter your vehicle (your stock tire size will be a 195-60R15), and then select snow tires. :)

As for the driving portion, it's not bad - do not go fast, and if you're on ice, or suspect you are (usually your car will start to kinda skid around), don't make any sudden movements, because all you'll do is spin out. When you take off, take off VERY slowly, otherwise you'll just sit there and spin.
 
#8 ·
Since you got advice on everything else driving related but braking. Learn how to feather your brakes without abd its a different experience stopping on ice. Up here its alot of tap and release, tap and release because you want to have control while stopping. Just holding the brakes down causes you to slide much further.
 
#9 ·
^ Yes, practice braking, pumping the brakes to keep them from locking up (basically doing what abs would have done for you). If you hit the brakes and dont pump you will slide and it wont be in a straight line, if your wheels/brakes lock up and you are heading for a curb, turn the wheel to straighten the car out and let off the brake. Had this issue just the other day cuz my eclipse doesnt have abs. Practice braking will help you get in the habit of pumping, a problem at least for me is ive never had to pump my brakes myself before, in a situation of panic you might forget to pump.

Snow Tires + Snow = Win
All Season + Snow = Fail
 
#10 ·
EMPTY PARKING LOTS!!! Thats the BEST place to get the feel of being in control when S*** goes down. I live in WI, so we know snow almost as good as you MI guys do. practice getting a feel for how much pressure u can put on the brake pedal b4 they lock up, and how sharp you can turn b4 u lose grip and go str8. Practicing this has helped me TONS. I dont have winter tires, but i would reccomend getting some if you have the money. if not, make sure your FRONT tires have good tread (more than 50%) and you should be ok as long as you distance yourself from other drivers.

but most important of all... realize that there are A LOT of people on the road that shouldn't be because theyre either way to impatient and feel the need to rush everywhere, or just plain old suck at driving and dont know what their vehicle can and can't do. so dont be one of those people. get a really good feel for your car and expect other people to slide through the intersection.
 
#12 ·
where about in Michigan do you live? and best advice i can give you is never trust that a spot looks okay because with the new road surfaces their using (asphalt, different types of cement) a spot could just look wet but is actually black ice. and dont let bigger cars intimidate you to go faster than u feel comfortable esp trucks with plows on them.
 
#13 ·
As soon as I get some money I will be ordering 4 snow tires. Probably the Bridgestone blizzak since a lot of people say those are good.

And I'm going to find an empty parking lot to do some testing and what not in as soon as we get a bit more snow. I was kinda doing it the other day when school was cancelled. The school parking lot was empty, but I was using a different, bigger AWD car.

I live right in between Flint and Saginaw, about 5 minutes from Birch Run.

Again, thanks for all the advice guys. Really appreciate it! :)
 
#15 ·
couple of things...I had Blizzaks, they are expensive (atleast here in Canada they were, almost $900 installed), I just bought some Wanalli (or something like that) and only paid $370 installed and they are the cat's ass, they are as good as the Blizzaks.
Second thing I wanted to say...I live in Canada as I stated earlier, so u know we get a lot of snow, and one thing I do all the time in the winter is this: When u go down a snowy or slippery hill, but the transmission in Neutral. Why u may ask? Having the tranny in neutral will put less energy to ur wheels (they are only gonna turn due to momentum, not due to the engine feeding it power) so u have more control of ur car and makes it easier to slow down and stop...thats what I always do and it helps a lot...u will skid a lot less in slippery conditions, thats why I always drive with my hand on my shifter, getting ready to pop her in neutral if I start skidding (mine is an auto)
 
#17 ·
Putting you tranny in neutral will damage your tranny especially going downhill.
 
#16 ·
Just skimmed it over and didn't really see the two most important things imo

1. When driving a manual, downshift! it allows you to slow down without locking up the brakes

2. Slow down WAY before you think you need to. that way you have time to react if it's icy and you're not going to plow into the back of someones vehicle
 
#19 ·
Its a true fact bro, just like you should tow a fwd car by the rear axle, and visa versa for rwd.
 
#20 ·
I always needed a flatdeck to tow my Camry since it was 4wd...I've come so used to putting it in neutral that I'll probably continue to do it..when I get in a habit,its hard to break
 
#21 ·
Oh I understand that, its impossible to break any of our truck drivers to stop doing it even though we need to re-build there trannys almost yearly.
 
#22 ·
Hm. Interesting. So I had the Blizzaks put on my car yesterday, and I'm already loving them. Very noticeable difference. And putting it in neutral really isn't something I would think to do, to be honest. And my car is an automatic, so I guess I can't really downshift to slow down...
 
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