snow driving?? few questions

[03CrysBlueB6]

in the northwest it is supposed to start snowing within the next few days so i thought this might be a good question to ask.. what is the best/safest way to drive in the snow.. i mean as far as settings... like ESP on.. tip tronic?? or no??

any help is appreciated

[SKIDMRK]

esp on, watch your speed, give yourself plenty of room to brake.

and stay off of 405 near woodinville for the next few days.

[Boosted3.0]

ESP on keep it shifting automatic. Give yourself like 3 times the distance you think is safe.

[notob6]

when i first started driving in the a4. if i started to slide i would just jam on the brake and hope nothing bad happens. but after messing around for a little i realized its better to just stay on the gas and let quattro do its thing.

[djwimbo]

....i realized its better to just stay on the gas and let quattro do its thing.

Not the best advice to give to a newb.

If you're Tiptronic, leave it in "auto" and as mentioned above, gibe yourself 2-3x the normal dry stopping distance if there's snow.
Ice, be even more careful.

Traction can me modified by throttle control, learn to take it easy, and you should be fine.

[AudiA4_20T]

Not the best advice to give to a newb.

If you're Tiptronic, leave it in "auto" and as mentioned above, gibe yourself 2-3x the normal dry stopping distance if there's snow.
Ice, be even more careful.

Traction can me modified by throttle control, learn to take it easy, and you should be fine.

I disagree... In heavy snow, don't use the brake. Keep the gearing between 1 2 and 3... I never go above 3 in heavy snow. 1 and 2 will be for steep hills and things. Also, think about physics. In a straight line, your not going to go flying off the road, you could do 100mph if you wanted to (just an example, in snow I wouldnt do more than 40). It is the turns that mess people up. Any slight turn could make the car want to slip. use the shifter to make sure that you never touch the brake. If you use your brakes in a turn, it may cause the wheels to lock up even for a split second, which could be just enough to send your car sliding

[kbasham03]

Put it in 2nd, 20 or so mph turn off esp, cut the wheel, floor it, and enjoy some nice awd donuts. Oh, you wanted safety? Well make sure you do it in an empty parking lot.

[n7plus1]

I disagree... In heavy snow, don't use the brake. Keep the gearing between 1 2 and 3... I never go above 3 in heavy snow. 1 and 2 will be for steep hills and things. Also, think about physics. In a straight line, your not going to go flying off the road, you could do 100mph if you wanted to (just an example, in snow I wouldnt do more than 40). It is the turns that mess people up. Any slight turn could make the car want to slip. use the shifter to make sure that you never touch the brake. If you use your brakes in a turn, it may cause the wheels to lock up even for a split second, which could be just enough to send your car sliding

X2...use your transmission to slow you, not the brake

[monkey323i]

updated news for upper washington state & west coast canada:
heavy snowfall storm arrive on friday evening and contiunes til sunday.

Last yr had so MUCH fun playing drifting with Quattro, even the parking lot security was enjoying watching us playing drift.

That was the time I realized how important Quattro is in snow even though my All-season tires are worn out already. (ESP barely lights up!!)

Before I had RWD and FWD, and driving in snow is nightmare, especially for RWD.


anwayz, if yours is Quattro, I think you'll be fine if you drive and turn in gentley.
But, while yours is Quattro, doesn't mean others are Quattro-gripped. Always watch out for nearby drivers as they may lose traction and hit your back or side.


if yours IS FWD, then u'll need to drive and turn in very gentlely.

[Johnnada]

Put it in 2nd, 20 or so mph turn off esp, cut the wheel, floor it, and enjoy some nice awd donuts. Oh, you wanted safety? Well make sure you do it in an empty parking lot.

haha

[Tgr_Clw]

Hmmm. And not a single person suggested winter tires.

[EUROaleksey]

who needs winter tires.. im rockin staggered 19"s with summer performance BF rubber and i live in snowy michigan... Пивка для рывка, and handbrake through the turns buddy

[agart]

Hmmm. And not a single person suggested winter tires.

+239847239847

To say the least, I found this out the hard way last year. Quattro well help you from sliding sideways and getting out of somewhere you are stuck. It does not do much while braking, thats what ABS is for. Neither Quattro nor ABS will be as useful if you have nothing to plant yourself to the ground with.

[Tgr_Clw]

who needs winter tires.. im rockin staggered 19"s with summer performance BF rubber and i live in snowy michigan... Пивка для рывка, and handbrake through the turns buddy

Lol. Экстремал бля.

[pondside36]

Good tires are key and driving cautiously will keep you on the right track since it the other cars I worry about when driving in the snow. Not using the brake in snow and ice is key no matter what you are driving... I met a lady in Vermont last year that traded in her A4 for a Suburu Forester and said she so regreted it, since she truely felt the quattro was superior in snowy and icy conditions.

[BEESIX]

who needs winter tires.. im rockin staggered 19"s with summer performance BF rubber and i live in snowy michigan... Пивка для рывка, and handbrake through the turns buddy

lol im with u on ebrakeing it thru the turns broski, us fronttrsh owners need 2 stick together

[sean1.8t]

scared of not stopping fast enough in the snow?

SLAM IT!!

my car is a god damn snow plow in like 2 inches!

just don't get high centered

[Papachristou]

Put it in 2nd, 20 or so mph turn off esp, cut the wheel, floor it, and enjoy some nice awd donuts. Oh, you wanted safety? Well make sure you do it in an empty parking lot.

good advice

[dewey527]

stay off the road 405 and I5 will be parking lots. just because you have esp and abs doesn't you can stop on icey roads with summer tires on. i concur with the others, give plenty of room. i have blizzaks on 16 wheels and i can pretty much go any where but i don't have them on yet...

[aaaudiprotein]

lol im with u on ebrakeing it thru the turns broski, us fronttrsh owners need 2 stick together

he is gonna be in Chicago this weekend lol

[aaaudiprotein]

I also try to slow down thru downshifting and keep going on low rpms

[Hamotee]

Just don't trash the PS pump and rack doing too many donuts.

[EBG 18T]

The best advise i have for you is: Bridgestone Winter Driving School. It is a blast and you will learn a ton.

[Rockclimbersh]

Another thing I would do if you're relatively new to snow driving... after some nice powder falls go to a parking lot that you know will be abandoned and doesn't have potholes. Drive around the lot and practice emergency stops, hard turns and evasive moves. Even once you get good a driving in snow, when you first get on the road and there's no one around, give it a good hard test stop. I say this not because it's fun but because it gives you an idea of how much distance you need to stop the car in THAT particular type of snow. Each type of snow is a little different.

[notob6]

Another thing I would do if you're relatively new to snow driving... after some nice powder falls go to a parking lot that you know will be abandoned and doesn't have potholes. Drive around the lot and practice emergency stops, hard turns and evasive moves. Even once you get good a driving in snow, when you first get on the road and there's no one around, give it a good hard test stop. I say this not because it's fun but because it gives you an idea of how much distance you need to stop the car in THAT particular type of snow. Each type of snow is a little different.

thats definitely some good advice. first time i drove in snow i almost crapped my pants while learning how long it takes to stop.

[GQ//S4]

Do everything slower than if it were dry... Brake earlier, don't slam on the gas or the brakes or you'll break traction and/or lock it up, making you into an ice skate, plan for turns before you get there.

[Jung]

dont drive like an ass. be sensible. in other words, dont be a BMW driver in winter

i had to drive my first witner in a nissan maxima with summer tires. no traction control and shitty tires and bad abs makes for a hell of a time.

engine brake to disappate speed, using your brakes too much will make you lock up and not stop very quickly

[uber_boost]

Get yourself a set of blizzaks WS60 ... quattro will get you out of the snow but will not help in coming to a stop...and it works better with winter tires....

My other top picks for winter tires are the Michelin X-ice Xi2 and Hakkapelliitta RSi

P.S I love it when you can act a fool in the snow and you have RWD's Hating on you :P

[tamaneri]

I love effin around in the snow with my A4. No matter what I do, I can always recover with Quattro. :)

[GQ//S4]

I love effin around in the snow with my A4. No matter what I do, I can always recover with Quattro. :)

Yeah, I felt that way last winter, until my Bridgestone Potenza SO-3's froze and stopped gripping ANYTHING. New all-seasons this year are proving more than worth the money already.

[uber_boost]

my pirelli all season had no grip what so ever in anything more than 5cms of snow... all seasons are no season tires... makes a huge difference if you put proper tires on

[Nerney]

ESP = Engage Snow Play

[inaforest]

Man, reading all this is so weird. I'm from California. Winters here get down to about 60F. Are there any special driving techniques I should learn?

:D

[uber_boost]

yes...dont drive up north

[inaforest]

ahahahahahahah

[PwAg]

All-seasons are essentially a joke compared to a high end snow tire with Quattro. Been there, done that. It's the difference of getting around "ok" vs snowmobile. Perhaps some of you guys don't need to drive much in tough conditions, but here in Rockies they are a must for frequent mt/pass travel IMHO. Run my Quattro with Blizzak LM25 (performance snow) on the 17" sport rim (winter rims). No problems with snowpack, ice and up to 10" snow. Car begins to float in anything deeper due to clearance. Frontrak with high end snow > Quattro w/all-season. Drove both drivetrains for 2+yrs each, with Quattro as current.

FYI, use caution when running high performance summers consistently in dry conditions below 35-40F. That can be scary when having to hit the brakes hard. Tread turns into a brick. Opt for all-seasons in this scenario.