Modified cars in the snow

uturn

uturn

Member
I've become bored with my car and am looking for something new. I spent the last two years making my 04' exploder taller, wider, slower, and more reliable while my friends dropped their cars to mere inches above the ground and tore apart their motors in search of every bit of power available on an 18 year old's budget... Needless to say they have more fun. So while reliable, all wheel drive cars, with low miles, and high price tags seem to be where every "what car should I buy?" thread points, I want to hear from the ones who built their own ride and what experiences they've had in the snow?
 
seriously depends on where you live and how you drive. having a car designed to be driven in the snow (subaru) beats the fuck out of a miata or a diesel on mudders, I can say that with experience. My buddy felt uncomfortable driving down one day so I drove his car (imprezza) for the first time and it was SO much easier than a truck or a car.

the most fun I've had driving in the winter was in a pathfinder of all things.
 
13731933:supermagician__ said:
seriously depends on where you live and how you drive. having a car designed to be driven in the snow (subaru) beats the fuck out of a miata or a diesel on mudders, I can say that with experience. My buddy felt uncomfortable driving down one day so I drove his car (imprezza) for the first time and it was SO much easier than a truck or a car.

the most fun I've had driving in the winter was in a pathfinder of all things.
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A WRX on snows is fucking awful to drive in snow compared to my 4runner on relatively aggressively treaded all weathers. Same gas milage too.

OP, get a lancer evo... and a part time job.
 
13731939:californiagrown said:
A WRX on snows is fucking awful to drive in snow compared to my 4runner on relatively aggressively treaded all weathers. Same gas milage too.

OP, get a lancer evo... and a part time job.
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4 runners are top heavy, slow and really don't handle corners amazingly though so I really don't see how it would be awful, let alone worse at all. If the snow's two feet deep you'd be happy as a clam sure, but in a realistic sense a wrx works just fine for winter.

i love 4runners, don't get me wrong.
 
13731947:supermagician__ said:
4 runners are top heavy, slow and really don't handle corners amazingly though so I really don't see how it would be awful, let alone worse at all. If the snow's two feet deep you'd be happy as a clam sure, but in a realistic sense a wrx works just fine for winter.

i love 4runners, don't get me wrong.
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If you are driving fast enough in snow to feel the classic SUV top-heaviness, or its inability to corner well, you are a terrible driver and need your license revoked. Seriously.

Being heavy, having clearance, and having true 4WD with differential options are damn nice to have when it snows out here in California and Washington.
 
13731956:californiagrown said:
If you are driving fast enough in snow to feel the classic SUV top-heaviness, or its inability to corner well, you are a terrible driver and need your license revoked. Seriously.

Being heavy, having clearance, and having true 4WD with differential options are damn nice to have when it snows out here in California and Washington.
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This.

The fact of the matter is 4runners are not made to drive fast. They are made to get you anywhere you need to get and they do it damn well. For the most part, I only drove mine in rwd and occasionally in 4-hi and that was enough to get me where I needed. I don't think I ever used 4-low, but it was still there if I needed it.

I ended up selling mine because I do a lot of highway driving and with a lift kit, 33" tires, 300km/tank just wasn't practical. If I lived in the mountains, I would buy another in a heartbeat.
 
13731939:californiagrown said:
A WRX on snows is fucking awful to drive in snow compared to my 4runner on relatively aggressively treaded all weathers. Same gas milage too.

OP, get a lancer evo... and a part time job.
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lol wtf are u talking about, I've made multiple storm trips to and from summit county in a WRX lowered to the floor with zero issues. The only problem is when snow gets too deep aka like a foot and a bit of fresh

OP, get a subie or a tacoma
 
13731993:Gherbs said:
OP, get a subie or a tacoma
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Tacomas are wayyyyyyyy too expensive can't even find one from the late 90's for under 5k.

The wrx is the same and buying a n/a subaru doesnt interest me at all. Though I have found quite a few wrx swapped 2.5rs in my area, they're geared lower than the wrx but still a fun car
 
Dont buy a wrx if its super cheap, youll regret it. You might as well get a solid NA Subaru and at least learn to drive it in the snow before having a lot of power. Kids always just wanna move right up to boost and they cant handle it.
 
13732068:Titus69 said:
Dont buy a wrx if its super cheap, youll regret it. You might as well get a solid NA Subaru and at least learn to drive it in the snow before having a lot of power. Kids always just wanna move right up to boost and they cant handle it.
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This right here and if you get a na subaru you can always decide to swap im a turbo motor down the road for a fun project since doi g work to your car seems to be your interest. A wrx under 5k is pretty much guaranteed tonbe a flamming pike of shit.
 
13732086:crotchvent said:
This right here and if you get a na subaru you can always decide to swap im a turbo motor down the road for a fun project since doi g work to your car seems to be your interest. A wrx under 5k is pretty much guaranteed tonbe a flamming pike of shit.
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Exactly, subarus are interchangeable. My buddys got a gc8 2.5rs with a flat 6 swap and its manual. But what Im getting at is OP should make sure he can handle the 140-160hp in the snow first. To many kids get $3000, buy a shitty bugeye and think theyre the shit doing flatspins in open lots then think theyre pro and end up in a ditch blaming the car.
 
13732098:Titus69 said:
Exactly, subarus are interchangeable. My buddys got a gc8 2.5rs with a flat 6 swap and its manual. But what Im getting at is OP should make sure he can handle the 140-160hp in the snow first. To many kids get $3000, buy a shitty bugeye and think theyre the shit doing flatspins in open lots then think theyre pro and end up in a ditch blaming the car.
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I have an 02 manual forester and its great not fast but quick enough. Plus its always more fun to drive a slow car fast then a fast car slow.
 
04 Forester XT

Everything is swappable with the sti, it"s quick, has AWD, and decent clearance. I've had no problem powering through 10-12 inches of corn, or 2-3 feet of fluff. It"s also fun to drive.
 
13732127:crotchvent said:
I have an 02 manual forester and its great not fast but quick enough. Plus its always more fun to drive a slow car fast then a fast car slow.
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I drive my 01 crv down the dirt roads near my house like Im in WRC trail braking around the corners and shit. Never go to fast because Ive 3 wheeled in rallycross before and its not worth flipping it.
 
13731956:californiagrown said:
If you are driving fast enough in snow to feel the classic SUV top-heaviness, or its inability to corner well, you are a terrible driver and need your license revoked. Seriously.
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I think what he was getting at was in the non-winter months you're stuck with the overbearing weight and height of an SUV rather than enjoying the sportier feel of a car with AWD.

OP it really depends on the conditions you're regularly in. If the snow is hammering down and there is a risk of the freeway closing on you, will you risk it? If the answer is yes, you need something with legit 4WD and good clearance.

If you're not willing to go into conditions where you'll be driving in conditions that are road-closure worthy, then just go with an AWD car.

I'm looking to buy a new vehicle in the next year and I have had the same internal struggle. I'm going with a Tacoma or 4Runner because I like larger cars and I'm willing to risk road closures and severe road conditions.
 
the driver makes more difference than the car itself, though the weight distribution and tires matter most IMO. i drove my old lowered RWD 535i with studded Blizzacks all winter in Ut and had the most control and grip of any of my cars I've owned. front lip sat about 2.5" off the ground, exhaust would drag in the snow and still never got that thing stuck. better grip and control than my '98 2.5rs with studded snow tires, or my sr5 Tacoma on bigfoot AT's. weight distribution and gear management is important, look for something with a standard transmission.
 
13732165:CaptainObvious. said:
I think what he was getting at was in the non-winter months you're stuck with the overbearing weight and height of an SUV rather than enjoying the sportier feel of a car with AWD.

OP it really depends on the conditions you're regularly in. If the snow is hammering down and there is a risk of the freeway closing on you, will you risk it? If the answer is yes, you need something with legit 4WD and good clearance.

If you're not willing to go into conditions where you'll be driving in conditions that are road-closure worthy, then just go with an AWD car.

I'm looking to buy a new vehicle in the next year and I have had the same internal struggle. I'm going with a Tacoma or 4Runner because I like larger cars and I'm willing to risk road closures and severe road conditions.
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I very much agree. We were talking about winter driving though. I'm also really not a fan of the WRX or STI image, the maintenance/insurance expense and as a large dude they are just too damn small.

Personally I'd rather have the freedom to drive to cool places no matter the road conditions.
 
13732169:Skittle. said:
the driver makes more difference than the car itself, though the weight distribution and tires matter most IMO. i drove my old lowered RWD 535i with studded Blizzacks all winter in Ut and had the most control and grip of any of my cars I've owned. front lip sat about 2.5" off the ground, exhaust would drag in the snow and still never got that thing stuck. better grip and control than my '98 2.5rs with studded snow tires, or my sr5 Tacoma on bigfoot AT's. weight distribution and gear management is important, look for something with a standard transmission.
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Driving skill is a big part too, before it was crashed I would drift the piss out of our old tundra, dirt or snow in rwd it still ripped and was so fun. My brothers 92 eclipse is fwd but with good driving skills and a good set of snows it can rip. Last winter when I only had all seasons on my crv he killed me on 6" of snow on top of the dirt roads, now with my studded hakkas its about an even match, I think I under-steer more than him still...then again he has a lot done to it.
 
S4's are so much fun in the snow, my friend has a stage 3 that I pretty much beg him to drive if we have plans to ride at all.
 
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