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Any New England winter drivers?

Bravo

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I've been toying with the idea of getting a Mustang for the past 15 years or so. One thing always holding me back is the fact that I can't see myself owning a new car and only driving it for the 6 good months that we have.

That leaves me with two options:

1) Drive the thing year round, put on narrow Blizzak / Hakka tires with a bunch of sand bags over the rear axle, or

2) Buy a used Mustang, store it in the winter, and drive an AWD beater off season.

I'm fortunate in that my wife drives a Subaru, and doesn't leave the house when we get more than a few inches of snow. If she has to work when there is snow on the roads, we work close enough that we could carpool.

So really, I could (in theory) drive the Mustang all winter only when the roads are bare or at least with minimal accumulation.

I'd like to think that I have the ability to drive just about anything in the snow, as I have been doing it long enough. I'd also like to think that between Snow Mode, Solid Tires, and a couple hundred pounds of sand in the trunk that the car should perform just fine.

I should also mention that I'm currently hating my VW GLI in the winter, as the relatively high torque to wt ratio (and horribly traction control system) means that I can get stuck on just about any snow covered incline (where weight shifts to the rear). For this reason alone, my next car has to have the ability to power the rear axle.

Enough rambling - anyone here daily their Mustang in a super heavy winter state? If so, how does the combination of good tires, extra weight, and snow mode improve the drivability?
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2veloce

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Similar problem for anybody in the North east. I agree with you, if you are an experienced driver you can drive in pretty much any weather. Before all of the 4WD and AWD we were able to get around when needed. I always see a fair number of 4WD vehicles off the road in wet and snowy weather due to the lack of driving skills. I am driving my Mustang unless warnings have been posted to stay off the roads.
 

H44

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I live in Michigan, which has pretty brutal winters, and I was in the same boat as you before I made my purchase. What made me confident to make my purchase was my friend who daily drives a mustang in the winter with snow tires. Just use common sense (slow turns, stops, accelerations, etc) and you should be fine. Of course it would be better to get a dedicated winter car, but it's really not necessary.
 

NoVaGT

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I DD'd a Mustang in S.W. Michigan, which gets more snow than your area.

1. You do not need to put any weight in the trunk.
2. You DO need amazing snow tires.

Once you have good snow tires, the car will be better in the white stuff that the Subaru on All Season tires.
 

Jmeo

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Having seen too many New England winters and having 17 mustangs over the years I have done my fair share of winter driving. For me I always picked up a second set of wheels and mounted Blizzak tires and never looked back. My cars were unstoppable albeit sideways up hills sometimes but unstoppable.

That said I have never driven my 15 or 17 mustang in the winter but these will be even better with having snow mode :thumbsup:
 

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Bravo

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Thanks for all of the responses - definitely confidence building :D

And 2veloce - I agree - I see more AWD/4WD vehicles off our roads than anything else. I think this proves that having a clear mind is incredibly important. Once you have the "AWD can go through anything" mentality, you've lost.

Good to know that extra weight isn't needed in the back, though my winter driving knowledge tells me that a bit wouldn't hurt.

And I agree 100% about the tires. Anyone up here that thinks all seasons are fine is asking for trouble.

I put General Arctic Altimax tires on my wife's Subaru last winter - not a super high quality winter tire, but very rugged. Combine that with the Subbie AWD system and I felt confident that I could go anywhere.

With that said, I had people questioning why I was wasting money on winter tires with that car. So many fail to realize how important good winter tires are in snow states.
 

NoVaGT

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One more thought;

I had a 2005 GT, and took it to a tire shop my cousin owned in Michigan. He told me I should get M&S (mud & snow) tires for it.

I kid you not, that car went everywhere in anything through those long Michigan winters.
 

scott6809

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I bought a new mustang and only drive it in the summer months. I do understand where you're coming from as far as spending all that money on a new car and only driving it 6months out of the year.

For me it was more about having a nice car and keeping it for a long time, most likely giving to my son when I"m too old to drive :). I figured NE winters are rough and with the pre-treat they do in some areas on top of salt and sand, it seems like things rust pretty quick.
 
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Bravo

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I figured NE winters are rough and with the pre-treat they do in some areas on top of salt and sand, it seems like things rust pretty quick.
Vehicles definitely corrode quickly up here - I do pay for an unlimited car wash service during the winter months that provides a bottom wash - I know, people cringe at the thought of auto car washes, but we really don't have a choice up here.

For me, it's a bit more than just dumping that kind of money on a car - I also feel that life is too short to drive boring cars, and if I drop $35K on a summer car, a reliable winter car will likely be fairly boring.

Without starting debates on the future of the auto industry (I've stirred the pot on other threads), I truly believe that vehicles that the current GT have a very limited life span. It's likely that if I buy a new Mustang and drive it to the ground, I may not have the option for a new GT when the time comes.

I guess time will tell. I'm tempted to pull the trigger in the near future and give winter driving a shot. I'm in a somewhat unique situation where I have a fantastic winter vehicle available should a storm come through. If I didn't have that, I probably wouldn't consider a Mustang as a DD.
 

scott6809

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It's likely that if I buy a new Mustang and drive it to the ground, I may not have the option for a new GT when the time comes.
Funny you mentioned that, I was hanging out with some friends this weekend and that was the exact topic.
 

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I've driven my 15'GT through two MA winter so far without any problems. I have a set of narrower winter wheel (same size as stock GT wheels) and Hakka R2s. No need for any sand in the back. Just take it easy on the throttle. You won't need snow mode once you're used to the throttle response. I avoid routes with long, steep uphill bits when it's snowing hard. That is just asking for trouble. I do however drive it to work and back during all the major blizzards where we get over 1' of snow. Snow tires and commen sense and you will be golden. Get a second set of wheels to make things more convenient.
 

sk8erord

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I DD'd a Mustang in S.W. Michigan, which gets more snow than your area.

1. You do not need to put any weight in the trunk.
2. You DO need amazing snow tires.

Once you have good snow tires, the car will be better in the white stuff that the Subaru on All Season tires.
100% this ^^^

I come from over 10 years of driving Subarus in Utah winters - my mustang with cheap* snow tires does better than the Subies with A/S. Get good tires, and you're golden.

*No snow tires are cheap for this car, but I didn't buy the most expensive ones.
 

dgc333

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I drove my 15 Mustang through the 14/15 (the worst in Boston's recorded history), 15/16 and 16/17 winters. With a good set of winter tires (I have Dunlap Winter MAXX) and snow mode the car is absolutely better than any FWD car on all seasons and better than an AWD with 1/2 or more worn all seasons.

The only thing you have to be concerned about is ground clearance, can't go blasting through snow banks or you will get hung up.
 

SVT-DADDY

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I've been there and tried to rationalize a RWD sports/muscle car in the snow.

Never got stuck but the weather but my routes/location were always on my mind even with good snow tires. It's not so much getting stuck but the other loony birds on the road, and being out there with my Mustang!

Now a little older and less inclined to deal with things. I bought a used Mustang with 7k on the clock, which was the same thing as new to me and kept the Grand Cherokee instead of trading it in.

Let it snow I say,
 
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The only thing you have to be concerned about is ground clearance, can't go blasting through snow banks or you will get hung up.
My GLI is currently running 5.0" of ground clearance, which I believe is almost exactly the same as a Mustang, so I am fully aware of my limitations before I become a snow plow :D

One thing that everyone is saying: "Avoid hills when possible" - As someone who has no experience with RWD in the winter, could I get an explanation on this? From my experience with peppy FWD cars, hills are the bane of traveling, as weight shifts off of the powered axle and to the rear. If your car has a crappy traction control system (*cough* VW), then you can essentially be left stranded in your tracks.

Now, it's my thinking that going up hill with a Mustang, weight will shift to the rear from both inclination and acceleration. Traction to "move forward" should theoretically increase...but maybe ability to steer decreases enough that it becomes a hazard?
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