2015 GT in the Snow???

[Stanger]

I would not say "everyone". I would say "some-to-many"

“Most” people don’t like to hear how their own brain works… If you are really interested, check out metacognition within the context of confirmation bias.

In Chicago, it's fairly flat landscape (although there are places, of course, where that is not the case). Being from there originally, which I didn't mention, that was where I experienced winter driving. When I came to Cincinnati, I had to ensure I had a way to manage hillier terrain than there. And indeed, if you get stopped near the top of a hill and have to restart, it can be challenging, which is why I personally anticipate the traffic or avoid the hill area.

Avoiding hills works when you know where they are and where you are going…

That's definitely an option, if 2 cars enter the affordability range. If not, then driving a GT in the snow in his current location is feasible, with some provisos of course.

Yeah, the two car scenario recommended most of the time includes a beater for the snow.

Sorry to hear about your son. I hope is OK.

Again, sorry to hear about your son.

Thanks - he’ll be fine. Sometimes our life guardrails come in the form of past lessons learned.

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[Tony Alonso]

“Most” people don’t like to hear how their own brain works… If you are really interested, check out metacognition within the context of confirmation bias.

Yep, read it

Avoiding hills works when you know where they are and where you are going…

Yes it does...otherwise, it's an adventure!

Yeah, the two car scenario recommended most of the time includes a beater for the snow.

Need to get one someday

Thanks - he’ll be fine. Sometimes our life guardrails come in the form of past lessons learned.

Indeed they do.

 

[mustang317]

I'm in the same boat. I learned to drive my first car ('66 Mustang) in the Colorado snow - studded snow tires and sandbags in the trunk. I never had any problems, but did still slip around quite a bit.

As many have noted, your experience plays a huge part. Once you learn how to manage the throttle, that "I thought I was going to die" feeling goes away.

The issue that I struggle with (here and other enthusiast forums) is that everyone displays confirmation bias. If you think a set of good snow tires on RWD is better in the snow than the idiots driving AWD SUVs with All Seasons nothing on the internet will convince you otherwise.

The typical issues that the RWD w/Blizzaks crowd concede are that getting up hills and the stop/start situation are both greatly improved with AWD. Beyond that, it's all confirmation bias. There are so many people online saying I'm fine with a RWD 450hp beast in the snow that I've begun to believe them - whether it's the S550 or the M3/M4.

Literally after I wrote the above something happened. Given I'm in the financial services field and prone to risk aversion...I'll share.

My 16 year old was just delivered to our front door with a gaping hole in his chin, 2 inch long knee laceration (likely broken), and nasty road rash up his entire right arm. The culprit - long board down a hill, misjudged a turn, and slammed into a steel bridge. Wife is at the ER with him now.

How is this relevant? Shit only hits the fan after you've made your choice. :shrug:

My advice - either (a) get the Mustang PLUS a snow/ice car, or (b) get an AWD car. Again, I'm risk averse so take it with a grain of salt.

i agree i am from indianapolis , i was thinking about getting my s550GT and a cheap awd subaru to drive during the winter or snow days .

 

[williamwally]

This thread needs...frozen Shelby:
(I'm using my phone, not sure how to rotate the last 2 pics)

 

[rkan]

Like others, I had rear wheel drive with snow tires. BMW 335 with General Altimax winter tires. Why not Blizzacks the standard best recommended snow tire? Cause $$$. I got around fine, it was just really heavy snow and plow truck troughs at street intersections that caused problems due to the depth. I could still get through it, but just was plowing with the "chin" of my bumper.
That leads me to a point about affordability. A new set of snow tires and wheels from Tire Rack would be about $1500. Compare that to a "cheap" awd or Fwd car. How much car can you get for that money? Also additional insurance.
So if I get my GT, its gonna be snow tires. (And Husky liner floor liners!)

 

[Stanger]

...but just was plowing with the "chin" of my bumper.
That leads me to a point about affordability. A new set of snow tires and wheels from Tire Rack would be about $1500.

How much does the 335 front bumper cost?

Love these pics of stationary Mustangs in the snow…;)

Of course confirmation bias is in full force, “if I haven’t wrecked in the snow then only an idiot with a Mustang will”.

Some random quotes from around the net from different Mustang owners...showing an alternative view than what is posted here. Frankly, it all comes down to the driver. But it isn't cut and dry...

by the time I got about a mile outside of Mt Vernon it was blowing across the road just enough to aggrivate you. When I started going up the hill to enter town my car went c0ck-eyed (does anyone use that word anymore? lol ) and I was like CRAP! NO! DO NOT WRECK THIS CAR! That was kind of an over-reaction because it wasn't that bad it just startled me because I wasn't expecting it to do anything.

Well after the visitation my dad (02 GT) couldn't get out onto the road from a stop-sign, lol. We backed up (which surprised me that we even could) and finally got on our way home, which I drove 20 almost the whole way and still slid around.

Long story short, we got like 10 inches of snow and alot of wind, which sadly means bye bye to my mustang for a while ....ahh! Impala's are so SLOW!!! lol, but at least it can get around in the snow.

I haven't been on here in a long time because of school and basketball, which is why I post this 10 days later, but I just thought I'd share my sorrows with you fine folks. Is it summer yet?

I don't even try. I put mine up right after T-giving and it hasn't ever seen snow and won't while I own it unless my truck took a dump and that was the only way to get around......even then.....I got friends that can help until the truck is running again (knock on wood).

The only time i borrow my mother's escape is when i am physically unable to get my car out of the driveway its sliding so much. (2007 GT supercharged)

I agree with the guys that don't want to drive their Stangs in the snow.

My car did just fine in its first snow last week. Then I tried going north on the interstate and hit the slick ice. Fortunately, some hillbillies drove by with their 30 year old Chevy pickup and a tow strap. $100 later and I was back on the road, heading back to town from a canceled trip up north. I think I'll just be staying off the ice, no matter what I'm driving.

Mine is up for the winter too. Snow and Mustangs don't mix. I've driven in the snow since I was 16 and even an experienced driver can wreck in the snow/ice. Even my 4runner, over 4K in weight, full time 4wheel drive and it can still get sideways if your not careful. Since it snowed here last week, been alot of wrecks. some think if you have a truck that's 4X4, you can do 80 in the interstate with snow, though they find out they're wrong. Though i did see two mustangs in a ditch. I had a silver S197 V6 this morning on my tail. I was doing 40 in a 45 but the bypass road by Mt Home wasn't that great, still some snow and ice on the road. Lots of idiots out there. (Cobra owner)

This may actually sum it up for a lot of folks…

They're a pain to drive in the winter, but when I have to decide between my GT or a big ugly SUV...well I choose the GT...SUV's dont exactly get the girls swarming lol.

But I agree if you can avoid driving the Stang in the snow/ice.... do it.

For those hills…

…mustang slid off the road into a utility pole during wet snow. The front quarter is damaged, body shop gave me an estimate of $4000. I'm undecided about repairing it or selling as is.

I'd say go test drive a '14 the very next time it snows in Chicago. Luckily, I've convinced the wife that two cars are in my future - C7/S550/M3/M4 and a snow car for "those days".

 

[Whiskey11]

A heightened level of common sense and planning ahead does WONDERS in any inclimate weather driving. Snow tires, like summer tires in the summer, simply represent the best possible traction for the vehicle in a given situation. All seasons represent a "balance" of both, but good at neither approach to grip situation. In other words, they suck in both conditions compared to the respective tires for summer and winter.

Winter tires on a Mustang makes a significant difference in the ability of a driver to safely use a Mustang in the winter. Better than AWD depends entirely on your goals. With proper planning ahead, getting stuck trying to get going is rare with a snow tire equipped RWD car and that is the only area an AWD vehicle is truly superior to RWD in the snow. Braking performance and turning performance are going to be similar, although it is far easier to tweak the attitude of a RWD car in the snow than AWD or FWD with a proper driver.

I would gladly put my snow tire equipped Mustang against the horde of idiot drivers in an Subaru Outback on All seasons. Common sense gets you a lot further in the snow than drivetrain configuration and tires. Tires just help you achieve higher levels of grip which allow you a little more leeway in decision making but it does not allow you to treat snowy conditions like it was dry out.

But then again, I'm different than your average driver in that I actually pay attention when I'm driving and know how to react when my car "misbehaves." Not once in the past two winters have I had issues with driving my Mustang, on snow tires, in the snow and I live in the snow belt where winter storms frequently dump 10"+ of snow. Closest I got was at an intersection that had just been pushed and there was a pile of snow just before a stop sign. It took a little more gas than normal, but everything worked out and I didn't get stuck.

 

[mc lane]

This thread needs...frozen Shelby:
(I'm using my phone, not sure how to rotate the last 2 pics)

Quote: "what's cooler than cool? ICECOLD!!!!"

 

[Stanger]

...the horde of idiot drivers in an Subaru Outback on All seasons.

Question - if you put that horde of idiot drivers in your Mustang, what would be the outcome? Better or worse?

I figure if you put those idiots in a RWD car - even with snows - they won't magically become better drivers, would they?

 

[Grimace427]

Question - if you put that horde of idiot drivers in your Mustang, what would be the outcome? Better or worse?

I figure if you put those idiots in a RWD car - even with snows - they won't magically become better drivers, would they?

They would probably be stuck in their neighborhood instead of flying off the freeway causing 100 car pileups.

 

[MadMoose]

I had michelin x-ice tires on my modded 09 GT and it got around fine in the snow here in colorado. You do need to pay closer attention to how you drive with RWD just due to the tendency of the rear end to come around compared to FWD or AWD but I was still incredibly confident in my car with the x ice tires. I had michelin PA3 snow tires and the boss and they were totally useless in the snow.

 

[Whiskey11]

I had michelin x-ice tires on my modded 09 GT and it got around fine in the snow here in colorado. You do need to pay closer attention to how you drive with RWD just due to the tendency of the rear end to come around compared to FWD or AWD but I was still incredibly confident in my car with the x ice tires. I had michelin PA3 snow tires and the boss and they were totally useless in the snow.

You know what is really funny about the driving dynamics of a RWD car in a loose condition vs a FWD or AWD car is? The way to correct it is the same for all of the cars, gas. That is NOT the reaction most people are used to. If you are going to spin a RWD car in the snow by power, you are not paying attention to what the car is telling you, in fact you are flat out ignoring it at which point you should NOT be on the public roads.

I actually find a RWD car is a much more willing driver in snow because the attitude of the car (direction it is pointed) is easily changed. Lets take an example: You are making a right hand turn and the roads are covered in freshly fallen snow with packed tracks. In your FWD car you start your turn and as soon as you turn the front end washes out on (ice or whatever) you so are now at a 45º angle to where you want to be going. Your only option to get the front end pointed in the correct direction is to brake right? Now you are slowing down in conditions that you should probably be continuing at a relatively constant speed because it is very easy to get stuck. An AWD car is going to behave similarly if it is based on a FWD platform (think Ford Taurus SHO) and is FWD biased. Now in a RWD car or RWD biased AWD system (WRX/STi/Evo's) in the same system you can goose the gas a little to get the rear of the car in the correct direction then let off just a slight bit until the rear end grips again.

As for the average person in a RWD car on Snows vs an AWD car on All Seasons, do I think they'd do better? I think they'd stop and turn better which for someone who does some planning is all that truly matters in winter driving. Wheel spin when taking off is common on FWD cars in snow too (if anything it is worse because of weight transfer to the rear pulling grip from the front wheels). The stopping thing is huge as well as maintaining front end grip in a skid (braking performance). Frankly, I'd rather it be mandated in in states in the snow belt and North East to be required to have snow tires during winter months but that's a fat chance that'll ever happen.

 

[BlackDragon]

^^^Thumbs up to this guy^^^^

Although an evo is a transverse engine fwd chassis, just for the sake of keeping info clean.

 

[Whiskey11]

^^^Thumbs up to this guy^^^^

Although an evo is a transverse engine fwd chassis, just for the sake of keeping info clean.

It is, but the Evo 9 SE I drove was extremely tail happy for a transverse engine FWD chassis. Might have had something to do with how the car was setup but it drove more like a RWD car than a FWD car.

 

[xlover]

I had michelin x-ice tires on my modded 09 GT and it got around fine in the snow here in colorado. You do need to pay closer attention to how you drive with RWD just due to the tendency of the rear end to come around compared to FWD or AWD but I was still incredibly confident in my car with the x ice tires. I had michelin PA3 snow tires and the boss and they were totally useless in the snow.

You didn't like the PA3? I have a set on my s4 and was planning on the same when I get my 2015..... I didn't think it was all the Quattro system, perhaps I should think through a different winter tire for my upcoming mustang purchase, I was going to use the latest PA4.

I drove my 2010 GT in the snow with the stock all-seasons for 2 winters and never got stuck but came damn close, will never do that again. Barely climbed a hill or two with the diff locked as much as it could and the traction control blinking like a Christmas tree.

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