Winter Driving???

[Maka]

Hello all again,

I am having a very difficult time in deciding to purchase a GT350.

It mostly comes down to this - I have only one parking spot at home and at work, and though I've rented a second spot in the past for a second (toy) car, I don't really want to do that this time.

Thus, I would like to be able to drive the 350 all year round. The problem is that I'm in Toronto, and winters can be awful. Could I put winter tires on the car and realistically drive it during winter? (I owned a 5.0 LX many years ago and it was TERRIBLE in the winter (though I didn't have winter tires on it, and of course that was a much older and less sophisticated chassis, etc. - I swore I'd never drive a rear wheel drive car again here in winter)).

All comments are appreciated, especially those from owners who have actually driven (attempted?) their 350s in snow.

Thanks!!

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[Zitrosounds]

Hello all again,

I am having a very difficult time in deciding to purchase a GT350.

It mostly comes down to this - I have only one parking spot at home and at work, and though I've rented a second spot in the past for a second (toy) car, I don't really want to do that this time.

Thus, I would like to be able to drive the 350 all year round. The problem is that I'm in Toronto, and winters can be awful. Could I put winter tires on the car and realistically drive it during winter? (I owned a 5.0 LX many years ago and it was TERRIBLE in the winter (though I didn't have winter tires on it, and of course that was a much older and less sophisticated chassis, etc. - I swore I'd never drive a rear wheel drive car again here in winter)).

All comments are appreciated, especially those from owners who have actually driven (attempted?) their 350s in snow.

Thanks!!

From what I have read on various performance cars with winter tires, it is definitely doable.
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/

http://www.caranddriver.com/columns...snow-tires-still-beat-four-wheel-drive-page-2

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...nkqKHeXPqzNP_tlJA&sig2=hKujZ-BTd0TGRhpcodSDdA

 

[cosmo]

I believe Hack has driven his through the winter, but not through the snow. He would be the best person to contact.

I plan on driving mine through the snow, with just being careful until oil and coolant gets up to temp. You'll want a thinner tire than 300+ though, as tires that wide in a car this "light" have difficulty gaining traction through the snow. 275/285 is probably still an overkill, but likely will be the thinnest you'll get as the rims have to be pretty wide in the first place to clear the calipers.

 

[ohtobbad]

I am a huge Mustang fan, but if I could have only one car it would not be a Mustang.
For winter you can store the Mustang off site, takes care of parking.
Summer I have no idea. Toronto doesn't have bad winters.
An hour north does. for few times you really have to worry about it,
no problem. If your commuting from Barrie or kingston everyday, different story.

 

[Hack]

It's no problem driving a modern rear wheel drive car through the winter. I drove my 2011 and 2015 GTs exclusively rear round here in Minneapolis. I've been avoiding wet/snowy/icy/really cold days with the GT350 and driving my Explorer instead, but that's more to reduce salt exposure and extend the life of the body. The weather mode for the GT350 is phenomenal in my opinion. I didn't use weather mode much last winter just because I have never been in the habit of doing that with my past cars, but this spring I have started using it even on rainy days because it works so well.

I would highly recommend good snow tires on a second set of rims. I would get relatively narrow wheels to match whatever tire size you can get a good price on. And of course the same size front and rear so they can be rotated. I use and love Blizzaks, but I think there are even better snow tires available now.

I've also posted a bunch of information on this forum, so a search can get you photos of rims that fit the GT350, etc.

 

[GT_Dave]

The Michelin Pilot Super Sports will not work (safely) in any type of snow!!
You will need to buy wheels and snow tires, but it will be no different than any other rear wheel car with the right setup.

 

[earlSpilner]

Hello all again,

I am having a very difficult time in deciding to purchase a GT350.

It mostly comes down to this - I have only one parking spot at home and at work, and though I've rented a second spot in the past for a second (toy) car, I don't really want to do that this time.

Thus, I would like to be able to drive the 350 all year round. The problem is that I'm in Toronto, and winters can be awful. Could I put winter tires on the car and realistically drive it during winter? (I owned a 5.0 LX many years ago and it was TERRIBLE in the winter (though I didn't have winter tires on it, and of course that was a much older and less sophisticated chassis, etc. - I swore I'd never drive a rear wheel drive car again here in winter)).

All comments are appreciated, especially those from owners who have actually driven (attempted?) their 350s in snow.

Thanks!!

I live out in Alberta and drove my GT350 through not one, but two bizzards (weather changes very quickly here). This was black ice with blowing snow in -28C temps. I was attempting to get the car to my storage in another city at the time and got caught. At the time I had the stock tires on. The with some cautious driving the car made it just fine. I just left the traction control in "weather" mode.

Like you my plan is to drive the car year round with proper winter tires.

From my experience the gt350 should have no issue being your year round car. That being said some paint protection (XPEL or 3M) on the fender flares and front end would be a good idea)

 

[bdub85]

I don't see any issue driving this car in the winter as long as you have a set of winter tires to use. I highly recommend Blizzak tires. I've had them on a few different cars in the past.

 

[Maka]

Thanks for all the positive answers. Definitely sounds doable.

 

[DC15]

I would say yes, I have had great winter success with a 911S with winter tires, I have used both Dunlop Winter Sport 3D and Pierelli Scorpion Ice and Snow, I would choose these performance winter tires over Blizzaks

 

[FordTechOne]

Having owned a lot of performance cars, sometimes multiple performance cars at the same time, here is my advice:

If you can afford to purchase a car like the GT350, buy a beater and a second parking spot.

I used to think I'd never own a truck, but after enough brutal winters and enough getting stuck, the idea didn't seem so bad. Turned out it wasn't; there was nothing better than coming out of work to my Jeep in a foot of snow and driving home without worry, all while knowing that my Mustang was safe, warm, and dry in the garage.

Driving a high performance car in the snow can really make you hate it, because it's extremely frustrating. And that's just the part about getting stuck....never mind the frozen windows (Mustang is pillarless), dirt/snow/sand/salt accumulation on the interior, damage to the chassis and paint finish from sand/salt/rust, and of course the long term effects of corrosion.

The GT350 is just too nice of a car for that IMO, find a place to store it for the winter months and just buy a cheap 4x4.

 

[Hi-PO Stang]

I agree, the GT350 is just too nice a car to drive in the Winter. When I drive a rear wheel drive car in Minnesota during the Winter , I put a tube of sand in the trunk near each rear wheel and use all Season tires. The rear percent created by the sand tubes gives me the traction needed.
I use my all wheel drive Jeep GC for my Winter driving and leave the Mustangs in the garage. Sometimes I have to drive my Jeep thru snow so deep the front bumper pushes snow out of the way.

 

[JohnDoe]

If I can handle NY winters with only conti DWS all seasons, then you can definitely handle toronto with SNOW tires (given that you have enough ground clearance)

 

[Hi-PO Stang]

Yes, ground clearance is critical. I remember driving across a hugh snow drift with a 1970 Mavrick and having the belly pan of the car stradle the drift and raise the tires above the pavement. I had to shovel the snow from under the car to get the wheels to the pavement to get traction.

 

[Mustang_Scotty]

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