How To / Not To Drive in the Snow

[pcspb1]

Sounds like your Civic needs some sensible winter shoes. I have one car with and one car without winter tyres. It's like night and day.

 

I have snow boots fitted, (Pirelli Sottozero) but the whole handling of the car is wrong. Doesn't help that it is automatic either, but sadly I had no choice.

 

I parked on a very slight (and I mean very slight) incline this morning, handbrake on, left in reverse gear, engine off - got out to open the garage door and as soon as I got out, the car started sliding forwards towards the wall. In all my years of driving, I have never had that happen. It must be the way the car is balanced it's all I can conclude.

 

Great car in general, but very severely suspect in snow and ice.

[NightFlight]

If you want to turn your car through 180 degrees (or more) simply turn the wheel to the right (or left) and apply handbrake.

 

Also works to correct understeer.

 

*CAUTION*

Don't try this unless

a) you can think quick enough to assess the situation, judge how much handbrake, throttle and steering to apply, and estimate to a decent accuracy where you and everything else around you is going to end up afterwards

b) you've practised doing it under controlled conditions and have a reasonable expectation of the outcome being better than not doing so.

c) there's no other safer option

[peak-polly]

Another sneaky little hint: Always be pleasant to your land rover owning neighbours....you never know when you'll need a tow.

 

My husband is always popular this time of the year with his landy :-)

[Number Six]

If you want to turn your car through 180 degrees (or more) simply turn the wheel to the right (or left) and apply handbrake.

 

This saved me from crashing in to a new X5 a few years back. I had turned on to Shore Lane a little too quickly, having got far too cocky driving over Snake Pass in the snow. The X5 was stuck on the way up. I knew I couldn't stop - the ABS was going mental and basically wouldn't put the brakes on at all, so I used the 'emergency oversteer lever' to execute what, to me, felt like a perfect 180, which left my car pointing back up the hill and on the correct side of the road. I felt like a driving god, until I realised I'd caught the accelerator with my big winter boot on the brake and was revving the knackers off my car.

 

I used to practice using the handbrake in such circumstances in empty car parks when I was younger. I believe the police frown on such activities now, but if you do have a go, remember to do it slowly. No, slower than that. You might feel a bit of a pillock doing really slow handbrake turns, but you'll feel even more of a pillock if your attempt to learn a skill leads you to roll the car.

[Number Six]

I have snow boots fitted, (Pirelli Sottozero) but the whole handling of the car is wrong. Doesn't help that it is automatic either, but sadly I had no choice.

 

I parked on a very slight (and I mean very slight) incline this morning, handbrake on, left in reverse gear, engine off - got out to open the garage door and as soon as I got out, the car started sliding forwards towards the wall. In all my years of driving, I have never had that happen. It must be the way the car is balanced it's all I can conclude.

 

Great car in general, but very severely suspect in snow and ice.

 

That is very peculiar indeed. I quite like our auto in the snow, if in doubt I let it creep.

 

I don't quite know how it might make a difference, but did the Civic stay still when it was in neutral?

[NightFlight]

No, slower than that. You might feel a bit of a pillock doing really slow handbrake turns, but you'll feel even more of a pillock if your attempt to learn a skill leads you to roll the car.

 

...and you'll quickly get addicted once you learn how to not only handbrake turn but then counter steer, floor the throttle and get some nice slow-motion drifts going.

B&Q on queens road is good as there's lamposts and stuff you can practice manouvering round once you've got the feel for it.

[L00b]

Downhill - of course - didn't think of that! You're still relying on the grip on the road/snow for deceleration whether it's engine braking or normal brakes though, so surely it doesn't make that much difference?

It does if your auto-choke is still on (the auto-choke doesn't allow engine braking 'below' the warming-up/faster idling). It's a bit like having a cruise control permanently on at a slow speed. Now, depending on the car, gradient and surface, 2 or 3 mph either side can be the difference between in control and out of control.

 

PS: in the context of the above also, don't forget the difference in weight transfer dynamics between engine braking and normal braking. Of course, and again, it's always going to be a question of which car [weight, gravity center, FWD/RWD/AWD (yes, there is a big difference)] and conditions (gradient, surface, etc.)

 

The reverse effect is just as true, mind: in the end, you're quite right, you can't beat physics/gravity

 

The situation can happen wherein the grip/weight ratio 'outweighs' engine braking and the car starts sliding no matter what (whether engine braking or normal braking, the gradient is too steep for the weight of the car and whatever grip can be had, so down you go whether you want to or not, sat inside a 1000kgs, £££ sledge ).

 

Happened to me this January (was it January? last time it was bad, early this year), thank God for Advanced Driving + reflexes + RWD + handbrake + considerate estate dwellers piling the snow in the middle of the road before the roundabout...I was told it looked impressive: well I'm sure it can't have looked any more impressive outside, than it did at the wheel at the time

[evildrneil]

How about don't take the car out unless you need to. Driving the kids round the corner to school or going to the corner shop don't really count as "need to"

[carosio]

With most newer cars, you're advised not to do this:thumbsup:.

 

Not certain, but might be something to do with fast warm-up of the cat/convertor for low emissions.

[Xt500]

Nothing better than a thread of the blind leading the blind