trucks are better for driving in wintery conditions

Driver Joined: Sep 25, 2006 Posts: 107

When's the last time you drove through more than 6 inches of snow?

~Skip this entire post* if you didn't have to think hard on when that was Very Happy

Four-wheel drive is only going to get you in trouble 97% of the time. I know arguments can be made for situations that only a 4x4 could traverse. But unless you live way off in the country or in the mountains, your likelihood of being in that situation is pretty darn low. I can only think of 3 situations in my 10 years of driving that I needed a truck for, and two of those were easily avoidable but kinda fun.

The rest of those situations that tempt you to kick it into four-wheel drive are in the slippery category, and 4wd will only get you INTO trouble in those situations. There was a REASON that your rear tires slipped every time you blipped the throttle and that reason is still going to be there when you try to brake.

Your trucks weight and higher center of gravity are also going to cause you problems. To maneuver successfully in slippery conditions, your tires greatly reduced grip on the road needs to overcome your momentum. Weight is going to increase the momentum more than it increases grip. A higher center of gravity unevenly distributes that weight during maneuvering, which both reduces the grip of some of your tires and during rebound, can literally 'throw your weight around' suddenly adding momentum in directions you weren't expecting and your grip can't cope with.

I have driven four vehicles extensively in Michigan and Wisconsin winters, a minivan, a 4x4 pickup truck, a box van with duelies, and a Honda civic. The ONLY one of those I haven't ever had an accident or a close call with is the Honda civic. I've driven in snow high enough to hear the scraping on the undercarriage, cornered faster than I could believe on white ice, and gotten caught in a surprise blizzard in northern Michigan; all without mishap. (The blizzard cost me 20 minutes when I pulled into a gas station and waited for a snowplow to go my way)

IMHO, the only two reasons to be in a big 4x4 truck on slippery roads are 1: you already expect to run off the road into a snowdrift and heroically drive yourself out of it. 2: you value your own life so much more than other peoples that you drive a vehicle that is LESS maneuverable but increases your safety at the cost of others on the road.

*maybe 'rant' would be more truthfull than 'post' in this case.

Posted: Thu Nov 30, 2006 8:25 pm

moved to the front page Very Happy

And, btw, trucks' safety is also questionable. Truck itself is going to be intact in most of cases, but I wouldn't say the same about people inside this truck... Crying or Very sad

Driver Joined: Sep 25, 2006 Posts: 107

god has a cruel cruel sense of humor.

By the morning after I wrote that post, there was 7 inches of heavy snow being blown around by blizzard winds. None of the plows were out yet and I had to get to work.

I did realize that I made one point badly. If you have a truck, 4wd will help you drive safely IF you don't get overconfident. I'd choose a 4wd truck just like I'd choose a Awd car for slippery conditions.

Posted: Fri Dec 01, 2006 4:21 pm

Man, you are turning on a dime! Surprised

Can you tell a bit more on this, I mean what exactly are safety features you found in AWD, and how did you found about them Smile

And on a side note - we have 74F on the termometer here Very Happy

Driver Joined: Sep 25, 2006 Posts: 107

Its honestly just easier to make the vehicle go the direction you want it to when you have four wheels doing the going. ...and THAT is why its so dangerous. if you don't have to think about going, you probably won't think about stopping.

The thing is though, if you're quick and paying attention, you can get out of the way of an accident that you wouldn't have been able to maneuver around with only two drive wheels, ESPECIALLY a Rwd truck.

oh.. and I was only saying I'd choose 4wd or Awd over 2wd, NOT that I'd choose a truck over a car.
Heck, my cargo van almost went sideways into the curb today when I tried to make a left turn at like 2mph! It slid across two lanes in slow motion and there was nothing I could do about it except wave to the stopped traffic Very Happy

Posted: Sat Dec 02, 2006 7:23 pm

Yeah, now I understand your point.
I would just think AWD would probably start sliding at 2.5 or 3 mph... Does not really make a whole lot of difference in this particular situation....
Spikes would make a difference, but I believe they are illegal in US...