Mazda 5 on snow?

sun1004

Member
Has anyone with Mazda 5 drove their car on snow? I live in NY and we get lot of snow during winter and I was wondering how the 5 does in snow.
 
We got a few inches the other day but I didn't get to drive in the fresh snow, only plowed streets.
I did play on an unplowed parking lot for a few seconds. I turned and pulled up on the ebrake for a second and the backside swung around pretty far, farther than I expected. This makes me a little nervous about winter driving, as I think the backside might get pretty squirrley if you have to pull some kind of 'emergency manuver'.
But then again, I've been driving my 240sx for the last few years so it might be that I am accustomed to RWD behavior.

Mutual consensus is that the OE tires suck. I haven't had too much trouble with the m yet. They aren't great, but they're better than bald tires.
I've driving like a panzy and I seem to get along just fine.
 
sun1004 said:
Has anyone with Mazda 5 drove their car on snow? I live in NY and we get lot of snow during winter and I was wondering how the 5 does in snow.
I've found that the MP5 Does not do snow, After buying a new control arm and rim, then next winter I drove my 4WS Honda Prelude at the first sign of snow Now I'm looking to find a bigger Mazda Rim so I can find more popular Tires
 
other forum

You my want to post a note in the other section as well - 5 Suspension, Rims and Tires - as there has been some mention of snow tires there.

Myself I am wondering about the merits of adding only 2 snow tires to the front of the 5 for some winter hwy driving we have to do. we don't get snow in the city, so we don't need a full set of them.

Anyone have any thoughts.... Is that even safe?
 
pbdave said:
You my want to post a note in the other section as well - 5 Suspension, Rims and Tires - as there has been some mention of snow tires there.

Myself I am wondering about the merits of adding only 2 snow tires to the front of the 5 for some winter hwy driving we have to do. we don't get snow in the city, so we don't need a full set of them.

Anyone have any thoughts.... Is that even safe?
I don't see why it would not be safe. Back in the day people used to run big old nasty snow (truck) tires on the back and they did ok.I would think that having 2 grippy snow tires pulling you along would be much better that 2 snow tires in the back pushing you around.
I'm sure the tire guy will reccomend that you get a full set so he can make the sale. I'm sure 4 snows would be better than 2. But at the same time 2 would be better than 0.
 
We had about 4 inches on Thanksgiving day and I had to drive my 5 out of our unplowed driveway up a 30 degree incline. I did not have any issues. Then again I got rid of the standard Toyo's for some Michelin Pilot A/S tires. I have the same tires on my 3 and had no issues last winter. Massachusetts has a pretty good snow removal so I'm not too worried.
 
pbdave said:
You my want to post a note in the other section as well - 5 Suspension, Rims and Tires - as there has been some mention of snow tires there.

Myself I am wondering about the merits of adding only 2 snow tires to the front of the 5 for some winter hwy driving we have to do. we don't get snow in the city, so we don't need a full set of them.

Anyone have any thoughts.... Is that even safe?

Definitely NOT safe!

Especially with front-wheel drive a matched set of tires (snow or non-snow) is necessary. Snows on front only will lead to a serious imbalance between traction levels at front and rear ends. Sure you'll have decent acceleration in a straight line, but any lateral movement or braking will accentuate the car's desire to swap ends --- in a most dramatic fashion. RWD cars used to get away with two snows on the back, thereby putting the greater adhesion in the rear and to some degree "promoting" lateral stability at the expense of turning ability. Greater traction in the front will enhance turning ability in the form of a tendency for the vehicle to spin.
 
I have from experience on a ford focus, that 2 snow tires on the front WILL WORK, it was a TANK in the snow and put the mazda3 HB and i model to shame. It gets your moving and stoping, the back tires are there just to keep the car straight. Unless you plan on racing on a mountain with alot of turns it IS a viable cheap option.
 
Your the kind of driver that scares me.

fam said:
I have from experience on a ford focus, that 2 snow tires on the front WILL WORK, it was a TANK in the snow and put the mazda3 HB and i model to shame. It gets your moving and stoping, the back tires are there just to keep the car straight. Unless you plan on racing on a mountain with alot of turns it IS a viable cheap option.

Taking shortcuts with safety is ridiculous. Sure maybe you did have some luck with two snow tires but what kind of snow was it: soft and light? Heavy and slippery? Hardened into ice?. Are you sure the Focus has the same front to rear weigth distribution as the 5?

Why not be safe and do all four. Maybe save some money by not going out to dinner for a month if you can't afford the tires.

This is a HUGE pet peave of mine. I see a lot of people cheaping out on tires because they think that all tires are created equally. But they're NOT. Doesn't matter how well your car performs, throwing bad tires on a car or deciding to throw two instead of 4 snow tires will severely impair traction. It's common sense for Christsakes.

Your not only putting yourself in danger but the people driving around you in danger.

End of rant.
 
I'm going to have to agree with DiMarco on this one. The only place you should be racing is a track.

As far as snow goes, every ounce of predictability you thought you had with your car no longer applies. Unless it's an emergency, stay off the road. If you're looking for reliable means of transportation when it dumps, purchase a snowmobile. :)
 
It was underlying frozen ince over about 2 ft of snow. I think youre illusion of safety is a tire manufacturer's dream and slogan as well..but to each his own.
 
The rear's probably swinging out because it's so much lighter than the front. My protege5 is the same way. This winter I'm going to try adding some weight in the middle of the car to try and help with all-around grip on the road.

I'd imaginte the Mazda5 is the same story.
 
fam said:
It was underlying frozen ince over about 2 ft of snow. I think youre illusion of safety is a tire manufacturer's dream and slogan as well..but to each his own.

I can understand why you may think that but I'm not one to cave to advertising. The reality is that different tire compounds will offer different types of traction on different road surfaces. Without even traction on all wheels, anti-locks and cornering will be compromised. I've learnerd this first hand.

I also choose to be overly safe than cut corners. The point is not every car behaves the same at the limit so I'd rather make every attempt by placing the odds in my favor. The cost of an extra set of tires easily costs as much as most insurance deductibles.
 
Lord_Zath said:
The rear's probably swinging out because it's so much lighter than the front. My protege5 is the same way. This winter I'm going to try adding some weight in the middle of the car to try and help with all-around grip on the road.

I'd imaginte the Mazda5 is the same story.

Weight distribution has a lot to do with it. But I'll argue that even if you put extra weight in the back you'll still be dealing with compromised traction. My 3S came with Goodyear GSAs and sucked on all surfaces. Taking corners, even at slow speeds on wet asphalt caused the rear end to break loose. I replaced the Goodyears with Michelin Pilots and my 3S handles like it's on rails. I put the same tires on my 5.

The Honda Pilot we used to owned also used Goodyears and, despite all-wheel drive, hydroplaned dangerously. It feels horrible when a 2+ ton SUV gets squirrley. I replaced all four tires with Yokohama Geolanders and it was a night and day difference. Every time I see a Pilot with Goodyear Integritys I wonder how the hell they stay on the road. Of course there's also those people who drive around with bald tires. ******* idiots.

Tires make a big difference.
 
He didnt even ask about tires and swapping 2 lol. All this talk crap for nothing. Answer he needs to know:
Its decent in snow, would be great in snow with better tires\winter tires.
 
Thanks for lots of info guys.
I'm guessing that this car is as good as any front wheel drive car. I was asking because I didn't see Tracktion control as one of the options, I know with Tracktion control on a front wheel drive car it will drive really well in the snow.
 
when accelerating, yes. But there's a lot more to a car than acceleration, especially in the snow.

Cornering and braking are much more important in winter...
 
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