According to Tirerack surveys and professional testing, the Continentals CrossContact were very good.
That's not true if you look at the snow/ice survey ratings (which are the only qualities under discussion here).
According to Tirerack surveys and professional testing, the Continentals CrossContact were very good.
did you drive her home?Two weeks ago I got my CX-5 stuck bad in 8-12" of snow and ice that had been accumulating all season. Oops. It put my attitude in check a bit about what the CX-5 can can't do.
But in the last few days Colorado has had two snow storms, each dumping enough to make the streets a mix of everything: fresh snow, pack snow, snow + ice, ice, slush, wet asphalt.
I haven't had any problems at all driving around in my 2014 2.5L AWD with Nokian Hakkapelleta snow tires on. A couple times I've found unplowed parking lots with 4-6" of snow and going romping around for some fun. I almost drove into a curb island in one, but stopped and avoided it.
Meanwhile, I helped a nice woman with a big F150 try to make a right hand turn on slush and ice. That took about 5 tries to back up, reposition on asphalt, get momentum and try again. In the end she was able to get through by spinning really hard. When it was my turn, I just drove on the ice and made the turn as if it was dry.
This happens regularly.. Not enough to make me feel like the CX-5 is capable of going anywhere -- getting stuck fixed that -- but I'm definitely feeling safe when I drive smartly and safetly on snow bound roads.
Really happy with both the CX-5 and the Nokians.
That's not true if you look at the snow/ice survey ratings (which are the only qualities under discussion here).
MikeM. said:The Cross-contact LX20 surveyed higher than I thought (I looked up the Cross-Contact LX which was even lower).
But I wouldn't put much weight in the consumer snow/ice rating regardless because most consumers have very little experience in snow/ice. And you found yourself, they just don't work that well, even at slow speed in a parking lot.
LOL, if you say so. The LX20 is rated #1 in that category of tires for two of the three "Winter/Snow" subcategories, except "Ice Traction", where the Continental LX Sport has the highest rating and the LX20 is 2nd.
View attachment 206184
Even lower? Is it possible to rate higher than first?
Yeah, I wouldn't put too much weight on opinions backed by nearly 2 million miles of driving...obviously the people behind those miles don't know what they're talking about since the only place it snows in the entire country is Washington.
(rolleyes)
I believe the M/T Forester AWD system is less sophisticated than the A/T one which is the industry benchmark.I have only driven my CX5 twice in snow (owned it 5 days, heavy snows in MI twice since I picked it up) and I am pretty comfortable that it will be a decent winter car. I came from a Tacoma 4WD with huge snow tires, and before that an 09 Forester 5 speed. I'm not sure why everyone raves that the Subaru system is the best out there- it works, but it has it's limitations. Certainly the CX5 is way more fun to drive, snow or not. Hopefully we only have 4-6 more weeks of winter, but I will definitely look into dedicated snows for next year.
Subaru's AWD in a manual transmission is less sophisticated, but probably better for traction, as the car is more balanced and under-steers less and because the torque is available all the time in all wheels. This means you are less likely to plow straight on a turn and less likely to get stuck. It also gets worse fuel economy.
Subaru's Active AWD which comes with the CVT is FWD biased, or mostly FWD. This is more similar to the CX-5 and most other Crossovers. I view this system as better only because it has slightly better brain than other crossovers but certainly not best.
Also, the question which needs to be asked is better at what? For some people, it is not getting stuck. For others, it is better at cornering fast on a dirt road or maybe safer.
I think the CX-5 is better in on-road cornering and feel and is similar, perhaps slightly easier to get stuck with than an automatic Subaru.
Yup, the manual Subaru's utilizes an old fashion viscous coupling system that starts at 50/50 and can distribute almost 100% to one side (front or rear) as required. The system works great in the snow and rain (I had a Outback previously). You never feel the elements, every road was like a dry road. The only negative is that the system requires a keen eye on the viscous fluid. The Outback was ugly as sin and was a real b**** to maintain but the AWD system is very, very good (with the Manual).
Exactly! I have described my Audi cars that way in the past, almost word for word.
Seems that Subaru system you described is similar to the Audi quattro system that I am familiar with. The versions I had were 50/50 split with instantaneous mechanical adjustment through the torsen differential. I frequently told people who asked me about AWD that "my car doesn't care about the weather, driving feels the same all the time". Very sure-footed, stable, and predictable, regardless of conditions.
The front-biased Haldex system in the CX5 has worked just fine for me, even with the stock tires, in what has been a very cold and snowy winter. It has always gotten me from point A to point B. But it does not compare to quattro in terms of driving feel.
Yup, the manual Subaru's utilizes an old fashion viscous coupling system that starts at 50/50 and can distribute almost 100% to one side (front or rear) as required. The system works great in the snow and rain (I had a Outback previously). You never feel the elements, every road was like a dry road. The only negative is that the system requires a keen eye on the viscous fluid. The Outback was ugly as sin and was a real b**** to maintain but the AWD system is very, very good (with the Manual).