Winter Tips/Tricks

[Fenrir]

So winter is coming up (For all us non-California/Florida people, anyway. Jerks with your sunny weather. *shakes fist*). Anyone have any thoughts on how to keep your MS3 in decent condition? I know I'm not the only one who uses it as a daily driver, and don't have a choice but to drive in the snow and salt (cry, salt). What's the best way to keep rust off and myself out of the ditch?

At least the MS3 should be easier in the snow than my 300whp RWD 240SX with no ABS or TCS/DSC

So whatcha got? Let's hear it!

 

[AutoXRacer]

Park it in the garage, cover it, hook it up to a trickle charger and an oil warmer...

Resume operation in the spring time... (lol2)

 

[coyfish]

What you mean sunny weather ! Here in florida it was 64 degrees this morning. I almost went back inside to get a long sleeve. lol now its hot as hell again

 

[AutoXRacer]

Man, it was cold this morning; 62*. On my way to work, I had to block off the vents cause I was freezing...

The car loved it though...damn she was ripping asphat off the road!!!

 

[KZL_99ES]

I know i'm getting some snow tires in about a month for my pro (also saves the life of the summer/performace tires), but for the salt... i dont really know, trust me i know what you have to go through, i lived in lake zurich and when it just started to flurry they were out with like 4 layers of salt down...

 

[happy and angry]

- get winter tires
- learn to drive in snow and ice (perhaps do a driving course), or otherwise improve driver skills (clutch/throttle control, shifting, when to use nuetral in bad weather, proper downshifting on ice, how to navigate hills and blind corners, skid control, etc).
- keep an emergency winter kit in your car (grave/kitty litter, a collapsable shovel, some rope, blankets, flares, flashlight, first aid, etc)
- know where your jack is, your tow hook is, etc
- wash your car (touchless at a gas station works well) every two or three weeks to keep the salt off it as much as possible

 

[AutoXRacer]

Or come down to Florida and enjoy the sunny weather... (lol2)

 

[Fenrir]

Haha. Thanks for all the advice. I'll have to pick up some snow tires. Any suggestions on type?

 

[HotHatchRacer20]

Park it in the garage, cover it, hook it up to a trickle charger and an oil warmer...

Resume operation in the spring time... (lol2)

thaths my plan excatly, but Im going one step further and removing the tires
so i dont get tempted to pull her out, 39 deg this morrning, winters comming

 

[Kain]

thaths my plan excatly, but Im going one step further and removing the tires
so i dont get tempted to pull her out, 39 deg this morrning, winters comming

You'll want to leave the car up on jackstands and remove the wheels anyway if you plan on storing for a while to avoid flatspotting the tires.

 

[meha11]

ha ha i feel sorry for you guys up north. I had to put the doors back on my jeep last weekend it was so cold.
I feel your pain though, i used to live on the coast of NW England, being late for work in the mornings and not being able to get the key in the door cos it is frozen, then using De-icer and realizing the door is frozen shut, then getting in and driving off with a little bit of the window visible wearing a hat and gloves till the engine warmed up. Happy days, oh how i love the gulf coast winters.

My advice is buy a remote start if you dont already have on.

 

[CWPspeed3]

Haha. Thanks for all the advice. I'll have to pick up some snow tires. Any suggestions on type?

Depending on your area you may not need full dedicated snow tires, I ended up getting a set of Pirelli PZero Nero M&S (Pinna if you get the 215/45/18) They seem to handle fine in the wet, hoping I wont have to test them in snow too soon.

 

[montrealms3]

Yeah, one more thing, if driving in the winter, do not park the car in the garage when you get home. Salt only works when it is above freezing, i.e. in your garage, so keep it outside. If you park outside and periodically remove the salt by going to a touchless car wash, you will be fine.

I am also a firm believer in having the car sprayed with some kind of rust protection/inhibitor.

 

[Fenrir]

Depending on your area you may not need full dedicated snow tires, I ended up getting a set of Pirelli PZero Nero M&S (Pinna if you get the 215/45/18) They seem to handle fine in the wet, hoping I wont have to test them in snow too soon.

I'm in northern Chicagoland area, we get hit pretty hard with snow. I'm thinking blizzaks or something similar, but blizzaks are so expensive :x

 

[ZyrehT]

Blizzak 3D's and rinse it off.

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

Depending on your area you may not need full dedicated snow tires, I ended up getting a set of Pirelli PZero Nero M&S (Pinna if you get the 215/45/18) They seem to handle fine in the wet, hoping I wont have to test them in snow too soon.

+1

Winter hasn't been too drastic in MI for a while. We had our few days when it was bad. But that was about it.

I'm still debating on what i'm going to do, as I need to figure out soon! It barely cracked 50* today!

 

[paylew]

+1

Winter hasn't been too drastic in MI for a while. We had our few days when it was bad. But that was about it.

I'm still debating on what i'm going to do, as I need to figure out soon! It barely cracked 50* today!

I wish it was that cold here, for my sake but not the car. It's still in the 70's.

 

[D-Cash24]

hankook i-pikes, i love them got through 4" of fresh snow on top of packed snow/ice in my Protege5 with very few difficulties.

 

[Silver Ecstasy]

I wish it was that cold here, for my sake but not the car. It's still in the 70's.

You really don't wish it was that cold.

It's more of a curiosity than it is a desire. When your summers don't start until it's practically over...you'll hate the cold...

I love snow, but I hate the cold. It's typically warmer once theres snow on the ground, as opposed to when the ground is dry and the wind is howling.

 

[redspeed3tk]

keep out of boost it will spin the tires if its icy, slow down before the turn but dont hit the brakes in the turn the gas will pull you through it rather than sliding sideways. i always go to a empty parking lot and practice counter steering just to make sure and well messing around at the same time its a good way to see how your cars safety system reacts to snow. i run the blizzacks lm22 because they are speed rated and work really good no worries when its nice and ya haven't put the summers back on but they cost more