Anybody planning on driving your Z in winter?

Plasmaball

san deigo here, and all the time...I am buying it to drive, not sit.

shumby

ya I live in edmonton canada and drive my G all year round. Get some winter tires and you are fine.

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Originally Posted by SAM@GTM
Engine detonation is not normal and it should never never happen, and whoever told that need to do something else for living .
Sam

westa6969

My previous ride was an RX8 with 20" Wheels and Summer Tires and my first bout with the slightest of snow and it became useless and it had weenie power compared to a "Z". Thought it was the most dangerous winter driving ever and had to buy Blizzaks - and $1200 later the car became quite good in snow and ice since it had good weight distribution - in heavy snow it became sort of a snow plow since it was so low. I had an 18 mile drive to work daily and would never risk my life with MI winters.

My current ride is a G37 going into my second winter and last year was a nightmare since the salesman told me I was getting All Seasons and come to find out I ended up with performance tires model (so much for trusting a sales rep in May when there's no snow - that'll never happen again) --- much as others noted there is so much friggin power to the wheels that what they call traction control kicks in and locks down the power to the wheels and makes it worse in many ways than the RX8 - got stuck five times in one day last yr but trying to hold out on the $1200 Blizzaks since I have 5 months left on my lease. It not just getting stuck in your driveway but when it happens in a major intersection and SUVs are flying around ignoring the elements it's cardiac arrest time, or sliding into a rural DEEP ditch and/or getting stranded in the elements during a blizzard --- all of this invokes many WTF moments on your purchase decision - no matter how Cool a vehicle when you find your life at risk and your approaching retirement age it means think twice and plan with the proper tires to match one's climate BEFORE buying/Leasing.

Seriously thinking of a Z fully knowing I need a blizzaks (or similar Winter tire) plan every year to truly survive MI Winters to work. If the Z handles anything like my G37 the waiting power burst it puts out simply locks traction with perf/summer tires in slightest of snow and wetness (I must say that Infinity TC is the screwiest system I've ever had as it robs all power/traction and IMO does the opposite as it = NO TRACTION when it kicks in) but I suspect the Blizzaks would do for the G37 that they did for the RX8 - the RX8 while a fun car to drive was a gas whore at 13mpg with that wankle engine that needs a quart of oil about every month and that's not an exaggeration. The car was a fun drive and I got loads of compliments on it which surprised me but would never buy another with that underpowered gas/oil hog engine.

Been trying to find testimony from Z owners experience with Blizzaks or similar winter tires to see if they do for the Z that they'd done for my RX8. I would not consider any vehicle for winter with Perf/summer tires - I saw a video posting where a guy bought an Audi Q7 Quattro with beautiful custom wheels and perf tires and he demo'd next to ZERO traction as a result.

Northern winters almost demand Blizzaks on sport/perf vehicles though my wife has an 08 Accord Cpe with all seasons and she had next to no problems with traction last winter - the opposite of my G37 which is very unlikely to lease another since while I think it's a sexy car and fast I've never once felt I was in a luxury vehicle as it has some surprisingly cheap components and the BOSE sucks big time compared to the BMW I used to drive with Harmon Kardon - the RX8 also had BOSE and it's got to be the most over-rated sound and sick of finding it in half the vehicles you buy now - my previous AWD BMW sound blew away any BOSE in car sound IMO. I guess I got spoiled with the AWD BMW with All Seasons and suddenly these RD performance vehicles/tires were shockingly dangerous when faced with MI winters.

OK I'm rambling and will vote for Blizzaks or similar for northern Snow/Wet driving from my G37 experience and RX8. (after all the G37 is basically a Z packaged in a sport coupe).

shumby

Man you guys like blizzacks. Try the Michelin alpin pilots. Because they are 100 times better. I know I have driven on both in my G37.

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Originally Posted by SAM@GTM
Engine detonation is not normal and it should never never happen, and whoever told that need to do something else for living .
Sam

370Zsteve

No snow on the ground, no salt on the road, temps above freezing, this car gets driven.

Snow on the ground, salt on the road, temps below freezing, 4WD Ford Expedition ftw.

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SOLD MY Z MARCH 2018 - another Core OG moves on - new ride 2019 Z Corvette Grand Sport - no mods necessary but already have eyes on HFC and intakes LOL IT NEVER ENDS.

Mergnthwirker

This is not true. The base 18" wheels DO fit over the sport brakes. I bought another member's 18's to mount my snow tires (Blizzaks) for the limited amount of winter driving I'll do with my 370Z. They fit just fine! In fact, in some markets (Australia?) these are the wheels included with the sport package. Don't believe everything you read in a magazine!

There are some advantages to a sports car in the snow. For one, you have a much better sense of what the traction actually is, which helps you avoid a false sense of security. Here in the northeast, I constantly see upside-down SUV's whose owners had no clue that their speed exceeded traction limits.

The Z's low center of gravity, sensitivity of controls, and stability in corners make it a BETTER daily winter car than most SUV's. Unless you live in a climate with constant snow cover on the roads, the majority of winter driving will give you cold, damp, occasionally slippery conditions, where having better control and feel offered by the Z is a real advantage for everyday driving. Why deprive yourself of this joy because you are afraid of a few days when you MIGHT have issues?

Matt

Whether everything you just said is fact or pure conjecture, +1 because it sounded cool!

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"Any man who can drive a 370z while kissing a pretty girl is simply not giving the Z the attention it deserves." Albert Einstein....modified.

Beatboy

I drove my 330 ci RWD through the snow every winter. It gets bad out here some times especially since there are so many curvy roads with hills. I got stuck in the snow once coming back home during a blizzard. I had sport tires. I got the winter tires, and I was fine after. I just drive slow and I don't slip at all with the snow tires.

Mergnthwirker

I previously owned an RX-8 too. Very balanced, and as you say, good in the winter with appropriate snow tires. Unfortunately, the Z is not as well balanced, and with so much more power it is much easier to break loose the rear on slippery roads. Having the sport package with limited slip is a real advantage (my RX-8 had LSD too). At least with cars like these you always know what is going on at the road surface.

I do miss the RX-8 for being able to load the rear seats with the in-laws for more ballast in the rear

mjd77

I still have an RX-8 and use Dunlop winter 18's and that car does just fine in the snow. The lack of torque + traction control makes this car pretty easy to drive in the snow. I will likely end up in a 370 for my next car and the first thing I did was check tirerack.com for winter packages as this would be my only car and it says call for infor on the 370. Initally my big worry was that 18s wouldn't fit over the brakes on the sport package but that has been put to rest based on what people on here have said.

PapoZalsa

That is why a got a DD. My best advice is to get a DD if u are going to buy a new Z or even have a 350.

I was lucky that last winter was pretty mild here and it didn't snow and I drove the 350. This year looks like a different story, crazy state of VA.

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2009 370Z MB Base w/Sport Package 6MT
Modshack's Custom Air Intakes /3M Clear Bra/ Illuminated Kick Plates / F. I CBE w/12" resonators / EVO-R Front Lip / Rear Hatch Wing / Tein S-Tech Springs /Ilegal Tint in the Rep. of VA/4x20mm Z1 Spacers/ Vinyl Roof/Liquid Carbon Designs

MPD47

All season tires are NO season tires. The Z will do fine in the winter, just be careful with your throttle, and grab some good snows (See: Nokian). Hell, we've ice raced my 350 and I daily my M5 in Rochester/Buffalo weather!

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-Mike

fairladyZ34

first snow day here in NJ and the Z is in tha garage. honda accord = snow car

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From Z to G to BMW and back to a G! Nismo for life

areyouin729

let me tell you a story...

I live in the Philly area, worked in King of Prussia which is a pretty booming area (many people know it for the mall). I had a 2007 350Z and we got an unexpected snow, I left work and made it about 1/8 mile until I had to go up the slightest curving hill, after an hour of moving about 3 feet, I put the car in neutral and let it slide back as I was able to spin it back and get it back to my work parking lot. Needless to say I stayed at a hotel that night.

Moral of the story: have plenty of PTO lined up

fivewall

I live in MN and this will be my first winter with the Z. I have an Astro Cargo van for work and will use it for personal trips when its snowing. but I am considering driving the Z when its not snowing for personal car trips. I am going to pick up a pair of snow tires and my ground rules will basically be at least 24hrs after snowfall with 10% or less chance of precip while I'm out. Also will be based on where I need to go, as some burbs are better at plowing then others in this metro. Snow is on the ground for a solid 4 months however the streets themselves are usually down to the pavement, unless you have to go out of the metro into the sticks. You have to be careful about ice but that is going to be the case no matter what your driving. In some ways its better to be in a car that slips around a lot because you will be driving a lot more cautiously and will be less likely to be caught off guard by it. There is always just has many, if not more 4x4's in the ditches as cars.