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smartieman

Winter Driving

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What type of Blizzaks are you running on?

BLIZZAK Studless Ice & Snow winter tires - LM18

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I eye-balled the tires; they are not officially described as "Ice and Snow". They actually have M+S on the sidewall, which means "Mud and Snow" I believe. There's also a picture of a mountain with a snowflake superimposed on it, which is supposed to describe its capabilities.

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So heavy snow to get going= heavy throttle?You also mention WRs? What are those? Are they Nokian snowies? IF so what size?Thanks

Sorry, I didn't see your reply.Yeah they're Nokians. They're the "all-weather plus" tyres so they're certified winters but can run in the summer.I was running the stock size on my Prius (185/65R15)

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I put 4 Blizzack's on and went thru all the snow yesterday perfectly.You have to put on 4 not 2 I went around expensive 4 x 4 s as a lot of their owners don't know how to drive in snow. They likehigh power and love spinning.

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Well, we had 23 cm of wet snow here in Calgary yesterday and I finally got a chance to really see what it takes to stop this little terror. I don't have SUV expectations but do expect something more in line with the old version of a VW bug. I quickly found out the limiting factor is not the ability of the car but rather that damn traction control. It works great when wheel slippage is a problem, however, when I need some slippage, it just ain't there!! I wound up stuck twice in slush about 4 to 5" deep that I know I could have gone through but when I tried to start out in it, the wheels began to slip and the power was immediately cut. It didn't matter what I wanted, the car wouldn't respond to my request for more power and there I sat. Even when someone tried pushing me and was hollering to " give it some gas", I couldn't overcome this electronic wizard. Seriously, I will be looking for a way to switch this off manually when such a situation arises. Once moving though, it is surprising in it's ability to keep going even with the stock "all season" tires.Can the peviously mentioned Traction Control disabler be put on a 451 and has anyone had experience with it?CG

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the limiting factor is not the ability of the car but rather that damn traction control. .......Once moving though, it is surprising in it's ability to keep going even with the stock "all season" tires.

Calgary Guy.... You might consider that the limiting factor wasn't the traction control, but your "all-season" tires. Maybe there was no traction to control? I didn't have any problem yesterday in Calgary with my Blizzaks. The traction control was on a lot and the car was a bit skittish as it cut in and out, but starting out wasn't a problem. Not to say that the traction control disabler would be a bad thing, I just haven't needed it yet.FYI... I've got Blizzak LM-18 175/55R15 on the front, and LM-22 185/55R15 on the rear of my 450 (on Rial Lemans wheels). I abandoned "all-season" tires for winter use years ago when the high-tech winters came out - there's no comparison.

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... FYI... I've got Blizzak LM-18 175/55R15 on the front, and LM-22 185/55R15 on the rear of my 450 (on Rial Lemans wheels). I abandoned "all-season" tires for winter use years ago when the high-tech winters came out - there's no comparison.

And now there are "high-tech", true four-season tires! If you live in a region where really deep snow is a rarity, like here in the Okanagan Valley, These are a prefect solution.

I have been running Vredestein Quatrac2 175/55/r15s in all four corners and the winter and summer handling are both superb. Not to mention the comfortable ride. And now the Vredestein Quatrac 3 has arrived, they will be my next replacement. But not right away - tread wear on these tires is very good as well!

The Quatrac 3 is Vredestein's ultimate four-season tyre. The tyre is the perfect alternative for motorists who want to drive all year round in a moderate climate on one type of tyre. The striking asymmetrical, non-directional tread with the separate summer and winter sides offers optimal safety and comfort in all weather conditions. The tyre has excellent handling characteristics that are ideal for driving in summer conditions on dry and wet roads. At the same time, the tyre also offers perfect grip and high discharging capacity in winter conditions. The tread contains three longitudinal grooves which not only serve an aesthetic function, but also discharge water efficiently.

Bil :sun:

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I'm sure the Quatrac 3's will be better than the last similarly designed tire which was the Pirelli P77. They didn't do anything well...

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Sorry, I didn't see your reply.Yeah they're Nokians. They're the "all-weather plus" tyres so they're certified winters but can run in the summer.I was running the stock size on my Prius (185/65R15)

Do you have a 451? If so do they fit ok and do you fit them all around at that size? How bad is the speedometer error? There are more snow tires at that size than for the 175/55/15.

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I have to sell the smart because I need a 4x4 where I now work. It is not the smart so much as it is any non AWD vehicle. I got stuck three times in the smart this winter and twice in the Grand Am GT. I found the smart beter in the snow than the Grand Am. Sometimes there is just too much snow for any front wheel drive vehicle.

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I have to sell the smart because I need a 4x4 where I now work. It is not the smart so much as it is any non AWD vehicle. I got stuck three times in the smart this winter and twice in the Grand Am GT. I found the smart beter in the snow than the Grand Am. Sometimes there is just too much snow for any front wheel drive vehicle.

Is the Grand-Am FWD? The smart is not.

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And now there are "high-tech", true four-season tires! If you live in a region where really deep snow is a rarity, like here in the Okanagan Valley, These are a prefect solution.

I have been running Vredestein Quatrac2 175/55/r15s in all four corners and the winter and summer handling are both superb. Not to mention the comfortable ride. And now the Vredestein Quatrac 3 has arrived, they will be my next replacement. But not right away - tread wear on these tires is very good as well!

Bil :sun:

Who sells those tyres anyway? i.e. where would one get a set?

Do you have a 451? If so do they fit ok and do you fit them all around at that size? How bad is the speedometer error? There are more snow tires at that size than for the 175/55/15.

No, I don't have a 451. I don't think Nokian makes tyres for the 451 sizes. You're going to have to get the Vredestein Quatrac2 or Quatrac3 (similar concept as the Nokian WR) that Bil mentioned above.

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Is the Grand-Am FWD? The smart is not.

yes, and I know Bill. Should I be more clear? The snow is too high for a non AWD vehicle. Better?

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yes, and I know Bill. Should I be more clear? The snow is too high for a non AWD vehicle. Better?

Sorry, jb. I didn't mean to snipe, cousin. Clarity is good.Peace,B :sun:

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Its all good my friend. I'll be sad to see the little smarty go. Spent a few hours with it this weekend cleaning away the grime from winter.

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Smart should make a feature that you can swith the traction control off under 5 mile speed for example, that's still safe, but gives you the possibility to drive out of the snow.

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I had my Winder Continentals put on in Dec and took a nice trip out to the Kootenays for Christmas. It started out good with over 4" of snow as soon as I got off the ferry, I crawled along stuck in traffic until the #1. I was chasing this jeep until Hope where some bus had gone off the road in the oncoming lane and lookylues were blocking my lane for about an hour. Once I got through Kelowna and down to Oliver the traffic died down and I did not see any more people in the ditch until I was passed Kelowna again 2 days latter.After Oliver I went to Grand forks and over the pass to Castlegar and up the Slocan valley and through Nakusp. There I will say, get fuel early, as over Christmas is a dam hard time to get fuel, as gas stations in the whole town open at 11 or 12noon and close at 4 to 6pm....I made it back to Kelowna only getting stuck once and that was because I pulled off the road into a closed rest aria to take some pictures. The road was plowed wider than the road and I drove off ground into packed snow and just sunk, I got out my rope and my handy eye hook and in 15min got a truck to pull me out. *remember kids, only travel in peek times in winter conditions or you could be stuck for hours in the freezing cold and out of cell range* I had no problems what so ever with my smart in the snow, it was better than any car I had ever driven. Ok well my 4x4 Tercel was better, but not as cute or good on fuel ..hahaI regret to say that I did not have the opportunity to drive in anything over 8" so alas I can not comment on deep snow driving, but as for handling at high speeds and traction, it was oh so nice.

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I had a blast this winter in Toronto with my smart...At one point, I accidentally backed up a little too far and ended up lodged in part of a snowbank - I discovered that if I put the car into one, and pressed the accellerator normally, the traction control would kinda get in the way. Then, I discovered if you simply press the gas all the way down - relatively quickly the smart is actually "smart" enough to realize what I was trying to do and spun the tires enough to get me out.I am pretty comfortable with the smart in winter here - it's the worst winter weather we've had in a long time and the smart did as well as my 4x4 escape (sometimes better) on the snow-clogged side streets. All I had were the standard Winter Contis...I gotta get my summer tires put back on... Now that its getting warm the gonging of the steelies is getting annoying...

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My experience this winter so far with my new winter tires is great compared to last winter with summer tires.I have a 2006 Passion.Over the past couple of weeks here in Markham Ontario we've experienced pretty well the entire range of winter weather; dry snow, wet snow, black ice, ice under dry snow, slush, etc etc.I am amazed at how well the car does in all conditions.Mind you, I try to minimize the rate of acceleration and decellaration as much as I can.The moral of the story is: get winter tires on your Smart and don't be a lead foot on either the gas or the break.Dave

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