Hi all,
I'm wriiting looking for tips/tricks for cruising my Runner in the occasional snow batch. Last week my buddy and I attempted to drive up to the San Pedro Martir Observatory in Baja Norte to do a mountaineering route up Picacho del Diablo. We didn't even make it to the gate.



Initially we put the chains on the front in 4W-high, keeping the tach low. Lugging our way up seemed to work ok. The roads down there are dirt, not plowed and best of all, have no guard rails. Sketchy stuff for a SoCal crew that doesn't drive snow very often...

Everytime the road canted to the inside the rear end would just slide into the ditch on the side (the inside fortunately and not the outside - )
After about the 3rd episode of this and getting towed out by locals w/ a fat Hemi we aborted and went for Plan B. Well, Plan B (drive the dirt roads North thru Laguna Hansen via Mikes Sky Ranch) we also got thwarted by lots of snow. This time we put the chains on the drive wheels (rt front and left rear ) which definitely grabbed better but the truck had a tendency to "crab", kinda moving forward diagonally. I would think Posi front and rear would alleviate this problem. I've still got standard ADD front hubs. Rubber is BFG AT's that I'm just squeezing miles out of to put off shelling out for new skins as long as possible.

Any suggestions for the occasional snow driver? Driving tips for these types of conditions? The Downey/Warn manual lockers are on the to-do list but I don't think this would make any difference with respect to hooking up in slippery conditions.

Sidenote - we were mostly pulling people out on the Plan B route (with the chains on drive wheels.) At one point we came across some locals that didn't have the appropriate chains (too small.) In classic Baja style they whipped out a 20ft shot of dog chain to extend the tire chains. It got them outta the spot they were stuck in but I thot' that was an interesting improv!

-s

 

first off you don't have posi diffs unless you replaced them.

Second BFG At suck in the snow. If you are low on tread any tire will suck. snow is like mud - you have to clear the tread blocks for traction. If your tires are overinflated they will spin. Moderate speed is the way to go - don't lug but don't spin. don't put chains on opposite wheels it id dangerous. Order for chains is drive wheels first, then all 4 - so for your truck you wan them in the rear first, then on all 4. That pick is nothing for snow - you will bw able to do that no problem at all with good tires. Driving on grvel/dirt & snow is pretty good because you can get doen to some traction fairly easily.

 

ya i would have to say get good tires with traction. drop the pressure a bit as well. if you lose momentum you will start to slip and if you go to fast well that isnt good either. id have to agree, that little bit of snow in the pics should not have posed a problem. our city roads sometimes look like that. also sometimes it helps to carve your own path as sometimes the ruts have thawed and froze making it icy.

 

Open diff drawback : only the wheel on either axel that has the LEAST traction gets the power. Open diff advantage : the undriven wheel on an axel helps hold the vehicle straight, since it doesn't spin much. Sometimes you can trick the diff into transferring some of the power away from the spinning wheel on an axel by lightly riding the brake. The diff thinks that the spinning wheel is getting some traction.

They are right about tires. Low tread sux no matter what tire you have. The best ice and snow tires are identified by a little mountain-and-snowflake desgn made into the sidewall. A national tire rating service rates all tires and gives the best ones in the winter traction category this symbol. Most good snow tires do not have lug spacing quite as wide as a mud tire. Rubber compounds and the amount of siping (small grooves in the tread) are the biggest factors that a good winter tire has. I am running Michelin 31x 10.50 LTX M/S tires. They have moderate lugs and plenty of siping. A big bonus is they stay in balance and round ( no flat spotting overnite or in the cold) AND they wear forever. They are great in snow. I drove thru 3 ft drifts with no problem a couple of years ago.

Tire traction is the single most important factor in snow, if you have open diffs.

Mike in AR

 

ok now we're getting somewhere. While the tire suggestions all sound good. I don't see much need for snow tires for the majority of driving I do in SoCal. The chains were key though.

RegularGuy nailed it - when I lost traction, the only wheel spinning was the one suspended in a snowbank. Now that I think about it, it wasn't always the front-right tire spinning (BTW - the snow was much deeper than that pictured; I only shot that foto before we got into the biz.)
I spaced and forgot about the differential action up front and how it responds when the wheel starts spinning (as on snow/ice.) The mention about "tricking" the diff with the brakes is worth a try. I also intend to wrap all 4 tires with chains next time. That was kinda dumb just bringing 1 pair.

thanks for the helpful responses folks!
-snow nOOb

 

Lower tire pressure really helps in snow. Some people even go down to like 8 or 9 PSI in deep snow. Another technique is to kind of "pulse" the throttle, clearing the tread and then allowing it to grab. Lastly - momentum is key, gotta keep moving!

 

I have a set of the Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armors. Great tire, agressive looking, but reasonably quiet, plus their all season with awsome traction

 

momentum is very key... weight also helps.... skinny tires are also nice... big fat ones are like snowboards... I haven't had my 4Runner in snow yet but my 71 ford w/ skinny tires and LOTS of weight was a tank in snow

 

Personally, I think the BFG AT is one of the BEST snow tires available... Especially siped. Follow that with Revo's. Owned both, love both, prefer the BFG for snow and Revo's for rain.

 

- the siping is the key - from factory they don't have enough siping for my climate.

There is a big difference between a snow tire & an ice tire

A snow tire will have larger spacing between the lugs to clear the snow & dig down to a hard surface.

An Ice tire will have many sipes to have multiple srfaces to gripe the ice

The fact is the tire manufactures compbine these features. You need to find a tire that works for your area. for example a michellin winter tire is really designed for ice more than deep snoe as most people live in the city and the snow doesn't really build up but the ice does.

Other manufactures will have less sipes but more space between the lugs - this would be better id you live in the country on unplowed raods.

 

Ford Festiva is the best Thing I have Ever Seen in the Snow! 3 Cylinder 3 Speed With 12"X3" Wide Tires You Could Park that Car in 2 Feet of Snow and Pull Right Out! I think the Tires Being Skinny and the Ground Clearance those Cars have makes it Killer in the Snow. I want To Start a Off Road Racetrack With Festiva's Only! It Would be a Blast....

 

So we need to develop tire wraps that make a wide tires into a taller, skinner tire.

Brilliant!