AWD or winter tires or both

[duckley]

I don't know much about car mechanics but I am wondering:

Are there are any real advantages of an AWD for winter and if so, what would these be?

What is the difference between all season and all weather tires?

Does the weight of a vehicle impact winter driving?

[A790]

I don't know much about car mechanics but I am wondering:

Are there are any real advantages of an AWD for winter and if so, what would these be?[/b]

Greatly improved traction.

What is the difference between all season and all weather tires?

Winter tires use different rubber that is more effective in cold temperatures. This is greatly simplified but is effectively the case.

Does the weight of a vehicle impact winter driving?

Yes

One major difference between winters and all seasons is braking performance. Winter tires perform much better on ice/snow compared to all seasons.

[ExtraSlow]

The dummies guide to this topic is that AWD helps you GO, and Winter tires help you STOP and TURN.

It's slightly more complicated that that, but for the average driver, that's a good start.

[NissanFanBoy]

I remember my 98 Pathfinder one year during a snow storm, had itin 4wd, but with shitty all seasons I barely made it up a slight incline on Crowchild... ever since then, in the winter, I've only ever had AWD with winters, though recently I've toyed with the idea of going FWD plus studs.

[J-hop]

I’m a big proponent of AWD and winter tires. My first 5 or so winters were RWD and good winter tires, next was FWD with winter tires and now almost exclusively drive AWD with winter tires. It’s night and day. No spinning off the line, never getting stuck. Also noticeably more balanced in slippery conditions when cornering (this becomes very apparent the first time you try to purposely put an AWD car sideways, takes significantly more effort to do so)

[Sugarphreak]

...

[eblend]

Both. This last winter the ruts in the back were giving me trouble getting into the garage with AWD, I can't even imagine with FWD car. Had a rental for wife's car while her's was in the shop that was FWD....didn't work out well, wife backed out, got stuck, and had a neighbor help push her back in. I had to leave work early and drive her to work. Next winter I am going all out with winters + studs + AWD :D

[C4S]

Both .. shouldn't save that $2-3G on good snow tire ...

Problem now, most people lease their cars for ~ $600-800 .. and that is all the money they want to spend, and not willing to spend on tires, and usually drive their factory all season tires bald till the ~ 60,000 km mark when it is time to return their cars ...

Anyway, it is summer now finally! not worry about winter tires for the next .. 4 month .. :clap:

[dj_rice]

AWD and winters = awesome sauce

AWD and studded winters = pure epic

[rage2]

Both

AWD is awesome, so are winter tires... combining both turns your car into a mountain goat of ice navigating awesomeness

Weight is also important, a lightweight hatchback is utterly useless in the winter compared to a well weighted SUV/CUV. They don't have enough weight to make good traction in the snow or stick to ice. This is coming from somebody that really likes lightweight hatchbacks btw.

Many people will say AWD is overrated, that is only because they don't have it themselves

Best winter vehicles I've driven to date have been mid sized SUV's. I had a CRV and now a Q5, both are amazing in snow or on ice.
Weight distribution is important too. The 911 is still my favorite winter car to date. All weight in rear under acceleration, 50/50 under braking.

[GTR_Auto]

:winter:

[revelations]

If you have to choose between AWD and All Season tires ...... or FWD/RWD and studded winter tires for Calgary......I would go with studded

[NissanFanBoy]

If you have to choose between AWD and All Season tires ...... or FWD/RWD and studded winter tires for Calgary......I would go with studded

I often wonder how my Z would do with a good set of studded tires, I just can't afford that size of studded tire lol

Sugar talked about weight, lower center of gravity is a factor too, this winter I sold my Murano and got a 3900 lb G37x coupe and it was like night and day, I always felt my Murano was close to tipping over or losing control if I took an icy corner too fast, the G felt like a gokart. X coupes don't come in manual but I used the manumatic and it felt even more grounded being in lower gears... so basically OP if you want the ultimate handling get a stick shift Subaru lol but then that doesn't help in deep deep snow though cuz you don't have enough ground clearance..

[J-hop]

Many people will say AWD is overrated, that is only because they don't have it themselves


Truer words

[botox]

The dummies guide to this topic is that AWD helps you GO, and Winter tires help you STOP and TURN.

It's slightly more complicated that that, but for the average driver, that's a good start.

We have a SUV on all seasons and FWD van with winters and this sums it up perfectly. I blast by people in the SUV even on inclines but it slides easier and takes longer to come to a stop vs the van that will have a hard time getting going and we've gotten stuck on some hills but you can really feel the stopping difference especially on polished ice/snow. I'll be getting all weathers for the SUV next winter and studded winters for the van.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Half the cars I've owned have been AWD and half FWD cars. This is the order I would prioritize from least to greatest IMO:

AWD -->Winter tires regardless of drive --> AWD + Winter tires

AWD is useless when you need to stop, which is probably 90%+ of winter accidents, and highlights the importance of a good winter tire since even a few inches better stopping distance can EASILY mean an at-fault rear end vs complete avoidance. I have always bought my winter tires based on stopping ability, as I have never been in a situation where I couldn't move with FWD but could have with AWD, even though AWD can make it easier.

It's all the idiots with 4WD you see in the ditch all the time because they run all season and think they are invincible because AWD/4WD.

[MR2-3SGTE]

Idk i had a rwd Lexus is350 this past winter with blizzaks and it sucked. Got stuck multiple times. The open diff definitely didn't help, so having an LSD is also a huge factor. My FWD civic with all seasons did much better overall. Also ground clearance. From my experience, rwd with winters Only beats all-season fwd if you have the ground clearance and a locking diff. Of course braking is entirely dependant on the tires, but I'm referring to the overall driveability

[Mitsu3000gt]

Idk i had a rwd Lexus is350 this past winter with blizzaks and it sucked. Got stuck multiple times. The open diff definitely didn't help, so having an LSD is also a huge factor. My FWD civic with all seasons did much better overall. Also ground clearance. From my experience, rwd with winters Only beats all-season fwd if you have the ground clearance and a locking diff. Of course braking is entirely dependant on the tires, but I'm referring to the overall driveability

Your Lexus would have stopped when your Civic wouldn't have, and I'd rather be stuck than in an at-fault accident, YMMV. Would have held corners better too in an emergency maneuver. Day-to-day driving though would be annoying if it was like you say, however.

Even the shittiest winter tires are better than all seasons, it amazes me how many people don't bother (not saying you did this, just in general).