Winter Tires or Cooper CS5?

[edyvw]

Originally Posted By: Rand
Originally Posted By: krzyss
You may be surprised that summer tire may be the best in the wet too.

Krzys


That is a overgeneralized myth.

it is true with some summer tires though.

I would say it is not myth. Best tire in wet I had is current max performance tire I have on CC, Michelin Pilot Super Sport.
It hold road while wet like crazy. Did I drive better tires when it comes to hydroplaning? Yes, BUT, none was braking in wet like this tire, or holding road like this tire in wet. On top of that, it keeps its hydroplaning capabilities for a long, long time. I am now at 5/32, and it still goes through rain like a knife. How they did that? Have no clue.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: edyvw
Originally Posted By: Wheel
Snows are part of being well prepared in snow country. They are built for that purpose, just like a summer tire is probably best in the dry.

I don't think Subaru drivers are alone in the overconfidence section, I think that list is pretty long. I put snows on my Subaru for the winter, and drive more carefully.

I think all drivers could use more training for driving in bad weather. At the least, they should be familiar with their own car and how it behaves when at the edge (in any weather). Anyone not interested, please take the bus or stay home when it's bad.

A plow will stop you in many cases, but it isn't a pleasant stop. My Dad and I lost the brakes in his Willys plow truck coming back from a job. We stopped with the plow, and both of us were sore from using the seat belts we had added, thankfully.

When I was passing driving exam in Bosnia this is how it went:
1. Garage and parallel parking. If you fail that, you cannot proceed to:
2. Stop on hill, hand brake up, then move on without rolling back (in Bosnia you cannot pass driving exam on automatic, only manual), if you fail that you cannot proceed to:
3. City and HWy. When I was doing city there was 3ft of snow on a side, and packed snow on the road (-5-6inches). They stop treating road due to extremely low temperatures, and it was night!



So here is a weird question. Is the handbrake trick mandatory? Or could I just start out on a hill?

I can stop on a hill and take off without rolling back or burning the clutch. But I can't figure out the handbrake trick.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: edyvw
Originally Posted By: Wheel
Snows are part of being well prepared in snow country. They are built for that purpose, just like a summer tire is probably best in the dry.

I don't think Subaru drivers are alone in the overconfidence section, I think that list is pretty long. I put snows on my Subaru for the winter, and drive more carefully.

I think all drivers could use more training for driving in bad weather. At the least, they should be familiar with their own car and how it behaves when at the edge (in any weather). Anyone not interested, please take the bus or stay home when it's bad.

A plow will stop you in many cases, but it isn't a pleasant stop. My Dad and I lost the brakes in his Willys plow truck coming back from a job. We stopped with the plow, and both of us were sore from using the seat belts we had added, thankfully.

When I was passing driving exam in Bosnia this is how it went:
1. Garage and parallel parking. If you fail that, you cannot proceed to:
2. Stop on hill, hand brake up, then move on without rolling back (in Bosnia you cannot pass driving exam on automatic, only manual), if you fail that you cannot proceed to:
3. City and HWy. When I was doing city there was 3ft of snow on a side, and packed snow on the road (-5-6inches). They stop treating road due to extremely low temperatures, and it was night!



So here is a weird question. Is the handbrake trick mandatory? Or could I just start out on a hill?

I can stop on a hill and take off without rolling back or burning the clutch. But I can't figure out the handbrake trick.

Yep, it is mandatory. I remember as a kid, that was the biggest deal. You have to make a stop, lift handbrake, slowly release clutch until car pitch forward, then you release brake slowly while at the same time releasing clutch. It is designed in order not to burn your clutch uphill. In Bosnia, very useful considering 90% of country is extremely mountains with steep alleys in the cities. Of course, with time you figure out how not to burn clutch without handbrake, but sometimes comes handy in some situations (very, very steep alleys from Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian period). I drive now VW CC with DSG and Tiguan and both have autohold. Sometimes I really miss handbrake and that trick.
I think everyone should know that trick. Unfortunately eventually it will disappear with these autohold systems.

 

[krzyss]

Handbrake, uphill start was mandatory trick in Poland too.
But doing it in Polski Fiat 126p with 3 adults (examiner, trainer and examinee) was sometimes too much for 21hp engine and clutch. That was not a car in which I learnt.

I do it sometimes just to check if my hand/leg coordination still works ;-)

Krzys

 

[dblshock]

+18" drift stops even the best.

 

[dblshock]

another aspect is liability..kill someone in snow on 3/32" and the lawyer will be all over it.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Originally Posted By: edyvw
Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: edyvw
Originally Posted By: Wheel
Snows are part of being well prepared in snow country. They are built for that purpose, just like a summer tire is probably best in the dry.

I don't think Subaru drivers are alone in the overconfidence section, I think that list is pretty long. I put snows on my Subaru for the winter, and drive more carefully.

I think all drivers could use more training for driving in bad weather. At the least, they should be familiar with their own car and how it behaves when at the edge (in any weather). Anyone not interested, please take the bus or stay home when it's bad.

A plow will stop you in many cases, but it isn't a pleasant stop. My Dad and I lost the brakes in his Willys plow truck coming back from a job. We stopped with the plow, and both of us were sore from using the seat belts we had added, thankfully.

When I was passing driving exam in Bosnia this is how it went:
1. Garage and parallel parking. If you fail that, you cannot proceed to:
2. Stop on hill, hand brake up, then move on without rolling back (in Bosnia you cannot pass driving exam on automatic, only manual), if you fail that you cannot proceed to:
3. City and HWy. When I was doing city there was 3ft of snow on a side, and packed snow on the road (-5-6inches). They stop treating road due to extremely low temperatures, and it was night!



So here is a weird question. Is the handbrake trick mandatory? Or could I just start out on a hill?

I can stop on a hill and take off without rolling back or burning the clutch. But I can't figure out the handbrake trick.

Yep, it is mandatory. I remember as a kid, that was the biggest deal. You have to make a stop, lift handbrake, slowly release clutch until car pitch forward, then you release brake slowly while at the same time releasing clutch. It is designed in order not to burn your clutch uphill. In Bosnia, very useful considering 90% of country is extremely mountains with steep alleys in the cities. Of course, with time you figure out how not to burn clutch without handbrake, but sometimes comes handy in some situations (very, very steep alleys from Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian period). I drive now VW CC with DSG and Tiguan and both have autohold. Sometimes I really miss handbrake and that trick.
I think everyone should know that trick. Unfortunately eventually it will disappear with these autohold systems.


The only time I have used it I was definitely hard on the clutch. I was launching a boat with the focus and absolutely did not want to roll back into the lake. When retreiving the boat I shoved the spare tire behind the rear wheel to use as a chock and that made it easier.




Originally Posted By: dblshock
another aspect is liability..kill someone in snow on 3/32" and the lawyer will be all over it.


Here in NY 2/32'' is legal.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
Originally Posted By: dblshock
another aspect is liability..kill someone in snow on 3/32" and the lawyer will be all over it.

Here in NY 2/32'' is legal.

Same for California.

But we don't have snow unless we go to mountain.