driving on black ice

I drove my 04 Jetta lowered with summer tires on it back in 05 when it actually snowed here more than 2". It was normally an hour drive but that day it took 2 and a half. It was a 5spd turbo model with a few mods. There were 4wds all over the road but my Jetta made it no problems.

 

Fwd and rwd are completely different animals on ice. Your truck doesn't have fwd, unless of course you send power to the front by putting it in 4wd. Which is pretty much what I was saying before.

2wd from the (lightweight) rear is far inferior to 4wd and even fwd in slick conditions.

 

For RANDOM black ice, 2wd and keep it slow, pull over and let folks pass...

On continuous ice, 4 wheel drive and SNOW tires, with studs if allowed...

I live in the mountains and have studded snows (Firestone Winterforce UV, on dedicated 17" rockcrawler rims)

Howard

 

I also want to add that bad drivers are bad drivers , whether they are in 2WD or 4WD .

The whole " This one time while I was on my way to band camp , and all the guys in 4WD passed me , and later I passed them in the ditch , so I use 2WD in snow " story that surfaces everytime this subject gets discussed makes no sense to me .

Drive for the conditions , in 2WD or 4WD

 

2wd worn tires in a snow storm= good combination.

 

Had a little random black ice tonight actually. Ran in 2WD because of mostly dry pavement + ice patches in some of the tire grooves. I took it slowly but I was still doing up to 50 on the main roads.

A Dodge passed me before we got into town and realized he didn't want to go faster than I was going only AFTER he had done so, which made me LOL.... then we had to stop for a fire engine to go by in town, in which case we both started spinning up the hill on the ice and he wouldn't do more than 30 after that, which also made me LOL. Best to let the goofies fish for cops and tow trucks by themselves so let 'em go.

Last winter we had some freezing rain that left the entirety of the road in slick ice. That was a 4WD + 25 mph white knuckler. Made me wish for studs. 4WD was necessary for any braking at all because in 2WD it would set off the ABS with a feather touch of the pedal.

So, yeah, agreed, use your best judgement.

 

I got it! Tires that automatically deploy studs when ice is detected, and then retracted when no ice is sensed.

I'd be rich if any of my brilliant ideas were possible. lol

 

That's about right. Not the first time I've been late to the party...

 

2wd and slow down
watch for freezing temp
put weight in the back
good winter traction tires
studs maybe (never use them myself)
if you need to slow down to 2mph do it... let the assholes pass you and wave to them after they end up in the ditch.

If you start to fishtail don't switch into 4WD or gear down... good way to put you in a spin fast(don't ask me how i know that.) Be very careful on ice with the traction control system.

 

^This.

Although I don't agree with using 4 wheel drive if there is a chance it's just wet. I wouldn't want to ruin my transfer case, if I think there maybe ice, I'm gonna take my time. Now if there is snow and very little traction, than by all means use the 4 wheel drive. I think it's silly when guys say they drive in 2 wheel drive in the snow, cause they are so good at driving in it. I can do it too, but why should I, I'm gonna use my 4 wheel drive, and feel better about the fact I have a little more traction.

 

Drive smart and bring a change of underwear.

 

X2. On Subarus, the temp indicator will flash near freezing to warn drivers of possible ice.

X2. I notice a big improvement in handling characteristics in 4WD. 4WD works fine even on dry pavement as long as you avoid sharp turns. 4WD on a semi-wet road with patches of ice should be a no-brainer.

 

What is random black ice? All black ice is random. Black ice is just that black same color as the road. We get freezing fog a lot this time of year if I even think it might be freezing it's in 4WD. If any one thinks they are better off in 2WD let me know where your going to be driving so I can stay away. 4WD does not give you super natural powers but it a hell of a lot better then 2WD when it's slick. I worked for years with the Maine Woods Rally (yes we raced in the woods at night in the snow and ice on logging roads) the last 2WD rally car left 10 mins. before the 4WD cars started and they often caught them, the normal time between cars is one minute. You guys need to get over this wreck the transfer case stuff.

 

Agreed

 

Since I was one of the last ones to say I'm not going to wreck my transfer case, I'll address that. Around here you really can't go 200-300yards without making a sharp turn. Also normally, if there is a chance of ice, 9 times out of 10, streets are salted. So for me, I have more of a chance of damaging something, cause of binding, than hitting ice, but it does happen. So if there is a chance of black ice, and I'm out before the salt trucks, than I'm just going to keep it in 2wd and take my time. You have a chance to hit black ice all winter long, when temps are below freezing, so I'm not going to drive around in 4wd all the time.

 

I'm 67 years old I have had 4X4 for a long time driving on a hard surface will not kill your drive line my last one had 285K driving around in circles a parking lot will bind it up but I can tell you the tires will slip before the drive line will give up, driving around in the pucker brush over rocks is far harder on the drive line. You need wet for ice no one is suggesting you use 4WD when it is not necessary all that does is waste gas and ware tires but if I know there might be ice I lock her in. Remember even Toyota says drive at least 10 miles a month in 4WD hasn’t snowed here in July or August in a long time.

 

Ok, feel free to bind your drive line. I'm not going to.