I live in Southwestern PA and I am looking to buy a 330i. I've been told "good luck in the winter" many times and was wondering how bad the RWD BMW's handle in the winter. We don't get as much snow as most areas in the Northeastern US but there are alot of hills here. If I get really good snow tires (rear wheels only or also front wheels?) will I be able to get around? I don't really want to get an Xi model.
winter driving
- Thread starter Real_dogg
- Start date
just get a set of four winter tires and you'll be fine. i live in the washington dc metro area and decided against the xi model. i drove my bimmer in light snow (couple of inches) with dunlop wintersport m2's and had no problems. however, i didn't even bother to try in heavy snow as i didn't want to risk someone sliding into me so i used the wife's trusty honda civic. others on this board have had good luck with a set of winter tires. you might want to do a search for other threads on winter tires on this board as i found good advice when i was deciding between an xi and the regular 330i. i ended up not wanting to sacrifice the look you get with the regular 330i sport package.
I drove my 88 325is this winter with all season tires and I got around just fine. As long as you KNOW how to drive in snow (which you probably do since you live in pittsburgh) and keep it safe, you should be all good.
For me, the hardest part was getting moving in the first place, after I was moving it wasnt bad, the car always tracks in a straight line and steers when you want it to steer. Remember with RWD, if you take your foot off the gas while you are already moving, it can slow down the rear wheels too much which will make you loose control -- I learned to use my brakes to slow me down 100% of the time in snow, they do a very good job and keep the car on the road.
Go for it!!
For me, the hardest part was getting moving in the first place, after I was moving it wasnt bad, the car always tracks in a straight line and steers when you want it to steer. Remember with RWD, if you take your foot off the gas while you are already moving, it can slow down the rear wheels too much which will make you loose control -- I learned to use my brakes to slow me down 100% of the time in snow, they do a very good job and keep the car on the road.
Go for it!!
epj3 couldn't be more right...the tough part is to get moving.
I don't think you are doing anything wrong with a 330i over a 330xi at all. I strongly recommend snow tires for the winters, as you brought it up...with snow tires you should be fine for the winter. Even if you don't plan on driving your car in the snow, a good set of snow tires for the winter is still a good idea, for several reasons.
First off, if you get the 330i with Sport Package, the stock tires are performance summer tires. In temperatures below 40 degrees, summer tires do not warmup, and therefore do not provide the proper traction. My vehicle came with Michelin Pilot Sport's (18") and I have a backup vehicle to use during the winter when it snows, so I decided not to bother with snow tires, but it proved to be a big mistake. For a few weeks here in NJ, we were getting 0 to 10 degree (F) temperatures at night and at these temperatures, I was able to spin my rear wheels on completely dry road when launch at a mere 2,000rpm. I also noticed that I could not take turns nearly as hard as I could during the warmer months...it literally was like I was driving a lesser vehicle (in terms of performance). Nowadays, "performance" snow tires such as Bridgestone Blizzak LM-22's, Dunlop WinterSport M2's/M3's, and others are becoming really popular. They provide great traction in the snow while still providing better dry-road traction than summer tires in cold winter weather! Another issue with using summer tires during the winter is if you are driving your car and it just suddenly starts snowing, unexpectedly. Summer tires are AWFUL in the snow...the tires simply do not even try to grip the snow and it just becomes a hazard for you to drive your car in the snow. I once got stuck in a parking lot a couple days after it snowed...it was flat packed snow and everybody parked there...so I decided to park (since there was no other parking available) and when I came back to my car to leave, my rear tires were just spinning as if there were in the air...terrible, terrible experience! Whenever I had to drive on snow, such as a couple days after it snowed, and the snow wasn't cleaned in particular places, I felt like the puck on an ice hockey rink.![[V]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_disapprove.gif "Disapprove [V]")
Sorry if this was long and overwhelming...it's just that I have gone this whole winter with summer tires because I was too cheap to invest in a set of snow tires (I have a backup SUV available to me whenever I needed it), and it still was a bad idea to try to get through this winter with the stock summer tires.
I don't think you are doing anything wrong with a 330i over a 330xi at all. I strongly recommend snow tires for the winters, as you brought it up...with snow tires you should be fine for the winter. Even if you don't plan on driving your car in the snow, a good set of snow tires for the winter is still a good idea, for several reasons.
First off, if you get the 330i with Sport Package, the stock tires are performance summer tires. In temperatures below 40 degrees, summer tires do not warmup, and therefore do not provide the proper traction. My vehicle came with Michelin Pilot Sport's (18") and I have a backup vehicle to use during the winter when it snows, so I decided not to bother with snow tires, but it proved to be a big mistake. For a few weeks here in NJ, we were getting 0 to 10 degree (F) temperatures at night and at these temperatures, I was able to spin my rear wheels on completely dry road when launch at a mere 2,000rpm. I also noticed that I could not take turns nearly as hard as I could during the warmer months...it literally was like I was driving a lesser vehicle (in terms of performance). Nowadays, "performance" snow tires such as Bridgestone Blizzak LM-22's, Dunlop WinterSport M2's/M3's, and others are becoming really popular. They provide great traction in the snow while still providing better dry-road traction than summer tires in cold winter weather! Another issue with using summer tires during the winter is if you are driving your car and it just suddenly starts snowing, unexpectedly. Summer tires are AWFUL in the snow...the tires simply do not even try to grip the snow and it just becomes a hazard for you to drive your car in the snow. I once got stuck in a parking lot a couple days after it snowed...it was flat packed snow and everybody parked there...so I decided to park (since there was no other parking available) and when I came back to my car to leave, my rear tires were just spinning as if there were in the air...terrible, terrible experience! Whenever I had to drive on snow, such as a couple days after it snowed, and the snow wasn't cleaned in particular places, I felt like the puck on an ice hockey rink.
Sorry if this was long and overwhelming...it's just that I have gone this whole winter with summer tires because I was too cheap to invest in a set of snow tires (I have a backup SUV available to me whenever I needed it), and it still was a bad idea to try to get through this winter with the stock summer tires.
Real,
I'm in the 'burg too. I've owned BMW's since 1989 -- NEVER had a problem unless it was so bad that everything else was shutdown too. I've actually passed people in all-wheel drives who were slipping and sliding up hills. (Probably people who say "I don't need snow tires, I have all wheel drive.")
The post earlier was right about knowing how to drive. The people who say "good luck in the snow with a rear-wheel drive car" are the one's who don't know how to drive in the snow in the first place! BMW's are so balanced that they are better in the snow/ice (once you get rolling) than many front drive cars because you are distributing the forces across different wheels (front are only steering, rears are only causing traction). If you've ever been in a front drive car while the wheels are spinning, you've seen how you also can lose steering since the front wheels have lost all adhesion. Also, traction control, once you get moving, works really well to help you maintain forward progress.
Good DEDICATED snow tires (not all-season) on all four wheels is really a must in my book. Also, you may want to consider getting "winter wheels" (could be simple steel wheels or a less expensive alloy wheel) that, depending on the factory wheel/tire size, might be "minus" sized for a little narrower contact patch. The wider the contact patch in the winter, the less traction you'll get.
Go to www.tirerack.com and look at the wheel/tire packages for your car. They'll ship everything to you mounted and balanced and all you have to do is put them on the car (yourself if you want). Every year, I wait until the first REAL snow -- then I put the tires on the car in my garage by myself. It's not hard and it will save you money each year when you avoid paying for someone to constantly mount and re-mount the tires. At the very least, you can have your winter wheels/tires mounted at a garage to save you the hassle.
Winter driving is really about 85%-90% driver and only 10%-15% car.
I'm in the 'burg too. I've owned BMW's since 1989 -- NEVER had a problem unless it was so bad that everything else was shutdown too. I've actually passed people in all-wheel drives who were slipping and sliding up hills. (Probably people who say "I don't need snow tires, I have all wheel drive.")
The post earlier was right about knowing how to drive. The people who say "good luck in the snow with a rear-wheel drive car" are the one's who don't know how to drive in the snow in the first place! BMW's are so balanced that they are better in the snow/ice (once you get rolling) than many front drive cars because you are distributing the forces across different wheels (front are only steering, rears are only causing traction). If you've ever been in a front drive car while the wheels are spinning, you've seen how you also can lose steering since the front wheels have lost all adhesion. Also, traction control, once you get moving, works really well to help you maintain forward progress.
Good DEDICATED snow tires (not all-season) on all four wheels is really a must in my book. Also, you may want to consider getting "winter wheels" (could be simple steel wheels or a less expensive alloy wheel) that, depending on the factory wheel/tire size, might be "minus" sized for a little narrower contact patch. The wider the contact patch in the winter, the less traction you'll get.
Go to www.tirerack.com and look at the wheel/tire packages for your car. They'll ship everything to you mounted and balanced and all you have to do is put them on the car (yourself if you want). Every year, I wait until the first REAL snow -- then I put the tires on the car in my garage by myself. It's not hard and it will save you money each year when you avoid paying for someone to constantly mount and re-mount the tires. At the very least, you can have your winter wheels/tires mounted at a garage to save you the hassle.
Winter driving is really about 85%-90% driver and only 10%-15% car.
I live in Minneapolis and have not had any problems with my 2004 330i w/ Blizzak WS-50.
I traded in a 2002 BMW 330xi for the RWD car and have had no regrets despite a very snowy winter.
With the snow tires and DSC I have not had any problems starting including on icy hills. In addition with the snow tires I can stop and corner var better than the AWD car with 'no-season' tire.
Regards
I traded in a 2002 BMW 330xi for the RWD car and have had no regrets despite a very snowy winter.
With the snow tires and DSC I have not had any problems starting including on icy hills. In addition with the snow tires I can stop and corner var better than the AWD car with 'no-season' tire.
Regards
Snow tires are the way to go. I put Blizzak LM-22s on my car for this winter and i have had no problems whether there be an inch of slush or 5 inches of snow on the ground. They handle well in all temperatures and road conditions. AS MrE said, there are several good snow tires out there and I wouldn't be caught in the snow without them! ![[:)]](/images/smilies/smile.png "Smile [:)]")
