OK, this is my third winter in the TSX. The difference is I got new tires (Yokohama EnVigor) that replaced the stock OEMs which had about 60K and ~40K in the previous winters.

This car is still useless in snow. I swear, the yellow traction light might as well be on the entire time, because I get no traction in even small amonts of snow.

One time, there was about an inch of fresh snow that wasn't plowed yet, and I slide across a stop signed intersection while trying to stop and I was going about 15 mph in it and gave plenty of room for stopping. I have a very hard time braking and the wheels lock up rountinely in snow/sluch no matter how slow I am approaching a stop sign or red light. I try different techniques such as straight slamming the brake to pump braking it. Same results.

I've never had any traction problems in my corolla or civic in worse weather. This is not a safe car for the winter (whats the point of having a FWD 4 door car if it sucks in snow??).

This car is completely useless in snow, and seeing how thousands of TSX owners aren't getting into crashes, could there be something wrong with my car? I like the look of the TSX, but if I am going to be endangering my life driving this thing in bad weather, I might as well get a better sportier car and be endangered and be better looking while doing it (I'm being sarcastic, but you get the point).

 

What tires do you have?

 

You need snow tires , and try taking off the traction control when you get stuck

 

Sorry, missed it. Its a problem with your tires, not the car. Get a set of dedicated winters, or even a good set of all-seasons, and you should be fine.

 

Yokohama EnVigor are high performance all seasons , they should do ok in the snow , but Aman is right , get a set of high performance snow tires, you will be happy and see the difference right away

 

i have an 06 with brand new Yoko enVigors and i live in ks. we have gotten 2 ft of snow this last month now. other than really sleep hills i dont have any traction problems. the traction control actually really helps in almost every situation. and my braking is good as well.

I find it weird because i like the tires a lot

 

The OEM tires suck really bad. I had traction issues in heavy rains when trying to go up steep hills, and the tires slipped and squealed often. Even in light rain, there were some roads here that I was scared to even try to traverse.

You need dedicated snow tires. All-season tires make some sacrifices so that they are not the best at the extremes, but are designed so that they can operate better than, say, dry performance tires in the snow. Some lean towards being better in snow, while others lean in the opposite direction.

Tires are what give a car grip/traction. If your car is sliding around, blame the tires, not the car (the OEM tires were definitely the problem for the previous 2 winters). As mentioned above, it sounds like you need tires that are dedicated snow tires.

 

OK, I'll be the one to bring up the elephant in the living room. Let's see, how I can put this so it doesn't sound too bad...... Sounds like you don't know how to drive in the snow dude.....(I can't be the only one thinking this......). Nice and easy on the gas and the brakes, and you should be OK. Ummm....... no mystery why that vast majority of FWD cars perform adequately in the snow (and without snow tires by the way.....) it's because...... they're driven correctly. I agree that snow tires will help (I'm a firm believer), but don't overlook the skill required behind the wheel.

 

Get some Continental Extreme Contact DWS's! They make a HUGE night and day difference in the snow!

 

lol, that was going to be my last paragraph (driver error), but I wanted to be nice, so I deleted it and let you be the one to say it. :P

 

I also agree. We have never owned "snow" tires. I have to admit my husband knows how to drive in the snow. To get to the place where I used to work you had to drive up a very windy hill. It was a challenge when it snowed but I never had problems. I did that with rwd, fwd, awd and 4-wheel drive vehicles. Just slow down and you will do fine.

 

I've been driving in snow for almost 12 years with 4 different cars. I knew I was going to get a response like this. Just because I am not an "old guy" as your moniker indicates doesn't mean I am inexperienced driving cars.

I should not have to be driving 10 mph approaching the stop sign with a little bit of slush on the road. Nobody else on the road does this. Last year, there was some ice on the road near my work, and at the time I was adapting to how crappy this car was in the elements and had Mercedes up ahead going the same direction approaching a 3 way stop near my work. I was driving really slow and holding up traffic to avoid sliding (ie driving 10-15mph) as I approached the stop sign. The Merc up ahead stopped and went like normal, my car ended up sliding across the T intersection. I've tried slowly pressing the brakes, pumping it, turning off VSA, leaving it on, changing new tires, etc. When there is snow falling, I am constantly holding up traffic and driving slow to compensate for the poor stopping traction.

I shouldn't have to buy snow tires (unless I am driving in a blizzard which I avoid). A majority of the people here (chicago) dont and they get along fine (driving sports sedans as well).

 

It's all about the tires, not the car. How much tread is on the tires you have now?

 

Point taken, but I couldn't up with a nice way to say what I said. I guess we'll have to assume it's the tires. I've been using snow tires on my cars since like..... forever (including the quattro Audi's I drove for years), so I can't really comment on a good all season tire for winter use. But...... the vast majority of cars out there do not use snow tires, so someone is doing something right.

 

from the reviews i read on tirerack.com...these tires you have on arent that great on snow......

heres a snippet "Great tires for Dry and Wet tracktion. Don't buy these tires if you are planning to take it to snow. I didn't feel comfortable driving even at 20 mph in snow. Doesn't stop or accelerate well in snow."

 

Agree on the Conti ExtremeContact DWS...

Cool feature is the D's W's and S's cut into the tread...when the S disappears, no long "good" for the snow...ditto the W and wet and D and dry...cool gimmick.

 

It's all about traction. Online reviews say the tires suck in colder weather and turn into hockey pucks.

 

Looks like the OP needs dedicated winter tires.

 

My 04 did great with Dunlop Winter Sport M3s. Maybe try those.

 

spot on i put a set of nokian finnish snow tires we had bad snow here in dublin for 2 to 3 weeks car was solid and traction was fantastic, back on the goodyear eagle f1s now

 

I think for a FWD car, the TSX does a great job in the snow. I have Pirelli P Nero Zero All-Season tires, and the car performs great. If I had dedicated snow tires on, I'm sure it would be even better.

 

Are your wheel alignment settings okay?

 

I replace the struts in my 06, and the car's handling, starting, and stopping is better in all conditions: dry, wet, & snow.

I figure that there was too much weight transfer for the car to hook-up predictably.

 

I just bought my 2006 6MT last Monday and the dealer put new ENVigors on as well. Pressure was at 38psi, I dropped the pressure to 29psi cold and it got a little better. Check out tirerack.com, you'll notice that the ENVigors are ranked 2nd in Hi-Po All Seasons, not bad at all. But the winter ratings are pathetic. There's your reason. My advice, get dedicated snows. I will be next fall.

Cheers

 

Ok, the tires are a problem when relating to stopping, but I have to comment on your other issue. You mentioned that the VSA light is turning on all the time and you feel you have no traction. And that you didn't have these issues with your corolla or civic... Well, I have to partially agree with the comment that you don't know how to drive your car. I'm not saying you are a bad driver. The characteristics of the car is different. A civic and corolla, esp earlier versions, gave you about 100-120hp and around 100 torque. The TSX has 200hp and about 200 torque. You are more likely
to spin out your tires especially when starting in snow or ice... if you see the VSA light come on, you are giving too much gas to start off and so the VSA kicks in... Solutions to this include giving less gas until the VSA no longer turns on or you can switch the car to manual mode and start it off in second gear(this works whether you drive standard or automatic). Changing the gear will help slow down the wheel spin. Hope this helps...
Drive safely... The TSX is really a nice car to drive...

 

ok let's forget about this newb argument 1st: I live in Northern Ontario and I have plenty of snow experience. I also have conti DWS winter tires mounted on the TSX.


And the TSX sucks in the snow. It is a lighter car with huge torque, of course you can drive slow, be gentle on the throttle and all will be fine, but my shittier cars perform better and they have 4 season tires.

 

I agree. Our 06 AT does worse in the snow with traction control than the 1998 civic we share that has $250 douglas tires from walmart.

The car is lightweight and has a lot of torque, and im sure the enVigors being rated poor for the winter doesn't help but we can get around find it just takes some careful driving.

 

I was looking into the enVigors as well, read reviews, steered right away from them. As for 4seasons, I suggest Michelin Pilot Exaltos, you can still buy them at tirerack warehouses (even though anywhere you call will tell you they're discontinued so that they can sell you some crap other tire (i went through this calling some 5 different stores including an acura dealership who tried selling me the enVigors)).

Another thought for you odannyboi... And look into it open mindedly. A while ago I had my front two tires rotated, but not properly and I didnt know this until I had new tires thrown on the front. The people who rotated my front tires just swapped sides, resulting in the tread being backwards. Early this winter I dealt with terrible traction and it has been 100% better now that my tread is facing the right direction. It's an amateur mistake, I'm an idiot for not noticing it myself, but just take a look cause it could be the case.

 

I have an 06 TSX auto with Michelin X-ice2 tires which are supposed to be one of the best snow tires around (tirerack.com) and I live in a climate where we have lots of snow and ice. I can say that even with the dedicated snow tires, the TSX gets only average traction. The traction control light comes on often in icy conditions which is to be expected. However, I recently drove an 2009 pontiac G6 and it had so much more traction than my TSX with all seasons. This was a back to back comparison. Could it be weight distribution?

Just my 2 cents.

 

I hate to pile on, but I'm having similar problems with my 2004 TSX as well. I've driven other sedans in my life, and I do agree that to a large degree it has a lot to do with tires. Funny, but actually the sedan that handled the best in the snow for me was my 2000 Dodge Neon I had in college. I slapped a cheap set of $300 tires on it, and it was great.

I had a set of Continental Extreme DWS's installed this week, so I'm hoping it's an upgrade from my Yoko's. Hoping to give them a fair workout this winter before spring comes.

 

I find these (somewhat) differing accounts (and opinions) about the TSX in winter conditions interesting. I'll add my two cents mainly because my comments will run contrary to what could be a building consensus here (that the TSX sucks in the snow). I run snow tires (Semperit Sportgrip) that are not particularly aggressive on my 05, where as the Firestone Winterforce snows on my wife's 07 are a true snow tire, more like the old days (a pretty aggressive tread pattern for snow traction). In both cases, I'd say both tires perform the way they're supposed to. And for a front wheel drive car, I'd say the TSX is at least average. And ironically (as concerns some comments made here), the infamous Honda LACK of low end torque is a help in low traction conditions. Also a little chuckle here..... complaining about traction control intervening in slippery conditions? Umm, sorry guys, BUT THAT'S WHAT IT'S FOR. I've driven a variety of FWD cars and Audi quattro's and have to disagree with the many statements made here about how crappy the car is in the snow (I actually thinks it's pretty good and my wife can't say enough about what a tractor her car has become with the Firestone's on it)(and this from a couple that drove AWD Audi's for years). But..... that's my (our) opinion and my (our) perception. And since perception is in fact reality,..... it's too bad that evidently many here have (or had) less then good experiences with the TSX in winter conditions.

Weight distribution? Both cars are FWD so I can't imagine there's much difference there. Is it the tires? Definitely could be..... I ran snows even with AWD. All season tires excel at nothing, and many suck at everything (including the OE Michelin's in my opinion). If you really want to be mobile without Mother Nature making your plans for you, get snow tires. Otherwise be ready to stay home on some days (which I never could and is why I became a true believer in winter rubber many years ago). Don't get me wrong..... I'm not disagreeing with anyone here. As I said to begin with.... I just find it interesting how different our experiences seem to be with basically the same car.

 

I had zero problems in the snow with the TSX so far with all-seasons (Conti-DWS). I would imagine some of the "TSX sucks in the snow comments" are either very aggressive drivers or just haven't learned how to drive in the snow properly. I also own an RDX with stock OEM tires; even though they slip a tiny bit I haven't experienced severe issues in any snow (fresh or deep snow) conditions.

 

Just curious, which Audi's have you previously had (Model/Year)? And why switch to Acura?

 

On the TSX sucks on Conti DWS...it doesn't as I had no issues with the snow or ice down here. But beware their S rating is not a forever one, just at high tread depths!

 

At what point would you say the "S" on those tires become invalid? 8/32? 7/32?

Just asking as I just purchased a set this week.

 

We had a couple of A4's (96 and 99), an A6 Avant (99), an S4 Avant (02), and a TT (225 hp 01) (not all at once of course, with the last two listed being...... the last two we had). The Audi's all treated us quite well. With free scheduled maintenance and a 4 yr/50K mile warranty, our costs were minimal and they were all reliable. That said...... they were warranty cars for us. We never kept one past its' warranty expiration. And we moved right around the same time we needed to replace the S4 and the TT. The daily commute became much longer for both of us (like from 120 miles a week to 700 for my wife), plus there wasn't an Audi dealer anywhere near us, so we made the decision to move back to Japanese reliability. Hence the move to Acura (and Subaru too, I drove a WRX for a while). It was a good plan, and neither of us regret it. But...... as much as I'm attached to my 05 TSX (I think I've made it clear here numerous times how much I appreciate that car), I'd have to say that the TT is my favorite car of all (and I've owned a allot of cars).

I really like the newer Audi's, and if I drove a few less miles and there was a nearby dealer, I'd probably go back in a heartbeat. And if Honda is listening....especially since the latest Acura models leave me completely uninspired and uninterested.

 

Gee..... I wonder if this might have been a good question to ask (maybe the tire dealer.......?) BEFORE you bought the tires? Sorry.... if it makes any difference that is.

 

That's a valid point - completely useless and doesn't help me in the least, but valid.

I bought the tires mainly off of recommendations on here, and reading reviews on tirerack. It got a ton of great reviews, but as you know, most people review their tires within 5,000 miles of purchase. Rarely do people circle back and give a 40,000 mile review.

In the end, it's not a terribly big deal for me. I was already toying with the idea of getting dedicated snow tires anyway. I figure, the worst case is I run through about 7-8K of tread before next December, and if I need to get a dedicated set, then no big deal. I'll still have a decent pair of regular tires.

 

You're right about my wise ass post...... it's of no assistance with your question....., but I couldn't help make the observation. And I agree with your point about Tire Rack's survey results. I always try to find some responses that include mileage figures in the 5 digit range. That said, if you read my ealier post concerning my opinion on all season tires, it should come as no surprise that I don't think you'd regret getting snow tires (depending on where you're located of course, though I assume you get some snow).

 

Ah I was thinking for a second that you might have had a few of the older quattros which are absolutely amazing in the snow. My friend has a 4000CS and it is an absolute tank in the snow, can rip down the highway at 80 in 4 inches of snow without any stability issues. But that's a pitty that there's no dealer close to you, the new A6 avant is gorgeous as well as the A5/S5. I'd go with a new Audi if it was up to me.