ceb

Clearly, it is all dependent on tires but - assuming you have proper snow tires and sufficient clearance - how does the TSX do in snowy climates?

Over the last 10 years or so I've been driving AWD because my job requires 24/7 availability (but haven't needed it) and would rather not take the mpg hit of awd for those few days when I might need it.

How well does the TSX do in - say - upstate NY with snow tires?

Ken1997TL

With snow tires you'll be just fine.

VortexBlueTSX

+1 to that....I live in MA and we get a lot of snow, and with snow tires i did not get stuck once

ceb

Great - just the answers I expected. I don't want/need the bigger TL and the wagon will suit me nicely then.

GrigioTSX10

How about without snow tires, how does the car handle with the stock tires?

ceb

That's really an impossible question to answer.

The only thing connecting your car to the road is your tires, so the proper tires are vital.

Once the temps drop below 50 degrees or so for an extended time period, the rubber in non-winter tires loses grip. All season tires may keep grip a bit longer but the compund lacks the silica to provide proper grip in snow.

Some cars (rear drive BMW and Mercedes) were notoriously bad in winter regardless of tires. With the advent of electronic nannies they've evolved admirably but even with proper winter tires they tend to be a bit more skittish.

You also have to remember that stopping and steering is a function of your car's tires.

Here are a few videos worth viewing.

http://www.tirerack.com/videos/index...=23&tab=winter
http://www.tirerack.com/videos/index...=26&tab=winter
http://www.tirerack.com/videos/index...=49&tab=winter

stoke

I had a TL with blizzaks for last snow season and this year I will have a TSX wagon with blizzaks as well.. they are awesome in the snow and the wagon has a great weight ration f/r so you should be awesome. Snow tires do make a huge difference, but make sure you put them on as late as possible and take them off right away at the end of the season or they will wear out very quickly. I am excited to take my wagon up to the resorts at 9,000 ft!

b.ike

As a FWD, it's superior to RWD in most regards but wont be close to the AWD.
I live in a climate where a foot or two of snow dumped overnight is ordinary. And temperatures can get colder than -30C (approx -25F) for weeks. I survived this past winter on the all season stocks and probably this year as well.
but definitely thinking about winter tires this year though. My other cars I've gotten away with driving on all season, but for some reason the TSX has had some close calls with getting stuck.
The TSX is my first car I've had with traction assist, so that kind of made winter driving an interesting experience. I've had occasions where I had to override the assist.

tvac

I have a second set of wheels and run Nokian WR G2 18" on them. It handles superbly.

mg7726

fwd w/snows are awesome. no problems in rural woodlands upstate and NE in whiteout conditions.

PyroDave

i've got the stock tires on mine, and i gotta say, handled like a champ through that big storm we had in the northeast last year. though alot of it depends on driver experience. i managed to get up a hill by my house on snow, but a woman driving a 2010 E350 with 4matic slid back... i know how to carve up a hill(stay in your lane as much as possible but instead of having the wheel straight, turn it back and forth, less of a slope at an angle and its easier to get up it than attacking the steeper angle), she tried to drive straight. FWD beat AWD, it was kinda cool hahaha. i also knew to keep my car from stopped. once you stop, your fairly fucked. gotta keep rolling. i utilized my ebrake for turns. the car would lose grip on a turn and understeer heavily, i pulled the ebrake and the rear slid instead(be careful, gotta know when to release), and the car would end up being straight, and then i'd accelerate. took some pretty tight turns in snow because of the walls that plows made. DO NOT PULL THE EBRAKE WHILE GOING AT SPEED IN THE SNOW, YOU WILL ENDANGER YOURSELF AND OTHERS, I DONT CARE WHAT KIND OF TIRES YOU GOT.

ceb

These threads always bring out the " I drove through 4 feet of snow using summer performance tires," but the fact remains that tires will make or break you.

In the example above the E350 4matic probably had summer tires and - quite simply - no driver can overcome the laws of physics.

The handbrake thing is foolish too as the proper tires would most likely have resolved that issue.

PyroDave

yea the right tires are preferable. but those of us with a lease who expect to have less than a dozen snow storms through the life of the car just can't justify buying snow tires. i shared my experience with the stock. i wasn't overcoming laws of physics, i utilized my knowledge. its easier to overcome a force in the negative direction when it is smaller, such as at a smaller slope, so i created a smaller slope by going to the side instead of straight. i wasn't attempting to be a nascar driving dare devil who beat the world. i just shared what i went through, and how i handled it.

ceb

Sure. I didn't want to sound negative either but the "I don't buy snow tires because we only a few snowstorms a year" is a bit naive.

It only takes one slide to end up with extensive body damage - either to yourself or to your car - that will cost you way more than a cheap set of snow tires on steel wheels. Consider the proper tires to be cheap insurance.

Yeah, it is easy to justify spending a grand on some sexy mod like body kits or a few grand on the biggest 22 inch wheels, but we cannot seem to be able to justify the cost of something that could save lives.

I've seen what the wrong tires can do and it is oftenthe invincible youth that knows how to drive in the snow that is often the victim.

The only thing connecting you to the road surface is your tires and all the fancy electronics, AWD or fancy use of the handbrake can overcome the laws of physics.

I've walked up hills in leather soled shoes in snow and ice and have lived to tell about it but that doesn't make it the proper footgear for winter.

GrigioTSX10

I know the benefits of snow tires, I had them for my Mazda6. The car handled a lot better even in the rain. I'm thinking about getting them for the TSX as well. The thing is, I'd honestly rather stay off the road when it snows. Stock up beforehand and stay in the house and work from home lol

FuzzyLabRat

I had my TSX for the Ice Storm of '11 that crippled the DC/Metro area here in VA. My 16 mile commute took over 9 hours to get home -- but I made it!

I was doing a slalom course around BMW/LEXUS/MERCEDES in my 09 TSX automatic. The paddle shifters allowed me to pretty much start out in second gear. This allowed me to keep torque low and apply slow/even pressure to starts and turns. I was on stock tires. While it wasn't fun, I very seldom got stuck and was doing much better than other vehicles.

I was impressed, but wouldn't want to do it on a regular basis. Clearance is an issue (compared to a SUV/Crossover), but not as bad as most luxury vehicles. Low torque is a big plus (only time I will ever say it =] ). Traction Control was a bit of a help, but had to turn off at times. As a daily driver in bad NORTHERN storms -- I'd go with a more rugged SUV or Crossover if I have a on-call job rqmt.

My .02

tvac

I have to agree with ceb. The correct tires are essential. It only takes one accident to wipe out any potential savings you may realize from not buying a good set of snows or all weather tires, to say nothing about medical bills. I've been there and done that. It ain't worth it.

mrstak

iTrader: (1)

So I have a question about snow tire sizing. Is it better to have 205/50 or 215/60 for sizing? My friend told me the more optimal size would be 205/60 but the tires I'm looking at don't have those specs...

Also, if I get a tire that has more than 3% speed difference than stock, is it detrimental to the car at all? Aside from inaccurate speedometer readings?

ceb

For winter use, the narrower the tire, the better. As far as differences in overall diameter, you may run into clearance issues with suspension bits as well as having an inaccurate speedometer.

If everything clears and you can live with the inaccurate speedometer, you may run into warranty woes as you are technically tampering with the odometer - one of the few things that will void your warranty in its entirety.

The amount of change (or the direction of change) is immaterial - any deviation from the factory approved diameters may cause you issues.

While modern speedometers are calibrated to read high (ie a reading of 60mph is really 58mph) in part to comply with stricter European speed laws (50kmh means 50kmh, not 55kmh,) the odomoeters read accurately, so messing with overall diameters causes the odometer to read incorrectly - even if your change may have "corrected" the speedometer.

ceb

Not to be negative, but .... Most of the BMWs, MBs and Lexi that were stranded on the GW parkway had idiot drivers with summer performance drivers. Where did they expect to go once they abandoned their cars on the parkway?

I too, have driven from Salzburg to Munich in a snowstorm in a Corvette with summer tires (and drove from Belgium to Salzburg in the "winter storm of the century" (1991/1992) in a Jag with all seasons) but I won't ever do that again.

Will all-seasons automatically kill you? Of course not, but they will induce white knuckle driving.

On the day of the ice/snow storm you referenced, I drove from Berryville VA back to MD and missed most of the "fun" traffic. I had my AWD 3 series with proper snow tires and for the next two days did hospital runs and the only thing that stopped me was clearance.

Nedmundo

While I agree with ceb as a general matter, I think the OEM Michelins on the TSX are very good in the snow. We've had brutal winters here in Philly the past couple of years, and it's been great in the limited snow driving I've done. In fact, I was so impressed in the winter of 2009/2010 that I bought a set for our Mazda5, whose previous tires (Toyos?) were awful in snow. I have not, however, needed to go up steep snow-covered hills or encountered other difficult situations, as I did growing up in Connecticut. If I lived in similarly hilly Philadelphia suburbs and had more storage space, I probably would get a winter set just to be safe -- and to go for an aggressive summer performance tire otherwise!

As for size, the TSX's wheel/tire sizes aren't very aggressive, so I think you could just get the same size for a winter set. Ideally, I suppose you'd go narrower, but I don't think it's necessary.

tsxronald

One word Drifting.

tvac

The stock tires are fine for 3 seasons. Not so much for winter. Just my two cents, I found the stock tires to be totally inadequate on back roads when the temperature drops and the snow starts falling here in New England.

ceb

Absolutely correct. Funny thing is that all those people who say "the stock tires are just fine" often qualify it by describing a white knuckle driving experience they had where they survived. They never drove with the proper tires since they wouldn't have any scary experiences.

Which brings up the question of why I started this thread in the first place.

Some cars are woefully inadequate in snow regardless of tires. Some sports cars just have way too lottle clearance, some cars just have crappy electronic nannies that don't work right in the snow and some (like a GTI I once had) are very good in the snow.

It sounds that the TSX with the proper tires is quite good in winter.

pinatubo

Firstly, if you've lived in the North, it gets snow every single year.
Secondly, if you ask your grandpa if he has AWD vehicle or winter tires back then.
Geez, learn how to drive properly, people.
Drive slow under those severe conditions, take pre-caution, take extra safety.
I've seen so many idiots driving like nut on snow/icy roads then suddenly slam the brake, sending the car flying into road barrier, posts, trees and start mumbling "how the heck? I have the AWD car with winter tires, why the car not stopping like in the summer but sliding like that"
Sure, winter tires do help
Sure, AWD does help
But 20, 30 years back, there WAS NO AWD, no traction control, no ABS, no ....... and people still driving through winter EVERY SINGLE YEAR.
Kids nowadays asking too much

tvac

No doubt about it, at least as far as the V6 is concerned. Due to the differences in weight distribution, I'm sure there are differences in winter handling characteristics vs the i4. The extra pounds over the drive wheels probably provide the V6 with some traction advantage.

At the risk of sounding like a marketing guy, for New England/NY-like climates I strongly recommend looking into the Nokian WRG2 when you go shopping. In my opinion this might be the finest all-weather tire on the market. It handles great on wet/dry pavement but really shines when the snow flys. The asymmetric design really works on this tire. I put them on in October and take them off in April. They make the TSX the best winter handling car I've owned.