I will be going through the Grapevine in Calif. this holiday (Thursday) where some places might snow. What are the recommended cable/chains needed? Mine is all wheel drive (2019 RDX SH-AWD).

 

You will probably need a cable style chain ( steel cables wrapped with studded steel donuts ) not traditional chains, because the latter will throw out too far from the tire and break stuff. Like brake lines.

But unless there's a lot of snow and ice, or a mountain pass that requires chains or winter tires, it may not be worth the hassle and risk.

If you use chains, SLOW DOWN. You can wreck your vehicle and/or get yourself killed driving too fast with chains. Winter tires are much more forgiving.

 

So this is the section of I-5 that made the news this week? Sounds like a sleeping bag would have been more useful than chains. Chains won't push jack-knifed semis and abandoned cars out of the way, unless they are attached to a big ass tow truck.

If you have any Donner Party stories, please share.

 

Hi headed through that route and have been researching and found some of these https://www.etrailer.com/Tire-Chains...leID=201986801 debating which ones to get..... let me know what you decide, love to know what you are thinking!

 

@Chefejq those look pretty easy to use, though expensive. I've been looking at these alternatives;


I've had chains in the past and they're always a pain to install, and usually have to be installed before any actual encounter with snow. These look like they're easy to install no matter whether you're already stuck or not. Also, they look like they'll work with any size tire so they could be loaned out if travelling with someone who gets stuck.

 

Those look like a "getting unstuck" device, and the comments from the manufacturer corroborate that. "Rated for up to 30 miles of travel". Hmmmm

No way I would trust those to get me through a snowy mountain pass. I think they would be likely to fail at a really inconvenient time. There are worse things than getting stuck.

 

Well it doesn’t say “rated for 30 miles” it says check after 30 miles to make sure they’re tight. But yeah, I’m just looking for something to get me to/from a weekend at a cabin in Vermont, or to get my wife to work in a snowstorm. Chains are supposed to be a short term solution when you don’t have winter tires or winter tires aren’t enough.

 

Personally I would be very leery to travel when a storm is so bad that the highway is requiring chains on AWD/4 Wheel Drive vehicles with snow tires. I would rather wait it out until the road is safer. In the Sierra, this rarely happens. They usually close the road before they raise the requirements that high.

 

I don't think I've ever seen a legal requirement for AWD/4WD + winter tires + chains in my travels through the Rocky Mountains or across the plains. Just winter tires OR chains required in the mountains sometimes. Sometimes they will let you through with AWD/4WD and all-season tires, if they are in a good mood, and the descent is in decent shape. But closed means closed, and they mean it.

Decades ago, I remember my family coming back across the plains from CO ski trips surfing in the wake of semis through feet of drifting snow on the Interstates. Now, they have blizzard gates, and woe unto anyone that goes around them.

I ended up putting "all weather" severe snow rated ( snow on the three peaks ) tires on my daughter's CR-V AWD, so she wouldn't have to deal with changing tires/wheels. She's a Minnesotan now. Michelin Cross Climates. They are OK to run year round and they are good in rain. But tread wear is an open question. And they aren't quite as good as dedicated winter tires for winter's absolute worst.

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiret...jsp?techid=125

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...ossClimate+SUV

Ice is the killer. If there's more than 8-10 inches of heavy snow on the road, our crossovers aren't going anywhere. That's limited by ground clearance.