i know this gets said everytime but this is my first real experience in it, lexus is the worst car to drive in the snow, i had to abandon driving to work as it just would not move anywhere! totally useless!

Bad tyres

lucky I still got my civic lol. not looking forward to snow when I start driving the lex though

[quote name='FuntimePhil' post='632090' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:20 PM']i know this gets said everytime but this is my first real experience in it, lexus is the worst car to drive in the snow, i had to abandon driving to work as it just would not move anywhere! totally useless![/quote]

i didnt want to risk driving my lex into work today so took the day off well couldnt even walk down the road the snow was almost up to my knee!

dose it make any difference if you put on the snow mode?

Agreed!, i went to get some shopping and it took be about 10 minutes to get outta morrisons car park

[quote name='Solhatt' post='632092' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:29 PM']Bad tyres [/quote]

nah there brand new dunlop tyres, just crap car in snow.


aqnd no snow mode doesnt help, can feel its reduced the rev's but not enough to help

Rob gets on ok in the snow, problem is I'd say the majority on here have summer high performance or ultra high performance tyres on and they're as much use as tits on a fish!

Rob gets on ok with winter tyres on over in Switzerland.

I preferred my IS with ARBs and coilovers on in the snow as you got a lot more feedback and therefore you could correct much quicker when it was starting to go the wrong way!

[quote name='FuntimePhil' post='632096' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:32 PM'][quote name='Solhatt' post='632092' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:29 PM']Bad tyres [/quote]

nah there brand new dunlop tyres, just crap car in snow.
[/quote]
It's definitely the tyres mate, doesn't matter if they're brand new, I'm sure you have summer performance tyres on like the rest of us.

Although it is true that a fwd car on skinnier tyres will perform better, the IS on proper snow tyres will be fine in these sorts of conditions. There are plenty of IS owners (and other more powerful rwd cars) that use them in parts of Europe with much harsher weather.

The weak link in our cases is the tyres, the type of tyres that we have on our cars simply do not work in these temperatures, and the tread patterns are not suited for snow.

[quote name='FuntimePhil' post='632096' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:32 PM'][quote name='Solhatt' post='632092' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:29 PM']Bad tyres [/quote]

nah there brand new dunlop tyres, just crap car in snow.


aqnd no snow mode doesnt help, can feel its reduced the rev's but not enough to help
[/quote]

Take the tyres off and just go on the rims - you'll probably get more grip. I've got the SP9000's and im finding it hard to not to write a complaint letter to Dunlop, they are the most utterly useless set of tyres ever made.

Luckily im not too bad at having the back end out because i like playing with it but, even driving normal on slightly damn road at reasonable speeds the back swings wide. Its surprised friends who have been in the car too and seeing at how low a speed it happens at.

[quote name='kallabungo' post='632110' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:55 PM']I've got the SP9000's and im finding it hard to not to write a complaint letter to Dunlop, they are the most utterly useless set of tyres ever made.[/quote]
They'd just laugh at you if you sent a complaint letter as they're summer tyres - here's info on the SP9000 blurb:
[quote]The SP Sport 9000 is Dunlop's Max Performance tyre thanks to its 'HydroMax' hydroplaning resistance capabilities in standing water. It is designed for the drivers of sports cars, coupes and saloons to provide performance and comfort in the dry, along with superior hydroplaning resistance in the wet. [b][i]The SP Sport 9000 is not intended to be driven in near-freezing temperatures, through snow or on ice.[/b][/i][/quote]
The guys in Europe tend to have more snow and have a set of summer tyres and a set of winter tyres and use them accordingly whereas over here everyone pretty much just has summer tyres fitted and that's where half the problems come from!

[quote name='aido' post='632116' date='Feb 2 2009, 01:04 PM'][quote name='kallabungo' post='632110' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:55 PM']I've got the SP9000's and im finding it hard to not to write a complaint letter to Dunlop, they are the most utterly useless set of tyres ever made.[/quote]
They'd just laugh at you if you sent a complaint letter as they're summer tyres - here's info on the SP9000 blurb:
[quote]The SP Sport 9000 is Dunlop's Max Performance tyre thanks to its 'HydroMax' hydroplaning resistance capabilities in standing water. It is designed for the drivers of sports cars, coupes and saloons to provide performance and comfort in the dry, along with superior hydroplaning resistance in the wet. [b][i]The SP Sport 9000 is not intended to be driven in near-freezing temperatures, through snow or on ice.[/b][/i][/quote]
The guys in Europe tend to have more snow and have a set of summer tyres and a set of winter tyres and use them accordingly whereas over here everyone pretty much just has summer tyres fitted and that's where half the problems come from!
[/quote]

Ah thats nice of you to point that out - they should of also written not to use them in the summer conditions either. I've had these tyres on since June and they never gripped back then even in the summer weather. Luckily i've lost interest with these tyres now so i've been on a mission to ruin them and im pretty much at the markers on the back now so they'll be coming off and being replaced sharply!

Im not rich so i need a cheap(ish) tyre. The falkens seem to have good reviews on here - and i personally like the federal tyres as i've used them on previous cars but is there any other suggestions...?

Cheers.

Yeah i agree its the tyres.

At the ring last year, we were all struggling in the snow getting there and a group of altezza's just went sailing past us quite happily, all with winter tyres on.

Sorry but I disagree partially. The IS200 is just crap in the snow. Yes with proper winter tyres it will be much better; having tyres that are in their operating temperature but I must say my BMW is better in the snow then my IS200 was and the Aristo has even suprised me with 10" wide rear tyres!!

defo agree it is the tyres, they not made for winter and all this snow.....
rear wheel drive does and big fat tyres does not help at all.....snow button waste of time so i just parked mine up and went back to bed..

Yeaa suppose winter tyres might make a big difference

I didnt even attempt driving my car i took the vectra just as bad had lots of sideways down the country roads but there aresome right prats out that are speeding down the roads and doing spins etc on public roads

I don't think there's much weight over the rear of an IS200, so it's going to be a problem getting traction on summer tyres. A full tank of petrol may help a bit, as will loading the boot with some heavy stuff (e.g. sack of sand if you have one).

I worked in Norway all through 2004/2005 and took my IS200 Sport. No problems at all driving in the snow and ice with winter tyres, and this weeks snowfall in the UK is probably average for winter snowfall around Drammen/Oslo.
Still got the wheels and tyres, but not worth putting on for the few days adverse weather. My wife took the IS200 to work this morning, no trouble riding on Toyo Proxes 4, but we only have a couple of inches of snow (so far) in Gloucestershire.

i find traction control off, snow mode on and with all the weight in my boot i get on ok, at sensible speeds..

i am walking.. my shoes have good rubber

I dred it in the snow went 2 keep fit this morn & 2 lads had 2 push the lex cos it was just spinnig

I just try 2 keep it in high gears i find it helps then i had a knob head in a corsa this morn tryin 2 overtake on a side road cumin up 2 a junction he got past the car behind me but i thought theres no way u r gettin past me the little totaly stupid

[quote name='Lexus2D' post='632195' date='Feb 2 2009, 03:17 PM']I dred it in the snow went 2 keep fit this morn & 2 lads had 2 push the lex cos it was just spinnig

I just try 2 keep it in high gears i find it helps then i had a knob head in a corsa this morn tryin 2 overtake on a side road cumin up 2 a junction he got past the car behind me but i thought theres no way u r gettin past me the little totaly stupid [/quote]

I agree that does sound a little silly but then again even in a corsa he's probably repping more grip than us

[quote name='Steve' post='632190' date='Feb 2 2009, 03:11 PM']i am walking.. my shoes have good rubber[/quote]
Are they ribbed, for her pleasure

The new IS is just as bad

The beemers very good on the other hand - the new ones with DTC "ON" are not too bad - in fact the traction control actually does what it says on the tin...really surprised!

i found it no probs today i'v got on rainsports 2

Never had a real problem with the GS 300 Sport even with 275/35/18 on the back(which may be good on dry but are too wide really for wet/snow etc) Not had chance to try the 430 as I can't drive for a week or so due to minor op. but wife's front wheel drive Persona SRI had no problem today in the snow, although we haven't got much here.
We always managed in the '60s & '70s when most cars were RWD though, and we didn't have so much technology in tyres then either.

[quote name='Scarlet Pimpernell' post='632250' date='Feb 2 2009, 04:29 PM']The new IS is just as bad[/quote]

I had no issues with mine at all today. I was quite looking forward to seeing how it coped after several experiences in my IS200s. The only snag was making a complete fist of the handbrake turn onto my driveway (my first attempt with a foot "hand" brake). Other than that, there were no dramas at all.

Got to work fine which was good, infact impressed compared to past experiences. But lunch time went to my dads an got totally stuck I must add was going sideways alot of the time lol.. but now it's stuck had to leave it there, cant shovel whole streets such a joke.. Getting my dad in the 4x4 to drive me around lucky for me

So carless, hope it melts asap

[quote name='aido' post='632212' date='Feb 2 2009, 03:35 PM'][quote name='Steve' post='632190' date='Feb 2 2009, 03:11 PM']i am walking.. my shoes have good rubber[/quote]
Are they ribbed, for her pleasure
[/quote]

the late Dic Emery (as the charachter Mandy)
[quote]oooh you are awful, but I like you ![/quote]

Had no problems with mine, only about 3" where I am though. Having the snow mode helps.
Should really put my 17" wheels with Wredstein winter tyres back on, but cant be bothered for the sake of a couple of days.

[quote name='Parthiban' post='632104' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:42 PM'][quote name='FuntimePhil' post='632096' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:32 PM'][quote name='Solhatt' post='632092' date='Feb 2 2009, 12:29 PM']Bad tyres [/quote]

nah there brand new dunlop tyres, just crap car in snow.
[/quote]
It's definitely the tyres mate, doesn't matter if they're brand new, I'm sure you have summer performance tyres on like the rest of us.

Although it is true that a fwd car on skinnier tyres will perform better, the IS on proper snow tyres will be fine in these sorts of conditions. There are plenty of IS owners (and other more powerful rwd cars) that use them in parts of Europe with much harsher weather.

The weak link in our cases is the tyres, the type of tyres that we have on our cars simply do not work in these temperatures, and the tread patterns are not suited for snow.
[/quote]


yeap wheel spinning like trying to get the IS up the drive, corolla went straight up......

well i live on a slight incline but i still ended up going 2foot forward and 100metres backwards

Ive never been worried to drive (had prego misiz in car 5days til due) ive parked my car on the main road at the top of mine just incase i need to go hospital. I played back my house CCTV and saw me spinning down the road lmao

Well i thought my IS200 was bad in the snow, my CLC took it to a whole new level today.

Trying to get up a hill, not too steep, about 100 yards, took frigging ages. In the meantime an L Reg Fiat Punto sailed past!

Eventually managed to get up by taking off the traction control and hammering it in first gear all the way up. I was at basically 4 degrees all the way up.

The fatter, wider tyres take bad snow handling to a whole new level for me!

I cant bear having to get winter tyres! Does anyone have the spec for what kind of snow chains I'd have to get for my IS200?

I tried to go up the driveway a couple of times in vain. I left the car and took the buses, when I came back later, I couldn't even start the car, what could cause this?

[quote name='takwirira' post='632716' date='Feb 3 2009, 01:50 PM']I left the car and took the buses, when I came back later, I couldn't even start the car, what could cause this?[/quote]
Cold weather can kill a battery that is failing. Was the engine turning over ok and not firing, or was the battery dead ?

[quote name='swfcdan' post='632487' date='Feb 2 2009, 10:53 PM']Well i thought my IS200 was bad in the snow, my CLC took it to a whole new level today.[/quote]
Lol have you got AMG rims by any chance?

Our merc has the 9.5" rears as well, so it's sitting safely on the drive until the snow clears up - there's just no point trying to get a car with wheels like that through these types of conditions. Saw a bentley continental gt struggling yesterday which was quite amusing, and an aston just pull up with the driver looking very much like he wasn't sure what he was going to do...........

And to all those who just think the car's rubbish and it's nothing to do with the tyres, try watching some form of motorsport to see what sort of a difference tyres can make. And in snowy rallies, there's a reason why they stick on the skinniest pair of tyres, compared to the normal tyres they have on road rallies.

It doesn't matter how sophisticated your traction control or braking systems are, while they can help, if there's no mechanical grip between you and the road, you are not going to make any progress!

[quote name='Steviewevie' post='632718' date='Feb 3 2009, 01:52 PM'][quote name='takwirira' post='632716' date='Feb 3 2009, 01:50 PM']I left the car and took the buses, when I came back later, I couldn't even start the car, what could cause this?[/quote]
Cold weather can kill a battery that is failing. Was the engine turning over ok and not firing, or was the battery dead ?
[/quote]

The battery seems totally dead, the other day I stopped for a few minutes whilst the car was on, and after about 20 minutes I had to call someone to jump me. After being jumped the voltage says 12V

Sounds like it's time for a new battery like Steve says then mate, less than 60 quid from the dealer

Replaced mine a few weeks ago!

I can't even imagine how hard it would be to drive in snow with high performance tyres fitted. In Sweden it's illegal to use summer tyres between December 1st and March 31st. I use Nokian Hakkapelitta 5 (and Hakkapelitta RSi) and my IS200 goes steady as a train. Quite a lot of people meet up in the weekends and go racing on frozen lakes.

[img]http://www.s-shina(blocked word)/image/tyre/series/b/497.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/6058/11603492kv1.jpg[/img]

On the subject of Nokian tyres I always thought they'd just ripped off Nokia's name but then I saw that they are actually all produced by Nokia

A few years back Rob was pointing out the differences between winter tyres and summer tyres to me on one of the stands at the car show in Zurich, the winter tyres were vastly different in ways you can't see in a picture on the internet such as the tiny grooves that you can feel that help them keep traction where the summer tyres just completely lose it!

The Nokian tyres look very good, but still look at little pricy. In your opinion, would it be better to get the chains or the Nokian tyres since this snow storm is only for a few days besides fitting them would take less time. in the case that Nokian tyres are the better option where can I get them in the UK. by the way, would a failing battery cause the fog lights to stop working, i dont think my fog lights work.

The fog lights should work if the normal lights are - could just be they're either disconnected or the bulbs have blown?

To be fair the snow is going now so it may not even be worth buying snow chains.

If we had more snow I'd buy some winter tyres and pop them on but for the one or two days every two years we normally get I just take the day off work when it snows or work from home (and drink beer )

[quote name='aido' post='632757' date='Feb 3 2009, 02:52 PM']The fog lights should work if the normal lights are - could just be they're either disconnected or the bulbs have blown?

To be fair the snow is going now so it may not even be worth buying snow chains.

If we had more snow I'd buy some winter tyres and pop them on but for the one or two days every two years we normally get I just take the day off work when it snows or work from home (and drink beer )[/quote]

Hopefully it'll clear away soon, I also live down a hill. Catching 2 buses and a train + losing 1 and 1/2 hours of sleep is killing me. I wouldnt want to take the day off since I've got a deadline looming plus we get to go home early. I'll have the fog lights checked when I get the car in for service.

[quote name='aido' post='632757' date='Feb 3 2009, 02:52 PM']To be fair the snow is going now so it may not even be worth buying snow chains.

If we had more snow I'd buy some winter tyres and pop them on but for the one or two days every two years we normally get I just take the day off work when it snows or work from home (and drink beer )[/quote]
Indeed, it annoys me when on the telly people start moaning about how in Russia or Scandinavia they can cope with the snow fine. Yes, of course they can, because they have snow for a lot of the year and hence it's worth spending money on being properly prepared for it. Is it worth us all buying snow tyres, the councils spending loads on more snowploughs etc (down in the south) ? No, of course it isn't.

I just had to take my car out and was a little worried as our road seems to have turned into an ice rink, but the car coped pretty well. Weird thing I found on these tyres compared to the Dunlops I used to have on, is that if I feathered the throttle, I wasn't going anywhere, but if I just gave it a bit more throttle and let the TC do all the work it was quite easy to pull away through it with no drama

I was following a mark3 MR2 last night, how the young lady kept the car on the road was unbelevable, the rear was skidding all over the place very good car controll, my Lex was almost perfect just the odd slip which T/C kept controll of. Hats off the MR2 driver those cars are lethal in the snow. If I wasn't a very happily married man I may well have followed her home to "make sure she was OK"

[quote name='takwirira' post='632716' date='Feb 3 2009, 02:50 PM']I cant bear having to get winter tyres! Does anyone have the spec for what kind of snow chains I'd have to get for my IS200?

I tried to go up the driveway a couple of times in vain. I left the car and took the buses, when I came back later, I couldn't even start the car, what could cause this?[/quote]


snow chains are only suitable for use in heavy packed snow or where winter tyres dont grip - forget using them on tarmac roads.

instead of buying full on winter tyres why dont people buy all season tyres as they are a good comprimise for the UK

That would make sense Rob, have to admit though I do like my UHP tyres and just take it easy in the wet - was laughing at a thread the other week where someone with the same tyres as me was having a fit as they'd written their car off racing in the wet - what the hell did they expect putting their foot down with 400bhp in bad conditions!

PMSL...... im still waiting for a post along the lines of.... "i crashed my car in the snow and ice and but i had the snow mode on, why did i crash"

As you said in earlier post here, with the proper tyres to match the conditions the IS isnt too bad ( for rear wheel drive car) i still put about 100kg of grit in the boot if im going into the mountains and expect bad conditions full snow drifts and compacted snow and ice because driving on fresh snow is a lot easier. although over here they put salt on the road rather than grit mixed with a little bit of salt and clear the roads properly.