My Is200 + Snow

[stani1029]

well me the girlfriend and our 8 month old boy went out today to do some shopping at asda in the very very white dundee, we set off at about 10.45 and got breakfast from a place up the road which took 1 hour to get to. however i thought nothing of this once we made it to asda a couple of miles away. we left asda looking forward to getting home, which i didnt until 17.00 without the car as i had to abandon it

the lexus is so **** in the snow/ice, ive ruined 2 of my freshly painted alloys with being sucked towards kerbs, also something on the underside of my car has fallen down and is ploughing the snow so need to know if snow chains are going to work im going to drag my micra turbo out of my garage to tackle this weather which it will easily

please help as i love the car but if it not doing it job its gotta go

[The Transporter]

Snow chains will really make a mess of your nice rims... Your best option would be a decent set of winter tyres on a set of cheap IS rims from eBay. Chains are only for use on snow, once you come to tarmac, you'll have to take them off again otherwise you'll wear the chains quickly... also you speed will be very limited

[ormi]

you could get snow socks.....but the snow has never been the is200 strong point even with the lsd.....

[Charl 029]

I scuffed a rim pretty badly today thanks to the snow as well! once you start sliding on a cambered road theres sweet FA you can do :/

[lexynik]

the thing dragging underneath could be the plastic underbody protecter things - ive got a spare set you can have for free if its one of those

[stani1029]

So should i just forget about driving it while theres snow? What do the snow socks do? Does my car have an lsd? And lexy that would be great if it is, i can only find out once the snow has cleared though :)

Cheers

[lee200]

So should i just forget about driving it while theres snow? What do the snow socks do? Does my car have an lsd? And lexy that would be great if it is, i can only find out once the snow has cleared though :)

Cheers

HI hi my best winter upgrade for my is200 se was a lsd out of a sport and a day in a drift school i love my car in the snow once you get it moving keep hhi lit ha ha ha.. fun times..

[lexynik]

stani go out and grab a cheap 4x4 fot the snow and park the lex up somewhere safe where it wont get hit by someone slipping off the road ,, subaru legacy,frontera or an old shogun,,,, grab something like these for about £500 and youll be laughing not worrying

[stani1029]

Lol its just insurance, swapping it over etc. Ive got my micra in my only lock up. So the lexus would have to stay on the road, im thinking lots of weight in the boot and get the undercar shield pulled off. If im off tomorrow due to the snow ill be getting to my car and attempting things :)

[lexynik]

i know what you mean its a pain insuring a few cars or swapping around cover etc - only thing id say is that this is just a taster of whats to come,, this lot,ll go away before the real stuff comes so if the lex is bad in this it might be an idea to look for a cheapo 4x4 and some temporary insurance to get you thru end of dec,, beginning of jan when the weather is going to take a real turn for the worse imo

[Parthiban]

It's not necessarily a bad car in the snow, just got the wrong tyres on for the weather - remember people use these in Scandinavia and they get by fine.

Get some snow socks, or if you have prolonged periods of snow up north well worth having a set of winter wheels.

[stani1029]

See the snow we have here is the worst ive ever seen. I cant see it getting much worse and if it does we will be stuck indoors and no need to drive, It really is that bad! Ive cleared around the road side of the car, got 10L of petrol, got to jack the car up, clear the snow out. Plywood down on the ground, rip the guard off from underneath the car, get lots of sand/salt/bricks in the boot for weight and hopefully get the car home!

[lexynik]

you asked earlier if it had a lsd ! if its a sport it does - doesnt help much i know ,,,, sorry mate not much can do to help from this end of the country - if its any consolation i only drove my is once in the snow and that was a very short trip - apart from the normal tyre issues etc mine was an auto with no lsd and it was truly horrible in snow,, felt very removed from being in full control of the car partly because of all the electronic assistance cutting in and out i think (abs/tc) - it just felt very bad

[waveydavey]

One of the guys i work with has an IS200 sport. The first lot of snow we had last winter he tried to drive off his estate and ended up taking around an hour to just drive a quarter of a mile round trip including people helping him push it at times.

He bought some snow socks thinking they'd not get used till this winter and we had that second lot of snow.... He put them on and managed to get where he was going no probs (It was the same journey he had attempted before but failed dismally whilst still on his estate). In this neck of the woods that second snow fall was the worse of the two as well.

I'm gonna order a couple of sets, (One for the Lexus and one for our Fabia vRS), once i get paid in a couple of weeks as i'm off work for a week or two anyway at the mo so don't need to use the cars anyway..... you can pick them up on eBay for around £45-£50 a pair.

Cheers

Dave.

[lexynik]

ive heard rav 4 steel wheels go on an is ?? not sure if thats correct but if so maybe find a cheap set with thinner , deeper tread more winter biased tyres might get you around ,, ive seen ormis pictures of how bad the snow is it does look like most 2wd cars will struggle in those conditions tbh

[Bobba77]

Up here in Newcastle it has been terrible, havent drove the lexus since saturday night ( its okay taking it slowly when you get going but dont stop otherwise you'll need a push). Been using my girlfriends corsa which is great in the snow. Doubt I'll be using the lexus till things clear up............ which doesnt look anytime soon. If this is going ot happen every year then I'm definitely going to get a set of cheap wheels and get some snow tyres on them.

[stani1029]

Cheers for all the info, i know if i need to use my car regularly then it will be some steelies and snow tyres. Temporary fix is socks or chains, will keep yous updated with what i try and if it works :)

[bumbl3b33]

God i hate not having any snow :-)

[tonyr5500]

God i hate not having any snow :-)

i know what you mean, when we get it within a few days it has gone again

not good living so close to london.

[jay_russell]

yes to the rav 4 wheels. as do these

chrysler 300M 1998 - 2004

Citroen C - Crosser

Daewoo Leganza år 1998 - 2003

Dodge Avenger

Dodge Caliber

Dodge Caravan 03.2001-

Dodge Charger -1992

Dodge Nitro

Ford Aerostar

Ford Bronco 82-90

Ford Explorer år 1991 - 2002

Ford Freestyle 2005-

Ford Fusion 06-

Ford Mustang 1994 - 2004

Ford Probe

Honda Accord

Honda Accord Type R, Coupe Från år 2002 -

Honda Civic Från år 2006-

Honda Civic Hybrid

Honda Civic Type R

Honda CR - V

Honda CRV Från år 2007

Honda FR-V

Honda HR - V

Honda Legend Från år 1997 -

Honda Prelude

Honda Shuttle

Honda Stream

Hyundai Coupe

Hyundai Grandeur

Hyundai i30

Hyundai Santa Fe

Hyundai Santa Fe Från 2006

Hyundai Sonata / Sonica Från år 2005

Kia Sportage Från år 2004-

Land Rover, Range Rover Freelander Från år 1998 - 2006

Lexus GS 300, GS 430

Lexus GS 300, GS 430 Från år 2005-

Lexus GS 450h 2006-

Lexus IS 200, IS 300

Lexus LS 400 96-00

Lexus LS 400, SC 400

Lexus LS 430 2001-

Lexus LS 430, SC 430

Lexus RX 300

Lexus SC 430 2001-

Mazda 3

Mazda 3 2,0 / 2,0 MZR Sport

Mazda 323 F Sportive 323 V6

Mazda 5

Mazda 6

Mazda 626 år 1992 - 1997

Mazda 626 Från år 1997 -

Mazda 929

Mazda CX-7 , CX-9

Mazda MX 5

Mazda MX6

Mazda Premacy

Mazda RX - 8 2004 -

Mazda Xedos 6

Mazda Xedos 9

Mitsubishi Eclipse

Mitsubishi Grandis

Mitsubishi Lancer Sport Från år 2003-

Mitsubishi Outlander 2007-

Mitsubishi Sigma

Nissan 200 SX Från år 1995-

Nissan 300 ZX Turbo 1986 -

Nissan 350 Z

Nissan Almera Tino

Nissan Maxima

Nissan Primera

Nissan Serena

Peugeot 4007

Renault Laguna III 2008-

Renault Megane III 2008-

Subaru Impreza WRX Sti 2005 -

Suzuki Grand Vitara Från år 2005 -

Suzuki SX4

Toyota Avensis II 2,0D, 2,2D, 2,4D, 2,2i D Cat

Toyota Avensis III 2009.01 -

Toyota Avensis Verso

Toyota Corolla Verso

Toyota Supra 1986 - 1998

Toyota Supra MK IV 93 - 98

[jay_russell]

you can add the rav 4 and the new verso and and avensis and the auris hybrid to that list

[bumbl3b33]

We had five mins of it in cornwall

[lexynik]

my snow got pinched overnight ,, hrrmmph

[bumbl3b33]

I want snow like that! And a sled! And a big hill, with naked women at the bottom........ok did i kust say that?

[lexynik]

you did - deeper snow here