Which one is more snow worthy?

....and that vehicle is an Audi, designed with performance in mind.

A tall wagon from Japan Inc? All it's going to do is wallow around and
scare you to death long before the policeman's ball ticket velocity is
achieved.

 

I travel a lot during the winter. More often than not, it seems like the
vehicle in the ditch or on its roof is an SUV driven by someone who thinks
AWD makes him bulletproof. Just my observation, though.

 

'01 V6 auto.

 

Cause people like to spend more than necessary on gas and repairs?

I have 258,xxx miles on my Accord with under $600 in "unscheduled" repairs
(not owners manual maintenance schedule stuff) and $x amount in gas. Bet
you both of those numbers would have been considerably higher if I had a
4WD/AWD vehicle.

 

It is definitely a concept geared toward performance.

That's not necessarily true, around here (given the mindset of the
officer at the time) a ticket can and has been issued for just being
slightly (less than ten miles an hour) over the posted maximum. Which is
fine by me, after all the *Posted Maximum* is the Maximum allowed by law
and anyone exceeding that limit is breaking the law.

 

I have made the same observation in my travels and it doesn't have to
be in the winter, some people drive like idiots all year long even in
heavy rain where you can't see more than a vehicle length in front of
your vehicle.

 

I drive a lot year round, including winter, and I see the exact same
thing. I've seen it more and more over the last five years, though.
Dunno why.

 

You know I read your post and said impossible or very lucky. Then I went
and checked my records on my 1998 Accord 4cyl, 5 speed. When you break it
down into unscheduled repairs, I've only had two. A fuel relay replacement
and a new starter for a total under $400. I was surprised.
It's got 220k now and the total costs of scheduled repairs is approaching
$8,500 over the lifetime of the car. Still the best car I ever owned!
Just anecdotal, but my wife has a 97 Outback w/ AWD. Mileage is 104k, less
than half mine and her total unscheduled repairs are $1500 and the total
repairs including that is $5,700.

 

Excellent vehicle! I have one that is approaching being ten years old
in December, working just like new and very few dollars spent on repairs
over its life.

 

*Why?* is an excellent question. I believe the answer is that people
who don't know very much listen to the media hype and advertising copy
and make purchases based on what they are told in commercials, as to
what *they* need to own and drive. In reality when a person purchases
an
AWD or 4WD vehicle they are making a purchase that is going to cost
them
more money throughout the ownership period of that vehicle. More gas
needs to be bought (heavier vehicles use more fuel to move them), more
maintenance expenses (more moving parts require more care). >>


Well thank you for the information. I'm a very cautious driver and
very rarely exceed the speed limit even in ideal weather conditions.
In my area there is a lot of snow in the winter and getting 8-12" of
snow in a storm is not uncommon. They plow the roads, but not in time
for the work commute, more like 2pm in the afternoon. Going to work
late is not an option for me. I need to get to work on time and I also
need to get home to my family even when the road was plowed but the
snow blew back onto the roads during high wind conditions. I don't
know how everyone's road conditions are, but my area is moderate to
heavy snow, high gale winds, dimly lit streets, hills, and icy bad
plowed road conditions. My area is very hilly and that makes for
difficult snow driving especially when you stop at a red light at the
base or in the middle of a hill that you have to continue to go up
while in snow. We also have very heavy rains in the spring, sometimes
with street flooding and mud.

By the way I have a cousin who has a Hyundai Santa Fe which was bought
with the Front Wheel Drive only. He said it was always horrible in the
snow, and he got stuck many times with it. His sister has a Subaru
Forester and she said her car was great in the snow and she never had
any problems in the snow like her brother had with the Santa Fe. Same
snow conditions, but big difference in ability. I'm inclined to
believe that 4WD is better in snow that 2WD, but once I have a chance
to see how it drives I will report it.

Thanks so much,

Jill

 

By the way in which you describe the area that you reside in, it sounds
as if you need to move away from the Clampett mansion in the hills and
closer to civilization. :^) Seriously though, If your roads are
not being taken care of earlier in the day, you need to talk to your
government representative(s) and have them take the initiative and look
after their citizens' needs better.

How long did he keep the Santa Fe? Did he get rid of it after finding
that he wasn't able to drive it through snow?

The more you go on, the more you sound like a troll, just tormenting
the sensible people here with your *stories*.

 

An Accord with good tires will handle that with aplomb.

You've succumbed to the marketing people and their panic method of
marketing.

 

On identical tires, driving four wheels can give different results than
driving only two wheels.

Driving two wheels on dedicated winter tires in the snow is VASTLY
superior to driving all four wheels that are not using dedicated winter
tires.

BTW, there's a huge difference between 4WD and AWD. Your CRV is AWD.

 

Hell, I used to drive through 10" snowfalls without hesitation in my old
'76 Honda Civic back in RI in the late 1970's/1980's. It's all about
being competent in what you do.

But now that I'm down south, I have no desire whatsoever to go back
during the cold season...

JT

 

Hell, I used to drive through 10" snowfalls without hesitation in my old
'76 Honda Civic back in RI in the late 1970's/1980's. It's all about
being competent in what you do.[/QUOTE]

I loved my gen 1 Civics. They would go everywhere, do everything--at
least, once you got the choke unstuck.

 

I'll see your Atlantic Canada winter and raise you a Manitoba winter.

 

I'll see the Atlantic Canada winter and the Manitoba winter with Colorado
Rocky Mountain black-ice, and raise with an 'Old Fashion Texas Ice Storm'.
Remember... the only thing they use salt on, in those two states, is food.

Be careful now... I just might have a 'Donner Pass - Chains Required' in
my back pocket!

 

LOL! Hello Winterpeg! ;^)

 

Okay first off...

I am not a troll. I do have a cousin who has a 1999 Hyundai Santa Fe
2WD, and he bought it new and still has it. He is too thrifty to buy a
new car, but hates that its bad in the snow. His sister (who is also
my cousin) has an AWD Subaru Forester which is about the same year as
his Santa Fe. Her car is great in the snow. I'm just going by what
they are telling me. They live about 3 miles from me and are in the
same areas for snow.

Second if this is just marketing then can't Honda get in trouble for
putting "4WD" on the back door of the CRV's?

I guess Honda Pilot's are AWD also? They are automatic systems like
the CRV I am told.

As far as the roads go...good luck getting a better resolution. Our
whole state is practically bankrupt. Now with the tax going up I
really doubt better plowed roads is going to happen.

Jill

 

I loved my gen 1 Civics. They would go everywhere, do everything--at
least, once you got the choke unstuck.[/QUOTE]


I don't remember a manual choke on the CVVC but do so on the 1200.

I never had carb issues and I drove it to about 160K when it began
rusting out from under me... Still was mechanically excellent.

Owning a Gen I (1976) is what drove me to consider a Gen II when gas
prices started to climb about six years ago. Imagine, the Gen II is
longer, wider, still handles the same and gets even better gas mileage.

And here in Texas, rust is a lesser issue...

JT