3DazeGrace

i thought maximas always did great in the snow, but most of my experience was with a 95

now in my 2002 i almost got stuck going up a hill yesterday sliding into the freakin curb, because of my crappy potenzas

i really have to get rid of these tires, i just bought the car

what pieces of crap, all they do is spin all over the place

i almost went into a guard rail too a week ago, it just kept sliding off the road and pulling me in one direction or the other

time to go to tirerack.com

MAX2000JP

I was dead serious. What happens in a FWD car when you lose traction on your drive wheels? You also lose steering. In a rwd car, you can also "steer" with the throttle. If you know how to drive a RWD car in the snow, IMO it offer you a lot more control.

D Love

Anyone ever have their Max's brakes freeze in the snow?

2k1AEMaxRider

iTrader: (1)

There is really too much opinion in these snow threads, and very little fact. I drove my '01 180 miles thru an ice storm around christmas, and was very impressed by the stablilty of the car. When I say ice, I left Nashville and it was sleeting, by the time I hit the TN river I was riding on a skating rink. Acceleration was a pain, because of a sensitive gas pedal, but with wide 17's that was expected. I'll weigh in with some of the rest of you and say that the ability of the car in adverse conditions rest solely on the driver. You can give yourself a handicap by using smaller tires, or chains, but you are still just as likely to lose control if you arent careful.
As for the RWD statement, I venture to say that MAX2000JP was talking about acceleration in RWD versus FWD. Acceleration shifts the load (weight) of the car to the rear of the car, in a RWD this increases the traction of the rear wheels improving your acceleration. IMO acceleration is the last thing on my mind when I'm driving in snow/ice. As for losing steering during wheel spin on FWD, sure, thats why you have that nice gear selector. I use to laugh as I went passed ppl fighting to get there car uphill on slick surfaces, and I'd just shift up to 2nd or 3rd and go right passed them.
I'll be glad when spring finally gets here and these snow threads die until next winter.

aliti19

iTrader: (2)

Yup, i agree with you. When i lose control of my max (or any other FWD car) in the snow, it's a lot more difficult to aim it in the right direction. On a RWD car, if i start to lose the back end, i know exactly where it's gonna go.

Hard Dog

My 2000 SE is the best handling winter car I've ever owned! But then, I have Dunlop Graspics all around, 215/55R17.

Last Sunday I raced the Max in an ice-autocross, on a frozen lake. I placed fourth in the 2WD class, but my time was better than eight AWD cars, including a Subaru STi.

BM_00

My Max 00 SE handles very well in the winter months since I have 4 Winter Yokohama Gaurdex 720's. Sorry but for those of you who think driving in the snow with your all-seasons especially with your Bridgestones are expecting kinda too much.
We had a snow storm today up here and the black max was just fine.

LA02MAX

iTrader: (3)

do you notice a trend going on? all of the people that say the max isnt bad in the snow are the people that say its all in the driver, and the people that say the max IS bad in the snow just seem to blame the car...ahem, someone see something wrong with this?

MAX2000JP

It's the car.....First the OEM tires are terrible in the snow, this can be solved by choosing a different A/S tire. Second, which no on has stated is weight distribution. When you accelerate where does the weight go? It goes to the rear, thus creating less weight over the drive wheels, which decreases traction. Also, you have a decent amount of power to handle.

LA02MAX

iTrader: (3)

yeah but if you drive like you're supposed to in the snow, (ie: not accelerating quickly, not taking turns quickly, leaving plenty room for braking, etc.) you wont have any problems, just like all these other people...you shouldnt accelerate fast enough off the line for all the weight to go to the rear anyways, and FWD cars are a lot easier to drive in the snow than RWD cars from what i hear...

Jaws

Sure, if you are drag racing, fwd is a handicapp. In the case of snow/ice driving, the acceleration is so minimal that weight distribution is not the limiting factor. You want the weight of the vehicle over the drive wheels. With 60/40 distribution, the max has no problem with weight on the front wheels. Wide tires are worse than narrow tires, and all season tread compound is harder than winter compound. Driving in the winter is all about having the right shoes, anticipation and driving smoothly.

MAX2000JP

Even if you accelerate slowly the weight shifts rearward. In my opinion, FWD is inferior to RWD in the snow if you know how to drive and have the proper tires.

TDotMax

iTrader: (1)

I love this car in the snow, amazing traction!! Barely see the "slip" light no matter the amount of snow...But then again I got Pirelli SnowSports

cal-man_1

I live in MT and this year put 4 Hankook snow tires on the car. They are the best snow tires i've ever had and for the price you can't beat them. My Maxima is a snow cat now.

Jaws

Have you ever driven a pickup? They are rear wheel drive, but there is no weight on the back wheels. How do they do on ice?

doublea

iTrader: (7)

With 4 snow tires the max is not that bad in the snow, but compare to my Murano na you cant compare.

BP2K2Max

i have nokian W.R AWP's. i love the way car handles the snow. it's a world of difference from the potenza's.

MaxKlinger

While you're correct about weight transfer on a dry road, you'll never see an acceleration rate high enough to cause any kind of significant rearward transfer in the snow. At low acceleration rates weight on the wheels is governed more by how much weight is over each axle...and clearly there is more weight over the drive wheels on an FWD car. The weight can't transfer if your wheels are only spinning, can they?

There are times when I wish I had a RWD car or truck...it's a lot easier to do stupid stuff like drifting and donuts in the snow. But for everyday driving in the winter, a gentle foot and common sense are best. No sudden changes in movement!

I wonder how a mid- or rear-engined RWD car does in the snow? Pontiac Fiero anyone?

juniper9803

I Bought 215/60/16 Snow Tires On 16x7 American Racing Rims And Its Like Day And Night.its No 4x4 But You Can Drive It As A Daily Driver.

CCS2k1Max

iTrader: (2)

What size, the stock 225/50R17? They can't be cheap.

crange

The Graspics are great! Best tires I've ever used in the snow!

Get them! They're not that expensive!

wojowojo16

periods are you friend. .. . .. .. . .... .. ... ...... ... .................................................. ................................................ My head hurts now.

JaMdMax97

i love my maxima in the snow....good set of snowtires and i feel like a tank compared to other cars i see sliding and slipping all over the road, its really about the driver and common sense we have a highpowered FWD car and for what it is I am extremely impressed with how it handles in the snow

BP2K2Max

i got them in 235/45-17 for $165 a tire. they were actually cheaper than what tire rack would charge for potenza's. i think they're around $175.

pharmer

I can't complain. It's like 70% tires, 30% getting used to the way the weight transfers and stuff (aka driving skill). It's a heavy car so when it's really slick you need to watch following and stopping distances. I replaced the stock Potenzas with Continental ContiExtremeContacts and am really happy with them. They're best when the snow is a little slushy...just cut right through that crap. The width, though, makes them wad up with really fluffy snow. If you're looking for a good, high-performance all-season tire I'd highly recommend them. They're awesome in heavy rain, too.

I've also found the TCS and ABS to be of great help. I *think* the TCS works at all speeds, because I've noticed it blip the throttle even on the freeway or at higher speeds on city streets. It's a good system, and I wouldn't like the car nearly as much without it due to the large amount of tire-spin potential

My old 4x4 Cherokee was way worse. 2WD on wet or snowy roads was like driving one of those track school spin cars...the thing did pirouettes without warning. It basically had to be in 4wd if there was even a little bit of snow on the road, thus trashing fuel economy and turning radius. I like the Nissan a lot more.

bert

While I love ABS I don't like TCS. I drove a rental Max with TCS a while ago and I got in to way too much trouble too easily. I found that I would not get the feedback as to how much traction there was that I get without the TCS. Nail the gas and you take off, thinking that traction is decent. Nail the brakes to find out that it's less than expected.

At least with the ABS you know when it comes on.

The easiest way that I have found to control wheel spin is to short-shift. Don't let the revs get up. 1000 RPM in 4th and there will be little wheel spin and if there is there won't be too much.