Rust protection on cars

[Shorthanded67 0]

Man, you guys are going to scare him. JR's gonna make a U-turn on 75 and head right back down to Florida. :lol:

As for my experience in Midwest winters, I bought a brand new Explorer SUV back in 1998 and it came with the factory undercoat. I've had it parked outside (no garage/carport) for every winter since and there's no rust whatsoever. As the other guys said, $5.00 will get you a nice undercarriage cleaning at the carwash after a nasty snow.

[hockeydude_49 0]

Man, you guys are going to scare him. JR's gonna make a U-turn on 75 and head right back down to Florida. :lol:

I used to live in Florida before I moved to Minnesota and the first winter is sorta hard, but once you get through that its great especially if you play hockey. Its also nice to have the 4 seasons unlike Florida.

[CHIEF22 0]

Its also nice to have the 4 seasons unlike Florida.

Amen to that!!!

[freq019 0]

My advice, wash your car regularly, like others have said cars don't rust like they did in the 70's but just take care of it and you should be OK. Make sure you wax your car once before winter to get a nice paint protection layer on there before the salt and grime season begins. Also look into snow tires, the saying goes all season tires are no season tires so look into a good steel rim snow tire combo. Tirerack sells all sorts of winter wheel and tire kits. Look for a tire that matches your weather, some are more suited to ice and other snow and some are a little of both. Figure out what you'll be driving in most of the time and look at those tires. Granted winters in DC aren't as bad as elsewhere but I've had two rwd cars with snows and I've had no problem. snow tires really make a huge difference. Also remember when driving in the snow to double your following distance at a minimum and exercise patience if you don't have patience work on now ;) i would also recommend going out into a deserted parking lot in the winter and just getting the feel for snow/ice and how your car/truck responds.

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

I also forgot to mention snow tires

Speaking of snow tires, JR have you ever driven in snow? And does your SUV have 4WD?

Learning to drive in the snow is fun, you'll enjoy that if you haven't before. :D

I find it easier to drive in the snow than in the summer since there is no police at all on the road. not a joke.

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

For real...you guys are scaring me...LOL

Now for snow tires, are we talking about 4 sets or just the rear? I'm going to need new tires by the winter so I am not sure what to get...

[mack 44]

I'm guessing the MI winters are probably too harsh for them, but you could go with all-season ones.

[freq019 0]

The recommendation is for 4 because all wheels help with traction and stopping and if you're RWD then steering as well. Remember stopping is the important part 4WD can't help you there. Its really not too bad if you drive within your means and keep a safe gap between you and the car in front of you. Does your truck have traction control? ABS? These features make driving in snow much safer than it was years, but just knowing how your car behaves in the snow is very important, so take some time when the opprotunity presents itself. Also the worst case scenario, meaning feet of sonw with out being plowed, doesn't happen that often if you can wait it out till the plows get at it.

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

No 4WD, no traction control but it does have ABS.

[freq019 0]

No 4WD, no traction control but it does have ABS.

rear or front wheel drive?

If rear you may want to invest in some sandbags or something to add weight to the rear unless your car is pretty close the 50/50, I'm not sure but I don't think most trucks are. Remember that whatever you put in the back can become a projectile in an accident so do your best to fasten it down.

Manual or automatic? IMO manual is a little easier to drive since you can control the wheel speed a little better but if you have a 3 speed auto you can shift to low to help you out some if you do get stuck.

Seriously its not as bad as it sounds, but I can't emphasize enough about getting out in that first snow and getting to know the car and how snow affects it. I'd recommend a large parking lot without parking blocks and other cars. Just go out and see what happens if you slam the throttle, brake hard, and slide.

Now we've got you so worried it probably won't snow this year :lol:

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

RWD, auto.

For real...I'm like freaking out...LOL

[CHIEF22 0]

One thing to remember about ABS is that while it will help with directional control it can and sometimes will increase stopping distance. Like for instance, in the spring time before they sweep all the winter sand from the roads(if they don't use calcium), intersections can be tricky. If you are a late braker you might want to change your ways. If you hit that loose sand and the wheels start to lock, you will go into an anti-lock stop and you could go thruogh the intersection. So brake early.

You might also want to think about studs. They will help if it is icy. Only drawback is they suck on bare pavement, espically if it gets extremely cold. The spare wheels with snows is also a good idea as it will save you money on change overs in the fall and spring.

And finally like the last person said, get out in a parking lot after a fresh snow to get an idea of how things are going to act. It can actually be GREAT FUN power sliding around playing with the gas!!

[JR Boucicaut 3760]

LOL in a SUV? I'd flip the bitch.

I saw some tires that are classified as onroad/offroad, plus they have the "snowflake/mountain" logo so they supposedly are snow-rated...

I'm still getting used to this truck...I've always driven small sporty cars before this, I am getting better with braking early and such.

[Chadd 916]

An SUV that isn't 4WD is just about the worst vehicle you could have in the snow, a truck is the worst. Like Chief said though, powersliding in a big parking lot is a blast. Back home we used to wait for them to plow the lots into huge piles and climb them at 2AM after closing the bar. I'll never forget the night Chris ended up getting his Jeep stuck on top of one. He opened the door and fell 15 feet into a lower portion of the mound.

[hockeydude_49 0]

Something else new for you is driving on frozen lakes..thats really fun but look out for ice heaves..lol

[flashgordon 0]

An SUV that isn't 4WD is just about the worst vehicle you could have in the snow, a truck is the worst. Like Chief said though, powersliding in a big parking lot is a blast. Back home we used to wait for them to plow the lots into huge piles and climb them at 2AM after closing the bar. I'll never forget the night Chris ended up getting his Jeep stuck on top of one. He opened the door and fell 15 feet into a lower portion of the mound.

Powersliding (handbrake-induced sliding in my case) on a snowy parking lot is great fun, right up until you hit that 9 inch high hidden concrete median (with impact exactly parallel to the median for maximum damage) and your car goes flying through the air, only to land with both wheels on the impact side bent underneath the car. Ah, let's just say judgement wasn't my strong suit back in those days...