Best Shite in the shit (weather)

[dollywobbler]

We had a Daihatsu Cuore 989cc at the time of the snow in 2010 and it was ace. I thought it would be a total deathtrap given its minimal kerb weight and revvy engine, but it gripped like a limpet even on sheet ice. I guess bicycle tyres helped but was genuinely amazed at its abilities. Never tried it out in strong winds but I'd imagine it would be cock-shrivellingly terrifying even while stationary, let alone on the move.

 

I was out in the Kia yesterday on the M27 and it was getting blown all over the shop in the wind. I was probably doing 45-50mph, 3 up and the experience has shortened my life expectancy by at least 12 months.

 

Had the Sirion out in some absolutely hideous wind the other day. Felt surprisingly planted, even at speed. In fact, I was amazed at how insulated from the weather I felt. I'll review this comment after driving northwards in gale-force storms on Friday...

[Angrydicky]

My Austin A55 Cambridge was laughably hopeless in the snow. Long rear end with little weight and RWD meant the tail went out at every opportunity. Fun though.

[spike60]

Polo 1.9D was great in snow a couple of years ago, Renault 12 TL with aggressive knobbly tyres was unstoppable on the back of the Pennines, unfortunately the heater wasn't. 

[Richard]

 

I'm not sure about the heater (I don't think there is one) but you would get to your destination.

[dieselnutjob]

So the general feeling is - big luxo barges for wind and rain and general shittyness and little 1.bugger all cars in the snow/ice.

 

my 305 diesel was unstoppable on mud n snow tyres, and pretty good on normal tyres as well

 

the 806 is pretty good in snow as well

 

the 607 was terrible due to wide tyres, but this was largely fixed by putting winter tyres on it

[willswitchengage]

[brickwall]

Worst Car: Porsche Boxter

Best Car: Metro 1.1 (seriously)

4x4: Rangie (no contest)

[Spiny Norman]

Beat car I've had recently for shitty weather was definitely the Saab 900. Heavy engine sat right over relatively skinny tyres (185s), great heater and windows that wouldn't demist even if you had a sauna going inside the car, and that 'old car feel' where you could tell when the tyres were slipping as soon as it started to happen. Also big fuck-off Swedish bumpers and crumple zones if it did go tits up helped my karma.

 

Much as I love the big German RWD barge they're shite in the slippy stuff, the Merc is bad enough in the wet, never mind snow. I haven't had it out in deep snow yet, I doubt it'll get very far. The old Citroen CX with its touchy, non-ABS brakes and zero-response Diseasel engine was pretty poor too, surprisingly.
 

Generally fr snow it's small, skinny tyred FWDs all the way. I've slithered past twats in their |Shoguns, X5s and even Range Rovers in cars like 1200cc Puntos or Clios several times.

[Barry Cade]

If you drive a Rover, Vectra Diesel or Alfa, stay out of water. These are the cars I find I have to pull out of floods more than ay other. Best advice is, if you have to go through water, take the air intake pipe off the end of the manifold, so at least the intake is at the highest point possible. Radiators tend to deflect the water downwards so keeping the top of the engine dry. When I do this the Vito can go through water up to the tops of the arches.

 

The Fiat X1/9 is the best car I've driven in the snow. 165 tyres, all the weight over the driving wheels and it would drift everywhere. Worst was the Vito on normal tyres, winters made a HUGE difference

[Six-cylinder]

My Visa 17D is pretty good in poor weather, good traction, easy to drive, thin tyres deep sidewalls, good heater etc.

 

Yesterday I took it shopping in Milton keynes, and my theory worked, I could squeeze in the space left by two 4X4 s parked with a space between them that was too small for all but the thinnest of cars.

 

The only downside in the wettest of days was the Visa had not been used for a while and the inside of the sunroof missing it’s headlining was covered in melting ice and dripping all over me!

[Stixy]

Vauxhall Belmont  Auto

 

3 years ago i pulled a Scorpio out of the snow with one  and it made no fuss at all about it 

 

 

admittedly it was me that got the Scorpio stuck in the first place 

[spike60]

My X1/9 had 185's on and while I never drove it in the snow I had the mother of all understeering moments at about 50 mph on ice I didn't know was there. I was aimed straight at a post box for what seemed an age until the kerb collected the left front tyre and steered us away. Wake up call didn't come close.

[Rusty Pelican]

If your fed up with life try an E30 BMW , My old Audi 80 Quattro was GR8 in the crappiest of weather and i miss it

[eddyramrod]

Can catch an Aston Martin V8 being driven by an expert, from a standing start, on snow and ice.  I want one.  Best possible winter car, bar none.

[Micrashed]

what you guys first and last choices are in poor weather . Now obviously everyone is going to say a 4x4 for snow but for general wet, windy dark , just want to get there sort of driving.

The MicraShed has surprised me in so much as even in pretty shitty snow its has got me to where I want to go. I have sno-socks to use if I get stuck, a shovel and winter rubber on the driven wheels.

 

In Biblical torrents of rain it has also not batted the proverbial eyelid and I have driven it through some rather deep water out of blind abandon rather than skillorz or care. Keeping the revs up and enough speed to push a bow wave in front of the car without bringing it over the bonnet has got me through a couple of rather deep wet patches (up to the front bumper last year).

 

I suppose the only other thing that would be nice is if I could sleep in it, but at six foot and 20 stone its a tad uncomfortable for that sort of thing.

 

So its not that bad really.  Its not failed to not get me someplace when its been shitty weather so far.

[HMC]

Ive been suprised in the past how 2cvs and morris minors ive owned have coped whilst fatter tyred, more modern counterparts have been screwed.

 

Sometimes its not so much what you drive but where people try to that causes the bother...

 

[eddyramrod]

My workmate Rob (Rob-vipzer on here) swears by his Carisma for OMGSNOKAOS success.  1.6, FWD, normal-height saloon.  And he does "country pusuits" like shooting, so he goes where he's going to find snow.

[Richard]

I think the weight of modern cars makes it harder to get traction. There's more weight pushing down, which is good, but there's more weight to pull along, which isn't so good.

[brickwall]

Also, some of that electronic witchcraft is hopeless. Really hopeless

[vulgalour]

Best: '97 Maestro.  Lots of ground clearance, apparently well geared, strong heater and a surprising amount of torque from the 1.3 A series.  After much consideration, it was better all round for horrible winter driving than the BX, just, on account of superior headlights and better feel through the pedals and wheel so I knew more accurately what the car was doing.  That said, the BX might have been better had it not been the estate and had brighter lights because the seats were the most comfortable place to put your arse on a winter's day.

 

Worst: Lexus LS400.  I always expected this thing to DESTROY me in the good weather, I dread to think what it would've been like in the bad weather.  But then what do you expect from a heavy, large saloon car with a V8 engine and rear wheel drive?  Power everything, seats that were too cold if you didn't put the heater in them on and made you feel like you'd wet yourself if you did.  Not my idea of a fun car to own, but certainly fun to borrow.

[Squire_Dawson]

When I had the Minor I remember it was useless until you had a few paving slabs/bags of wet sand in the boot. Then it did the job. One day I got stuck on some compacted snow, couldn't get going and was on my own. I put the car in gear (803's were really low geared), got out of the car and laughed at the wheel going round whilst the car just sat still, went round the back to give it a helping hand and off it went. I then only had to catch up with it and jump back in, hoping it didn't steer itself into a parked car or something.

[dollywobbler]

When I had the Minor I remember it was useless until you had a few paving slabs/bags of wet sand in the boot. Then it did the job. One day I got stuck on some compacted snow, couldn't get going and was on my own. I put the car in gear (803's were really low geared), got out of the car and laughed at the wheel going round whilst the car just sat still, went round the back to give it a helping hand and off it went. I then only had to catch up with it and jump back in, hoping it didn't steer itself into a parked car or something.

 

I've done this with the 2CV before now. Have even hung out of the driver's door giving it the skateboard technique, with my left foot on the throttle. A risky business, but got me out of a pickle each time!

[HMC]

The narrow cabin/ bench combo of a 2cv is great for manouvering, in the past I've sat in the passenger seat, head out of the window, and feet in the opposite footwell on the pedals when shuffling it about around the garage.

 

I know this sounds like a u tube moment about to happen,but it worked really well and avoided scraping those deceptively outboard front wings on the garage wall

[Skoze]

1st - Volvo estate

 

Last - Ford Capri V6

 

 

As someone who's driven the latter about 350 miles in the past few days, i'll have you know it's not actually bad...

 

 

No heater blower, so driving around with the sun roof open from time to time is awesome* and i've always liked the challenge of navigating roundabouts on budget tyres. 

[Lacquer Peel]

 

My Volvo is decent in shit weather. Impervious to slush, floodwater, snow and high winds.

Ideal for driving across Scottish moors on Christmas day listening to Swedish music.

[Richard]

[jmsguzzi]

Anything that isn't a BMW....

[derskine]

My polo coupe is utterly shit in any form of wind, literally like driving a sailing boat. You can hear the gusts of wind through the dash vents, then you're veering towards the hard shoulder.

Utterly tits in snow though.

 

Hoping volvo 340 will be a good all rounder when on the road.

[stilo_active]

Our Rover 25 took the weather in its stride travelling from Cornwall to Leicester on Monday evening. Stable, did what we needed in comfort. The best car we had for shit weather was our Stilo.

 

Worst? Citroen AX. If it was windy, the first obstacle was finding it when it had blown away with the rest of the leaves. Single wiper, tin foil construction. Still loved it though.

 

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

 

 

[twosmoke300]

Anything that isn't a BMW....

 very true , not sure if its the cars or the lead-footed wallies that drive them (the moderns anyway )