Just wondering about people's experiences with driving a 997.2 C2S (or I guess any other RWD 997) in light snow, using stock tires. Does it do OK?

I'm not planning to intentionally drive it in the snow, but want to know how feasible it is if there's no other choice.

I've found it to do quite well in the rain (plows through deep puddles unperturbed), so I'm hoping that's a good indication of snow capability.

 

I would not drive in the snow with high performance stock tires.

With dedicated snow tires it's not an issue unles the snow gets really deep. Of course there is always the concern of the other drivers on the road.

 

Forget it... the compound of the stock tires turns hard as a rock when it's cold. They will slide almost indefinitely in snow! And I'm still trying to figure out how plowing through puddles would correlate to snow performance.

I took my car out yesterday just because I was craving it, and I was somewhat curious how it would run and feel when it was only 5 deg F outside. The car was ridiculously sketchy in the leftover snow patches that were on my residential street. Even 25 MPH was pushing it. But that was expected. What was surprising was just how bad these tires are at those temperatures. I drove for 20 minutes and they still rode hard, were much louder on the pavement than usual, and did that weird skipping thing in the parking lot that they do. Those who have experienced it know exactly what I'm talking about. Feels like you're trying to turn sharply in a 4wd truck with the differential locked. For reference, I believe Michelin says the PS2s are unsafe below 40 F to cover their a**.

That said, the car ran perfectly, sounded happy (no strange noises on startup), and was still a joy to drive If you need to drive it in the snow, there are plenty of people who have survived with a set of winter tires. No reason not to really, but I generally like to keep mine out of the elements.

 

Pal, two words: Your Crazy! I don't Reccommend it at all, tires become to hard and act like a ice skate with no control!

 

Thanks for the responses. Some follow up:

- I don't want to drive it in the snow, but no choice if it unexpectedly starts snowing while I'm at work. Yes, other cars are a big worry (even in the rain).

- My experience has been that there's some correlation between rain traction and snow traction. I could be wrong.

- Didn't realize the tire grip is reduced so much at low temps. And I'm surprised that driving around for a while doesn't warm them up adequately, at least on dry pavement.

- For the guys using snow tires, is it all four, or just the rear? Do you get an extra set of wheels or just swap the tires? Any recommendations on snow tires which also provide decent performance on dry pavement?

 

You definitely want all 4. I have Michelin Pilot Alpins. They seem to handle very well in the dry. I'm running them now on my M3.
It is hard to believe, but high performance tires have very reduced traction below 40. Even without ice or snow. Understeer is a real issue with these cars, so the first corner you hit, the car could just plow off the road if you over cook a corner.

 

I still have a bit of a scuff on my 2000 Audi S4 for thinking I am only going to Reno from San Fran and its light winter. Snow was light. I has Summer tires.

Going down a hill sideways was still in my memory.... yeah, no summer tires in winter for me.

 

Going sideways when one wants to not go sideways is always unnerving.

I recall leaving Fort Smith ARK heading north in my Boxster on summer tires and getting caught in a real good snow storm. A bit further east from me received 13" of snow. I managed to get from Ft. Smith to near Joplin ok by following an empty big rig -- empty they have to go slow -- but when I got to I-44 things were going downhill. I heard over my handheld CB radio cars were running off the road ahead and this generally results in road closure so I jumped off of the freeway on to 71 north. I've driven that road a number of times in better weather and it is a nice road, but I never realized how steeply banked the turns were.

On one particular turn the Boxster -- which was moving at probably 20mph along with all the other cars and in single file -- just slid down the banking to the shoulder. After some frantic rocking the car forward and backward I managed to get the car moving again and up the banking and back in the line of cars but it was white knuckle time.

In fact it was white knuckle time the whole way from the time I encountered snow north of Ft. Smith until I finally got far enough north that I could finally leave the main road -- at Butler MO -- without fear of getting bogged down on snowy unplowed streets. (The highways weren't plowed or sanded or salted either.)

Took me all day to drive from Ft Smith to Butler. Most miserable time I've ever spent in a Porsche. Ever.

See attached pic of what the car looked like. The snow/slush has blocked the cabin air intake and the defroster had no air to clear the snow/ice from the base of the windshield.

Right after this pic I found a car wash and spent a small fortune in quarters rinsing the car to melt the accumulation of snow/ice. Some you see on top of the car. The radiator air intakes were almost closed with snow/ice build up. The wheel wells full of snow/ice build up. The car must have gained hundreds of pounds in weight from the accumulation.

No summer tires in winter for me. Well, not too many years ago I did venture into a snow storm in my 996 Turbo with summer tires. Just 30 or 40 miles on I-40 west of Santa Rosa NM. An empty big rig once again proved to be a savior as I got in behind -- at a safe distance and followed it through the snow -- and the snow wasn't quit as bad and the distance I had to cover wasn't nearly as far.

 

Agree with ryem3. Never go with only 2 snow tires. You need your steering ability as much as you need your traction to get going. Also works better on braking. I have snow tires, salesman recommended them for the shoulder season even if I don't want to drive in snow for this exact reason. Because I have them, I do drive in snow. And it's fun.

 

And I forgot to answer your question - I have an extra set of wheels so that I can swap them out on my time schedule, not the tire shop's schedule, and reduces the chance of getting the rims damaged on installation of the tires, or a bad balancing job, etc. Plus it's a good exercise to do with my teenage son, he likes running the Jack and the torque wrench and I get to teach him the fine art of chocking wheels and doing the task safely. Doing it in a relaxed, leisurely way takes me about an hour by the time I pull the tires down from the wall mount rack, etc. I find it quite relaxing. And while my wife says I'm OCD, I do wash & clay the wheels and throw a coat of wax on them prior to storage as I think it helps with repealing brake dust etc.

 

When I lived in St. Paul, MN (16 years) I drove my 996 in the snow with 19" all season/snow tires. The car did just fine. Of course, you have to use good judgement and not drive in deep snow, and inasmuch as ice is concerned, forget-about-it - with any car. With this being said, the weight of the engine on the rear only helps.