I'm on the very of buying a 350z but the one thing that is holding me back so far is the fact that i'm stationed in Montana which means lots of snow in the winter. Any ideas on how well the Z can hold up in snowy weather? I've only got 3 years left here and then it's back south. I want this car so much I can taste it...

Scott

 

1. To drive the Z in snow and have any hope of moving on any incline, you need to buy snow tires. The stock tires are summer tires.

After getting the snow tires, you can also throw some weight in the back (e.g. bag of kitty litter) to increase traction.


2. You'd be better off buying a beater car to drive during the winter.

 

I will be purchasing Michelin pilots sport all season tires in October they are supposed to be awesome. The stock tires absolutely suck in the winter.

 

same here..thats my major concern about the Z...is how it handles in the snow...

maybe i should get a wrx and mod the frick out of it...hehehe

 

You can't even compare handling in snow between a WRX and a 350 I pulled mine out of the garage last winter with about 2 in. of snow left on the driveway and I couldn't even get it back in the traction control was activating but the car just kept wiggling I had to leave it there until the snow melted. That is with the stock tires supposedly if you switch to Michelin pilot sport all season it's much better but still nowhere is near what a Subaru must be like.

You don't even need snow with the stock tires if it's below 40° a spin like they're on ice.

 

wwwwhhhaaattt?!?!?

so u pretty much cant drive the Z with stock tires in the winter...

maybe i should just ask my brother for a ride in his gc8...or ask my parents

 

Not only is the car a handfull in the snow (though snow tires help a lot) you have to consider how low the car is - you don't want the Z to snow plow.

 

This is my main consideration as well. Had my license for 14 years now and am quite used to driving in bad snows. Unlike a lot of folks here I guess, I am buying my next car as my daily driver when I need it. So even though I commute by train most days of the week, this will be my only car when I need it. Sure it will be garaged when I dont use it, but Im not buting it just to look at. If the snow control is something that a set of all seasons isnt going to help, maybe I need to reconsider.

 

The car is fine in the winter as long as you put on Bridgestone LM-22 winter tires. These are available in the stock sizes 225/45/18 and 245/45/18. I put them on the car last winter and the Z was no worse then my Integra GSR. Actually, it is pretty hard to spin the car with the DSC and TSC on. I changed back to the stock tires a little early and got caught in a dusting and it was suicide. But with winter tires...no problem.

 

Are there any all seasons that will work as well as your set?

I live in an apartment building and dont have the storage capacity to store a set of snows in the summer and stocks in the winter. But if the choice is that or not getting a Z, I can probably figure something out.

 

I live in North Idaho, and im already worried about the up comming winter. I'm hoping to be able to find some beater of car, but my budget is already stretched a bit to far. I was thinking about picking up some blizzaks and just going for it, but we dont exactly have the lightest winters up here (last year was, but that was a fluke). A part of me wants to trade in the Z and pick up an STI or something. But im not quite to that point yet. I think im going to be that one guy, with the nice car, tearing it up all winter. Im an avid snowboarder, and its going to be quite the site when i take the Z up the mountain....

 

I was actually wondering about this... is it possible to fit a snowboard (or 2) under the strut bar in the hatch? have you tried?

 

I haven't tried yet... maybe i'll do that when i get home...

I was thinking i would just find a rack that i could make fit to the roof of the car. Yes, everyone thinks im crazy. But the Z is my daily driver, and when im old, im gonna be that guy driving the Ferarri 575M up to the mountain.

 

yea i would be interested to know if they fit in the hatch. I would think that if u let them lay into the cabin a bit (i know it would prolly be a bit of a nussiance) but hey gotta do whatcha gotta do. I would think it might fit... but alas i dont have my Z yet so i cannot try

on a side note.. i have been driving my current car ('93 dodge intrepid UGH with my waterski spanning from my front dash through the backseat. Its a small price to pay to be able to do then things u love w/ the car you got =)

 

Yep. The reason why is the stock tire compound doesn't warm up enough to be grippy during the winter. Even during the summer, the tires need to warm up a little to reach optimal grip.

You can get by with all season tires, but for optimal snow grip, you want snow tires.

Like another poster mentioned, the lower ride height is going to work against you in moderate snowfall. The lower lip of the intake will eventually get damaged by those brown ice "chunks" dropped off of other cars.

That's what I used to do when I had a Mustang GT for a daily driver

 

I picked up some stock 17" rims some guy was selling and put Blizzacks (spelling?) on them.

The car is like a snow mobile now!

Come spring I pop on my 18" Stock Rims & Tires. Takes all of about 20minutes.

Cons: Cost

Pros: You can drive in the snow, no problem and your performance tires will last that much longer.

Don't drive snow tires in the summer, they will wear out quickly.

 

I lived in Colorado and South Dakota for 7 years. Believe me, tires make the difference. I had a Prelude with shitty tires and even though it was FWD, i was spinning out everywhere. plus, the salt and gravel they put on the ground all the time will wear out your beautiful Z's exterior quickstyle.

So, either: - get a beater fwd car
- invest in good winter tires/keep undercarriage of Z clean all the time. hope that helps

 

OK, So the extent of my snow driving will be sticking on some cables and getting to Lake tahoe. Will the car make the trip safely? I really dont want to buy a set of snow tires for 2 trips a year to a Tahoe hotel to simply park the car. Anyone with simular experience? thanks.