I'm sick of everyone saying the car is horrible in the snow. Put Bridgestone R040's on a jeep and you will not go anywhere either. It is not the car, but the tires. I put the stock 18" size Blizzak LM22's on my stock rims. The Z performs better then my 1994 Porsche 968 did (one would expect that), but it also performs better then my FWD 1994 Integra GSR ever did in the snow. Would I take the Z out in a huge snow storm...no way. The only thing that will limit you is the ground clearence. Other then that, expect the same grip as any other non 4WD car. This is now my second winter with the car. Actually, the car has been great in the winter, but on a beautiful sunny day in May I was rear ended...took majority of the summer to fix so technically, the Z has been my winter car for the past two years. Bottom line is enjoy the car because if I did not drive the car in the winter, I would only have about 2000km on my 15 month old car.

 

I've been thinking of getting Blizzaks put on the car for winter. I know how bad the stock tires are in the rain, so I can only imagine how bad they are on snow. I had Kumho's on my Eclipse last year and the car wouldn't make any turns at all

 

How much and where did u get the Blizzaks?
Im thinking of replacing my stock 17s with those tires.
I have KUMHO Ecsta MXs 18s on now and it went no where on less than an 1 inch of ice so im thinking of getting tires.

 

Either you work for Blizzak or you are crazy The Z with a couple of inches with snow becomes an "ice skater"

 

When it snows, the Z stays in the garage. Period.

 

This is what you should drive in the winter....






or this:







Just don't end up like these turds:

 

What makes a car bad in the winter?
Why is the Z any worse off then any smaller car?
It has VDC, great mechanical grip with the right tires, and, its not like it is a lightweight. People do not store their sentra for the winter, and the Z with snow tires is better in the winter then a sentra.
Hey, all I can say is that I have logged 15,000 winter Km's on my Z with absolutely no problems and I LIVE IN CANADA. The only time I had trouble was when I switched back to the stock tires too early last year and we had one late snowfall.
I got the LM22's in 225/45/18 front and 245/45/18 rear for about $1000 Canadian. I forget exactly but it was about that.
Nissan gave me a car with heated side mirrors, heated seats, and a block heater, traction controll. It starts up great every morning and is very confortable and fun to drive. A 1992 Honda Accord beater...No thanks, I'll stick with my Z that is not only nicer and more comfortable then any beater, but is safer as well.

 

Agreed, my Z is in the garage, climate controlled, nice and warm at 72 degrees. It snowed twice last week here. My baby hasn’t been driven for 9 days now, and probably not for another week. Driving a Z in bad weather is only half of the problem. Even with good tires there are other things to be concerned with.

First, I don’t want all that road grime, salt, chemicals, etc. on my Z, or under it. There will always be some part of the car you won’t be able to wash. Just the thought of all that crap under my car, even after it’s washed & waxed, makes me sick.

Secondly, you have to watch out for the idiots in SUVs … Many of them think just because they have good traction they can stop that well too. I’ve seen several bad accidents involving SUVs, and I don’t want one hitting my Z. As said before the Z is a moron magnet. I’ve seen too many posts of morons hitting Zs. You might be an excellent bad weather driver but there are too many morons out there driving.

Good luck out there, bobbyz, but my Z stays at home.

 

I only take my car out if I can't get my Dads truck or moms explorer. I dunno. In my eyes it's just a car. Sure I love it and enjoy it, but I didn't spend 30k and money on insurance every month to leave it in the garage.

 

Tires make all the difference. In the past when my Z's were my daily drivers I had no choice but to drive in the snow. I had an 82 280zx, 91 300zx and I still have my 93zx convertible and my 350z convertible. I drove them all in the snow with snow tires. Had no problems getting around as long as the snow was not higher than my car. I lived in Chicago, Cleveland and now in Jersey. These cars handle themselves quite well in the snow with the right tires and driver.
MWest300zx/350roadster

 

I have Michelin Pilot Sport A/S and are great in the snow. I try not to be out driving when there is snow on the ground. I wash it at least once a week also get the undercarriage rinsed. Fortunately I drive 4miles to work. Its a car its meant to be used. I plan to keep my Z for at least 8yrs or so. By then a much faster Z will be out.

 

BOBBYZ,
I feel your pain man. I am convinced the United States has the best damn marketing on the planet. Somehow the car companies have brainwashed the American public into believing FWD cars and 4WD trucks will make you invinceable in the snow. I've towed plenty of each out of the ditch.

Here's a dose of the truth: FWD cars and trucks tolerate crappy tires better than RWDs. The tire industry sells these pieces of crap as "all season radials." I don't care what any salesman tries to shove up my a$$...a tire that perfoms well on dry pavement will not perform well in snow or mud (and vice-versa). The fact of the matter is that people have just become too damn lazy to switch tires when the snow flies, and so they believe this crap about the "magic" tires that can do it all.

If I didn't make a vow that my Z was never going to see a salted road, I would gladly challenge ANY FWD car to a competition on a snowy road. Challenges would include: acceleration, braking, and cornering. A Z shod with Blizzaks would not be beaten in any one of them. And no, Blizzaks are not hype, they are just properly designed for snow with no compromises for ride quality, noise and tire wear...they work and work damn good.

 

I couldn't agree more. A RWD car is much more predictable in the snow and with snow tires + TCS it is pretty hard to lose control unless you are driving like a total idiot at higher than normal speeds around corners and crap. The only downside to driving it in the winter is the salt and crap on the roads, but even this can be washed off regularly. I love my Z but it is not my prize posession, my 69 Camaro SS, that never has seen snow. If the Z was my pride and joy and I had another car for the winter, I would definately leave it parked as it makes perfect sense. However, the Z when matched with appropriate tires, is great in the snow, just not too much of it on the road at once

 

I third that...This past weekend, I got caught in a fast moving snowstorm. The plows were out, but there was a good 1.5" of packed powder on the roads. Speeds on the expressway were only about 30 MPH, and it was my first experience with RWD during a snowstorm in over 6 years; however, the Blizzaks did their job. As long as you don't drive like a moron, you'll do okay. Overall, I thought the Z was much more balanced that my old Integra LS.

I think the most telling aspect of how good the Blizzaks are was the fact that it didn't occur to me how well they worked until about 20 minutes after the ride ended. If you don't have to think about your snow tires while you're driving, you know they're doing the job.

 

I have a set of Michelin Pilot Alpin snow tires on my Z for the winter and they are VERY good on dry pavement as well as rain and snow. I do believe that technology has gotten to the point that they can make tires that preform well in all conditions. The only draw back is wear.

Futhermore I agree with most people that have posted here...snow tires can make ANY car preform well in the snow.

 

climate control as in your garage is getting heated by your house system?



here's my current work in progress... i just converted an old indoor pool that was in the house i recently bought into a secondary garage.. i too was running blizzaks on my Z until i bailed on the idea of driving it in the winter... they worked excellent for me

 

Got to agree with you BobbyZ. I've got 216/60/16 on my Z and if works great in crappy weather. There are many benefits of the Z, the car is heavy, zilions of airbags, has skid and traction control, LSD, a very communicative chassis, and a very flexible engine. Probably the worst attribute of the car is the torque which makes acceleration a little harder than my RX-7 TT did, but no worse than any 4-season equipped sedan. In fact, I find braking and cornering with the Blizzaks on my Z has been much better than many FWD 4-season cars I've owned in the past.

As for grime and salt, frankly, I doubt many of us here will ever keep the car long enough to see the benefits. I've had my FD RX-7 for over 6 years and as long as yearly rust proofing is done, there's been zero signs of body rust. Sure, it didn't look as shiny under the hood as my friends cars, but at least I got to enjoy her twice as much as they did.

Probably the most important aspect for me is vehicle safety in winter, and this car does admirably in that. Five star front and side ratings mean that you can walk away should something go wrong, regardless of who's fault it was.

 

NExt year when I get my z Im go try to keep it out of snow but if I gotta drive it I would drive it(winter tires)im kinda like jleighZ I'll just drive my parents explorer!!!!!!! WOOO!!!

 

Yeah.

Nice garage. What is that car in the back?

 

thanks, its a camaro ss.