I am considering getting a Z, just want to know if any of you drive it in the snow?

Is it a pain in the ***/ even with winter tires on it?
and how is the traction control?

 

I have talked to my friend who drove his in the snow, he drove it one time and he said never again. If you are at a stop light on a hill, "forget it" he said. We have alot of those here thats why I mention it. Not sure what the streets are like in Toronto.
Pot holes are a real killer here too after the snow. I guess it is just like anything else. Plan ahead and be carefull, anything is possible.
FWIW he has a 5SA.

 

I've driven my Z in Northeast winters for two years now. Never really had a problem. As long as you have a set of snow tires, put weight in the back, and drive real slow, you will be fine.

Going up hills from a standstill is a little tricky. You need to take traction control off for that, plus start in second gear.

Hope this helps.

 

I thought about that, how much weight do you put in the back?
Seems like it is pretty light
I definitely would not want to put bags of sand in there. What do you use?

 

The Z is my only car, so I've got no choice but to drive it in the wintertime. I've got Blizzaks on all four wheels, and they've done a great job. As long as you have four snow tires mounted and don't drive like an idiot, you'll be okay. I don't have any extra weight stashed in the back, but I suppose it couldn't hurt to do so if you want.

 

I'm just about to survive my first winter with this car... 6 months of snow. From my experience... and knowing Toronto...

Get a good set of snow tires. In Winnipeg I'm running Blizzak WS50s. Terrible performance, but excellent in the snow. In TO I'd recommend Blizzak LM22s for the winter. Performance isn't fantastic (Probably close to the stock Potenzas), but acceptable... and when it snows, you'll be ok. The stock tires are AWFUL in the snow... I can't stress that enough. They are summer tires.

With the good tires, my only issue is clearance... unless it's been cleaned, you'll be plowing snow with your bumper. I've damaged my front spoiler this winter from frozen ruts... next time, I'll drive on the ridges.

The car is pretty well balanced for handling... but some weight in the back would probably help acceleration.

It's an AWESOME car... winter's not bad... with the right tires. Summer is SOOO much fun...

 

Like a few others have said, do NOT drive this car in the winter with the stock tires! I drove my Z in the snow on stock tires a few times, and it was a disaster. It totally got stuck on unplowed roads, and if there was even a little bit of ice then the wheels just spun. It wasn't bad in snow, it was unusable. Next winter, I will definitely be getting myself some snow tires.

 

I drive my 350 year-round up here in Canada. The car does excellent in the snow.

In fact, I won both winter Solo2 events I ran and almost beat the whole FWD group (missing only 1 car).

Keep the gas tank full and that's enough weight to get good traction. I run 215/65/16 Blizzaks.

 

Nice pic!

I never thought i would see a Z on a winter course. Thats for sure.

 

Who wants to risk some 16y/o who just learned how to drive giving your Z a new paint job?

Buy the Z and spend $3,500 on a $ht beater!

 

I drove in the snow once with the stock tires, and I will never attemp that again. Next winter i'm going to make sure I have some snow tires. I just had a subwoofer box put in the back too so the added weight should help some.

 

since i live in pa, i purchased a cheap seat of alloys and 4 dunlop wintersport m3s that i throw on in december to march. i've found that they work great in the snow. the traction control/vdc seemed to only help once i got started from a complete stop. if the vdc is on at a stop light on flat ground be prepared to go nowhere. the car constantly slips and gas is taken away from the engine to decrease torque. so usually at a traffic light in light snow i'll turn the vdc off until i get momentum then turn it on. i never really had a problem in the snow, just drive extra slow and steer clear from any sort of steep hill where you will have to stop midway up the thing.

fyi - i don't drive the car in the snow, but a couple of times i've been caught in the begining of a snow storm where there has been an inch or two on the ground and needed to get home from the train station....the dunlops def saved some hassle in those sort of situations (which is why i invested in them) plus, winter tires are a lot softer in colder temperatures....def a good investment if you live in the northeast or winter-prone regions.

good luck

 

No offense, but if some 16 y/o is going to be hitting me while driving, I'd MUCH rather be in my 350z than some beater. Why would I want to comprimise my personal safety for the sake of a car?

It's a car, it will get run down, it will get scrathed/dinged/chipped. Enjoy it while you can.

 

I drive mine all winter w/ Prielli snow tires on stock 18s. I think the handles fine in the snow with snow tires. I drive all the time between Detroit and Toronto. I even went through the snow belt area on the 401 while it was snowin and I had no issues. Just drive careful.

 

I keep it clean . I also have the Dunlop Wintersport M3s and drive in upstate NY. I have found that with good tires and the vdc the car drives good enough to safely get me where I need to go. I think its fun passing SUVs going 25mph on the highway when its snowing in my 350.

 

I also run Blizzaks on all 4 wheels during the winter. Picked up a set of base Z wheels (17", more side wall than 18", etc) on ebay for $400 bucks a few summers ago, stuck the Blizzaks on them, and now I don't have to worry about screwing up my 18s. With winter tires the car is just fine in the snow. Hell, it's better than my peg-leg truck in the snow. The Blizzaks deffinately give the car a sort of off-road-with-knoby-tires look that's really funky.

 

i drive my car all year round. in the winter i use pirelli 210 wintersports mounted on 17" rims. i have had no problem in snow however deep snow requires that you drive very gently - even with VDC your tires will spin in deep snow.

 

i just bought mine in end of November... it snowed a few times since then, snowed pretty bad... and only once i succeded to take it out off the parking lot.

I dont know if it makes any difference, but i have stock 18" rims...and the car has no traction at all on those.

Also,

Im planning on getting new rims this summer...19" probably, I was wondering if I could use the stock 18" rims for winter...with winter tires? Are there any good 18" winter tires? Or it would be better to get a set of allumium 15" rims...and some tires?

I have a beater to drive around when it snows, but its so damn ulgy "OldsMobile Cutlass Supreme" or some crap like that... the engine is in great condition tho...and it handles in snow really well, but I still want to get my Z prepared for the next winter.

 

I'd go with Blizzak LM22s on your 18" wheels. If you get caught in the snow, no biggie... and you have some decent performance. I doubt 15" rims would clear the brakes.

 

As you probably have surmised, many of the traits that make this a great car are worthless in the snow. I live in Minnesota and drive the Z all year round as long as the pavement is dry, or very minimal snow. While it certainly is possible to drive in the snow with the proper tires, I gotta tell ya, Its going to be a pain in the a$$. When It snows, I get the beast out, an F-250 Diesel 4X4. After driving that for a few days while waiting for the pavement to get cleared and dried, I slide back in the Z and fall in love wit my baby all over.