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How to drive in snow and ice, for dummies...

Gurk

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I will be leaving tomorrow for a trip to North Alabama for a day or two, then into the great frozen tundra that is East Texas. As a Southerner, i don't have a lot of experience driving in snow and ice...although i have watched three seasons of Ice Road Truckers. Is there any advice from the Yankee contingent of the forum as to the Do's and Don'ts of driving in these conditions? And I can't stay home, it's a work trip and I'm OGAF.

Here's a picture of me for reference.
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Nice Stache, very 70’s. Drive Safe
 

Hound Dog

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Your looking to drive in like 4 to 6 inches of snow. You are in a Jeep.

Ignore all advice so far. Drive it like you stole it. If you hit a slick spot and go off the road, mash on the gas. You will need the momentum to come up out of the ditch. Try to not run anyone over while being a lunatic on the road.
 

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Azreed2000

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All excellent tips! I only have one to add...

Don't be the first to go when your light turns green. Watch the opposing traffic to make sure they are not about to slide through the intersection.
 

Karnak

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plenty of those morons in town where i work.
I think its a species that reproduces rather rapidly unfortunately, I see them all over here too, I'll blame your area for letting them go north.../grins
 

Chief_Dan

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Well....
Just remember, bringing that "east of the Mississippi, is bootlegging, & that's against the law "

Just make sure you get there on time, so....
You will need a Jeep, speedy Jeep, speedier than that!

But, do stop for that girl my Lord in a flat bed Ford slowing down to take a look at you!
:rock:
 

MyDaughters20JL

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1. Feather foot the gas pedal when starting out from a stop. Spinning your wheels will just make it worse.
one very easy way to accomplish this (I've taught my daughter this method & initially, she thought I was out of my mind, but the more she uses the trick, the more second nature it becomes) is to use your big toe rather than your foot; just the movement of one's toe can be enough to gradually/slowly speed up or slow down. I encourage everyone to at least try this if you think of it, you'll be surprised at the results
 

DocTwinkie

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Doc... Duh.
Agree with the above. I drive 25mph just watching everyone fly by and thinking I'll see you in the ditch in a few miles. Go slow, lots of space, turns slow, yada yada.

I'd add if not already said avoid the highways if possible. I work downtown in Columbus from the burbs. I'll often take the regular roads to work and avoid the highway simply because there's less traffic and they go slower. I'll take a regular road with 6" of snow and zero traffic over a 6 lane highway with two lanes sorta plowed and idiots driving 45mph. Highway can get scary when people are flying by and especially if you need to change lanes (the slow lane is often unplowed).

I'm still learning the usefulness of 4HI. I feel like it keeps me going straighter through the bad patches when I feel it drifting a bit. I don't think it will help you turn any better though others with more experience can comment on that. I've been throwing it in 4HI if I can't see any pavement. 2HI when I can.

And like others have said. Tires. Tires tires tires. All seasons suuuuuuuck in the snow. Some AT that have the snowflakes like the KO2 and Wildpeaks are amazing in the slow. I run KO2s. Tires are the only thing that's gonna help you stop and turn.

Getting into our driveway my wife's RDX is spinning, sliding, working hard to get up the 6" of ice/snow (yeah I didn't shovel lol). Meanwhile even in 2HI I just climbed up it. Tires. If she had dedicated snow tires hers would have outdone the jeep.
 

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MileHigher

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Drive like only the first 1/4 of the travel of your brakes and gas works...
 

Black Jeep Convertible

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  • Brake BEFORE you turn
  • Turn slowly but MAINTAIN throttle
  • Leave LOTS of stopping distance
  • Brake check yourself whenever you enter different types of snow
  • Keep chains or traction aids in your trunk
  • Bring a shovel
  • Carry extra cold weather clothing
  • Switch back to 2WD if you see blacktop
  • Go through a touchless car wash with undercarriage spray when you’re done
-From a Yankee
 
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roaniecowpony

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I will be leaving tomorrow for a trip to North Alabama for a day or two, then into the great frozen tundra that is East Texas. As a Southerner, i don't have a lot of experience driving in snow and ice...although i have watched three seasons of Ice Road Truckers. Is there any advice from the Yankee contingent of the forum as to the Do's and Don'ts of driving in these conditions? And I can't stay home, it's a work trip and I'm OGAF.

Here's a picture of me for reference.
Jeep Wrangler JL How to drive in snow and ice, for dummies... ADF9EB17-D18B-4DDE-A2DA-17C00422842E
You'll probably be ok. But loose the chicken rancher hat. They went out of fashion decades ago.

And go easy on those Big Macs. Ordering 2, like that, everytime you stop will plug you up quick.
 

Shots

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For all those folks who said 4WD helps you go but does not help you stop...

Part-time 4WD absolutely helps you stop quicker and in a shorter distance. Please watch these two videos:
I'm not sure I buy that. I watched the videos, and it's too inconsistent. Too many variables to be accurate data. Things like his reaction to what is a "full stop", Was there consistent brake pressure on each run, were the tires locked or rotating, on the side by side was one "lane" slicker than the other?
Another thing. Looking at the video of the two Cherokees sliding on ice, you'll notice the blue one in 2wd mode, the rear tires were rotating as they "slid" to a stop. Why? That has nothing to do with 4wd. Was his foot not as heavy on the brake, was ABS turned off on the second test (maybe the old 4wd system deactivated it when 4wd was active).
Also is why didn't they keep them on the same lane? Isn't it possible the far lane was icier than the near lane? Maybe that's why the Jeep in the far lane slid further in both tests.

Those videos don't conclusively show that it helps. One of my early professors told me: the problem with an experiment/test is that it will always give you a result. What he was saying is that it won't always give you an accurate result. If you methodology is flawed your results will be too. I think it's a valiant effort on their part to test it, but I think the margin of error is too big for those results to be credible

Based on studies conducted by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), Northwestern University and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) vehicles which are skidding have the same stopping ability. Weight, size, transmission type and all other variables are moot once the vehicle is sliding. To simplify, it's 4 pieces of static rubber verses ice/snow. What's connected to it has no bearing.

That said, if the 4wd system allows the tires to continue to rotate, then it may have an impact. This differs from a skidding tire because rotating tires add more variable which might help stop the car/truck/suv.
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