Snow and ice performance

[Bikemobile]

You can get full time 4x4 in the new rubicons now.

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[Terminex]

+1 on good tires. The Falken wildpeak AT3W AT tires i have been running the last 2 years are the best i have driven in snow & mixed conditions. (These are the severe weather rated AT tires, not the MT that are an option on some trims). The BFG KO2’s are good as well, but i prefer the AT3W as they seem to give me a little better traction in the snow.

another aspect on the tires is width. This is why i went with tires that are the same height as the 35’s, but an in narrower.

+1 on the LSD as well. That is the only minor dissappointment for me with moving from a ‘19 Sahara with LSD to the ‘21 Rubicon, losing the LSD.

final thought, i have seen many folks (including Jeep marketing) refer to the Auto 4WD system now available in the Rubicon as Full time 4WD. As has been mentioned, it is not Full time 4WD. It is Auto 4WD, almost identical to the Selectrac Auto 4WD that has been an option on the Sahara since day 1. (Had it on my Sahara). Absolutely nothing wrong with it, and would recommend it, but it frustrates me when people tell others that it is Full time 4WD. It is RWD, and when the rears slip, it engages the front axle and splits power to both axles.

if you dont believe me, and you have a Rubicon with this, put it in the Auto 4 mode, put the front axle on stands and turn one of the wheels.

 

[Vrrooom]

+1 on the LSD as well. That is the only minor dissappointment for me with moving from a ‘19 Sahara with LSD to the ‘21 Rubicon, losing the LSD.

Can you expand on your experience on this?

 

[Terminex]

Can you expand on your experience on this?

If you mean my experience with the LSD, it was great. Between my AT3W tires, and the LSD, i only used the Auto 4WD a few times in the winter. Most of the time i ran around in the snow in 2hi.

 

[LarryB]

It’s all in the tires and how you drive. A 1983 Honda Civic will do fine in most winter situations with properly fitted winter tires and a driver who is not an idiot. I take mine up to the mountains and into some unplaced/slippery areas. Drive to the conditions and you will be fine … enjoy your new ride!

 

[aldo98229]

The closer you are to the coast, the trickier it is to drive in snow. Near the coast snow has a higher humidity content; it turns into slush or ice a lot quicker, which makes for tricky driving.

When I lived farther east, snow was much dryer; road conditions were more predictable. I found driving in snow east of the Rockies was much easier.

My guess is driving in snow near the Atlantic coast has got to be similar to here.

 

[Caveman044]

The closer you are to the coast, the trickier it is to drive in snow. Near the coast snow has a higher humidity content; it turns into slush or ice a lot quicker, which makes for tricky driving.

When I lived farther east, snow was much dryer; road conditions were more predictable. I found driving in snow east of the Rockies was much easier.

My guess is driving in snow near the Atlantic coast has got to be similar to here.

I get the slushy stuff. The temperature hangs around freezing and we get melting and refreezing cycle.

 

[2nd 392]

Yes, Selec-Trac was standard on Moab; it was optional on Sahara; it is now available on every non-Rubicon.

My Sahara does have Selec-Trac. I specifically looked for it. I had Selec-Trac on my ZJ and WJ and fell in love with the system.

I agree: Selec-Trac makes driving a Wrangler in winter so much easier.

However, I learned right away to shift out of 4H Auto and into Part-Time as soon I hit the trail. The clutch pack that allows the Selec-Trac to work full-time on pavement doesn’t like the looseness of the trail and can overheat. Don’t ask how I know...

Finding out the hard way hurts! After getting Detroit lockers on my CJ5 my cousin said “ you’re not gonna like it in the front “ I found out the hard way that it wouldn’t turn in heavy snow, just plow straight ahead.

 

[aldo98229]

I get the slushy stuff. The temperature hangs around freezing and we get melting and refreezing cycle.

Yup. That seems to be the pattern across the entire Pacific Coast. When I lived in California it was the same.

Also, we have changes in elevation, which many places east of the Rockies don’t have to deal with. Out here, if you are in snow, chances are you are either driving up or down, but not flat.

 

[Rock Hopper]

...and I find it's not always the "snow" that is the biggest challenge. More often than not it's all the drivers that head up to the Sierra in their front wheel drive cars that have never driven in the snow, never put on chains and think they can drive like they normally do-despite the conditions. They are usually the ones with loose chains on the wrong tires, spun out into snow drifts. I watch it happen every year without fail.

Some things never change.

 

[aldo98229]

...and I find it's not always the "snow" that is the biggest challenge. More often than not it's all the drivers that head up to the Sierra in their front wheel drive cars that have never driven in the snow, never put on chains and think they can drive like they normally do-despite the conditions. They are usually the ones with loose chains on the wrong tires, spun out into snow drifts. I watch it happen every year without fail.

Some things never change.

Yeah. I recall driving to Big Bear after a snow dump. What a clusterf*ck that was.

 

[BlackGenesis]

Rubicon tires (BFG KO2) have the snowflake on the mtn rating for winter use which is far superior to a regular M&S rating. I have found KO2's to be quite good winter tires and 285's really aren't that wide especially given the weight of the typical JLU.

Lockers and stability controls are another discussion, depends on your use. On slippery highway's lockers are not useful, stability controls can be useful for those not used to driving in slippery conditions. In deep snow at low speeds, lockers are WAY more useful than stability and traction control systems.

Wide tires are not ideal for snow compared to narrow tires, as narrow tires have more pressure on the contact patch and less resisstance/push back when hitting slush or deap snow on one side.

BLD does perfectly great on 8" of snow. Lockers might be good if you want to crawl thru it, otherwise they are redundant.

 

[Compression-Ignition]

I have had multiple TJ's, 1 WJ with V8 and selec trac, and now a JLUW. The OP is correct about the WJ and full time 4wd being better in the snow then part time 4wd. The WJ does have a center diff like system in the transfer case that allows all wheel to spin a different rates like an AWD system, and with no traction control or stability control, it was much better in the snow. The JLU is very capable in the snow, my prob is with the drivers aids, and the inability to completely turn them off in 4Hi. I think the tazer allows this ability, so I will look into that before winter.

Offroad sure, but on road the traction control is pretty dang good. Last winter to see what was what, I turned the traction control off on the street. Drove all over the place to test it out.

2020 Rubicon 3.0L Diesel on 315/70r17 Studded Nokians

Maybe 6-8" of snow with ice underneath in some spots. When I turned the traction control off the Jeep acted exactly like my old 2001 TJ on studded winter tires. <<<That is to say it sucked on the road. Fairly easy to swap ends when driving aggressively. Obviously not undoable, but I don't ever foresee myself messing with the traction control on the road ever again. It just works.

@Got2havelights

 

[sentience]

The tires you pick matter.

If you know you’ll be frequently traveling through heavily snowed, iced over, or poorly plowed roads, you’ll want to seriously consider investing in a secondary set of true winter tires (studded).

If you think it will be more of an occasional hazard, a situational alternative would be a set of tire chains.

If you just want something for general highway driving in most winter conditions (regular plowed roads, infrequent ice) stick to a set of all seasons. This is a situation where all seasons will perform better than all terrains.

https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=210

https://m.tirerack.com/videos/amp/player.jsp?autoPlay=true&title=Highway+All-Season+or+On-/Off-Road+All-Terrain+-+Testing+the+Differences+When+Driving+on+Paved+Roads+-+Winter+Update&image=/images/videos/video_images_758x426/2016/2015_tiretest10_has_part_b_winterupdate.jpg&fragment=2015_TireTest10_SUV_Part_B_1

https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=210&tab=WinterResultCharts

 

[Bikemobile]

I carry real tire chains in my jeep and my truck all winter. We have chain laws here where they may be required to travel. I have not needed them in either vehicle but you never know.

These falken at3w’s are truly amazing in snow. Not perfect but definitely in a class between true snow tires and common all terrain tires like the KO2.

I have them on my half ton pickup in P-Rated (extra silica) and gladiator spec LT 275/70-17 (C) on my 2 door JL sport (with lsd) that sport will dig through feet of snow in my yard with ease.

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