240sx + Snow?

[T.Kabe]

just drive smart

[NiSilS14]

I've driven my 240 through winter conditions, all without snow tires. It's not hard, it's definitely doable. I wouldn't do it again though. I do say tires and ride height play a key factor in driving a car through heavy winter conditions. Can't do shit if your car's a snowplow.

[510-SR20DET]

I believe there is chain control in your area, right? Why do you think they are there for?

Listen to your parents, DON'T DO IT.

[Toi]

I have driven a MK3 supra over the winter here in Misawa, a S13, and my personal favorite my 94 WRX. Didn't have a problem with any of them, though all of them ran some snow tires.

The Suby was by far the most fun, especially with a HKS 2835pro mounted on it!

[ixfxi]

Originally Posted by elemento1991

Meh, I need to get a car and it's either going to be a complete shitpile or the car I want. There is no point in me wasting 6-7k on a car I don't like when I could just spend another 2-3k and have something I can build over the next 10 years. I don't have any payments other than the car and my insurance and I make like 15-20 bucks an hour at my job depending on my tips.

you're 19 and thinking about 10 years from now? only idiots like me keep/build a 240 for that long. do yourself a favor and buy yourself something dull and reliable. the last thing you need is a piece of shit ancient 240 thats always breaking down. these cars are seriously antiquated and the only people who like them (or claim to like them) are the fanboys on this forum who think their first car is an ultimate FR race car.

save your money and one day buy a Z33 or Z34, at least it will have modern amenities and be plenty powerful. by then, you'll most likely be married/engaged and possibly with kids, which means you'll have to put yer shit up for sale to please the wife. everyone here thinks they're badassed until the wife bitchslaps them with reality.. then they're false dreams of being a race car driver evaporate.

ps: if youre going to spend money on a winter car, let it be cheap.. 2-3k tops

Originally Posted by OBEEWON

Real men don't need AWD or snow tires.

thats right! they drive 4000 lb paperweights.

[landins13]

Originally Posted by ixfxi

you're 19 and thinking about 10 years from now? only idiots like me keep/build a 240 for that long. do yourself a favor and buy yourself something dull and reliable. the last thing you need is a piece of shit ancient 240 thats always breaking down. these cars are seriously antiquated and the only people who like them (or claim to like them) are the fanboys on this forum who think their first car is an ultimate FR race car.

save your money and one day buy a Z33 or Z34, at least it will have modern amenities and be plenty powerful. by then, you'll most likely be married/engaged and possibly with kids, which means you'll have to put yer shit up for sale to please the wife. everyone here thinks they're badassed until the wife bitchslaps them with reality.. then they're false dreams of being a race car driver evaporate.

ps: if youre going to spend money on a winter car, let it be cheap.. 2-3k tops




thats right! they drive 4000 lb paperweights.

im 22 with a baby on the way and the wife doesnt want me to get rid of my 240 cuz she likes to ride in it with me. But i do have a 92 f-150 a 2010 wrx and she has a 03 elantra so its not like we rely on the 240 ever for anything more than just a fun car.

[240sx123$]

Originally Posted by OBEEWON

Real men don't need AWD or snow tires.

Yeah fuck traction, Ive got bumpers.

[MisawaJason]

I lived in northern Japan for 6 years. I think the average snowfall was around 130" annuually. I owned two S-14's and an FD while there. Just take your time and dont get in a rush and you'll be fine. Snow driving is fun for this guy, you just have to learn to respect it

[ranger240]

its probably already been said but this is all that counts.

Snow Tires are a MUST.

i just had 2 Blizzak WS70 185/60/15 on 7-spoke stockers for the rear

it is astounding as to how much better the car is in the snow. the northeast got another foot or so of snow and my car's doing fine.

2 60lb bags of sand+snows=winter success

[ixfxi]

there was this one guy i knew


he was the rapist type and drove an all-trac celica, he used to make fun of antiquated RWD cars and one day he tookoff with this girl. luckily my other friend was chasing him down in his AE86... IN SNOW. believe it or not, the AE86 caught up with him and the all-trac corolla lost control and crashed.

if it wasnt for my friend and his skills driving in the snow, that girl would've been history. true story, this happened in japan.

[Nick_04K]

^ Super epic story bro. Maybe needs a re-enactment/movie??

I don't drive my car in fluffy snow but i have had to drive it on some densely snow packed roads before to pick up the gf and i have to say it was a huge bitch even with brand new tires. It wasnt out of control or anything, just super slow moving due to no traction.

They were summer tires, but still.
I believe having lsd would have made all the difference though.
Open diff FTL.

[ixfxi]

Originally Posted by Nick_04K

^ Super epic story bro. Maybe needs a re-enactment/movie?

No problem.

[thrax]

I've been driving my 93 in most of the winters since new in Canada.
Its a given winter tires are a must. Adding some weight in the back helps too. An important thing to do is to go out early in the season and find some empty parking lot and learn or re-learn the limits of car in snow. Its good to refresh your skills after months of no snow.
Also give yourself enough space for braking. That's something you have to adjust your driving to.

Check your battery and tire pressure too. You use a lot of battery power with wipers, lights, heater, ABS usage, etc. than you would in the summer and low temp means low tire pressure.

The vast majority of accidents happen on the first and last days of winter. On the first day because drivers haven't become accustomed to winter yet and on the last storm because people have let down their guard. Be extra careful on those days.

The area i find are a pain with the 240 compared to other cars is Ground Clearance. When you need to go somewhere and a snow plow freshly plants a pile of snow in front of the parking lot entrance that's as high as your bumper you can't go through. And i'm on stock height.

[smoked240]

Originally Posted by ixfxi

No problem.

Holy shit man. Your friend knows how to drive his eight-six in winter!

[murda-c]

i got stuck yesterday because i was run off the plowed part of the road by a civic sliding sideways.

luckily i had a folding shovel in the trunk and i was out in ten minutes, and on my merry way.

Just start out in third gear and you're golden.

I saw a guy in a civic understeer into three different curbs on the way home from work, haha.

[Highway Riding]

MY S14 is worse than my 04 350z in the snow... Just saying.. FWD or AWD in the snow

[94spitfire91]

if you want awd get quattro or gtfo. I do like subarus tho and rwd can take it these 240s prove its possible just be mindful of it and smart in the snow and its no big deal

[Clint Eastwood]

I had a 240 with balding winters for an Edmonton (Canadian) winter, granted stock ride height, but it really wasn't that bad, instead of understeer you get oversteer. Just know that and you'll be fine, don't drive as quick as you would, brake early and lightly. My brother has a 2.5RS, and it is great in the winter, but AWD doesn't help you braking, or if all 4 wheels are on ice. It's your call though

[steve shadows]

Originally Posted by Flicktitty

LOL @ all the people who are getting fucked with snow this year for the first real time.

Tires Tires Tires.

Blizzacks or some other snow tire and drive like a grown up and you'll be fine.

Snow tires are so much fun....

Don't really have a use for them out here in SoCali much anymore though lol

[dsastr_clan]

Originally Posted by ixfxi

there was this one guy i knew


he was the rapist type and drove an all-trac celica, he used to make fun of antiquated RWD cars and one day he tookoff with this girl. luckily my other friend was chasing him down in his AE86... IN SNOW. believe it or not, the AE86 caught up with him and the all-trac corolla lost control and crashed.

if it wasnt for my friend and his skills driving in the snow, that girl would've been history. true story, this happened in japan.

bahahahhaahah!!! funny, u may not need snow-tires if you are careful
Im from Utah and winters can get pretty ugly here, i have dailyED my s13 with no issues at all just make sure to have a welded diff and some weight on the rear or just drive with a full tank of gas when it snows

[n240sxfnatic]

I tried driving mine in winter and it was awful. I got stuck on a level surface with residual snow cover on it. I kept trying to drive it all winter but would continuously get stuck going up 5 degree inclines, it is beyond frustrating. Just picked up a jeep xj 4x4 this winter for cheap so that is what I now drive and save the 240 for clear streets.

[dex]

wow... we get a LOT of snow here, and i daily my R32 no problem... last year was my cressida, before was my silvia.. as others said... Winter tires

[khmer1]

i have a 240sx hb kae,open dif,coilovers and semi bald(still have some thread left somewhat) all season tires and i get still get around in ohio winter i drove in blizzard and all yes it does take awhile to get to places but it pretty fun when your sliding all over the place and watch people reaction when they think your about to lose control haha

[BustedS13]

did it for three, maybe four winters, without much issue. it only snows maybe a half dozen times or less here in the winter, though. one time i did have to get a group of children to push my car up a hill. get winter tires, even just a pair on the back, and you'll be much better off

[luvsr20]

Originally Posted by ixfxi

there was this one guy i knew


he was the rapist type and drove an all-trac celica, he used to make fun of antiquated RWD cars and one day he tookoff with this girl. luckily my other friend was chasing him down in his AE86... IN SNOW. believe it or not, the AE86 caught up with him and the all-trac corolla lost control and crashed.

if it wasnt for my friend and his skills driving in the snow, that girl would've been history. true story, this happened in japan.

Haha, that just made my day!

Sent from my HTC EVO

[h2v7]

Originally Posted by khmer1

i have a 240sx hb kae,open dif,coilovers and semi bald(still have some thread left somewhat) all season tires and i get still get around in ohio winter i drove in blizzard and all yes it does take awhile to get to places but it pretty fun when your sliding all over the place and watch people reaction when they think your about to lose control haha

+1 everyone does seem to freak out when coming and going everywhere sideways!

[Michael Nolan]

Dude at my highschool has a 240 with coils and he seems to do fine... I mean, my school is on top of a mountain in Canada, so there's a bit of snow...

[holemilk00]

Originally Posted by grimdad1522

Ive deffinetly wintered in my 240 a couple of times here in the detroit area. like everybody else has said it takes practice and good tires. never had snow tires personaly. but knowing how the car acts is key too.
I only got my car stuck twice the last winter i drove it (have a 93 f150 for winter duty now) that was on all seasons, coilovers, and a 2-way. once becuase i got into deep hard slush trying to pass somebody going waaayyy to slow. and once on the side of the road in my nieghborhood while having some fun practicing.
And as for mountains i took my 240 to nc to visit a friend. kentucky had just got a fresh couple of inches as i was driving through on I-77. i white knuckled all the way through doing 70 with the truckers. the best advice i can give is dont go faster than whats comfortable.

That's a really sweet story man, only one problem, I-77 doesn't go through Kentucky. Just giving you a hard time about that statement. haha



OP- my winter beater is a FC RX7 on regular road tires, and while its gotten harder to do lately because of the lack of state money to clear the roads, it still gets me where I need to go. But I agree with what was said earlier about picking up a truck for <$1000. You have to remember, while it might be possible to drive a 240 in the snow, if you have any sort of piggy lip, SE lip, or aero on it all it will take is one of those huge chunks of snow from someones wheel wells falling off in front of you to destroy it. They can do some serious damage to a FMIC as well. So its a choice you have to make.

[h2v7]

Originally Posted by holemilk00

You have to remember, while it might be possible to drive a 240 in the snow, if you have any sort of piggy lip, SE lip, or aero on it all it will take is one of those huge chunks of snow from someones wheel wells falling off in front of you to destroy it. They can do some serious damage to a FMIC as well. So its a choice you have to make.

THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dsc4130]

I've driven 240's in the snow for 5 years and trust me awd is better, honestly I just got my 03 wrx for 8k. Over a 4 years loan I pay 325 with full coverage insurance. That's nothing man. Mean while my rhd car gets to sit during the winter time. Plus my project car is no longer my daily which I'm soooo happy about. Get a wrx man you won't regret it