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328xi wagon in the snow
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12-10-2012, 09:42 AM | #1 |
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328xi wagon in the snow
Had a chance to take our 3er wagon out into about a foot of snow yesterday for the first time since buying it last spring. Was expecting that x-drive would be helpful, but was amazed at how well it works. I just put on a new set of Bridgestone Potenza Pole Position 960s a few weeks ago, and they performed admirably as well.
No issues accelerating, even on areas of snow-covered ice - just point and go. As a test I goosed it on an empty, unplowed street with traction control fully enabled. The car simply accelerates as though on dry ground. I then fully disabled traction control, and did the same thing, flooring it in second. All four wheels immediately broke traction and spun up to nearly redline. The difference between the two scenarios under the same conditions was remarkable. I had to park on an unplowed street in about a foot of untouched snow, and was able to pull out of my spot without too much drama. The biggest hinderance becomes clearance, not traction. To those considering x-drive, and those considering the Pole Positions, I'd highly recommend both. Dedicated winters would be better, but in a foot of heavy, wet, icy snow, these worked very well. |
12-10-2012, 10:44 AM | #3 |
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Nice! Thanks for sharing!! This is a great review, I'm looking forward to get
into some snow with my wagon! Now if Southern Ontario, can finally get some proper snow so I can get out snowboarding and thoroughly enjoy the ride there...wishful thinking..haha |
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12-10-2012, 10:54 AM | #4 |
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All these posts are not that useful because each person has its own experience and opinion.
I drove my S2000 with summer tires in snow few weeks ago and it was nothing scary because LSD and electronics were doing an amazing job, car was accelerating and stopping. Of course I was just experimenting and would never drive like this in public. When I use snow tires, for me the point is to drive the car almost the same way as I drive it in summer with summer tires, with or above the speed limit and confident. So that I can go skiing and drive 50-60 mph in snow blizzard. Driving 20 mph, I am sure it makes no difference what you have until you run in to emergency stop or try to avoid an object. My buddy has RWD car (1995 SC300) and drives on AS tires in snow, his argument is that there is no point in getting snow tires because everyone drives so slow when its snowing. Surprisingly he never gets stuck or has ever been in accident. Last edited by Kolyan2k; 12-10-2012 at 11:17 AM.. |
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12-10-2012, 11:23 AM | #5 |
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I should note that on the highway that same day, I was able to safely drive the speed limit.
I hear you on the variability of these sorts of reviews. Mostly I wanted to note how effective x-drive is (been done before, I know), and that the Potenzas are do-able in the snow, even driving "normally". I won't deny that a proper winter tire will provide a greater degree of handling / stopping ability in the snow, but this was better than I was expecting, and provided plenty of confidence given the conditions. |
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12-10-2012, 12:25 PM | #6 | |
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Now, summers in snow may be a bit silly, but I grew up driving a light FWD wagon without so much as antilock breaks in Maine winter. Yeah, I'd rather have traction control, ABS, and AWD, but it's perfectly manageable if you're smart about it. |
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12-10-2012, 01:03 PM | #8 |
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12-10-2012, 01:18 PM | #9 |
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Winter tires
Here in Quebec it is mandatory to wear snowshoes (winter tires) from december 15th...or get a "salty" fine!!! No 4 seasons crap allowed. I saw peoples skidding trying to climb a hill on a snowstorm, X-drive allowed me to stop in the middle and start without any problem!!!
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12-10-2012, 03:03 PM | #10 |
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Nice, thanks for sharing! BMW's Xdrive not bad as people are saying on the forum.
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12-10-2012, 04:52 PM | #13 | |
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Its obviously more expensive to design AWD car from ground up, so car manufactures "convert" FWD/RWD to AWD with relatively cheap Haldex or Haldex-like systems. VW, Volvo, BMW use pretty much the same system, whereas Audi, Subaru, and Mitsu use something different. edit: now torque vectoring and electronically controlled center diffs. is something different and is more advanced. Currently Audi, Mitsu, Subby, and Acura use those. Last edited by Kolyan2k; 12-10-2012 at 05:20 PM.. |
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12-10-2012, 06:21 PM | #14 |
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I too am in Minnesota where we had over a foot. My 328xi wagon has Conti DWS and it handled the roads beautifully. I was actually laughing watching an SUV spin its wheels at a stop light while I just drove away. The combo of 4 wheel drive and the Conti DWS were great.
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12-10-2012, 07:35 PM | #15 |
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Never will I ever buy another X-Drive car- I hated the feel of it.
I love my RWD, and have Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 18"s for the white stuff- bet I'll do just as well. |
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12-10-2012, 07:55 PM | #16 | |
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Which, to be fair, xdrive does do, but only for the sake of individual wheel control. Which is completely fair, having an additional clutch for each wheel would be pretty silly. It's still not really clear what you're suggesting is a more advantageous system, simply saying "designed with AWD in mind from the get-go vs a tacked-on afterthought" isn't really descriptive enough. And I'd argue that xDrive or another haldex-like drivetrain isn't any more of an afterthought than any other AWD system vs 4WD system. Maybe that's what you mean, that you think a 4WD system (with a proper transfer case and two LSDs, a la Jeep Wrangler) is more ideal - in some situations for sure, but I'd happily make the argument that it makes no sense in a BMW, or really any car that you don't plan to do rock and hill climbs in. xdrive accomplishes all the engineering goals BMW set out for with few compromises, where a true 4WD system ticks off very few of them. Please don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to argue with you one way or the other (yet, maybe we can start a new thread ), I'm just not really clear on exactly what your point is. |
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12-10-2012, 09:18 PM | #17 | |
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Xdrive doesnt have any of that because of the cost and ONLY the cost. It was made for people to drive more easily through snow and it does it well....nothing more (just like Volvo or VW). Both Xdrive and Haldex use electronic clutch packs and open front and rear diffs, thats why I said they are similar and electronic. Last edited by Kolyan2k; 12-10-2012 at 09:26 PM.. |
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12-10-2012, 10:18 PM | #18 |
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My 6MT xi is a blast to drive in the (not too deep) snow. The only trick is staying away from everybody else on the road whose cars can't be fully controlled.
Almost as fun is feeling the tires bite when powering up wet uphill curves. LSDs or no, x-drive and three pedals works for me. |
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12-10-2012, 10:50 PM | #19 |
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Torque converting Halon plasma relay distribution cluster vectoring... blablabla
All I know, is I can't wait to try out some deep snow in my xi! So far, I have tested her from a standing start on several gravel-to-asphalt road segments, including 2 and 4-wheel transitions, from gently to absolutely stupid (ok... it's true... I mostly skipped the "gently" part altogether...) and I would SWEAR she didn't even upset a single pebble on the gravel. No skid, No pull, No corkscrew... nuthin. It was like being fired out of a slingshot onto a smooth, hot track. Absolutely great fun, whatever the hell they wanna call it under that pedal. |
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12-10-2012, 11:46 PM | #20 | |
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you must have some good LSD. my car with summers won't get out of my driveway. and it is flat.
with snows my car is extremely capable. Quote:
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12-11-2012, 01:34 AM | #21 |
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Brushing up on the Quattro wikipedia page (which, fwiw, a lot of is in dispute), it looks like Quattro actually includes Torsen center diffs on some cars and Haldex on cars with a transverse engine mounting. Similarly, some have limited slip diffs and some use electronic locking like xdrive. Anyway, point is picking sides isn't especially easy, although I now at least see what you mean in terms of what you consider superior vs xdrive. I'd still make the argument that the difference is pretty difficult to discern in most rational situations and to most drivers, and that from an engineering perspective balancing cost vs objectives for the particular target market, that xdrive represents a pretty solid set of choices.
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12-11-2012, 07:17 AM | #22 | |
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Different temps, different tires, only about 1/2 inch of snow, and the fact that car has LSD and 328 doesn't. I was actually able to even climb a small short hill on the driveway too. (Well not that small, 5 month later I am still recovering from a twisted ankle that I got there) I can sure tell a difference between my 335i and S2k, so much more traction at rear wheels Now I can only speculate, but imaging having Xdrive with no center diff, and 2 open f/r diffs vs active center and 2 f/r LSDs. By specs, the difference should be dramatic. I wish some magazine would run a test in equal environment with same snow tires with many different AWD systems. But for now I can only rely on specs. Last edited by Kolyan2k; 12-11-2012 at 07:28 AM.. |
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328 xi, e91, snow, touring, wagon |
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