<p>Hey guys. I bringing my car up north to college this fall. I live in FL, and I attend a college in upstate NY. Right now I have a Toyota Highlander (SUV) and it has a 2-wheel drive/4x2. You think this is a bad car for driving in the snow considering that it is not all wheel drive and that I have never driven in snow. I know many drivers buy all wheel drive suv's up north.</p>
<p>AWD doesn't hurt, but it's not like everyone that lives in the north has a 4x4...</p>
<p>No, it shouldn't be a problem. However, I'd like to suggest putting weight in your trunk during the winter months (something like kitty litter or sand may come in handy to get you up an icy hill). Also, please take it easy in the snow and ice...one last thing to remember is that downshifting helps in the snow.</p>
<p>AWD or 4wd doesn't make you invinciable. When it first snows see if some of your cold weather friends will take you out and teach you how to drive in such conditions. Biggest thing is no sudden changes in your speed or movements, don't slam the brakes, jerk the wheel, or gun the accelerator. But it still takes some practice.</p>
<p>what bigredmed pretty much sums it up
make sure you turn into the skid, if you do, not out of it or u will lose control</p>
<p>My mom has a Highlander with 2WD. It does really well in the snow. Check yours for a button that says something like ECT SNOW. On my mom's (a 2004 model) it gives you a little more traction.</p>
<p>She has the 4 cylinder model, you probably have a V6 like the other 95% of Highlanders (but the 4 does get 22mpg city!) and it has enough power to make it up slightly bad hills like my driveway.</p>
<p>And for the others reading this post--cars that supposedly do well in the snow include Toyota Rav 4s (any year), any Subaru, most front wheel or all wheel drive Volvos, and believe it or not, the old Ford Fairmont (produced in the late 70s and early 80s)--my best friend had one of those and he used to whiz by everyone on bad roads. And no, they weren't AWD or even FWD!</p>
<p>Word to the wise--if you are going out in bad conditions, put something heavy in your trunk to weigh it down, giving you better traction. I use a smallish bag of Sakrete, and put it right in the middle. That bag is pretty heavy and for some reason, this works (my mom suggested it). Also, use your low gear on bad slopes (usually "2", "3", sometimes "1" or "L") if you've got an auto tranny. And if the roads get icy when you're out? Pull off as soon as possible and wait for the salt truck.</p>
<p>all you need for snow driving is front wheel drive.</p>
<p>Also, if you can get them, snow tires will give you better traction during the winter months.</p>
<p>
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all you need for snow driving is front wheel drive.
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</p>
<p>+1</p>
<p>FWD is way better in snow and low-traction situations than RWD because the wheels that are responsible for turning are also powering the car. So, much lower chance of massive understeer. All you need to do is give it more gas if you start to understeer. More gas in RWD in an understeer will just make it worse.
Obviously AWD is best, but FWD is not bad.</p>
<p>Snow tires are a good idea, but what's really important is learning how to drive in snow:</p>
<p>The first time it really snows, drive (or have a friend drive you if you're nervous) to the nearest snow-covered parking lot or other empty space. Then just spend some time driving around in it - speeding up, turning quickly, stopping suddenly (it takes much longer to stop in snow)...try to get yourself into a skid so you can learn how to stop it. </p>
<p>I live in NH, and when I got my driver's license it was spring, so by the time winter came I had some decent driving experience under my belt. Still, when it snowed for the first time my Dad took me out to a parking lot and let me try all these things in the empty space and I'm so glad he did - driving on snow can be fine, but it's very different from driving on bare pavement, and it's something you really need to learn to sense for yourself before you start driving out near other drivers. Taking the 20 minutes to mess around can be really helpful (and fun! Doing donuts in a foot of snow is kind of a blast.)</p>
<p>I'm glad to see some sensibility about winter driving!</p>
<p>I live in Minnesota and just received my license 2 1/2 years ago. The winter I "trained" in was particularly bad. My first post-permit drive saw me glide through a red light because our humungous minivan simply wouldn't stop on the two feet of snow that fell the night before. </p>
<p>Someone else suggested that you go to a parking lot or empty road to get used to driving. Honestly, I think the best way to train yourself for controlling winter driving is to make sure you are OUT of control at some point. Take the SUV to a snowy parking lot (don't worry, you shouldn't be able to flip it, my friend does this all the time with a more tipsy SUV) floor it, do donuts, turn while braking, and use the emergency brak after accelerating - know what being OUT of control feels like. </p>
<p>2WD, in my experience, is just as good on snow. My Dodge Stratus handled a blizzard VERY well - I was going 70 MPH with no problems while SUV's, semis and even cop cars occupied the right lane going 40 or less. Also consider that only two months later, I found that my back left tire was no longer round. Before I started going to my current U, I tried to go 30 around the ice covered admissions circle - handled it with no problem.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>North Michigan here, Its been said. You'll be fine. You dont have to practice if you dont want to, its not that serious, if your nervous well i couldnt blame you but GO SLOW, and no one said anyhting about black ice. Its a horrible phenomenon that happens on concrete that it looks normal, but really its SLICK ice, i mean no car can withstand that, so thats why you go slow on bridges and hills. After you frive like 3 times in the snow you'll be like, "wow I wasted my worries on this."</p>
<p>wow thanks so much for the advice from everyone! i'm planning on getting snow tires and antifreeze for my engine when i bring my car up there. i do have an etc snow button for traction. i never knew about placing weight in the trunk of my car to help traction. that's pretty cool. thanks again.</p>