I have a 2009 wrx, and I'm curious as to personal preference of some of the experienced winter wrx drivers on here. With or without winter tires (mine are considered "all season" so they obviously aren't the best setup) which do you prefer in deeper snow driving (6+ inches), traction control on or traction control off, and reasoning why? I personally would say trac off simply because I feel more in control being able to put a little more spin into the tires. I don't like the "correcting" of the traction when it's on.
If you can afford an extra set, Id say get them. I had all seasons last year and got stuck a few times, this year no issues with the same amount of snow.
I second the if you have extra cash get some winter tires/rims. I have all seasons on currently. Slid a few times but nothing major. I dont have a problem otherwise.
No i def agree I need winters I just didn't have the cash flow at the time, but with or without winter set what does everybody prefer? Cuz to me it's almost harder to get around with my traction on... But that's just me
I found that many people for all seasons enjoy the continental extreme DWS' . I will be picking up some here very soon. I suggested them on a friends ride and he loves them.
Harder to get around with traction on?! You're doing it wrong... Seriously, try not pinning the tach 24/7 in the winter . I have a 2011 wrx and the only time I turn traction off is when I'm messing around in a snowy empty parking lot.
Hahaha sometimes it's just too much fun!! Haha but no for real if I'm driving in drifted over roads or unplowed gravel travel I feel as tho the trac sometimes screws me over, I prefer feathering the gas
Honestly, if its been a short time since you've owned the wrx... I would take it to an empty parking lot to get to know it. I had to do that because I came from a FWD car before hand and have never owned a AWD until now. Its good to get comfortable with it. I agree with what SCIFIDELITY said. i believe i have the button on my 08 w too i dont touch it. havent had an issue. also the obvious : it varies on how the person drives
Yes I will have to admit I'm no professional when it comes to knowing most every move the car will make, I might have to do some "shopping" this weekend and find a big empty lot while waiting for the gf as she's inside the store hahahaha
You never know what you could benefit from doing that. Could maybe save your life if ever caught in a bind.
You should be having more traction w/traction control on. Try firming up your No-Season tires to max for increased traction. I do this when there's a lot of snow and will sometimes go above max, this will help keep the snow out of the tread and dig down to the hard surface for traction. Also if you have a light left foot try left foot braking under acceleration to help keep the weight in the front and then LFB into the turns, basically riding the brakes until you get the turn-in and rotation desired.
I keep traction control off unless conditions are icy. In deep snow TCS is problematic. The way I disagree with the car can and has proven catastrophic. The surprise understeer of ABS-based TCS is not worth the tradeoff for straight line traction for me. That said, in non-oh-#$*% scenarios, I very, very rarely see TCS engage anyway. With TCS off my goal is still to generally avoid any wheel spin unless absolutely necessary, unless I happen to be lost in a parking lot... again. Seconded on the LFB suggestion (though not sure how that would work for acceleration...). Go out and practice that in a parking lot. My left foot instinctually covers the brake now if things look a like they might get a little sketchy on loose surfaces. It is amazing how much more you can control the attitude of the car by moving the weight around just a little. I still have a lot to learn on that tip, but I've learned enough to firmly believe this stuff should be mandatory required competencies for licensing up here.
TCS off for me. Very rarely do I have it on. Made a trip to Whapeton, ND (Spelling) last week during the snow storm. Only time I turned on TCS was on the highway when the drifty snow started to pile up and vision was obscured.
I can vouch for these tires. They aren't winter tires, but they do a great job considering they are all seasons. For car reference, i have a 2014 STI
Low speeds, high snow, etc TC off. High speeds... TC on. TC will react faster than 99% of us here ever will. As far as TC goes, Subaru traction control is actually pretty good at high speeds.
Exactly what I do. On the side streets or in the low speed stuff where the TCS might get me stuck, it is off. Once I am rolling or out on the freeway, TCS is on. It is kinda scary how much you see the TCS light up when the car feels just fine and I am running Hakka R winter tires. Russ
I own a 2011 STI and I never turn the TCS off unless I'm dicking around somewhere. I was running Bridgestone Potenza RE970 A/S Pole Position tires for awhile and I would feel the car slip and drift and TCS wouldn't kick on at all (slush-planing). I feel like TCS doesn't really affect my driving at all and it isn't very intrusive. It's meant to keep you safe. Honestly though, get a set of Winter/Summer tires/wheels if you can afford it. Even "Performance" winter tires are better than all seasons. I now have a set of used Blizzak LM-25 on my STI and it grips and instills so much more confidence. Can't wait to get a set of Hakkapeliitta R2s once these Blizzak LM-25 are gone. Oh, and the Continental Extreme Contact DWS are great for winter traction for an All Season... but you have to know and realize that the "S" in the DWS stands for snow. Once you see that "wear out" your tires are no longer good for snow. Which means they'll last 2 seasons or so before you notice reduced traction in the winter... Might as well get dedicated wheels/tires.
This was pretty much the theory that I used when I drove my 08 sti in the winter. I kept the TC on most of the time as a fail-safe when I was feeling lazy and not paying close attention to my driving and car's responses. I can control my saabaru with no TC just fine, it just takes a hair more concentration and paying attention to the feedback from the tires. Now, deep snow, open space, curvy roads....TC would absolutely be off I still wish side window wipers were more common!
Traction control off! Although the ABS on the newer Subarus are much better, I found the fuse that disables the traction control and the ABS also and put a switch under the dash to instantly disable both. It does however disable the "hillholder brake" but if you haven't figured out how start on a hill you probably need a chauffeur anyway. With the traction control on I found to much understeer mostly because you just don't have the power to get the back to come around. I'd much rather grab a little emergency brake and have the power to point the power in the direction I want the car to go. Just saying.
