I can't belive what some people drive in the winter...

[speedo]

More power to them I guess.


Cool or Not cool??

[Z28SSMAN]

Yeah, that's hard to look at. Poor car

[Fast One]

When it comes to older iron, I agree - it's tough to watch someone drive 'em in the winter. However, I don't feel the same about most newer iron - except for the rare models. Most new cars are galvanized and are nearly rust-proof. Modern paint can handle the elements much better, as well. Put some performance snow tires on & go for it. My next dd will likely be a Camaro, or possibly GM's next rendition of the G8 - if they decide to keep building a US version of the short-wheelbase Zeta sedan. If GM would build a mid-size RWD or AWD sport wagon, I'd probably go for one of those.

[Z28SSMAN]

Yeah when I think about it, Steve that hangs around Porkys with the black Trans Am said he uses his as a dd and that car is spotless. Your GN is also super clean, so you're right about the technology on the late models.

[MR.hp]

I used to remeber when many people drove their hot rods in the winter and I always had a hot rod beater and we used to street race right into spring. With things now a days I would not drive any rear drive car in this weather anymore too scary.

[Jumpercables]

Seen a few new Challengers and such out in this crap. I don't care how much body tech they have you aren't going to stave off all the salt for more than a few years at best, especially for undercarriages. On Saturday I saw a Typhoon out in this crap.

[Fast One]

....With things now a days I would not drive any rear drive car in this weather anymore too scary.

Bob,

My sister (previously, a non-car-girl), has driven boring, POS FWD cars for decades. Last summer, she decided to try something new - buy a 'fun' car. After much research & many test-drives, she bought a Genesis 3.8L coupe. She also bought a set of performance Blizzaks for it. It has been fun for me....watching my sister (who is in her 60s), discover the fun parts of driving - twisty roads, hard cornering, power-sliding, 4-wheel drifting, and full-throttle acceleration.

Fast-forward to winter. After the snow/rain/ice we got over Christmas, she still has no problems driving it in the winter, and says the stability-control system keeps the rear-end from swinging out too far. The traction-control & viscous-coupled posi work well, and she has had no trouble even in deeper snow. She says the car gives her more confidence (even in slippery conditions) than her last car, a Honda Accord, did. Remember - this is coming from someone who has driven nothing but boring, basic transportation cars for decades, and hasn't owned a RWD car since she sold her Vega back in the mid-70s.

I've driven her Genesis coupe on dry, wet, and slippery/snow-covered roads. I was quite impressed with what the computer can do. For daily driving, the stability control system is nothing short of amazing. It will let the back end hang out just a little bit & hold it there so one can tighten up a corner somewhat - even with the stability-control on. (Fortunately, there is an 'off' button for the times when you want some serious throttle-induced oversteer.)

My point is - modern RWD is quite different than what we grew up with. With a good set of winter tires, it is not at all scary in the winter. (Then again, old-school RWD with decent winter tires isn't all that scary to me, either.) After experiencing, first-hand, what modern technology can do for RWD platforms, my next dd will be RWD w/stability control.

If you haven't driven a modern RWD car w/stability-control & a set of decent performance snows on snow/ice - take one for a test-drive. You might be impressed...

[MR.hp]

The Genesis is a nice car and sound like she is having fun with it and that what counts when buying a new car.

[Z28SSMAN]

Yeah, driving most rwd cars in the winter is like MR.hp trying to hook his Camaro up at RF with bias ply F70s while spraying 200 shot off the line. Lol

[Fast One]

Seen a few new Challengers and such out in this crap. I don't care how much body tech they have you aren't going to stave off all the salt for more than a few years at best, especially for undercarriages. On Saturday I saw a Typhoon out in this crap.

Again, I agree with you regarding older iron, such as the Typhoon. In contrast, modern galvanizing techniques & undercoatings are far better than they were a decade or more ago. As compared to cars built in the 90s or earlier, you don't see very many 2000s cars rusting out - unless they have been driven in the salt with paint and/or body damage, or have had the repairs done improperly. Aside from a few spots with surface corrosion where rocks/debris have penetrated the finish to bare metal, my '02 GTP has no real corrosion issues. ~115k miles and counting - the undercoating is still intact, and the galvanizing is still working.

I have found that using a good car wash - especially one with a well-engineered, powerful under-body sprayer - is an important part of preserving the undercarriage.

In the end, it all boils down to money. Some people want to drive a fun car, but can't afford, have no room for, or don't wish to own a second vehicle for winter use. So...they drive their fun car all year. Whatever turns your crank....

[Fast One]

Yeah, driving most rwd cars in the winter is like MR.hp trying to hook his Camaro up at RF with bias ply F70s while spraying 200 shot off the line. Lol

:rlol::rlol:

I don't care who ya are, that's funny right there...

And..if one actually knows what an F70 was, I'm thinking that qualifies one as an 'old fart'! I'm in...

[Fast One]

Yeah when I think about it, Steve that hangs around Porkys with the black Trans Am said he uses his as a dd and that car is spotless. Your GN is also super clean, so you're right about the technology on the late models.

Glenn,

I think I've seen Steve's TA. Didn't know it was his dd. Impressive!

Thanks for the compliment on my GN! At least half of the credit goes to the original owner, as he took very good care of her. Made it much easier for me to keep her looking good over the 130k+ miles I've driven her so far. With all of the restored GNs running around, I sometimes get the feeling that people don't give a damn about an unrestored GN that 'worked for a living'. Nice to know that some people notice & appreciate the difference.

Just to clarify - my GN was my 3-season dd until around 160k miles. She has seen only one winter in her life. This was the winter of '02, when I had just moved back to the 'cities. I was pretty much broke, as my nest egg was wiped out after the company I previously worked for went tits-up, and due to a lack of medical insurance, I ended up saddled with some major medical bills. My Subie died just as I moved, and I had no choice but to drive my GN to work until I could afford to replace the Subie.

Glenn, I can tell you that it hurt me inside every time I fired up my GN & drove her through the salt to the office. The first time I had to do it, I literally had tears in my eyes. On the other hand - with Blizzaks on, I had no problems with traction or stability - even with all that non-linear low-end torque. My primary worry was that some idiot would run out of traction, talent & ideas all at once - and hit me. I stayed home from work a few days that winter just because of this. I took her to an attended touchless wash with a good underbody sprayer at least once per week. I cleaned the wheels every week, as well. I also took her to a manual wash every month to clean the engine compartment. In retrospect, I probably spent enough on all of that to pay for a work beater.

Oh, well...what's done is done. There's no point in wringing one's hands over the past. Better to learn from it & move forward...