Snowboarding Forum - Snowboard Enthusiast Forums banner

Your Snowboard Vehicle.

383K views 2K replies 556 participants last post by  speedjason 
G
#1 ·
New to the forums. Currently have a BMW 330xi as my vehicle to get to the mountain. See where that's a problem? More than a couple inches on the road and I am screwed..


Looking for input on what vehicles you all drive to the mountain. I have about 12k to put into this. Maybe more.

Thanks for input--

-Alex
 
#2,052 ·
My snowboard vehicle in July this year, 2002 Subaru Legacy, done 270,000 kms.

This was taken on the morning a big storm took out approximately 75 HV power poles in the middle of the North Island. We had to get back home 3.5 hours away as we had to collect the kids. If we had left the village half an hour later, the local travel authorities wouldn't have let us leave, and in fact, they closed the road while we were on it.

Didn't miss a beat. Put her into low ratio, took it easy (had the wife with me). Didn't get sideways once, and was solid on the road until we cleared the worse of the snow.

Love Subaru's!
 

Attachments

#2,053 ·
Subarus. :) Kirkwood parking lot looks like a Subaru dealer on a pow day.
1K on the new WRX. I don’t commute with it, new A/S tires, floor mats, even got new snowboard gloves and the first storm is coming to NorCal. 0:) bliss.
 
#2,054 ·
what is your daily commute? I have been staying mostly in santa rosa, I work off shifts so the drive isn't bad but the miles sure do pile up.....

We got that new crosstrek and are enjoying it. I may work more local after December and if I do I am going to get a new wrx to drive around the mountains....
 
#2,058 ·
Packasport and NEW BFG All-terrain T/A's KO2 put on last Saturday, ready for the dumpage.

If anyone in the Seattle north area is looking for a used Packasport, I seen 3 or 4 Packasport System 90 on Offerup/Craigslist, the cheapest one at $50 needs a little bondo and rattlecan of black or vehicle matching paint and the others just look like they need spraypaint, $7 and it looks brand new.

I've had mine over 20 years, great for camping, mtn bike trips, and at least 5 boards but NO SKI's allowed in mine
 
#2,061 ·
True story:

I’m driving up KWood all confident in my WRX when another car comes hauling ass behind me...gets closer, it’s not an Audi...not another WRX... wtf?? Passes me twice the speed. Mid 90 Honda Civic. Half an hour later we are both stopped at the CALTRANS check. I get off to see who and what was driving like that. Was a local and liftie in FWD Honda Civic with snow tires.
Respect the locals ;-)
 
#2,063 ·
I know this isn't an actual car enthusiasts forum, but I have a feeling people in this thread has more experience driving in the snow than anywhere else, so I'll post this question:

I have a set of Dunlop Winter Sport 3D, it has served me well in the past several seasons but it's probably down to its last rotation. That being said, I plan on using them for the last time, if I put the fresher set in the front (FWD), rear tires won't have much life left, am I setting myself up for fishtailing?

They have served my 2009 Mazdaspeed 3 very well!
 
#2,068 ·
picked up a new/used Volvo CX70 for my son. It will replace the outback that is WELL used now. lol

This thing is from some old lady that kept it up really well and fully loaded with leather and headlight wipers. $3500 with extra set of rims/studded tires. Drives like a tank in the snow/ice. Anyone that has one of these have any quirks to look for?
 

Attachments

#2,092 · (Edited)
Interesting. On the other hand I usually (and hopefully soon) drive on snow going uphill in the morning. By the end of the day CALTRANS does a pretty good job. I agree with you that dedicated snow tires are better but I commute to the Snow on clean roads, the last 60 miles going uphill may be snowed in.

And it looks like this: >:)

 
#2,093 ·
what's the benefit of using AS tires? Please name a single one, that is not related to having another set of wheels. In summer they wear out quicker and has less grip, especially in wet, compared to summer tires (the grip is still decent), but in winter they are basically useless.

Two years ago I bough damaged 2014 Jetta for my mother from IAAI, and it came with Bridgestone Turanza EL400-02 AS tires. Since they were a bit noisy for a Jetta with poor sound insulation, Jetta got a set of Michelin Energy Saver for summer and Gislaved Euro Frost 5 for winter. I put those almost new (10k miles) Bridgestones on my working horse Passat 4motion, they were ok'ish in summer, since I don't drive aggresive with that car, but when the winter was comming and temps dropped to ~5C (40F), they were slippery on wet already. Like always, I put a dedicated winter tires at the end of october, nothing fancy, just cheap chinese winter tires Nordexx Nivius Snow, because I'm getting rid ot that car in few months, and even those cheap tires were miles better on cold wet asphalt, compared to AS bridgestones.

To spice everything up I can add, that in AutoBild winter tire test those Nordexx tires stopped only in 45,7m from 80kmh to 0, when top winter tires does that in 36-38 meters.
 
#2,094 ·
Depends where you live. I’m in NorCal Bay Area. We haven’t seen a drop of rain yet. I drive up to Kirkwood about 20 times a year (300 miles rountrip). That’s when I use the AS. They perform pretty good btw and are within $110 each. (Sumitomo HTR) they do pretty good in rain too and decently in summer. I got the WRX in September it came with summer tires so I will swap again in spring. Or sell them. But I could not justify full snow tires for the last 60 miles of my 150 mile pow commute and regular driving during the week.
For what I do AS are fine.
 
#2,098 ·
I have a 2017 Civic Hatchback. I live in Orange County and it's a 2 hour 30min ride up to big bear. The 85% of my highway riding is going to be in warmer temps and I don't think I can justify buying snow tires for that last 15%. Does anyone know if the roads up to bear mountain are normally plowed and if having snow chains on me would be sufficient? I assume careful driving is the best advice to stay safe on the roads yeah? Thanks for any advice.
 
#2,103 ·
I use all-seasons on my FWD but I put on winter tires before the first snow, or once the temps stay in the 20-30F range. The all-seasons, provided they aren't due for a replacement, will get you around but don't expect to go driving in 4" of unplowed snow. I like them for the little insurance in case I'm too busy to put my winters on and it snows a little bit. Prior to 2-3 years ago, I always rode all-seasons year-round in the Northeast and never had any problems getting stuck going to where I needed to go, mostly work.

There was that one season, 2007/2008, where a crapload of snow was absolutely dumped on Boston in one day. It took me almost eight hours to get home from work (vs. the regular 1 hour commute) but I didn't get stuck once and I passed many people who did. That was with nearly brand-new all-seasons (OEM). Knowing how to drive in the snow goes a long way.
 
#2,105 · (Edited)
As someone who has to drive through poorly plowed neighborhoods(and previously lived in Minnesota) with steep roads there is absolutely NO comparison between all seasons and legit M+S tires or even better a jump up to an ice tire like Blizzaks or studded snow tires.

No one who lives up in the canyons all winter goes without snow tires......most of them studded.
 
#2,107 ·
No snow. So here’s some plasti dip mods. Front under the fog bezels, and along the side skirts.
 

Attachments

#2,108 ·
For you PNW guys, what's your preferred winter tire? I'll be all over the highways around Seattle and then treking up to Bakes and Stevens on the weekends.

I used to run Blizzaks and Winterforces back in Michigan, but we got a lot more ice than you guys deal with. I'm usually one to Clark Grizwald and go overboard on my preparations, but I don't see a gnarly winter tire like the Blizzaks being necessary around that area. At least not until it's dumping, in which case I'd probably need to install chains on the FoST.
 

Attachments

#2,110 ·
Gulf Coast to West Coast road trip prep:

Volvo Neptune wheels wrapped in BFGoodrich G-Force Comp-2 A/S, added some extra cargo space with a 53" Thule Aeroblade rack with locks and Yakima 16ci Skybox. Into the setup for $700 via local Craigslist deals. More than I wanted to spend, but it's a secure setup on short notice.

Plan is to ditch the Thule bars for some Rhino 2500 RSs when a sale pops up. I may keep the Yak box but I'll need some shorter hatch struts to keep the spoiler from hitting the back of it. Something low profile would be better for MPGs, but I like having the cargo room in case a local (to me) wants to ride up to the mountains.
 

Attachments

#2,115 ·
I've seen conflicting info on the load rating of the Thule rack, 110lbs and 165lbs. I'll have to verify that at some point, but I'm not worried about exceeding the lower value for the trip out.

For the pricepoint I'm pretty happy with the Yak box, but the hinges seem to be a weak point on these things. I'd rather have solid construction, roll pin hinges, and gas struts like the Pakasports, but I also don't make that kind of $$$. I may just have to visit REI to get my eyes on a few options then watch the local BST listings for a deal.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top