Did you survive this first winter mess?

I found myself having to drive about 70 miles during the worst of the recent storm in NJ. I didn't use the Prius primarily because of the absence of winter tires (I have another car equipped with four winter tires). I'm not sure that I'm going to equip the Prius but I'd like to know if anyone has winter experience with a 2010 equipped with winter tires.

 

Many have including myself. There are many threads about snow tires... here is one.

 

What's a "winter tire"?

It's going to get into the 30's here in Orlando and I want to be prepared.

 

Nokian WR-G2 + VSC = no problems in anything so far at 6". Haven't had the opportunity to try anything deeper yet.

 

I may have spoken too soon the last time I posted -- I had to take my Prius in for a repair last week because a good chunk of the bottom shield had become disconnected. It was on the right side up at the front, kind of diagonally behind the right front tire. It was about a foot long from front to back, attached at the front and then hanging down. Maybe 4-5 inches across. Anyway, they attributed it to driving over a chunk of ice or something, reattached it with some clips and it was covered by the warranty -- just a heads up if anyone experiences anything similar!

 

This happened to me. I have a fist sized hole in the front on the drivers side right near the corner of the bumper. I might glue it back since I found the piece.

Anyone know what it costs to get a cheap bumper in millennium silver?

 

I need to replace my bumper in Blizzard White. It cracked from going over some ice. I'll let you know what it costs. I expect all bumpers are OEM at this point and then there is the cost of painting. I'm expecting something in the neighborhood of $700-800.

Aside from clearance issues though, the Prius works pretty in snow and ice. It's not 4WD, but it does quite well. I never did put winter tires on - thought I'd see how the new OEMs worked first - and they do respectably. I have a CRV for real bad roads, and it certainly has more clearance, but the Prius actually performs better than I anticipated.

 

If you're located in the northeast, particularly western mass, you saw some of the iciest roads in recent memory last night. Sheer ice on everything. Traction control + wR-G2 proved to be good enough but that's not saying too much since it took me 1.5 hours to go 5 miles. No accidents, just rush hour traffic going 5 mph. Studs would probably be the only real solution for something that bad but I am impressed overall.

 

FWIW, here's the estimate for replacement and painting of a front bumper (includes protective panel under the bumper). Color is Blizzard White.

Parts (bumper and lower protective panel) = $313.54
Paint and Supplies = $147
Labor = $392

Total $855.54

Replace 3M Scotchgard clear bra $399.00

If you want to know just the bumper replacement cost, the additional cost related to replacing the lower protective panel is:
Part = $68.56
Labor = $15.00

Total $83.56

 

I got caught in a squall today, dumped an inch in ten minutes and nasty winds. The Prius performed flawlessly and the OEM Yoko's did pretty well too! I had to slam on the brakes when another car slid through an intersection and ABS and Yoko's brought me to a calm steady stop, avoiding an ironic disaster... I was on the way home from getting a photo inspection for new car insurance!