Winter Driving

I have a Prius gen3. We shift to winter tires every October. We routinely drive in 8inches of loose snow without any problems. In mid-winter, once the rivers and lakes freeze over, we also drive on ice a lot. We enjoy how well the Prius handles.

 

i try to restrict my winter driving to florida.

 

It's strange, going from our OEM 215/45R17 Michelin Pilot HX mxm4, to steel rim mounted 195/65R15 Michelin X-Ice2, our mpg doesn't skip a beat. Testament to what pigs the Pilots are?

 

Without reading all of the above, here's my 2 cents. Keep in mind that where I live we don't get heavy snowfall w/accumulation that often.

The Prius has done well for the most part. If you KNOW how to DRIVE on snow and ice, you can manage with most any vehicle with some accumulation. You know to watch out for banked roads (where gravity can make you slide sideways) and to watch how you accelerate and brake. ABS has it's own quirks, and the Prius traction-control can be an issue to account for as well.

FWDs do well overall due to the amount of weight on the drive wheels. I'd not risk taking the Prius out if you know there's more than six inches of accumulation and you will be on roads that may not have been cleared during the night/day. I live in a rural area, and our road, while paved, is low-priority for snow clearing. So, if I can tell our road has been plowed (or if I see a plow go by), I know all the other roads I need will have been cleared for driving. When in doubt, I take the pickup truck.

 

Yeah deep snow is the great leveler. Doesn't matter your tires, which ones are driven, if they're barely reaching the road.

 

I've actually been impressed with the Prius in snow. Up to 3" that is....I'd say worthless/dangerous over that (along with all 2WD vehicles).
We are fortunate that our other family car is a Subaru Outback. Bought it new in 2005.....never been stuck, ever. Had snow over the hood in over 2 ft of wet/heavy blizzard snow. She just goes

 

All I would say, is that in usually pretty mild winter conditions in an urban environment, The Prius was the only vehicle I ever owned that I really felt Snow Tires were a MUST.

Nearly any snow and ice on the ground, and I just felt The Prius wasn't very good. The low rolling resistance tires, The regenerative brakes, and the IMO very aggressive traction control system, tuned to protect the electric motors, coupled with the instant torque...which is something you often really DON'T want in snow or ice, of the electric motors- all combined to make The Prius IMO simply NOT the best choice.

That's not to say with good Snow/Winter tires The Prius can't be perfectly serviceable.
But to elevate it to saying it's actually "good" in comparison to vehicles equipped with All-Wheel drive?
Or in my opinion just a standard ICE front wheel drive vehicle?

I know because I've read the threads, that many of you report to use The Prius with great success in very severe winter conditions. I don't doubt you all have the skill and perhaps the adaptive tools of great snow tires to make this possible.

But in general if you asked me if The Prius was a "good" winter vehicle, I'd just have to say...it wouldn't be my choice, if severe winter driving conditions were a part of a majority of my driving.

 

That's so vague, it's difficult to even respond. What tires? The Michelin Energy A/S tires on my gen-3 (PHV) have worked fine in the snow, here in Minnesota. We get quite a variety of winter driving conditions too. Those are all-season tires, not snows. Ice, Dry, Wet there's all kinds of mess to deal with here.

I suppose if you are dealing with deep snow or unplowed roads routinely, or have the need to climb a steep hill or driveway, I could see the need. But there most definitely isn't a "must" recommendation from the driving I see here.

 

I have learned to just back away from the debate about Prius in severe winter conditions.
As those that think the Prius is wonderful in snow and ice, will defend it like a Pitbull that just stumbled upon a rare dropped steak.

With all due respect...I don't think I'm being vague at all.
I think in any severe winter condition the Prius really NEEDS snow tires. I would recommend running The Prius in winter with a good set.

If you have had success with Michelin All-Season tires, in Minnesota? Well like I said, what can I say that is going to change your mind? Michelin makes a high quality tire, and maybe you're just an excellent driver. I'll concede my evaluation was coming from a 2013 Gen 3 on OEM Goodyear Fuel Max...which IMO were horrible on snow and ice. I would speculate Michelin All-Season tires might be simply a much better base tire.

My opinion remains unchanged. Instant torque...Regenerative Brakes, IMO aggressive traction control, simply combine to make The Prius less than the ideal winter vehicle. And I felt to really use it consistently in the winter condition...read...snow and ice...not dry and wet...a set of good winter tires was nearly a must.

I think you should be preparing in the winter for the worst. You know, prepare for the worst, expect the best. So if you are going to say "I suppose if you are dealing with deep snow or unplowed roads routinely, or have the need to climb a steep hill or driveway, I could see the need."
Then I think that underlines my contention that with a Prius snow tires in the winter are a VERY, VERY, good idea. Even if they aren't personally in your estimation a "must".

 

When I read John's post about all-seaons in Minnesota, it strengthens my suspicion that there is an inverse relation between the need for snow tires, and the willingness to get them, lol. Maybe our very sporadic west coast snow dumps are worse then steady, day in, day out snowy cold conditions? do not know.

I am staring to wonder why I've got snows, out here. Yesterday it got up to 19C, 66F. One of those unusual Pacific Ocean phases?? It is supposed to get a little closer to zero, about a week hence.

 

Also, consider that not all snow/ice driving is equal.

Someplace where it falls and compacts is very different than a place where you get snowfall that will eventually melt away. The fresh stuff poses more of a problem because it plugs up the tread of your tire so you're running on slicks. Compact snow/ice is just a hard surface with a much lower friction coefficient.

 

The problem is "severe" to you may be just an ordinary day for me. My cousin moved from Minnesota to Oregon and experienced that firsthand. We drive through much more difficult conditions, but learn from lots of exposure. Winters are long & harsh here.

It's not just driving skill either. Weather varies from state to state. Plowing service does too.

Whatever the case, I simply don't see the need. There's a benefit, but that upgrade certainly isn't required for winters in Minnesota.

 

Not to be a pit bull with a steak, I'm just wondering, especially for the benefit of other readers who might be new to the Prius, why the so repeated emphasis on the "instant" electric motor torque, as if it were something there's no control over?

The go pedal can be pushed as heavily or lightly as you want. In most cases when driving in snow or ice somebody doesn't think I'll get through, I do it by using minimal torque, which is a very easily controllable range in a Prius (compared to conventional cars, where at that lowest-power, lowest-torque range, you're fussing to avoid bogging the engine, trying to feather the clutch, etc.).

Granted, I would like it if the Prius allowed modulating torque all the way down to zero (instead of pretending to be an ordinary automatic transmission with a small torque output all the time). That would be a really cool "can't do that in your conventional car!" feature. But I've never noticed that "creep" preset to be any more than the real "creep" torque in an old-fashioned automatic....

-Chap

 

This answers it better than I can.