How is your Volvo in snow?

Post by **matthew1** » 16 Nov 2018, 10:11

With the crazy snowstorm hitting the US East Coast, I want to get your feedback on how your Volvo performs in snow/ice/cold.

How new are your tires? All-seasons?
Is ground clearance ever a problem?
Are you satisfied with the heated seats? Climate control heat? Heated steering wheel?

Here are my thoughts on my V70 R in snow.

Photos for attention

Post by **amblerman** » 16 Nov 2018, 10:19

Last winter I discovered my 99 s70 was dangerous in the snow with Nexen all season tires.
I just got to try out some firestone winter tires in the snow storm in CT last night. Those tires made a world of difference.

Mine are the Winterforce 2 and are brand new this year. They are stud ready but I don't have studs in them. Huge difference between those and my all season Nexens (which came with car when I got it. )

Post by **Rattnalle** » 16 Nov 2018, 11:54

amblerman wrote: ↑16 Nov 2018, 10:19 Last winter I discovered my 99 s70 was dangerous in the snow with Nexen all season tires.
I just got to try out some firestone winter tires in the snow storm in CT last night. Those tires made a world of difference.

Mine are the Winterforce 2 and are brand new this year. They are stud ready but I don't have studs in them. Huge difference between those and my all season Nexens (which came with car when I got it. )

Proper winter tires are THE thing in winter. All seasons are useless year round. I posted a thread on that but no one bit..
I probably wouldn't drive further than the tyre shop on anything that's "stud ready" either personally but it seems our Nordic specific winter tyres don't make it anywhere else even though we're not the only ones to have winters.

Volvos are excellent winter cars in most other respects if they're in shape.

Post by **Rattnalle** » 16 Nov 2018, 11:56

As far as ground clearance goes it's really quite good now since I fitted new springs and shocks all around. Much better than the average non-SUV new car and as good as many smaller SUVs.

Ulrik Friis · Post by **Ulrik Friis** » 16 Nov 2018, 13:21

With proper wintertyres (Continental WinterContact TS860) the car has a good directional stability when driving on snow covered roads. And the traction control get me through the slippery parts. In Denmark we don't have as much snow as in Sweden and Norway. Salty slush is the main thing we have to cope with after a snowfall. And in these conditions the directional stability is still very good. But premium winter tyres are crucial. My car is lowered 30 mm, so I have had a few incidents, where the wheels couldn't reach the ground.

Studded tyres are not necessary in Denmark, our winters are more wet than icy.

Despite my car is 16 years old everything works fine: the heating, the burner, the heated mirrors and rearwindow, the heated seats. But when I use the burner too much as a prelude to my driving, it develops pressure in the coolingsystem and sucks all the fluid out of the reservoir. I then get a warning for low coolant, but I just have to let the pressure out of the reservoir, then the coolant streams back into the reservoir and everything is OK again. I can't figure out why this is happening.

My car is a diesel, which I know don't sell in the US.

Post by **E Showell** » 16 Nov 2018, 14:07

Forget about Nexen's in the snow. They were downright dangerous in the rain!

Post by **E Showell** » 16 Nov 2018, 16:19

I've got a set of Gislaved Nordfrost 5s on the wife's S80, so we do get some of the fancy Scandinavian winter tires over here, but they are 2nd hand skins I got from a woman whose S80 was totaled. I haven't driven that car in the snow yet, so I don't know how they perform.

Post by **abscate** » 16 Nov 2018, 19:28

As long as I stay off the boost the T5 with Cooper Snows on all four paws is great for both traction and stopping

They don’t work if they are still in the garage rack

The valet at ALB airport clears the snow off my car, so I can’t fully answer the question other than I’ll guess it looks white.

93Regina · Post by **93Regina** » 16 Nov 2018, 21:13

matthew1 wrote: ↑16 Nov 2018, 10:11How new are your tires? All-seasons?

Negative....VW bug tires on spare tire rim

Is ground clearance ever a problem?

With ice and mud, ground clearance is generally not the issue. When I say ice, I'm talkin about the real stuff...one time for several miles.

With snow drifts, I stay home and wait for road maintainer to remove most of the snow.

It would be nice to have positive-track, but so far, I have not got stuck...but I believe I'm an experienced driver in these conditions, and I keep vehicle moving along.

viper69 · Post by **viper69** » 20 Nov 2018, 20:13

Rattnalle wrote: ↑16 Nov 2018, 11:56 As far as ground clearance goes it's really quite good now since I fitted new springs and shocks all around. Much better than the average non-SUV new car and as good as many smaller SUVs.

How does one determine if new springs or shocks are needed? I’ve never been at figuring that out.