Best 'bad weather' vehicle?

SpookyPistolero

SpookyPistolero

Joined
Dec 13, 2005
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I've got a 2wd dodge dakota that is a nightmare in the slightest bit of bad weather. It's literally the only time I ever fear for my life. Since I'll be out of school in a year+, I want (and need, since there are not 'can't come in' days at work) a vehicle that can get me where I need to go.

Especially for those of you who live in the rough stuff (snow, ice, etc) what vehicle would you call 'excellent' in that regard?

I grew up around a lot of jeeps, my dad's Willys was always a champ- geared like a tractor. The CJ7 would do similarly.

So a slightly modded Jeep wrangler, w/ winch?
Cherokee?
Subaru?
Bicycle?
???
 
4x4 necessary, with limited slip as an option.Other than that it depends on where you'll be driving.Highway , a Subaru or similar will do fine.Back roads or rough stuff a higher clearance vehicle ,Jeep etc.Right now in Kentucky I think you have ice -stay home or get chains !!
 
If you can find one, a 79 Jeep Wagoneer with the Quadra-trac. I've owned many 4WD's and straight from the factory the older QT's can't be beat. I wish I could find another one that isn't rotted out.

Modded? My 96 Tahoe with ARB air lockers works fairly well with the 35" Dunlop Muds.

Ice? Chains on a 4WD? Stay home!
 
Thanks guys! Yeah, whatever it is will definitely be 4wd. The wranglers seem most capable of being 'controlled' as far as what mods you want to make for improvement.

Sadly, the job is pharmacy and you have to be there period, ice or not. And a big fat yes to that ice in kentucky!!! Inches with inches of snow, crappy. :mad:
 
Here in Michigan, my 4WD Wrangler will take anything you put in front of it when the weather turns bad. Engage the 4WD and just go. It's great.

The only times that a wrangler is not a great choice is highway driving when the surface is slick. With such a short wheelbase once you start to skid/fishtail at higher speeds, you are spinning out pretty quickly. I've done it a handful of times, and its not fun at all, but the nice thing is you can usually get out of the ditch on your own with the 4WD. The mileage isn't great either, last summer the 15-20 MPG really started to hurt my wallet, but now with gas prices back down it's great.

If you don't want to get into any really serious off roading, my dads Grand Cherokee is also really good in the snow, and the longer wheelbase gets rid of some of the spinning out problems. He's also got the HEMI engine with the cylinder shutdown, so at constant highway speeds 4 of the cylinders shut down and you can get better gas mileage. Off course it's not as good offroad as a wrangler, but even for my needs I could get by with a Cherokee.

Whatever happens to the Big 3, I'm sure Jeep will stick around as it is one of Chrysler's brands that is actually doing alright, and aftermarket stuff is all over the place for them, so you can pimp them out as you please. I'm not as partial to the look of the new wranglers, they seem to have tried to modernize the look a little, but I'm sure they're still solid performers.
 
If you've got a few months until you can purchase a different vehicle, a couple bags of sand in the back of the dakota over the axles and some snow tires will help dramatically, although you have to remember that you're still not on dry pavement and adjust your driving style.

Provided that you're not looking to build an offroader, a subaru will fit your requirements quite well. The full time awd is pretty good in the snow and you can find a used wagon or forester for pretty cheap, they go forever if you perform the scheduled maintenance. Although they're not as cool looking as an old jeep and if you drive them hard the tend to understeer at the limits. :D

+1 for the standard wrangler being prone to spins; they're also pretty steep to insure if you're young and male. You might want to check out the new "Unlimited" model, it's got a longer wheelbase while still retaining the wrangler look and aftermarket.
 
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The Jeep Cherokees have incredible traction, perhaps the best of any vehicle off the showroom floor. Low reliability is the trade-off.

Wife's Lexus RX does very well in slippery conditions. Lexus quality is second only to Porsche. It's comfortable for passengers, has a bit of cargo space (as much as a Cherokee), and has a great list of features. As a trade-off, it has low clearance like a car and is not equipped with all-terrain tires so will not do well in deep snow, piled snow, or mud. It would be a good choice for city driving in winter conditions - it's not going to work for hauling emergency feed to stranded livestock.

For all-around utility, it's hard to beat a real truck. Cargo space, passenger room, clearance, power, and as many or as few features as you want.
 
mrt03.jpg
 
This will only be for city/highway driving, except for occasional backpacking trips and such. No mudpits or farmland. I would like to be able to easily get out of ditches and the like though.

I'll look more into the lexus suv. My wife's parents have one, I've always had sort of a 'thing' against the brand.
 
Not bad at all. It's not the most comfortable vehicle, though, with that lift kit and the big tires.
 
It's all in the tires! I've owned several 4WD and AWD vehicles and currently drive a Mazdaspeed6 (AWD). One thing I can say for certain is that good snow tires are essentail for reliable winter weather traction. Yes, AWD will get you going in snow, but it won't help you turn or stop any better than FWD or RWD. My wifes FWD Accord outfitted with snow tires was better in ice and snow than my Isuzu VehiCROSS with AWD and all terrain tires (which were better than all season tires IMO). The simple fact is that all season tires won't give you the kind of safe traction needed in snow and ice no matter how many wheels drive your vehicle. Too many people think that they are unstoppable in their AWD SUVs fitted with all season tires. But I've spent many upstate NY snow storms driving past those same SUVs stuck in a ditch off the side of the road with their drivers calling the tow truck.
 
I drove around a few years with one of two wheel drive Dakotas and it was scary. My latest vehicle is a Jeep Liberty and has performed like a champ in snow and ice. I had my doubts when I bought it, too yuppie looking for my tastes, but it rides like a car and performs like a truck. Test drive one, I think you will be surprised.
 
I'm not thinking a type of vehicle will make me invincible, but right now (for example) my truck can't get up a gentle slope that is even remotely slick- I just fishtail and drift. Highly unsafe.

Phil- is it uncomfortable just getting in and out with the lift? Or the way it handles now? I'm pretty tall so the former shouldn't be an issue.

DaveinNY said:
I drove around a few years with one of two wheel drive Dakotas and it was scary. My latest vehicle is a Jeep Liberty and has performed like a champ in snow and ice. I had my doubts when I bought it, too yuppie looking for my tastes, but it rides like a car and performs like a truck. Test drive one, I think you will be surprised.
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Drove in one my stepmother had, it was a pretty nice ride. (Can you tell it was a jeep family?)
 
I've got a Ranger 4X4 that is very good. In 2 wheel drive its unusable and dangerous, since if you hit a bad patch out of nowhere you will spin out.

For driving on roads in bad weather though, I think a Subaru is very tough to beat. Either the Forester or the Outback is just high enough to have good clearance if the snow is deep but its not so big that its hard to manuever which can be an issue if you are driving in bad visibility and around town. The subbies are also full time all wheel drive.

Once you get to any reliable 4X4, I think the tires are the biggest issue.
 
Subaru!

We just had a couple weeks of unimaginably bad weather/roads here and my Forester got me everywhere I needed to go and more.
 
SpookyPistolero said:
Phil- is it uncomfortable just getting in and out with the lift? Or the way it handles now? I'm pretty tall so the former shouldn't be an issue.
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It's the quality of the ride itself -- loud and hard. (Ha!) It roars as it goes down the road, rumbling and bumping and basically being very unforgiving -- but of course it's great in the snow, especially with the four-wheel drive on.

As for getting in at out, it's so tall that it's basically at butt level when I stand by the open door, so I can just slide right in and out. That's not an issue at all, really.
 
The two best bad weather vehicles I ever had are the Chevrolet Tahoe and the GMC Envoy.
They were well built, offer considerable comfort, and I have had no mechanical problems with either.

-Yooperman
 
Pre 1998 Toyota Landcruiser with real-time 4WD and the Detroit Locker differentials. One of few vehicles sold in this country that could be driven, in 4WD, on dry pavement without damage to tires or drivetrain.
 
I have been extremely happy with my Toyota Tundra 4x4. I drove it to Alaska last Winter.
 
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