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anyone having trouble in the snow???

13K views 85 replies 33 participants last post by  kck7 
#1 ·
my tires are aggressive, they shoot snow out 10-15 feet when smashing through to clear the treads....However the car seems to spin out constantly.

Example:

Driving on the road, right tires on snow left on pavement. Go into a slight turn and the car wants to do a 360....the problem is the car losses traction and the RPMs spike to 6k on normal pressure to make up which causes the back to give out.

Just seems like the car wants to spin out and its easy to correct don't get me wrong.....but it feels so unsafe in the snow. Straight aways its fine...but even the slightest turn makes me feel as if I will fly off into the woods.



Anyone else with a 50i have this problem? Seems like it revs hard in the snow which causes wheels to spin out.


Should I drive with DSC off?
 
#3 ·
19 inch Mich. I believe all season.....they are good, but I feel its the throttle problem causing me to do a 360.

Just saw a video of an x5m on a snow course doing the same thing meant to be "fun" but not too fun when you have a cliff on the edge lol

EDIT: they are run flats.
 
#4 ·
Without winter tires, you're not going to get much grip, and spinning out is the likely result.

Turning off DSC will allow more wheel spin, not less - I think you're seeing the throttle spike because the car cuts power to the wheels when they slip, and you're effectively in neutral.
 
#25 ·
Owners manual suggests for snow or sand to turn DSC ( press button once, dont hold it) down to "traction mode" you'll see it on your dash come up as traction. i drove through the same condition with the X5D and didn't experience anything like you are describing with similar Torque as your vehicle, and the 18" All seasons. For general driving practice, (I drove in buffalo NY for 8 years) on turns with snow, you take it real easy and avoid braking or giving too much gas. Straight aways you can almost drive normal but try to avoid the deap snow ruts which can pull your car off into deeper snow which is no good.
 
#5 · (Edited)
I have 18" Michellin RFT A/S on 35D, and traction in snow is not good. Turning at very slow speed on light amount of snow (2-3 inches) will loose traction and make traction control engage. My previous car was e46 coupe with snow tires in winter, and now I know how good it was in snow compared to X5 with A/S. I didn't expect A/S to perform as good as snow tires on rear wheel drive, but certainly didn't expect it to be this bad.
I thought I definitely wouldn't need snow tires on X5 and save hassle of changing tires twice a year, since I got 18" A/S (the main reason I didn't upgrade to 19 or 20) with X drive on 5000 lbs vehicle. I think I can get by without snow tires as long as I drive very slowly/carefully, but don't have the level of confidence that I had with e46 with snow anymore, not even close. I wouldn't want to drive in anything more than 3-4 inches with these tires.
 
#9 · (Edited)
I was driving in 8+ inches with my all seasons. Starting...stopping etc are perfect its the corners I am worried about. I tested it on unplowed hills climbed no problem, but whenever I hit a turn its quite scary.

So snow tires really make the difference eh?

EDIT: Snow tires drastically impact performance on dry roads/ice..........I guess the All Seasons are adequate in terms off I can't hit 100+ in snow tires :(
 
#7 ·
#10 ·
I've got the Pirelli snowtires, and they feel great on dry pavement - I think they're rated for 130mph, recommended for use on the Cayenne. I had some snow tires on my old TSX that were definitely "squishy", but I didn't notice any difference in feel with these.

The performance snow tires aren't quite as spectacular in snow/ice as some of the other ones, but work much better than all seasons, and are great in the dry.
 
#13 ·
Agree on the poor traction in the snow. I just returned from a trip to Vermont and was starting to wonder if the X-5 was actually all-wheel drive as it was a big sled in the snow. My former Acura MDX was much better in the snow with the all season tires. Never needed to switch to winter tires on the MDX but may have to on the X-5.
 
#14 ·
I stand corrected tried my first car with snow tires today and FORD RANGER 2001 or something.

Brand new snow tires and yes it felt glued the road. The reason why x5 isn't amazing in the snow(its fun lol) is because of the all season. However I leased so no sense in buying them I just have to be careful.


BUT ANYONE THINKING ABOUT GETTING PROPER SNOW TIRES!! You have my approval they are worth it (however they suck on dry pavement as I suspected). :thumbup:
 
#15 ·
Winter tires make a difference. Often folks don't think they're worth the expense until the first fender bender or encounter with a stationary object.

I tried out my pop's X5 xDrive35d in on a lightly-snow-covered road. It had trouble stopping and wasn't very much fun; it's easy to kick the tail out but hard to rein the 2,5 ton beast back in. The rear-drive 325i with snow tires was more entertaining and controllable.
 
#17 ·
for me stopping/accelerating is perfect on the all seasons. Its just turning which gets out of control. Those brand new snow tires I had one really dug into the snow and did feel like I was stuck to the road.

^^^ Yes I put it in manual sometimes, but when in m5 and I take a corner it down shifts causing the wheels to spin out and rpm spike (not what I need lol)
 
#16 ·
i use winter setup on all of my cars, from sport car to SUV. normally they are around $1400 to $1800 per set with rims and shipping from tirerack or discountedtires. Depends on the size you are getting.
I ebay them off, after 36 mo's of the lease period. most people will buy it around half of the price from the purchase price if you keep the tires and wheels in great condition. the total cost for 3 to 4 seasons of usage is about $200 to $250 per year. is worth to use winter setup in snow area! one repair bill can cost you lot more, plus the increase of the ins bill!
 
#67 ·
While there is a lot of "not-WIN" in this thread (particularly the "All Seasons" are good for all season everywhere in the country, right? I'll just run with tires that harden to plastic at 43F...), there is some notable WIN, in particular, these two gentlemen:



Owner's manual is remarkably uninformative given the number of pages.

Turning off DSC helps you GET STARTED in deep snow or soft sand. It does nothing to improve traction while under way, and will actually hurt your cornering ability.

Three facts I can't emphasize often enough - not theroetical but proven during 8 years of driving 4 different X5's through New England winters (not to mention the XC90 and assorted Grand Cherokees that preceded those):
  1. All season tires are a COMPROMISE that do a MEDIOCRE job in all conditions. They may feel like they accelerate as well as winter tires, but they absolutely, positively will NOT corner or brake as well. Body shops love the fact so many people are riding on them.
  2. You will go through AT LEAST TWO SETS OF TIRES during the time you own / lease your X5. It costs NO MORE to make one of those a set of winter tires (in fact, it's often cheaper, especially if the winter tires are not RFT's).
  3. The most enjoyable and SAFEST combination, is a set of summer performance tires mounted on one set of wheels, and a second set of winter tires mounted on another set of wheels. By having two mounted sets, you will save anywhere from $200 to $500 per year in mounting and balancing costs. You have a "full size" spare to use in emergencies, so you don't need to ride on the donut spare for long. And when you are done driving the X5 you can sell the extra set of wheels on eBay, Craigslist and Bimmerfest.

Seriously, if you want to be safe, and get the most out of your $60,000 or $70,000 ride, let the moths out of your wallet and buy a set of winter wheels and tires!

PS All this talk about "snow", don't forget about ICE. Black ice is a much more dangerous proposition than a couple inches of the white stuff. Many (most?) winter tires have compounds optimized for traction on ice. All seasons do not. The problem isn't so much getting going as it is turning and stopping.
I did the exact thing for my CRD Jeep as pk9394 suggests, use, then unload on Kajijji/Craigslist.

Quack's 2nd point is particularly relevant, as it will most certainly help you avoid buying a set of expensive RFT's to replace the OEM fitment prior to lease end. :thumbup:

Regards
D
 
#18 ·
On my 07, I had 19" all seasons and yes you can get around just fine but putting the 19" scorpion ice&snow just like my old E53 makes the car feel like it is on wet roads in the snow. As for starting on the stock all seasons, the computer makes that happen but I have to greatly disagree with the stopping. HUGE HUGE difference with winter tires. I had my 545 in for the brake recall and my SA gave me a x5 for a loaner with all seasons. We had 1/2 inch of snow and my first stop was a white knuckler. The all seasons were giving the antilock a fit and was very slow to stop. I just drove my 545 in on the same conditions with snow tires and my antilock did not engage once. I will never own a BMW without winter/summer setup.
 
#19 ·
I leased my car and felt like I only had the option of RFT ALL season....(I dislike large rims only have them on a sports car). I went with the 19 inchers that came standard. Did I have the option of summer tires? but it seems pointless to buy that set up while leasing....sure I could sell them at the end but that's a hassle.
 
#24 ·
Is the OP a lifelong, experienced winter weather driver? Who is having issues with this car in the snow?

Or does he really not have a solid feel for what low-traction driving should feel like?

This "RPM Spike" thing he keeps repeating is bizarre... Sounds like someone driving an Xbox and wondering why when you press the fast pedal 1/2 way the car doesn't move at 1/2 speed....

Sounds like someone describing driving on snow that has never driven on snow.... just saying.
 
#29 ·
My X5 came with 20' RFTs and I bought a set of Bridgestone AS tires and 19'rims that were take offs at the dealer for winter use. The first 4 inch snow convinced me to go with Blizzaks. Just had 10 inches over the last 48 hours and no problem. It helps if you know how to drive in the snow though.
 
#33 ·
My 35D Sport is riding on 18's now, and they are fine. So much salt on the bloody thing right now, who can tell if the wheels are skinny? Ride, handling and traction are all superb.
 
#32 ·
This thread concerns me. I drove my 07 X3 with A/S in tons of snow from DC to New England, including last year's blizzard, with no problems whatsoever. The traction was perfect. If the X5 does not handle as well -- no real snow yet to speak of to test it out -- I'll be seriously disappointed.
 
#35 ·
its fine, like most said drive slow and you will be fine! But 6-7 days after snow and a toyota going 40 mph on a back road and my x5 spins out with my wheels enter that bit of snow in the shoulder feels unsafe.

Don't get me wrong, the car is quite epic and I feel that if I had snow tires it would be better. BUT I am not driving 2+ hours in the snow ever.......

My only complaint is we need a damn snow button on this car. Switch between elements..
 
#41 · (Edited)
Hey guys, the flame-o-meter is pegged tonight. Samsonitep may be a young guy, but he's hardly a newbie, and for the most part he seems like a pretty decent guy.

P, you need to realize that you are a statistical outlier here. Everyone who's flaming you has an X5, and none of them (nor I) have any trouble controlling ours in the snow. So something is wrong with your picture. It may be the tires, it may be the driver's experience or his exuberance, it may even be a bad sensor in the DSC that for some reason is not throwing a code, but it is not the engineering of the car.

The X5 does have a winter switch. It's located between the driver's ears. If you are getting borderline out of control, it's because you are driving too fast for the tires or the road conditions - if it was a common problem, you'd have a bunch of folks chiming in and saying "me too." There's a reason why that's not happening, and it's not (just) because ard forgot to take his happy pills today. (And Cdnrockies? Well he's a Canuck, so there's no telling why he's mad at the world. Maybe he ran out of Molsons, maybe he's p*ssed because there is no real football in Canada, or maybe he lost a curling match or suffered some other uniquely Canadian personal calamity today. But try and cut him some slack, because our good neighbors to the North are protecting us from rabid polar bears and rampaging bands of Inuit. They're mostly okay, even if they did send us Celine Dion).

The guys driving the X5M on the ski jump are fishtailing because it's FUN - you should go winter rallying or ice racing some time and you'll understand. (Or just do some big sloppy figure 8's in a parking lot tomorrow - then try and tell us you don't have a sh*t eating grin). And your inference that you don't need snow tires because you will never drive 2 hours in the snow makes absolutely zero sense. Most of my winter trips (ski racing venues excluded) are 30 minutes jaunts to the train station, supermarket, etc. and I wouldn't dream of driving any car in a New England winter without 4 wheel snows. (Well, maybe a rental - but it would have CDW).

Sounds like money is no object, so please: go out and buy yourself some snow tires and see what your X5 was designed to do in these conditions. I agree with ard and Cdnrockies onthat score.
 
#42 ·
(And Cdnrockies? Well he's a Canuck, so there's no telling why he's mad at the world. Maybe he ran out of Molsons, maybe he's p*ssed because there is no real football in Canada, or maybe he lost a curling match or suffered some other uniquely Canadian personal calamity today. But try and cut him some slack, because our good neighbors to the North are protecting us from rabid polar bears and rampaging bands of Inuit. They're mostly okay, even if they did send us Celine Dion).

Sounds like money is no object, so please: go out and buy yourself some snow tires and see what your X5 was designed to do in these conditions. I agree with ard and Cdnrockies onthat score.
:rofl:

No shortage of Molson's in my fridge my friend....and wtf are you talking about football. Playoff time baby! Only calamity today was waiting for the elk to cross the street so I could head to work...lol. :thumbup:

I'm not pissed off about anything. :mad: More amused that the X5 is a "challenge" to drive in the winter. It is very apparent that I could drive circles around several of these X5 drivers in my 400 hp, RWD F with it's winter set up....and yes it does get driven up here all winter. :D
 
#45 ·
"Sounds like money is no object, so please: go out and buy yourself some snow tires and see what your X5 was designed to do in these conditions."

Wouldn't getting a Range supercharged for the snow days be more fitting for this young Wall Street baller? Veyron at 22?! Damn, am I in the wrong business or in the wrong family or what!?
 
#46 ·
x5 got stuck :( out of commision.....Range Rover was stuck in the snow on ice.

Finally made it out and was fine on the roads. The plow made some bank into turns and I got stuck. Tried to get out in the x5 and it started smoking LOL (thought I was going to be on the news).

5 minutes later the fan is still cooling the engine down. Its CHAOS out there.

EVERYONE BE SAFE DON'T GO OUT!
 
#49 ·
Tires tires tires. If there's no grip, there's no special "snow mode" that can help you out... you're just out of luck. I've seen some roads around here get iced up, and AWD cars with chains on all 4 wheels couldn't get up the hill...

Can't believe somebody has A/S tires and complains about bad handling in a blizzard. Knowing how to drive sports cars is nothing like learning how to drive in the snow - anybody with even the tiniest bit of snow experience knows it's all about the tires.
 
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