| Lietuviai |
We took our MDX out for the first time in some light snow and found it to handle very poorly going up a slight incline. It still has the stock tires with under 3000 miles.
We even tried the VTM and it made no difference. Our main decision for this vehicle was its safety features and supposed handling and tracking capabilities. We replaced a 99 Tahoe with this vehicle which handled far better with less aggressive tires. I am beginning to regret our decision. Any chance upgrading to studded snow tires will help? My 05 Civic has them and I feel does a far superior job driving in snow than the MDX. |
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| KES |
The AWD system will just get you going. It is all about the tires.
If you have Goodyear Integrities on your MDX they are terrible in the snow. I have no idea why Acura puts them on - perhaps to get better mileage. My first snow experience I did a 180 pulling out of my parking space at work with the stock tires (integrities).
I now have snow tires on separate rims. I figure over the life of the MDX I am going to own several sets of tires. Therefore I might as well make one set a set of snow tires. Plus one minor slide into something will cost me my $500 deductible so I might as well put this $$ into snow tires.
Both the rubber compound and tread patter of snow tires give them an advantage over all season tires. Just check out Consumer Reports. Depending on where you live it is worth the investment.
So your MDX is fine (AWH etc) it really is just the tires. |
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| Lietuviai |
The stock tires are Michelin Cross country. What gets me is they have a M+S rating on them which I think they are worthless for either one.
I had a few scary moments while driving. There were times I momentarily lost control. |
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| G. COLTON |
As already noted: snow, ice, wet roads, mud, etc. handling is all about tires. The AWD certainly helps, but if you do not have tires that will provide traction there is nothing that will be good.
G |
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| JeffK |
WOW
I have driving in New England snow since the mid '60's and I have never driven a car that handles better than my '03 or '06 MDX with stock GY Integrity tires!
I have never gotten stuck. On more than one occassion I have driven from Long Island to Vermont in blizzard conditions - with 12 to 18 inches on the road. The only vehicles out were me and the plows and my MDX got me through.
If the road is open, my MDX has gotten me through!
I learned to drive in Syracuse with a 1966 rear drive Hi-Performance Ford Mustang GT convertible. Only got stuck once!
You really have to work hard to make your MDX spin out or do a 180 - except on ice where all bets are off.
When each of my children learned to drive, with the first snow fall I took them to our church parking lot. I demonstrated how to drift a car in the snow, how to correct a drift and then how to induce a spin and then correct it.
At first my daughter would only go 2 mph (she would not put her foot on the gas). Gradually she got up to 5 then 10 the 20 miles per hour. Within 30 minutes she learned to drift the car, correct the drift, etc.
I did the same with my son who went to college in New Hampshire.
Happy to report neither my son nor daughter ever got stuck in the snow.
Perhaps a little practice in a parking lot with a seasoned snow driver is all you need?
JeffK |
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| Lietuviai |
I've had a drivers license over 25 years and have easily driven over 1 million miles in the duration. I feel I am well experienced. I must admit this is the 1st AWD vehicle I have owned, the others were 4X4's with part time systems. All were trucks or truck derived vehicles and none behaved as poorly or unpredictably as this MDX. The Tahoe with stock well worn Firestone tires handled and managed snow covered roads many times worse way better than what I attempted the other day. Luckily I still have my '77 GMC. I drove it out its parking spot surrounded by snow over its axles without even needing to dig it out or clear the snow in front of it.
I'll give the MDX a chance by getting some good traction tires. If that doesn't help, I'll be posting it on Craigslist. |
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| JeffK |
You will note that my other car is an AWD 2007 Saab. It is rear wheel/AWD. When it loses traction, the rear wheels break lose, traction control sets in and power is transferred to the front wheels.
The MDX is front wheel/AWD. When the front wheels lose traction, traction control steps in and power is diverted to the rear wheels.
There is no fish tailing or loss of direction - just momentary lose of traction.
With a front wheel/AWD car as you lose traction, you must keep applying gas pressure. The opposite is true in a rear wheel/AWD car.
Again, best car I have had in deep snow bar none including the 2007 Saab, 205 GMC Envoy (four wheel drive) or the Trailblazer.
The two Audi were both front wheel/AWD and equal to the MDX up to a point. Having less ground clearance, the Audi's were not as good as the MDX in deep snow.
JeffK |
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| Lietuviai |
| It felt as if the front wheels lost control, much like a RWD. I found it difficult to steer on turns, especially sharper ones. |
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| JeffK |
Trust me: Just give it gas and the MDX will pull you through the turns.
Do not get off the gas. When you do that, weight is sent to the rear, the rear wheels take over, they spin and there you are - sideways!
Again, front wheel is different than rear wheel and it takes a bit of confidence getting used to the "pull" rather than the "push" of rear wheel drive.
But once you get used to it, you will never want to go back to rear wheel bias in the snow!
Jeff |
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| Lietuviai |
quote:
Originally posted by JeffK
Trust me: Just give it gas and the MDX will pull you through the turns.
Do not get off the gas. When you do that, weight is sent to the rear, the rear wheels take over, they spin and there you are - sideways!
Again, front wheel is different than rear wheel and it takes a bit of confidence getting used to the "pull" rather than the "push" of rear wheel drive.
But once you get used to it, you will never want to go back to rear wheel bias in the snow!
Jeff
Yes I had been letting off the gas. Maybe that's the problem but my instinct is to let off the gas when I find I losing control. I've had no problems with the Civic under the same conditions which is why the MDX surprised me. |
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| G. COLTON |
quote:
Originally posted by Lietuviai
I've had a drivers license over 25 years and have easily driven over 1 million miles in the duration. I feel I am well experienced. I must admit this is the 1st AWD vehicle I have owned, the others were 4X4's with part time systems. All were trucks or truck derived vehicles and none behaved as poorly or unpredictably as this MDX. The Tahoe with stock well worn Firestone tires handled and managed snow covered roads many times worse way better than what I attempted the other day. Luckily I still have my '77 GMC. I drove it out its parking spot surrounded by snow over its axles without even needing to dig it out or clear the snow in front of it.
I'll give the MDX a chance by getting some good traction tires. If that doesn't help, I'll be posting it on Craigslist.
Over 40,000 miles per year is a lot of driving. What kind of work do you do for a living?
G |
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| KES |
| Another thought on your experience is the snow itself. I have had some experiences where the snow was a combination of snow/ice/freezing rain, about an inch deep and as slick as ice. Even with snow tires it was very slick. On the other hand I have driven in 12 inches of powder with no problem. Every snow storm is different and presents its own challenges. |
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| proman |
Hi guys,
Happy holidays!! Great site! I am so glad I found it.
I would like to share my experience with you.
I drove my 03 MDX in heavy snow last year one night coming home from a ski trip. The highway goes thru mountains. The road was covered by at least 3" of snow and I could hardly see where the road/lanes are. But the MDX ran like a rabbit. Rarely slip and it handled so precisely and the ride was so smooth and so quiet. I kept passing vehicles/trucks slipping around, struggling in the snow. And I even didn't turn on the VTM-4 lock.
My wife was so amazed with how well the MDX handles the snow. We expected it may took 4 hours to get home for an under 1 hour travel distance, but it took only a little over 1 hour and we got back home safely and the kids were sleeping in the back seats without any disturbance. I wouldn't say that I drove high speed in the snow, but my average speed was at least 50 mph.
My thoughts are:
1. Tire is important. I had stock tires (Michelin CT).
2. How you drive also matters. The way you drive changes with speed and road condition.
3. Of course the most important, MDX is a good car. Especially the traction control. I can't complain. |
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| Lietuviai |
quote:
Originally posted by G. COLTON
Over 40,000 miles per year is a lot of driving. What kind of work do you do for a living?
G
I used to work as an engineering consultant which required lots of trips to various construction projects. It wasn't unusual to travel over 2000 miles in one week which often included some weekends. I also enjoyed extensive road trips for leisure as I hate to fly.
I used to enjoy driving. My averages are now less than 20K per year. |
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| jhue |
quote:
Originally posted by KES
Another thought on your experience is the snow itself. I have had some experiences where the snow was a combination of snow/ice/freezing rain, about an inch deep and as slick as ice. Even with snow tires it was very slick. On the other hand I have driven in 12 inches of powder with no problem. Every snow storm is different and presents its own challenges.
Very true, and this point is missed by many people. In other online auto forums I see posts all the time like "My XYZ is the best car I've ever driven in the snow!!!" followed by "My XYZ is the worst car I've ever driven in the snow!!!". It escapes people that since the car (and if new, the tires) are the common element, and what's different is what people are calling "snow". |
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| JimH |
My 02' MDX w/ Michelin Cross-Terrain handles fine in the snow.
Have no problems in snow conditions as long as the tires have greater than 1/2 of tread life. |
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| Lietuviai |
| The snow I drove in was fresh powder that was only a few inches thick. No ice in the mix. |
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