<Rant mode on>

Well for the 3rd time in under a month my new VRS is stuck at home cause of the snow, the latest is only 1-2 inches of the stuff, it is quite frankly the worst car I have ever owned for driving in snow and ice and that includes 2 rear wheel drive BMW's!

Now I appreciate we don't necessaily get a hugh amount of snow but this year has seen the worst I've ever seen.

I'm seriously considering taking a financial hit and trying to get a Yeti Elegance TSI, I don't have a real need for the speed etc the VRS gives and think I'd be quite happy with the Yeti including the fact I may never get stranded in the future!

<\Rant mode off>

Save yourself the financial loss & hassle, just get some steel wheels with some decent winter tyres on.

Swap them over for the winter months and swap them back in spring.

Job done

ill be honest when it snowed in london it wasnt bad for me at all. i was driving all the time main roads side streets the lot, Only thing i had to do was get the car moving with the clutch then use the gas and to look far ahead for the breaking.

yes i have a vrs with summer tyres and they are ok(dunlop sports maxx) and it is a manual. Have you got a dsg?

Edited 2 February, 201016 yr by amity498

I have a FL vrs but have not had the same problems as you. . . . could you get to work?

I had a 3 series msport and that was bad, I didnt even bother leaving home. . but the octavia is ok.

Was wondering if its the tyres? are they arriving in the country with different branded tyres?

I agree, my vRS was **** poor in the snow, however I'm just looking for some cheap wheels for next winter if its going to do it again. Dont have to worry about sliding into curbs with steelies on

I have found that if you run at high tyre pressure the VRs is not so good in the snow, however I knocked the tyre pressure down to 28psi and I got alot better traction as opposed to 34psi. Just a comment, snow socks is what you need so I have read.

Just remember that in places like Europe they have separate summer and winter tyres/wheels.

Steel's and winter tyres would be an option but I could be swapping them every week depending on the weather, also I have nowhere to store the other wheels when not in use.

Steel's and winter tyres would be an option but I could be swapping them every week depending on the weather, also I have nowhere to store the other wheels when not in use.

Car does not have DSG but just spins front wheels and slides in anything resembling snow & ice, doesn't help my garage being on a slope either!

Edited 2 February, 201016 yr by nokiauk

Steel's and winter tyres would be an option but I could be swapping them every week depending on the weather, also I have nowhere to store the other wheels when not in use.

No you run the winter tyres from October to April not just for odd days. Can't help with your storage issue though!

Get some snow socks. A guy at work has some on his Seat Leon when it snows and it makes a big difference.

http://www.rockshore.uk.com/snow-socks-by-multi-grip-269-p.asp

Trying driving a 350bhp vRS in the snow... then you can have reason to complain!!

Trying driving a 350bhp vRS in the snow... then you can have reason to complain!!

Well I'm running 250bhp and thats enough, maybe thats the part of the problem.

Will look at the snow socks though.

There's a number of videos in relation to Snow Socks on powerfull cars, have a peeksie.

This isn't mean't to be a condescending reply but there is nothing wrong with your car!! I live in the Peak District and we have had alot of snow and I have not been stuck once this winter or any other for that matter. I travel up and down to Heathrow once/twice a week. As mentioned earlier winter tyres are used once the temp is below 7 C so I put snow tyres on from November through til March/April. I've done lots of off road work and I can catagorically say that tyres are everything!!! Doesn't matter about power/driven wheels/number of driven wheels etc its all about the tyres!! If you want to move then get some steel wheels and winter tyres and you never know if you have a friendly local tyre agent he might have a corner in the workshop that you can leave your nice alloy wheels with a chain and lock til the summer comes!!

I'm seriously considering taking a financial hit and trying to get a Yeti Elegance TSI, I don't have a real need for the speed etc the VRS gives and think I'd be quite happy with the Yeti including the fact I may never get stranded in the future!

You don't mean that!

Car does not have DSG but just spins front wheels and slides in anything resembling snow & ice, doesn't help my garage being on a slope either!

I haven't had much trouble with my new VRS yet compared with my previous Octy with a DSG gearbox (he says tempting fate, looking out the window to see about an inch of snow has fallen since I came home). I think the only times I've been stuck in snow were with the DSG box, mainly in car parks while others seemed to have little problem.

Did your last car have DSG, and is the VRS really worse than it?

Come May, when the snow as gone, you'll feel differently

Check this vid out:

This isn't mean't to be a condescending reply but there is nothing wrong with your car!! I live in the Peak District and we have had alot of snow and I have not been stuck once this winter or any other for that matter. I travel up and down to Heathrow once/twice a week. As mentioned earlier winter tyres are used once the temp is below 7 C so I put snow tyres on from November through til March/April. I've done lots of off road work and I can catagorically say that tyres are everything!!! Doesn't matter about power/driven wheels/number of driven wheels etc its all about the tyres!! If you want to move then get some steel wheels and winter tyres and you never know if you have a friendly local tyre agent he might have a corner in the workshop that you can leave your nice alloy wheels with a chain and lock til the summer comes!!

Totally agree. In Germany it's common practice. Not only do you not crash your car but you also save the alloys from very damaging salt/urine crystals. The only problem is that once you buy them the conditions of the last two winters will probably change back to the norm of snowing 2 or 3 days per year.

Also if you like driving your car in a spirited manner can I suggest you get full size winter tyres

I put some 205/55/16's on my car, couldn't stand it, went back to my normal tyres as soon as the snow went

Steel's and winter tyres would be an option but I could be swapping them every week depending on the weather, also I have nowhere to store the other wheels when not in use.

Just to endorse what everyone's said, it's not the car it's the tyres. Below 9 degrees your current tyres lose effectiveness. I have Nokian WR G2 tyres, most excellent

Well for the 3rd time in under a month my new VRS is stuck at home cause of the snow, the latest is only 1-2 inches of the stuff, it is quite frankly the worst car I have ever owned for driving in snow and ice and that includes 2 rear wheel drive BMW's!

Is the vRS worse than a regular Octavia? I'm not aware of my Octavia being any worse/better is snow/ice than my previous cars and slightly better in intermediate conditions. I do vary my routes and driving to suit, avoiding the steepest/narrowest/windblown routes and giving everything the soft touch.

I will be getting some snow tyres in October.

Maybe on 16" steel rims.

How much are steel wheels?

i have a Octy 2.0TDI with michelin primacy hp's on (all year round tyres) and drove in the snow every single day, only have one problem of getting stuck when i parked on a grass verge and couldnt get off it! On the roads though, not too many issues, slow progressive turning and acceleration was key, I made the big mistake of turning too quickly and she slid slightly...but drive sensibly and you should be fine!