I'm happy (and amazed) to say I've not seen too many people in 4WDs driving like idiots yet. My dad said someone in an Audi thought it wise to over the moving queue of traffic he was in though.

Got half way up that hill until some eejit in a BMW didn't fancy waiting at the top for me, I had to stop and there I was stuffed. Had to be towed up the hill :(

A 4x4 Merc thing did that to me and forced me to stop so he could pull into a gap in some parked cars (on his side of the road). Sadly for both of us, I don't have much acceleration from a standstill up a hill! (I got going though, but he didn't look too impressed with the length of wait I caused him - served him right!)

My old man had a Diane 6 (like a 2CV only prettier/uglier depending on which way you looked at it) back in the bad winter of 82? and that thing just never got stuck, it was running on 4 rubber bands though. Was also fairly impressive off road due to the suspension.

Early Jan '82 in South Wales was pretty bad. I was in Swansea and the school was shut for the week leading up to our mock O-Levels. Buses and cars were all struggling to get to the school - even had a milk float get stuck at the school entrance and all the bottles froze! If your dad was getting around then (some were, but not many) he was doing well!

I've been reading this with interest as we've had quite a bit of snow here in Scarborough this last week. I've been quite impressed by most people on the roads to be honest and have only seen a handful of drivers who shouldn't have started their journeys.

Needless to say my Rallye on 175 profile tyres (I'm on 14" steelies at the moment, not the 15" Speedlines) has been an absolute hoot on the snow and I've been lucky enough so far to make all my journeys with the minimum of fuss. If I fitted winter tyres next year I reckon it'd be even more amazing.

I took the hilly way home on Monday when all hell broke loose on the main roads and I figured it'd be nice and quiet. It was apart from a few 4x4 drivers who had the same thought. The only cars that made it up the hill I attempted were my little Peugeot, a short wheelbase defender and a Yeti (4x4 by the looks of it). The other 4x4 drivers were turning back and were quite surprised to see me chug away up the hill with a big grin on my face.

I love driving in snow and always go out in it to see how my car behaves to a local disused coach park. It's curb free, absloutely huge and even has an incline that steepens towards the top, so there's plenty of opportunity to practice snowy hill starts.

The Octavia vRS was great last year too as it was on winters, well worth the money. As karlbar2k said, the 195 profile makes a difference but they'll never match the 135 tyres I had on my Mk1 Panda. That never got stuck and I've got a whole load of snow related tales about that little car. I won't bore you with them now though.

Early Jan '82 in South Wales was pretty bad. I was in Swansea and the school was shut for the week leading up to our mock O-Levels. Buses and cars were all struggling to get to the school - even had a milk float get stuck at the school entrance and all the bottles froze! If your dad was getting around then (some were, but not many) he was doing well!

I lived up in Craig Cefn Parc on the mountain above Clydach so you can imagine how much we had.

As karlbar2k said, the 195 profile makes a difference but they'll never match the 135 tyres I had on my Mk1 Panda. That never got stuck and I've got a whole load of snow related tales about that little car. I won't bore you with them now though.

Had a drive of one of the old panda 4x4's a long time ago and that thing would go places that most range rover drivers wouldn't dare

SWBOS A2 hasn't had any problems with the snow (apart from she won't drive in it!) but it is nowhere near as good as my octy so now I am looking at replacing it with either a yeti or rx350 as from personal experience taking out snow drivability the biggest thing with the 4x4 is stability in the wet is greatly improved, far less drama when you hit standing water on the motorway.

Funniest thing I have seen in the current conditions has to be the BMW's. Polish guy on my street with a new 320d turned into the road and got stuck straight away, right in front of my drive. Had to give him a push to get the octy out to take SWMBO to work. But we had to dig him back out to the main road as it just slid on the camber to the kerb and got stuck. The octy just handled like the snow wasn't even there. As the day went on and it got compacted and a bit slushy I did have to be more careful but on the powder it was great. 4x4 is great for increased traction to get going but also invaluable when combined with winters for changing direction, correcting slides and the winters make the biggest difference when stopping! For that alone I recommend every one should wear winter rubber.

I drive a 4x4 winter tyres - I'm invincible!

... the old panda 4x4's a long time ago ...

Swiss post office use these

Use the new ones too

They're so light they bounce over stuff heavy 4x4's bog down in

yeti or rx350

yeti

Plotting to replace the family Forester with a Yeti

Few years ago when we had about 8 inches overnight cars tried to get up the hill but couldn't get far.

Cue idiot in a 4x4 go screaming past, get 1/2 way up, get stuck then chew up the road as he slid all the way back down to applause.

Now maybe that's something we should praise politicians for - this time round I haven't seen many 4x4 around, and certainly less "shine" on roads .But I was followed by a Golf this morning.I took bend with no problems ,putting a little distance between us .I put even more after he nearly sideslipped down the road . Or was it that mine is a DIESEL,and this was a GTI forgetting that it's torque and the application that counts, not grunt .

Nuneaton,

is that the Nuneaton not far from Birmingham Heartlands Hospital were they had to put out a request for 4x4's to get Staff into work?

(I believe they got a great response as well.)

http://www.bbc.co.uk...ingham-21108138

Torque has no more to do with getting about in slippy surfaces than diesel does.

(can be more of a hinderence than a help, there is no rules as to what can do what.)

Application??

Lack of torque or power and suitable tyres can be just fine,

weight is the killer with gravity just as it is when traction is lost and you have that loss of control,

and then,

drivers not playing games with each other, as who can cope with the conditions helps the innocent to stay safer IMHO.

** By that, i mean drivers playing silly barstewards on the public highway.**

george

EG

65ps & 99 Nm Max Torque will get along just as well possibly in the same way as those old cars always did.

'No Traction' equals no Action of a good kind.

Quattro even makes up for lack of visibility too!

Quattro even makes up for lack of visibility too!

I hope this muppet loses his license over this! I though I'd seen some morons leaving snow over lights and roof (although I didn't completly clear mine as it froze too hard)

I hope this muppet loses his license over this! I though I'd seen some morons leaving snow over lights and roof (although I didn't completly clear mine as it froze too hard)

http://www.itv.com/news/central/update/2013-01-19/outrage-as-driver-takes-to-motorway-with-just-six-inch-hole-to-see-through-snow/

Seems like nothing's coming his way.

Merc ML driver... FAIL!

I guess your Blackvue chose a bad moment to start a new file. Either that or Mercs now have teleporters

That Audi is shocking. He should receive a ban for that recklessness.

Or, in video format

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcHNQXB-EqQ

Mate's TT Supra, considering the wide rear wheels and the power handles rather well in the Snow, then again it does have a dedicated SNOW mode button for the traction control and when coupled with the LSD I'd assume that would help out and work wonders

Pixelating the front number plate, forgetting the rear number plate.

FAIL!

So SN57 VHL it's official...

You are a massive d1ck!

Are army trucks 4x4? From today's trip up to the Cheviots

Skoda 1, Army Truck 0 by ritcheyp20, on Flickr

I guess your Blackvue chose a bad moment to start a new file. Either that or Mercs now have teleporters

Would have overlapped if anything.

Shame the editing or whatever removed the best part...

Are army trucks 4x4?

Yes, when engaged

no winter tyres though

It gets worse!

At least Audi man had 'cleared' his side of the screen

no winter tyres though

Do you know if buses/lorrys/HGVs have winter tyres fitted, or is it generally something they don't bother with?

Do you know if buses/lorrys/HGVs have winter tyres fitted, or is it generally something they don't bother with?

Haven't you seen those video clips of buses sliding sideways down hills ?

Even in the Alps most buses don't get them, the bus driver has to fit snow-chains - which makes them very very happy

Nope, clearly not!