I spent the last 9 Canadian winters with a RWD Coupe - here's my thoughts on whether that is a good experience

Depends. Some places are so cold that salt doesn't work, so they use sand instead. If you live in Winnipeg or Edmonton, your car is less likely to rust. Needless to say there aren't many creepy crawlies in Edmonton.

But yeah I live in Southern Ontario which is salt central. I lost my first car (2000 Suzuki Esteem) to rust. After that I learned my lesson and now I just get the car sprayed with rustproofing oil (Krown is my preferred brand) before every winter. Never had an issue since.

Also there are some cars that just don't need rustproofing because they don't seem to rust. For example, I bought my XC70 off my mom, who owned it for nearly 11 years and never rustproofed it once. The car was lucky to get a wash every month. When I took over ownership, it only had negligible surface rust on the undercarriage. And an application of Krown will stop that dead in its tracks, shit's like Stage 0 skin cancer that you get taken care of by the dermatologist. My parents previously owned Saabs and even after 15+ years they didn't really rust either, maybe Stage I metal melanoma. But my Suzuki was like a Stage 7, it had holes in the floor when I scrapped it. If everyone made their cars solid like the Swedes, instead of the shitty thin sheet metal with shitty paint that we get from Japan and Detroit, then far fewer people would need to worry about rust.

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Das-Wauto@reddit

Winter can get tiresome but a nice blanket of fresh snow to keep the fuckwits off the road and turning off the traction control off is utter driving bliss for me. You can slide at low speeds and it’s great for learning car control and how your vehicle behaves when it does slide. I absolutely love it.

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Malbjey@reddit

I had a Camaro as well. Had Blizzak winter tires on it.

It generally did fine in the snow but struggled going uphill sometimes. I'm in Pittsburgh and we have A LOT of hills. I always carried a small/collapsible shovel in my trunk in case I needed to dig myself out.

I've heard many people advise keeping 70lbs sandbag(s) in the trunk to give additional weight of the rear wheels, as it will help with traction. I never got around to doing that but I would have if I kept the car.

Also, many people advised keeping a bag of kitty litter in the trunk as you could spread it on the snow/ice your tires are slipping under to help get unstuck.

I ended up getting an AWD Kia Stinger which I absolutely love. But I'm gonna be really tempted by the new Camaro if it ends up having 4 doors, as rumored. I know that's sacrilege but my main reason for trading in the my Camaro was how impractical it was. The trunk opening was garbage and the backseat legroom was for people with no legs.

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NaBr0@reddit

Also am in Pittsburgh and with how many muscle cars I see around, I'm curious how these people fare in the winter unless they have a more dedicated winter car. Were you struggling only on the like steeper hills? Not talking like Rialto St.

Asking because I was thinking about getting a RWD v8 to replace my GR Corolla some day, so this topic has popped into my head recently, but I enjoy the GRC in the winter so much with Blizzaks. Wasn't sure how a RWD v8 would fare with Blizzaks though.

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Malbjey@reddit

My Camaro was only the V6, so it wasn't putting that much power to the ground as a V8. But honestly I think a lot of people with RWD cars just stay home until the roads are plowed.

I have to drive up a moderately steep hill to get to my street. Not as steep as Rialto, but maybe 60% as steep? That's the hill I would sometimes struggle with in the Camaro. I had a Mazda 6 before that, which was FWD with high performance all seasons, and even that car struggled too at times.

The streets I take to get home are narrow 2 ways, where one car often has to pull over to allow an incoming car to pass. That can be a huge PITA if you are the car pulling over because you end leaving the tire tracts that were dug out by previous traffic and end up in some snow that has accumulated on the sides. That's where a car (especially RWD) can struggle.

With that being said, I still sometimes entertain getting a RWD car again, but you should absolutely keep a shovel in the trunk. I would suggest keeping sand bag(s) in the trunk as well for the added weight, and possibility of using the sand in case digging you out doesn't help with traction.

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MassMindRape@reddit

Weight in the trunk will make you spin easily in my experience. I drove an e30 with a limited slip for years and never got stuck, it's mostly about tires and ground clearance.

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tmandell@reddit

Its that LSD that makes you spin. Open diff in the winter ter is far more stable.

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Das-Wauto@reddit

False, LSD is far more effective and consistent at getting power down. With an open diff (like my truck, even with Blizzaks) the wheel with the least traction gets the power and spins up and fumbles uselessly. The LSD in my BRZ is far better on loose surfaces - it can put more power down before both wheels spin and it is more predictable when it does break loose as individual wheels aren’t losing and gaining traction constantly. The lack of an LSD is my biggest gripe with my Ranger and the brake based approximation it uses instead blows chunks.

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tmandell@reddit

If you say so, I have found the exact opposite, LSD causes both wheels to loose it at the same time meaning zero lateral grip. Any slight hill, or lateral acceleration loosing both wheels at the same time will cause the back to step out or spin if you cant catch it. I do agree completely that an LSD will put more power down, but when you do loose grip you loose far more grip. Also im not talking loose surfaces, my winters are more ice then they are snow, the snow packs down and becomes slick as can be, I would never even consider Blizzacks here, Studded Nokian Hakkas are the only way to go.

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Das-Wauto@reddit

Off-throttle you do have a point that an LSD could cause a loss of traction because of the wheels being at least partially (depending on the type of LSD) forced to rotate together. I guess my frustration mostly stems from my truck’s absolute inability to put power down effectively, even with added weight in the bed and good tires. I do find that bit of rear “locking” effect that can be caused by an LSD under braking a fun way to initiate a slide on the way into a corner. I guess for most folks that’s not really the way they might think about it.

I’ve never tried studded tires - I’d like to but they’re not technically legal where I live because they damage the pavement, which tends to get exposed reasonably quickly with the amount of salt and plowing that happens here. I think they become legal about an hour north of me (northern Ontario proper) and I see, or hear, rather, studded tires here sometimes when folks from there are around.

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tmandell@reddit

See winter is totally relevant to where you are. Im North of 57deg, so its totally different then Southern Ontario. I was frustrated by my old 2WD chevy, I lot count, I think my record for getting stuck is over 10 times in a single day, with most needing a yank to get me out. That was with 1200 lbs of sand and the best load rated winter tires I could find at the time. I put a selectable locker in, and that helps, but boy can you go sideways easy, like im talking less then walking speed to get into a parking stall, and the back end can walk 3 feet sideways before you can react. I still have the truck, its finally fairly good in the winter but that took studded tires and a 2800lb slide in camper to get me there.

There is no universal answer for winter driving, for some winter driving is rain with a bit of sleet, others is lake effect snow that is heavy, and wet. Mine is 4 months that make the frozen hell hole of Hoth sound like a beach vacation. Thats why to me studded tires and 4x4, or preferably AWD is mandatory. Another mandatory is a remote starter, unfortunately you cant get a factory one in a WRX with a 6MT. I also did not want to butcher up the electrical system on a brand new car to install a janky aftermarket one. So instead I hacked up the cooling system and fuel tank and installed a 5KW coolent pre-heater. I dont want to say I have the worst winters arround, but the population that is worse is quite small compared to the global car market.

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BuntaFurrballwara@reddit

I also drove an E30 for many years in the UP of Michigan. You speak truth. I will add that weight distribution that doesn’t put most of the weight over the undriven wheels helps a lot and eliminates the perceived advantage of the weight in the trunk. I personally have switched to a WRX for the extra stability at highway speed now that I commute on interstate but RWD with an LSD is no problem, esp. with modern stability control systems.

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8N-QTTRO@reddit

It's really important to specify a few things:

What is your definition of "stuck"? Is it simply going off the road, or something more drastic? Because in my mind, you aren't stuck if you can "rock myself out with the traction control off" - you just went off the road, which is an entirely different thing.
What kind of winters do you have, and are you going out before the roads are plowed? This is likely the most important aspect to most people, since driving during the winter vs. driving on snow are very different things.
When you say the "biggest problem" is fishtailing, do you mean you fishtail frequently, or that you are consistently worried about fishtailing? "Getting squirrely" is about as vague of a descriptor as you can provide, and since you don't admit to actually hitting any cars or walls, we can only guess.

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fastlax16@reddit

And this is why I drive a golf r and not an m2.

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mr_lab_rat@reddit

M2 is fine thanks to the LSD. The ground clearance is similar to the R and that becomes the problem before traction.

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Wassy4444@reddit

You drive yours lowered too right? I’m about to move to Colorado and debating raising my ride height back to stock. I’m just over an inch lower than stock. Just decided to keep mine to drive year-round instead of getting some practical AWD SUV or 4x4 Truck and being stuck with a boring vehicle for the 300+ other days it’s not snowing.

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mr_lab_rat@reddit

Yes, I’m lowered. Probably about an inch. But I’m in Pacific North West so our winters are very mild. I’m not sure if I could get away with it in Colorado.

245/45/18 Blizzaks square setup.

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Wassy4444@reddit

From everything I’ve read it’s fine as long as you don’t go into mountains but I’ve seen someone post a pic of them in the mountains with their M2C in dead of winter. Colorado gets much more snow than the PNW but it melts fast cause of the sunshine. I guess I’ll try it and report back.

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fastlax16@reddit

I mean keep telling yourself than but an LSD isn’t a substitute for AWD. Need more than 2 wheels when you’re on a sheet of ice, well before clearance is the issue. Former neighbor got stuck backing his m2 out of his garage a few winters ago.

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mr_lab_rat@reddit

You are right, AWD is always better. I just found it funny that you picked on M2 which is one of the better RWD cars for winter thanks to good weight distribution and really smart LSD.

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fastlax16@reddit

I wasn’t picking on it randomly. I genuinely want one, and have wanted one since they were released, but it’s still not something I’m comfortable relying on throughout a Chicago winter.

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Rob_af_a@reddit

Well with the x drive M2 coming out you might be able to lol

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fastlax16@reddit

Tempting but my R is paid off and at the rate I currently drive will hit 100,000 miles in about 30 years. It’s gonna be with me for a long long time.

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Rob_af_a@reddit

No car note is the best feeling. The R is certainly a special car too, I had a mk7 before my M2

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fastlax16@reddit

Paid cash for the R and we just made the last payment on my wife’s car last month. First time I’ve been car payment free since I lived in NYC and didn’t own one back in 2012. It’s such a nice feeling.

So naturally we’re closing on a new house next week because why get too comfortable.

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Rob_af_a@reddit

It’s a never ending cycle. Always something else

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tmandell@reddit

Also why I drive a WRX. Use to daily a 2WD Chevy 2500, 10 years of that in Canadian winters pushed 4x4 or AWD to the very tippy top of the must have list for a year round daily. Have a cheap NB Miata for summertime fun.

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Midgetsdontfloat@reddit

Yeah exactly. The AWD hot/super economy car type is an unbelievable amount of fun in the snow with good winter tires.

A friend let me hoon his Focus RS for a bit in the winter and it convinced me to buy a Golf R, which I then spent a lot of time hooning with a friend that owns a GR Corolla. Literally the most fun I have ever had behind the wheel of a vehicle.

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fastlax16@reddit

I've almost always got one of my young kids in the car with me so hooning rarely happens anymore, but getting stuck even once in Chicago winter with a 4 or 2 year old isn't really an option.

I took my last one on a frozen lake and had a blast though.

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Temporary-Art-7078@reddit

Good write up. Years ago my wife and I daily’d a 5.0 mustang in Anchorage, in the winter. Our experience mirrored yours.

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TreeFittyy@reddit

I've been doing the same for 7 years now also in Canada (Alberta)

6 speed with an open diff unfortunately but studded tires made the world of difference. Once you get comfortable with the over steer I find it much easier to correct for than driving a understeery FWD car.

Can't speak for AWD given the many different manufacturer implementations as well as never having driven one for a full winter but slowly drifting around backroads after a snow storm will never not be fun in a RWD car.

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Trail-Hound@reddit

I did 6 south-eastern Ontario winters with an RX-8, your experience tracks pretty close to mine. Some days were really fun, other days when the weather would take an unexpected turn while I was at work I'd stress about the drive home and getting stuck at slightly uphill intersections. I use to carry around some folding metal cleats in my trunk to put under my rear tires if I got stuck, they got me out of a jam a few times. Not an issue anymore with my Jeep, now I look forward to bad weather and ripping around in 4WD.

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MadUohh@reddit

What the hell? I read this story before. Bot?

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Uptons_BJs@reddit (OP)

I told this story on this sub before LOL, I've been posting here a decade.....

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raisingAnarchy@reddit

I got humbled last winter in Ohio. Thought I was gtg with blizzaks, but no weight in the trunk. Whoops

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Gorgenapper@reddit

But overall, a RWD coupe isn't that bad in the Canadian winter, I did it 9 years in a row! Would something AWD or FWD have been better? Maybe, but if you really want something RWD, I wouldn't say it is unsurvivable, even as an only car.

My IS350 is RWD-based with full-time AWD (30% front, 70% rear), and I put winter wheels + tires on. This past winter, as you know, has been pretty hard and the Lexus went through it like a champ. It didn't get stuck at any time, even going uphill and stopping halfway on a half icy patch of road. On top of all of that, it still has enough of a rear-drive feel to it.

After reading your story above and especially the bits about being stuck, this is basically the sole reason why I went with the 350 AWD instead of the 500.

As for me, I just got myself something AWD instead. I figured if I do 70% of my driving in the winter, and I'm on my motorcycle so much in summer, I might as well get something all wheel drive to make it slightly easier.

What did you end up getting?

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sl0wjim@reddit

Good snow tires > AWD. I daily drove a Mustang in Ohio year round. Snow tires in the winter made it more capable than my wife's CR-V.

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Volasko@reddit

"The gentleman kindly came out and helped me out, and he gave me his business card saying "I sell Subarus, why don't you switch to a WRX and don't embarrass yourself again?"

This sounds like a great commercial idea! Ha love it. I DD'd a RWD BMW E90 and with good winters its a non-issue. Send it brother!

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dont_ama_73@reddit

Just wanted to say thats a great car!

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franzn@reddit

Wintered an ND Miata for a few winters in Colorado. Admittedly we have fairly dry winters if you aren't in the mountains but with good tires it was a pretty good winter car. Would definitely do it again except our traction laws in the mountains are much friendlier to awd cars and I just needed more room.

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slwrthnu_again@reddit

Dailied a 90 miata for 5 years in New York, and snowboarded a lot during that time, 90% of the time in Vermont. Drove there once in a blizzard that dropped 3 feet of snow. Was such a fun and good winter car. Only option on the car was the factory lsd which somehow still worked (I owned it from 2010 to 2016). All I ever did was throw snow tires on it. Had a hardtop for winter with a roof rack on it.

Currently have a year old cx5, and we had one of the best winters in years in New York this year, it made me miss rwd so much.

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willard_saf@reddit

Really amazed the factory lsd worked still because they were viscous lsds from 90-93 and those aren't exactly the best.

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_pcakes@reddit

Same but NA miata in colorado. With snow tires I felt unstoppable

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Blasted-Banana@reddit

It's comments like these that just affirm my desires to have a Miata as my only car in Iowa

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slwrthnu_again@reddit

As someone else that just replied about daily driving Miatas through winter, do it.

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clearcoat_ben@reddit

Dailying an ND in Metro Detroit for 7 years without issue.

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DaftPancake@reddit

I did it for a couple years in Iowa. Winter tires area a must but the 50-50 weight distribution helps it be easier to control on the snow. Mine had a limited slip diff which made it even better instead of open diff 1-wheel drive in the snow.

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fcwolfey@reddit

I daily an FR-S in Minnesota. With narrower than stock snow tires i haven’t gotten stuck yet. Do it

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Cyndagon@reddit

My ND2 was great with winter tires. Ton of fun when I wanted it to be, drove through snow and ice in both Nebraska and New York.

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the_mouse_backwards@reddit

Miata is also really good at being neutral when it does lose traction compared to most RWD cars. Every time I lost traction in my NA I was able to ease off the throttle and get control back really easily.

The single time I thought I didn’t need 4WD in my 4Runner I spun out before I even realized I had lost traction hitting some black ice in the middle of a 3 lane road in rush hour. How I didn’t get in an accident I have no idea but I had to take a bit of a break and wait for my hands to stop shaking after that.

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lemonylol@reddit

A lot of people do in Canada. Honestly, I think the thinner wheels help, just not the ground clearance. But honestly if you're in a major metro area in Canada the roads will be plowed, you have may one or two days of a major snowstorm, but that's a problem with any car.

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HelperMunkee@reddit

Pretty much anyone older than 40 has done more without any choice. Also it was uphill both ways.

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costafilh0@reddit

You need another 9 winters with AWD before giving a balanced opinion.

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Yotsubato@reddit

Yup. Getting stuck 5 times a year is crazy work.

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kyonkun_denwa@reddit

I used to drive a RWD Lexus IS and literally never got stuck in the snow. I'm not sure what OP is doing, whether it's him doing something wrong or somehow the Camaro is shittier in the snow than the Lexus was.

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tmandell@reddit

940 has weight on the rear end. That alone is a game changer.

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pr1ntscreen@reddit

It really doesn't. It's very common for people to put sand bags in the trunk here in sweden to get some traction

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craichead@reddit

Also consciously choosing RWD for a winter car (not a year round car) is just foolish.

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Camburglar13@reddit

I did five in a Pontiac G8 (similar platform to the Camaro) and 9 in a WRX. AWD is vastly better.

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lemonylol@reddit

I've driven a pretty equal time on each, maybe like 5 years per. FWD is the only one I ever got stuck on. Wiggles my way back out but I didn't have that problem with my RWD Charger with winter tires. Just having snow tires or all weather tires is the major difference, driving on snowy roads is not big deal, driving in a snowstorm is.

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DJDrZoidBerg@reddit

I drove an LS430 for 5 winters in Ontario and I didn't even pay attention to the fact that it was RWD. With a good set of tires and being smart about where and how you drive makes all the difference.

Does my 2012 Rav4 with AWD and the same set of winters demolish it in the winter? Yes of course, but I've never gotten stuck in either car and went to all of the same places!

RWD is absolutely doable in all but the harshest conditions, it's just AWD or an SUV with AWD/4WD will make conditions even easier to deal with!

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ayyitzTwocatZ@reddit

Idk man. I’ve only been “stuck” once and that only because no one let me merge over in time and I hit the same ice patch that a Tesla was stuck in just before. Just like the Tesla, with a little rocking I got out. Tbh though I feel like if I just kept my speed I could’ve just kept going.

With snow/wet mode + winters, these cars don’t really care. Also helps on the fishtailing as it lowers throttle response.

My only issue is I got 2nd hand winters where the guy put them on a staggered set. So I’m just trying to wear them out so I can swap them to my squared set and put summers on the staggered.

Overall going through winter it felt the same as my Mazda3 fwd.

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MasterpieceStill9991@reddit

Getting stuck 5 times a winter and still calling it not that bad is peak car enthusiast energy. Respect.

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autobauss@reddit

I got stuck once while climbing mere uphill with brand the new winter tires and sold lc500 the next month. Never again.

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No-Locksmith-9330@reddit

Also that’s definitely driver error, I do not get stuck multiple times per year driving my RWD in winter.

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TonyVstar@reddit

I have never gotten stuck in my mazda 3 in 140,000 km living near calgary. I have winter tires which make a huge difference, but 5 times a year in winter tires is unacceptable to me, let alone the obvious safety issues of fishtailing

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Spartan57975@reddit

Seriously. I have zero patience for getting stuck in snow/on ice so I refuse to drive anything but a 4x4

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Vmaxed_T7@reddit

Winnipeg here. My winter vehicle is a motorcycle.

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thisisjustascreename@reddit

Subaru sales guy giving his card to a stuck ponycar driver is nice.

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aceogorion1@reddit

In my couple decades of driving all kinds, with rwd being my standard daily in Revy winters, there's two often unmentioned things that really contribute to how workable rwd is:

Weight, when you get down into the 2400ish lbs weight, you can get through more depth of snow as you'll start to compress the snowpack less, this feeds into the second.
Total ground coverage, if the car has a small total area, there's less total drag once the belly is touching the snow.

These two factors together can allow you to push through snow that other rwd cars with similar ground clearance get hung up on.

Now I've always trended towards narrow tires in winter as well, as they've historically helped compress the snow to improve traction. However, Tyre reviews has pointed out over the last few tests that modern compounds do very well even in wide widths, which makes me think it might be possible to get a balance of flotation and mass. Maybe when my current set dies I'll try some wides.

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Kashtin@reddit

Literally, it's as simple as winter tires.

I drove a rwd manual 315hp-ish Coupe in northern Alberta winters. I'd honestly take that over FWD. AWD with winters is obviously the best, but the tires will make the difference.

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Ornery_Bison6717@reddit

Rwd drive on snow tires is a great time. When I was in hs my dad had a Lincoln ls v6 manual drove it yesr round in Michigan. It was very manageable but fun. Then went to a new gto and did the same but I wasn't allowed to drive the gto. The ground clearance was the only issue. I also delivered pizzas in blizzards here in a svt focus on 200tw tires. It was OK never crashed or got stuck. Well maybe walked a few steep driveways

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Significant-Pen-6049@reddit

Would never drive a rwd winter in wi

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virqthe@reddit

It's insane to me that people of USA drive their cars on all seasons in the snow. (And then post photos of their car crashed in a ditch)

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SmallPeederWacker@reddit

Yea it was do able for me till it wasn’t. One winter some black ice in Chicago got me!!

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PretendLength1710@reddit

subaru guy handing out business cards is wild lmao

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Michelanvalo@reddit

15 years with RWD in Massachusetts, about the same weather as Southern Ontario. The first few winters I used all Seasons and it was rough. I had to be pushed a few times. But for the past decade or so I just swap between summer and winter tires and it's totally fine. Never get stuck, never worry about it.

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PurpleSausage77@reddit

I’m never going back to FWD.

I’ve probably put on 100k km in 4x4 work trucks and would keep it in RWD most of the time.

I had a Grand Marquis and it was garbage even with Hankook winter tires. I didn’t put weight in the back because F that, but if it was bad enough I would. Open diff and an awful weight distribution especially the emptier the gas tank. With the fuel economy in that thing I should’ve just daily drove a 5.3 V8 4x4 Chev.

Now Toyota 86/FRS. I’ve probably sat in one every winter for the last 10 years because of my buddy who has had one that long. I finally got one myself. 50/50 weight distro, LSD, amazing steering/braking/handling feedback. You know exactly what it’s doing, what it wants to do, it’s a surgical precision instrument. Did get stuck in some nasty icy ruts, but deep snow (in the city) has been fine,

My Model S - also RWD, decent feedback, 1300lb battery pack is under the floor together with the huge drive unit at the rear wheels is positioned so that the vehicle has a 40 front and 60 rear weight distro. The car itself is based on a 2010 or so Mercedes CLS. Big sedan, RWD, and instant V8 torque. It burns through tires just the same as a high torque V8 though, so have to be super careful with my Michelin X Ice tires.

I’ve heard Porsche’s are great winter cars, RWD rear engine with winter tires and of course the 4S AWD models.

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Oskarikali@reddit

I agree with you, usually get downvoted for it. Winter driving is mostly about tires. I just traded in my GTI and I'll never own another fwd mostly because of how shitty they are in the winter. Most of my ~25 year driving career is with rwd cars in Calgary. They're great on snow and ice.

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Oskarikali@reddit

The most important thing is tires. I'm surprised you've had that many problems. What winter tires are you running? I've been driving for 25 years, 18 of them in RWD cars in Calgary. No issues since switching to Nokians around 2004. I've been stuck maybe 4 times since then and it has always been because of clearance issues.

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No_Nefariousness5996@reddit

I daily a 2015 Jaguar F-Type R with Bridgestone Potenza summer tires. I live in Saint Louis, Missouri. We get 1 or 2 snows every winter with most of it being less than 4 inches. It snowed while I was at work last year and I had to drive home with a fresh 1 inch on the ground. Only sucked trying to go up one hill. Otherwise not a huge deal. My rear tires are 295

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tmandell@reddit

Try that with with those tires on clear roads at -45 and its a different story. Winter is relative.

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Sarniezz@reddit

Where in Canada? Vancouver area? Toronto area? South region? Because North Canada is not the same winter.

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event_horizon_@reddit

I did three Wisconsin winters in a 2003 Miata with a dedicated set of snow tires. I never had any issues.

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Nick_lolz@reddit

I daily drove my 2013 BRZ through 5 winters in Canada as well, also in Southern Ontario.

For 4 of those winters, it was lowered/on coilovers. I had a set of Blizzaks and then switched to X-Ice once the Blizzaks wore out.

It's definitely more challenging than FWD or AWD, but I only ever got stuck once after I decided to try and go out after a particularly bad snow fall before the street had been plowed, there was maybe 20cm of standing snow on the street and I got stuck at a stop sign.

Other than that, I never really felt a lack of confidence driving in the snow.

The fishtailing thing is definitely true, on inclines or leaving stop lights on snowy streets etc, the car had a tendency to move the back out first but I found I was able to get used to that fairly quickly and just steer in to it to counter.

My Girlfriend has a 2020 STI and is that better in the winter? Most definitely.

But after an entire lifetime of people telling me not to get a RWD car to drive in the winter, when I finally did it; it honestly wasn't very different or noticeably worse.

If you're driving on mostly plowed streets or highways, there's no difference at all.

In a small town with less frequent plowing I could see it potentially being a bigger problem, but if you live in the city or suburbs, it's honestly fine.

Modern cars are extremely capable and modern winter tire tech is great, these aren't the land yachts of the 70's on cookie cutters anymore. I definitely wouldn't tell anyone to let winter conditions deter them from daily driving a fun car just because it's RWD; your car can do it!

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Das-Wauto@reddit

I drive my truck in rear wheel drive 99% of the time in winter; Blizzaks and a modicum of driver skill get you pretty far. 4WD only gets used when it’s really needed and that’s usually not on public roads as they’re pretty good about plowing here most of the time. Our driveways can get pretty rough though and I have managed to get stuck a few times in 5.5 years but rural Ontario winters can be brutal like that sometimes.

I’ve also done fwd with a Golf and with good (Michelin X-i3), narrow (195 section) tires it was surprisingly capable. I then had a WRX for few years and that car made winter driving fun - (again) good tires, some gusto and skill made that car a winter driving beast. The Subaru was only really limited by ground clearance and I kinda hate driving a truck all the time so if they ever do a Crosstrek WRX I’m buying one immediately.

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TheWonkiestThing@reddit

"I love depending on others for my personal enjoyment"

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skepticallypessimist@reddit

What year is yours? I have a 6th gen 1le and the e diff makes it so easy with cheap old snow tires on michigan.

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Uptons_BJs@reddit (OP)

2020 6th gen! LSD really helps.

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skepticallypessimist@reddit

1le?

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The_Exia@reddit

No, its a mechanical LSD. The 1LE has an eLSD.

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LongjumpingLock5875@reddit

I am having to figure this out now.

I currently own a 25 WRX, and with the set of snow tires, it is incredible in the snow, and living in the northeast US, we get plenty of snow.

But my dream has always been a V8 Manual sedan, and with the Camaro/Buick sedan coming back in late 2027, I am seriously considering it.

I think snow tires would be sufficient for winter driving, but I have never owned a non AWD car, so idk.

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The_Exia@reddit

Ask yourself how often are you driving your WRX on unplowed roads.

If its often, maybe stick with AWD, if not consider the RWD.

Even still people got around in shit weather 30-40 years ago with RWD and awful tires.

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LongjumpingLock5875@reddit

I am leaning towards it.

I love my WRX, but I also want to experience more cars when I am younger.

I want to know what it is like to drive a car with actually good steering feel and a great manual transmission.

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epicepee@reddit

I can say that FWD + snow tires is better than AWD + all-seasons.

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sri_peeta@reddit

But overall, a RWD coupe isn't that bad in the Canadian winter

Brother, I'm glad you came out of the entire experience in one piece and with some humor, but this statement is pure cope and peak denial. I do not know what else to tell you.

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Ancient_Persimmon@reddit

I generally agree with the sentiment and have gone through some pretty insane winters with a slammed and track aligned car in my past, but it's worth qualifying a "Canadian winter" a bit.

Is that a Vancouver winter, a Toronto one, a Winnipeg one?

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The_Exia@reddit

Southern Ontario absolutely. If roads get plowed your fine. If not, take the bus.

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tmandell@reddit

This. Location makes a huge difference. Vancover and im not surprised, sault St Marie with lake effect snow is a hole different thing.

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milliondollarsunset@reddit

That's crazy. Ive never gotten stuck with RWD in winter ever. Even in the worst days.

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The_Exia@reddit

+1 for RWD cars in Canadian winters.

I know you've had your Camaro for a while. I've had 3 different Camaro's I've driven in winter plus a C8 Corvette and its very manageable. I'm currently driving my Camaro in winter.

I don't live in a super small Canadian town (170k pop) and I don't daily drive my car (I take public transportation) so I know the road will be plowed if I do need to take the car out and its a non issue.

The only time I ever really struggled was a snow storm where I went out for dinner but I still got home, its not any worse than a FWD car.

People survived on RWD cars 40 years ago in terrible weather on worse tires, you will live in a modern RWD car with winters.

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reward72@reddit

I drove first and second generation Miatas in Canadian winters for 10 years. No traction control. The first one didn't even had ABS. I'm still alive. All you need is good tires and someone to push you out of snow banks... Now my house is on top of a long and very steep driveway, I need AWD and studded tires to get up there, but otherwise I'd be just fine.

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SchnitzelTruck@reddit

A speed bump on a hill with a stop sign is diabolical

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tacomafrs@reddit

I've daily driven RWD in Alberta since 2012. never had a single problem with Blizzaks. in fact, I'd say in a way it's kind of safer in that your always on edge and paying attention.

my WRX is deceiving, you think you have so much grip so you drive faster. but then you press the brakes and the ABS comes on to remind you that it does in fact suck outside. 😂

to be fair, where i live, we never get more than 4" of snow at a time. maybe if you get deep snow, i wouldn't recommend it.

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orangebikini@reddit

Does Canada not use studded tyres? I've driven a lot of winters where I live in the Nordics with all kinds of cars, including RWD ones, and I don't ever recall it being a problem, nothing like what you describe having experienced.

RWD, FWD, whatever drive, it's all fine if you have tyres for the job. Even a motorcycle is fine in the winter with studded tyres.

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Bubbafett33@reddit

I think we're talking about different climates. For virtually all of Canada, a motorcycle would be impossible to drive as a daily in winter.

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orangebikini@reddit

I mean, I live in a subarctic climate. I don't ride myself in the winter, I'm just not that keen, but I know a person who rides up to Lapland every winter.

It really is just a question of tyres.

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Bubbafett33@reddit

Again, very different climates. Zero people are seen on motorcycles in winter in Canada, outside of some coastal/southern interior areas of the south west.

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orangebikini@reddit

What are you on about, different climates? Look at a köppen map or something.

Practically zero people are seen on motorcycles in the Nordics either in the winter. That doesn't mean it's not doable, it is if you have the right tyres. I didn't claim people ride motorcycles in the winter, just that you can if you have studs and warm clothes.

My point wasn't motorcycles, point was tyres.

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Bubbafett33@reddit

I was trying to be polite.

It's not just about the tires. Every winter sees -35C with wind chills below -40C. Blizzards. Blowing snow. Ice.

You said "Even a motorcycle is fine in the winter with studded tyres.", and that is simply not true in most of Canada.

"possible to do by an idiot" does not equal "fine".

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orangebikini@reddit

I swear some Canadians think they have a monopoly on winter weather....

Have you ever heard of a snowmobile? People ride those in the winter all the time. The key is, they dress right. With the right gear, a motorcycle is fine.

Either way, none of that was my point. My point was, good tyres will give enough grip at winter even to a motorcycle.

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Bubbafett33@reddit

My point was, good tyres will give enough grip at winter even to a motorcycle

And you're wrong. "Daily" riding a motorcycle in winter--regardless of tire choice--cannot be done safely in most of Canada.

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wishlist28@reddit

I saw a group of riders travelling the world come to a BMW dealership on their bikes in February for service to keep going. They brought the bikes over from Europe and they didn't seem to have a problem.

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Uptons_BJs@reddit (OP)

Only Northern Ontario allows studded tires, southern Ontario does not unfortunately.

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orangebikini@reddit

There's a lot of negatives to them, they eat up the roads and they lift up a lot of particles that make air quality worse. But for any place that regularly gets snow and ice in the winter there just isn't anything better.

3pmsf tyres are pretty good in my experience, at least for urban areas and highways. I guess that's what you're using then?

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SirLoremIpsum@reddit

Does Canada not use studded tyres?

It's not mandatory, I know people that have them. My friend frequently drives up a couple of mountains to get to work well before they have been plowed so he has studs. Can't imagine a whole season with em tho loud as.

I don't, Blizzard WS90 serve me fine in BC. Around Vancouver you don't even need winter tyres except on the Highways.

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dangerous340@reddit

I daily a rusty lowered NB Miata in the winter despite having a 4wd truck (that's 99%rust free). I live in Michigan where it actually snows once in awhile. The only time I've questioned my sanity with this is the VERY early am commutes that follow the jack asses in their bro-dozers that create such wide tracks that I float from the left to right track constantly.... and when running over chunks of ice droppings from whatever....

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Ai-on@reddit

I started to remember this story when it got to the Subaru part. I’m surprised I still remember that.

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MotoRandom@reddit

I'm in Minnesota and was in the same boat. I rode my motorcycle all summer long. I wanted something fun for winter but reasonable on gas mileage so I bought a brand new Pontiac Solstice GXP for my winter car. I bought a cheap set of wheels that were an inch smaller than stock and put on Blizzak winter performance tires. Did this every winter for ten years. I got stuck a few times in the parking lot at the townhome I lived at because they could take up to 12 hours to plow but the city streets were always well plowed. The traction control and stability control were a godsend. I put 90 of old weight lifting plates in the trunk for a little more grip. There might be ten days out the winter it would be a problem but the rest of time I was having rediculus fun. The cold dense air was like getting free extra power. I felt safer in a few inches of snow in that car than my wife's AWD Rav4 on all season radials. Those Blizzaks have so much grip.

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GRJey@reddit

I sell cars and people have this wierd phobia of driving a 2wd car in winter. Like, just get winter tires and if you're really worried about getting stuck, carry a small shovel when it shows heavily.

I drive my gr86 during the winter np. Gotten stuck a few times sure, but I just get out with my shovel, dig myself out in a few mins and I'm on my way. Not a big deal

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wishlist28@reddit

When I first got my license my mom had a 99 mustang GT,convertible. That's what I learned to drive on. Thing had all seasons. Then a Pontiac G6, also all seasons. And boy do I hate FWD in the winter. Id rather be able to slide around for corners versus being a lawn dart in FWD.

I then had a wrx for about 10 years and that was amazing. Sold it for a 2008 328i. I've used winters and all seasons on it. It's rough with all seasons but manageable. It's the snow depth that becomes an issue but I had the same issue with my wrx for clearance.

My wife has a Elantra, I'd rather drive my car. In 22 years of driving the only thing I've got stuck was the worst driving car in the world, a jeep wrangler. Took 2 hours to dig out. I live in southern Ontario. Id love to have my '02 wrx back but our salted roads was not kind to it.

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Competitive-Reach287@reddit

Also Canadian. The first dozen winters or so that I drove, (started in 1979) I only had RWD vehicles. This was not unusual for the time. Never got a 4WD/AWD until I had been driving for about 25 years. I had the odd FWD in between. While proper snow tires make a world of difference, I never bothered until I was in my mid-forties. Now, I like having studded winter tires and AWD, but it never seemed like a big deal back in the day. Pretty much everybody was in the same boat.

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FeanorsBlade@reddit

Spent the last 4 Michigan winters with RWD dailies. 2 winters in a GR86, and 2 winters in an ND Miata. Slap on good winter tires, try and stay on the major roads that are plowed and driven on by other vehicles, practice defensive driving, and don't do anything silly. It's perfectly doable.

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HeadOfMax@reddit

All cars used to be rear wheel drive even in Canada?

Sure it's possible and even fun for people like us.

The average person doesn't enjoy driving like we do so that's why they ask those questions

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LionAccomplished8129@reddit

If you dont want AWD for the snow. FWD is the 2nd best with some good tires.

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kstetter@reddit

FWD isn't as fun as RWD

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Does_Not_Use_Clothes@reddit

Getting stuck in the snow is the opposite of fun.

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kstetter@reddit

It doesn't snow enough in my country to worry about that.

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JizzyMcKnobGobbler@reddit

Nobody believes me and I've had many an Internet fight over this, but I've actually done a winter with a FWD car (Celica GTS) with winters on the front and all seasons on the rear. It's fun AF. Fishtail all day long, but a blip of the throttle to straighten yourself out. People are always quick to tell you all the ways that's retarded, but if you're the kind of guy who recognizes RWD is fun in winter (clearly you are) then this set up is hilariously fun and you'll never get stuck like OP.

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kstetter@reddit

In non-cold environments RWD is better.

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boonedoxe@reddit

Had a mustang gt for 4 winters also in southern Ontario. Had some Michelin x-ice and it wasn’t too bad, but yeah the fishtailing would get sketchy sometimes. If there was a big snow storm and roads weren’t plowed I wouldn’t take it out. Fortunately my wife has a Q5 which is great in the snow so I’d drive that if I had to and she didn’t need it. Switched to a bronco and now I look forward to the snow haha

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Previous_Platform718@reddit

"Canadian winter"
Ah yes, famously small country of Canada where winter is the same everywhere, from BC to Nunavut.

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UncleBensRacistRice@reddit

I drive a miata all year within the GTA and havent ever come close to getting stuck. Being lightweight helps a ton, and blizzak ws09's are amazing tires

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InfinitePossibility8@reddit

I’ve always had rwd trucks and snow has never been an issue. The only times I got stuck was with cars because it is so easy to high center on snow because of the low ground clearance. Honestly it doesn’t matter what you drive as long as your brain is somewhat functional.

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DALESR4EVER124@reddit

I spent one winter (in Canada as well) back in 2015 driving a 1982 F150. Manual, 2WD, 1 wheel peeler... er, it couldn't spin that 1 wheel unless it was raining or snowing, lol.

Never really encountered much issues. Only has A/S tires, too. Maybe it being an underpowered 6 cylinder helped, but I still drove according to conditions and was fine.

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thecanadiandriver101@reddit

Whereabouts are you? Ontario, BC, Quebec?

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Uptons_BJs@reddit (OP)

Smaller southern Ontario town. Previously was in Mississauga, which was slightly easier.

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thecanadiandriver101@reddit

Checks out. When I had my MX5 in the area the random fishtailing was the worst, especially when in traffic. Even with dedicated snows.

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hyozanryu-hoo@reddit

I have 4 seasoned a few rwd in Northern Ontario and personality find your experience to be a little extream still.

19 Fiat spider, 02 ranger, 06 mustang, 88 Chevy 1500.

the best analogy i have is how writing left handed can cause ink smudge... till you learn to just not do that. Or like how manual is more difficult then automatic.... till you just learn to shift.

RWD has more room for error but also more for correction, same as on summer roads.

Maybe it is because I used winter tires but my fiat spider never had a problem in any level of snow the bumper could clear.

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JizzyMcKnobGobbler@reddit

Cool story and neat sharing your experience. I'm in Canada, too. What keeps me from doing this is I spend a lot of time on the highway (Calgary to Banff/Lake Louise for snowboarding) in the winter. It's not getting stuck that bothers me or any concern whatsoever about navigating normal daily life, but I don't like losing traction on icy highways in a RWD when you're going up a hill. That's it. I've done it...owned RWD cars in the past, but at this point in my life I'm not doing it again in the winter for that one scenario that can be too sketchy versus the alternatives (awd, fwd or 4x4).

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Heavy_Gap_5047@reddit

Cool story bro, where TLDR?

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DetroitLionsEh@reddit

You doing ok dude?

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Heavy_Gap_5047@reddit

no

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Uptons_BJs@reddit (OP)

TL;DR - Not great, but definitely doable.

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Not_Daijoubu@reddit

I only have driven my car in 2 winters, but the only truly bad experience imo is the getting stuck part (especially with an open diff lol). It's not like my Miata has particularly low ground clearance vs something like a Corolla, but I did once get lifted by snow and lose control while the RAV4 ahead of me plowed through.

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Cyraxus73@reddit

2023 BRZ in Ontario, not the snowiest part but somewhere that gets 3-4 good storms a winter.

A set of winter tires (Toyo Observe GSI 6HP) has gotten me through the last 3 years with no major issues. It can get a little sketch and there's definitely times that I got stuck or close to stuck, but it's never been that bad of an experience. The worst was a snowbank that turned to solid ice underneath the car and I basically high centered on it, which took until the next day to resolve.

Other than that though, drifting this thing around last winter was so much fun lol!

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audi27tt@reddit

What winters are you running? It doesn’t snow all that much in Chicago and when it does they plow pretty well, but I’ve never gotten stuck in my m3 on alpin 5s. An area with more hills would be tougher.

I actually find the skinny rears extremely fun in the dry as it’s super easy to break them loose.

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rudbri93@reddit

Yea i did it a while here in northeast PA (winters can be pretty hit or miss) and having some ground clearance is preferable. Its doable for sure, but awd is much more stable on those steep uphill lights/stop signs for the times they decide they wont plow for a few days.

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Does_Not_Use_Clothes@reddit

You have successfully removed the small fantasy I’ve had of some day dailying a rwd sports car in my snowy environment. Thank you!

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