Fishtailing on snow

[marq89]

1989 Grand Marquis

This is the first year this car has been driven in winter, and it sucks. I've driven a 1977 Delta 88 and a 1970 Buick Lesabre, both with summer tires, in the snow and never had so much trouble as i do with the GM.

I just put on 4 winter tires and the car fishtails all over the place. And no, I'm not gunning it. Today, just trying to turn into my parking spot at work the car did a 360. I just gave a bit of gas to turn and the back went out instantly. I didn't give it any more gas cause usually that stops the spin, but it was just slippery enough that the rear just kept going.

I can handle it cause i've been driving 16 years in the snow. But I bought this car for my girlfriend, and it's her first year driving. Yesterday I had to go bring her my FWD Cadillac to her work because she couldn't handle the GM.

Are these cars light in the rear? It seems like I have 0 traction in the rear.

[87gtVIC]

When you think about it, there really is not much weight back there at all. Pretty much just the gas tank and an empty trunk. You can always put a couple 50# sand bags in the trunk (one on each side) and use those for extra weight and even traction if you get stuck. Having a trac loc rear will also give you more control of the car, but regardless FWD FTW for new drivers.

[1990LTD]

I think there might actually be less than no traction in the back of these cars.

[pvillese]

Actually AWD FTW for new drivers to snow.

I've probably got around 200# in the trunk and a full tank of gas in my 85 GM (and the cheap tires from F&F) and I had no problem getting to work this morning while I watched all the people with FWD spinning there tires. It is still RWD so I still had to keep that in mind but I only had the tires lose at all maybe twice. The weight made a huge difference, yesterday with only 70# I had to really work to get moving.

[87gtVIC]

Actually AWD FTW for new drivers to snow.

.

well hell if you want to take it to cars hes does not own. lol

[marq89]

OK, so it's not just my imagination. I've never driven a RWD car with crappier traction than the GM.

[87gtVIC]

Well I never had any problems. lol

[pantera77]

My 92, with hard-as-rock 780 treadware tires was pretty decent in the snow. I could get it sideways if I wanted but it was mostly great.
My 91 with 4 half-decent snow tires is an unstoppable beast in the snow. It has no problems what so ever. And it's not like buffalo winters aren't known for a shit ton of snow.

[chitownvic]

Ehh..Ya just gotta learn how to drive and get used to RWD in the snow....I hate FWD in the snow..it feels like you have no control....But it does suck having a one legger dif...

[mrltd]

very light in the rear, couple sandbags always helps. I've driven worse though. My 91 Grand Marq did excellent in the snow though, with all season tires and no extra crap.

[King_V]

Just some theories....

Are you using the same type of tires that you had on the 1977 Delta 88 and the 1970 LeSabre? I know, the cars are all different, though the Delta's close to the GM, and I know you mentioned getting a set of new winter tires, but . . eh, seems that "winter" tires aren't all equal - some live up to their name, some are just an embarrassment.

I don't know, though - just trying to eliminate variables.


Aside - it's always exciting trying to drive a 1972 Olds 98 with a peg-legger in a sleet storm. It's VERY difficult to give the 455 just the tiniest bit of gas to get going without causing serious wheelspin.


Aside #2 - actually, doesn't an open diff make it LESS likely that the car will fishtail, since the one wheel's not spinning and thus not losing its grip? Or am I forgetting something?

[marq89]

On the Delta 88 and the Lesabre I only had summer tires. So even with crappy winter tires (which they aren't), the GM should still handle better, all things being equal.

even in the summer with the summer tires, the GM would fishtail in the rain.

[mrltd]

I had a crown vic that acted like your car. The frame was bent so bad, when I took it to a body shop they laughed at me.

[P72Ford]

I've never been impressed with the winter traction of these cars. Even after I went to a trak lok rear, etc, my red box is a toilet in the snow. And I'm not talking about the fishtailing, because that is something I enjoy.

The startability in the snow has always been terrible, and it gets stuck with very little snow on the ground. I always had Michelin X Radial LTs on there, and that may have been part of the problem.

[1987cp]

I've never been impressed with the winter traction of these cars. Even after I went to a trak lok rear, etc, my red box is a toilet in the snow. And I'm not talking about the fishtailing, because that is something I enjoy.

The startability in the snow has always been terrible, and it gets stuck with very little snow on the ground. I always had Michelin X Radial LTs on there, and that may have been part of the problem.

I'm with you there, and this is my second summer with my P72 running the same "severe snow service" light-truck tires I'd bought a little while back. It does seem weird that the sedan should be sooooooooooo awful, since the wagons really do well in the white stuff. Though I will admit that the '79 wasn't as good, as the 2.26 gears would snap the tires into a fast spin that was hard to recover from.

What was really funny was that two winters ago, Nate and Colin will recall how I stopped to put my snow tires on because I didn't think I could handle driving home in the snow on the 255/60 and 275/60 Yoko S/Ts. Last winter, after skating around in the P72, I took the wagon around town a bit on the Yokos and it felt like a purpose-built snow hotrod.

This winter I've tried to be a little more prepared, putting on all 4 snow tires before the snow hit and tossing two sandbags and a bag of oil-dry in the trunk for ballast. I'm thinking of getting another sandbag or two, since last winter the manners improved further after tossing a couple of wheels in the trunk (I had the sandbags in the back seat last time).