5th gen and winter driving
 

Just wondering how feasible it would be to make this Camaro a daily driver. I've driven front wheel drive sports cars in the winter with winter tires, but never a RWD muscle car. I've seen alot of people drive Mustang GTs in the winter with winter tires and steel rims. Is it possible to do the same with a Camaro that will have well over 400 HP? Just wondering. This will factor into my purchasing decision. Certainly, this Camaro will have better traction with IRS and better weight distribution than previous cars. If it does shutdown to 4 cylinders with traction control, that will help. Does anyone here drive their 4th gen in the snow? Will it be comparable in winter to a 4th gen? Any feedback would be great.

Yes, the Camaro can be your daily driver. Mine was for about 2 years. Previous to this one, I drove all of my other Camaro's all the time. I had the wonderful experience of driving it in the snow...:eek:

It can be done. You could purchase rims and tires as part of a "winter package", ie; Tire Rack, and throw some weight in the rear. But you'd better have some decent driving skills and confidence as driving a Camaro in the snow isn't for the "faint of heart". :laugh:

Ed

I think it will depend a lot on the traction control system. Did the 4th gens have traction control?

I drove around a lot with a friend of mine in his BMW 3-series when we got hammered with 12"+ of snow a few weeks ago, and it handled as well as my wife's FWD civic. I actually thought it was FWD at first.... It is amazing how far RWD technology has come.

I would think that those of us that live in snow-prone areas will have no problem driving the car in the winter.... However, I will probably still get winter wheels as the last 4 winters have really done a number on my truck's rims...

The 4thgens did have traction control. I have seen a couple of LS1s on the road with snow tires and steel rims. But not many. Where I live, 4th gen owners put their cars away. The Mustang guys drive their cars in the winter more, from what I've seen.

I agree - tires are key in winter driving. More people drive their F bodies and Mustangs they some people realize, only a very small percentage store them.
Around here (SE Michigan) many C5 & C6 Corvette owners even drive their cars all year round.

People survived for decades driving in snow with RWD and no traction control. Yes it makes things easier but by no means is it a requirement.

I drove a 1987 Monte Carlo SS with a 3.73 and Eagle GTs - talk about no traction in the snow :LOL:

I just tossed a couple bags of sand in the back of my '85 and I was fine. You just have to keep your foot from stomping the pedals! The key to driving any car in snow is constant speed and small amounts of braking.

Are you NUTS… :bonk: Just think what the salt is going to do to such a masterpiece… :eek:

Furthermore, imagine yourself trying to install bolt on mods after just one winter…

Poor Camaro… :cry:

You can always rustproof the car. That's what I do with my RSX once a year. Keeps the rust off.

What exactly does that entail? All I can think of when i hear that is the Seinfeld episode where Jerry is trying to buy a new car and everyone keeps telling him not to buy the rust proofing... lol.

The underside of my 2000 GMC with 160K looks pretty good considering it is driven daily through the Michigan salt :D

Bad idea. All that stuff does is close up factory drain holes and make a mess of things. That is one reason it isn't nearly as popular as it was 20 years ago.
I worked at a shop that did that. It was ugly...

I keep my GMC truck clean every week and it still looks great after 6 years :D

I used to put a couple cinderblocks in the back of my '82 and '91. Only time I ever had a big problem was once in a storm of freezing rain I had to come to a stop and couldn't get going again. When I got out of the car I saw the road was covered in a quarter inch of ice. That day was a little scary with all the cars sliding to the side as we came up on a stoplight.

I never put anything in the rear of my '02 (I had a V6, not V8) and never had any major problems. It did have the Traction Control.

I agree completely with the constant speed and small amounts of braking.

Now if it were a LOT of snow I wouldn't take the Camaro out. LOL But 3 or 4 inches doesn't bother me that much. Luckily we don't get that much snow here in Southern NJ.

Exactly, Zbart or company X forgets to inform you of that. Then your car rusts from the inside out. Not to mention the added weight. :thumbdown:

I'm originally from New England, so I'm used to driving in the snow. I learned in a '85 Caprice and drove nothing but RWD in foul weather. I love driving my LS1 in the snow, especially with the traction control off HEHE! Any F car is a bad one to have in the snow unless you master driving it.

My first car was an 1982 Camaro Berlinetta, so I HAD to learn how to drive in the snow with RWD and no traction control.

When people whine about driving their FWD cars in the snow I just look at them funny. I'm not talking about a foot or something, I'm talking 2-6 inches they won't drive in.

If you can handle a Camaro in snow, you can handle just about anything.