Pick-ups and Snow Driving

[martyg]

An awd drive car with standard and snow tires is the best for highway. The 4x4 truck obviously can go over roads that the car can't. The car can fit in tight parking spots. In the truck you can make your own spot.

Exactly. Trucks are superb in the parking lot.

 

[Philpug]

Maybe one of the great bits of progress in the last 30 years that we may not always be cognizant of all the time has been crash protection in vehicles. Airbags, crumple zones, offset crash tests, rollover tests...all of these things have really made car travel safer..which is maybe not always great because people think they are invincible in a car sometimes. However, for the vast majority, there is a much bigger safety net for when treacherous conditions catch us out despite our best efforts to be careful.

Very true. Most people are not aware how safer cars are now verses years ago. The gold standard for years was the Volvo 240, but even the average compact sedan now far surpass them for safety. The only thing the Volvo has going for it is that it was slow and the force of a crash might be less. LOL.

 

[sparty]

Regardless of your driving skills PUs tend to swap ends in slick conditions. Putting weight (camper shell) over the rear drivers and slow for the conditions keeps you out of the ditch. They're also safer in a collision.

The skill comes in convincing the pickup that no, it doesn't really want to swap ends, just to hang the ass end out a little.

Weight over the rear axle definitely helps, whether it's in the form of a camper shell, a heavy bed mat, or even snow and ice that accumulated because you don't have a cover. That's where SUVs have a distinct advantage, even on the same drivetrain and computer systems; as I said, I'd consider the Suburban I had just about unstoppable when it had snow tires on, and if you ended up stuck, there was some seriously poor caddying involved (like not realizing the snowbank was hiding a ditch and pulling too far over to let the cop by on the Barrows Road coming back from a Stowe race...not that I know anything about that). When I had the 2WD Toyota pickup, it was a bit of a nightmare to drive in the storms or two (I got it while home from college on spring break, and I learned to drive stick on the way back, so that didn't help much); with snow tires and a couple hundred pounds of ballast, it did just fine 98% of the time.

A driving-oriented AWD car is still going to drive far better on plowed roadways (lower center of gravity, lower overall inertia, etc), but I have yet to meet one that provides the utility in rough terrain and for hauling stuff (especially sleds and motorcycles). They're also better for avoiding a collision to begin with, plus I'm pretty sure they have less of a tendency to end up shiny-side-down if you do end up catching the ditch.

 

[Seldomski]

Worst driving experience I ever had was with a 2WD Toyota pickup (~2001) on some muddy rutted roads/swamp in Beaumont, Texas. Very little in the bed. This was extended cab, but not 4 full size doors. We were pretty deep into unimproved, unlit roads. It was raining and the sun was setting.

It was like pushing a shopping cart backwards. We got stuck a few times. The truck really wanted off the road and to go play in the trees.

 

[scott43]

Very true. Most people are not aware how safer cars are now verses years ago. The gold standard for years was the Volvo 240, but even the average compact sedan now far surpass them for safety. The only thing the Volvo has going for it is that it was slow and the force of a crash might be less. LOL.

Penta...

 

[slowrider]

@sparty
Those hidden ditches in a log truck suck.
#1 rule in off road driving. If you crash make sure to block the road. That way someone will have to pull you out to get by.

 

[Andy Mink]

2WD dually pickups will get stuck on flat wet grass.

 

[Doug Briggs]

@sparty
Those hidden ditches in a log truck suck.
#1 rule in off road driving. If you crash make sure to block the road. That way someone will have to pull you out to get by.

We have lots of ditches alongside our county roads that fool the visitors to no end. The plow trucks use their wing blades to push the snow back as far as they can giving the illusion that the road base continues to the snowbank. Nope.

 

[chopchop]

We have lots of ditches alongside our county roads that fool the visitors to no end. The plow trucks use their wing blades to push the snow back as far as they can giving the illusion that the road base continues to the snowbank. Nope.

Sounds like Little Cottonwood Canyon - always a few folks in 2WD rental cars stranded, tipping, on the shoulder even before their days starts.

 

[sparty]

2WD dually pickups will get stuck on flat wet grass.

Does it even have to be wet?

We had a couple of mini-buses when I was working for an academy and, as a dorm parent, got to shovel out and move vehicles during break if there was a storm and the lot needed to be cleared. We got all the proper vans out without too much work, but the minibus was going exactly nowhere. We left it until students returned so it could be properly ballasted (at which point it wasn't bad).

 

[slowrider]

Sanders, auto chains or single out the drivers are helpful.

 

[scott43]

Funny you mention dualies..I remember long ago a guy driving a dualie on a dirt road and having some traction issues..didn't think much of it at the time..but now that you mention it...

 

[slowrider]

In slick conditions multi-axle class 8 trucks will lift their drop axles even when loaded to increase ground pressure on the fixed axles (traction).

 

[kayco53]

I have a Silverado 4x4 double cab with a camper on top and 4 studded snows Great in snow. Have gone up the hill in snow deep enough to push with the bumper. Downside is if you ditch it they tend to roll. Don't ask how I know. That was in ice before the studs. I do work on the hill so that means we do beat the plow sometimes.

 

[sparty]

We have lots of ditches alongside our county roads that fool the visitors to no end. The plow trucks use their wing blades to push the snow back as far as they can giving the illusion that the road base continues to the snowbank. Nope.

This may fall into the "this guy is a slow learner" category, but my now-wife and I were headed back from Targhee to Red Lodge on Christmas a few years ago. The GPS suggested a turn that I missed, I tried to three-point to get to it, and I misjudged the bank edge. That's the one time I've ever used the winch on my truck to rescue myself, and I'm pretty sure it was worth the money for that one incident.

 

[DanoT]

Very true. Most people are not aware how safer cars are now verses years ago. The gold standard for years was the Volvo 240, but even the average compact sedan now far surpass them for safety. The only thing the Volvo has going for it is that it was slow and the force of a crash might be less. LOL.

Those old Volvos were great in snow, unlike my '06 XC70 awd wagon with auto transmission, which was great on compacted snow but was unable to get up my rain/freeze ice covered driveway. Even after sanding, I still had to put on chains.

That XC70 has been replaced with a 2019 Tacoma with 9.4 inches of ground clearance and a proper 4x4 with high and low range AND manual transmission. The Taco is a TRD Off Road so it also has a rear axle locker.

On the topic of vehicle crash safety, as a first aid attendant I once got a call to attend a head on collision between a pickup and a loaded off highway logging truck. These off highway trucks carry 3 times the load of a highway log truck and truck and trailer weigh about 75 tons and carry 100+ tons of logs so they take a looong distance to stop.

As a result of the accident, the log truck got a scratched bumper and the pickup was totaled. The pickup's grill and rad ended up being pushed right into the firewall with the engine and transmission dropping below the cab, exactly as it was designed. The cab was undamaged and the doors still opened. This was pre air bag, so the pickup driver broke the steering wheel with his face, resulting in soft tissue damage and swelling but nothing broken.

Without the crumple zone design, the engine would have ended up in the cab and no doubt result in some serious injuries.

 

[Philpug]

Those old Volvos were great in snow, unlike my '06 XC70 awd wagon with auto transmission, which was great on compacted snow but was unable to get up my rain/freeze ice covered driveway. Even after sanding, I still had to put on chains.

That XC70 has been replaced with a 2019 Tacoma with 9.4 inches of ground clearance and a proper 4x4 with high and low range AND manual transmission. The Taco is a TRD Off Road so it also has a rear axle locker.

On the topic of vehicle crash safety, as a first aid attendant I once got a call to attend a head on collision between a pickup and a loaded off highway logging truck. These off highway trucks carry 3 times the load of a highway log truck and truck and trailer weigh about 75 tons and carry 100+ tons of logs so they take a looong distance to stop.

As a result of the accident, the log truck got a scratched bumper and the pickup was totaled. The pickup's grill and rad ended up being pushed right into the firewall with the engine and transmission dropping below the cab, exactly as it was designed. The cab was undamaged and the doors still opened. This was pre air bag, so the pickup driver broke the steering wheel with his face, resulting in soft tissue damage and swelling but nothing broken.

Without the crumple zone design, the engine would have ended up in the cab and no doubt result in some serious injuries.

Logging trucks aren't as tough as they pretend to be.

 

[DanoT]

Logging trucks aren't as tough as they pretend to be. View attachment 108777
View attachment 108778 View attachment 108779

@Philpug, I hope that wasn't your Miata in the photo.

That is a highway logging truck pictured above, which is pretty much a Dinky Toy or Matchbox Truck when compared to an off highway log truck...just sayin.

 

[Philpug]

@Philpug, I hope that wasn't your Miata in the photo.

Yes it was.

Here is to the fortitude of a little yellow sportscar.

Last year was a challenging year for us to say the least. What some of you might not know is about a day in early June. I was headed to Sacramento to see some friends and I thought I would take the scenic route in the mountains between Tahoe and Sac and scout out a run for our Miata Club. As I...

www.pugski.com

 

[chopchop]

Yes it was.

Here is to the fortitude of a little yellow sportscar.

Last year was a challenging year for us to say the least. What some of you might not know is about a day in early June. I was headed to Sacramento to see some friends and I thought I would take the scenic route in the mountains between Tahoe and Sac and scout out a run for our Miata Club. As I...

www.pugski.com

Wow. Every day counts from here on out.