Z's in the winter?

[ZillaZ]

Hey all,

I am not one to "winterize" my sports car or put it away for the winter. I drive it year round but I do live in the northern mid-west USA so we get snow... a lot of it some years. Always been able to drive when the roads are clear and dry even if the temp is below freezing.
I do have a truck that I will drive 90% of the time in the winter. My first winter with the Z I plan on just taking it out at least once every two weeks for maybe a 1/2 hour drive unless we are really snowed in.

Just curious how everyone else handles the winter months for those of us that actually get snow and how does the new Z perform in cold, freezing - but dry roads?

 

[labornurse]

Hey all,

I am not one to "winterize" my sports car or put it away for the winter. I drive it year round but I do live in the northern mid-west USA so we get snow... a lot of it some years. Always been able to drive when the roads are clear and dry even if the temp is below freezing.
I do have a truck that I will drive 90% of the time in the winter. My first winter with the Z I plan on just taking it out at least once every two weeks for maybe a 1/2 hour drive unless we are really snowed in.

Just curious how everyone else handles the winter months for those of us that actually get snow and how does the new Z perform in cold, freezing - but dry roads?

You have summer tires, so you shouldn't drive under 40 degrees, or they can crack and ruin the rubber compound. Other than that, just keep the salt washed off.

 

[ZillaZ]

You have summer tires, so you shouldn't drive under 40 degrees, or they can crack and ruin the rubber compound. Other than that, just keep the salt washed off.

I will be getting some all-weathers whenever the time comes to get new ones but good point.

Yes keeping the salt off is a must! Good tips thanks.

 

[up4speed]

I drive all my sports cars all year long. As long as the streets are dry, and there is no salt residue on the roads. And if the weather is under 40 deg. I drive them VERY gently. Summer compound gets very slippery. I am a strong believer that the car will be much healthier if you use it. Letting it sit for long periods of time is bad for it.

 

[KnightRiderz]

Just ordered some DWS 06s for the winter months. I am in MD and while we don’t see much snow the temp gets down below 40. I plan to daily drive still. Fingers crossed

 

[ZillaZ]

I drive all my sports cars all year long. As long as the streets are dry, and there is no salt residue on the roads. And if the weather is under 40 deg. I drive them VERY gently. Summer compound gets very slippery. I am a strong believer that the car will be much healthier if you use it. Letting it sit for long periods of time is bad for it.

I feel the same way about letting it sit too long. Not a fan. I understand you can get a battery tender, a car cover and some wheel stops (or whatever they are called) so the tires don't get flat spots but I would rather just drive it a few times in the winter.

Just ordered some DWS 06s for the winter months. I am in MD and while we don’t see much snow the temp gets down below 40. I plan to daily drive still. Fingers crossed

Good luck and let me know how they do. I normally go for Michelin Pilot Sport all-season tires but am open to hearing what others use and how they work.

 

[Mellowyellow]

Winter driving? I rarely take mine out in the rain. Mine will be put away from December until some time in March.

 

[AlanZ]

I put it away the first time I see salt trucks. I try to drive it as much as possible during the other three seasons. I’m almost at 2k miles at the one year mark .

 

[iztrumental]

I got mine in January and drove it through the winter months unless there’s snow and salt on the road. I plan to do the same this coming winter. Even as a full-time wfh, I already have 7565 miles on my Z. Been having fun taking it out as much as possible.

 

[D2M]

Same.. As long as there isn't any salt on the roads I'm rippin the Z as often as I can. 7700 on the clock, was hoping to hit 10K before the end of the year. Super fun car!!

 

[MacCool]

Hey all,

I am not one to "winterize" my sports car or put it away for the winter. I drive it year round but I do live in the northern mid-west USA so we get snow... a lot of it some years. Always been able to drive when the roads are clear and dry even if the temp is below freezing.
I do have a truck that I will drive 90% of the time in the winter. My first winter with the Z I plan on just taking it out at least once every two weeks for maybe a 1/2 hour drive unless we are really snowed in.

Just curious how everyone else handles the winter months for those of us that actually get snow and how does the new Z perform in cold, freezing - but dry roads?

This is Minnesota, and in popular films etc, winters are not exaggerated. Normally my car goes in the storage garage on a Battery Tender with the very first snowflake...usually about mid-November...and doesn't come out until the roads are completely free of snow and ice...usually about mid-March. Fifty years owning Z cars in the midwest has shown me that the Z is a terrible winter car, just as one would expect from a powerful rear-wheel-drive sports car with 50-50 balance and less than 5 inches of ground clearance. I can absolutely tell you that a set of Blizzaks does NOT make it a winter car. I drive and own a Z car because it's fun to drive. Driving it in the winter with snow on the roads is definitely NOT fun. Blizzaks make it possible to drive, but not safe, and certainly not enjoyable. The vehicle that I pull out as a DD in November is a HD2500 GMC 4x4.

If there's no snow or ice...I have little concern about driving the Z on cold roads. Yeah, you have to be a little careful about hard cornering and hard accelerantion, but it's still fun. I don't worry about road salt because all the convenience store car washes have robust rocker panel blasting. Last winter was the strangest winter 40 years living in Minnesota. Exceptionally mild winter that for the first time ever...I could drive my Z all winter. Didn't go on the Battery Tender once.

 

[Sgt Beavis]

I'm in Colorado, but I don't yet have a Z (still shopping). Anyways, the rules for it are the same as any car. You're already doing the right thing by planning to drive it once every couple of weeks and only on dry days. Putting all seasons on it is a good idea as well. If you decide to leave it garaged for a longer period of time (say over a month) then a battery trickle charger is a good idea.

This may not be applicable to your situation but I drive in the Rockies a lot. So I always keep a couple blankets, first aid kit, water, and rations in our Countryman JCW. In my truck, I carry those things plus a set of traction boards. So basically, just make sure you're equipped for the unexpected. Beyond that, have fun.

 

[METROdigital]

Luckily in WA we get beet juice deicer.

I plan on all season tires as soon as track days end.

 

[Supremekai]

I drove it through last winter on Michelin x ice snow. Not too much snow so it was decent.

 

[Thefunk]

You have summer tires, so you shouldn't drive under 40 degrees, or they can crack and ruin the rubber compound. Other than that, just keep the salt washed off.

The tires will crack if the ambient air temp is below 40? I would imagine the surface temp of the tires will climb as you drive even in cold weather.