Edmunds.com took their long term 2014 Corvette Stingray Z51 up from their headquarters in Santa Monica to the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. That meant driving the Corvette through the snow covered mountains of Colorado and as you can imagine, things didn’t go too well.
Anticipating some winter weather, the Edmunds guys fitted the ‘Vette with a set of Pirelli winter tires before making the trek up to Michigan. Despite their efforts, the two-wheel drive, 460 horsepower Corvette would still prove to be a less than ideal choice for winter driving.
As Edmunds Editor-in-chief Scott Oldham began the ascent up into the mountains, the snow fall got even worse than he had anticipated. Eventually, he was forced to stop and upon trying to accelerate, realised he wouldn’t be going anywhere fast. He was stuck, blocking the number two lane of the I70 during a blizzard.
Not knowing what else to do, he placed a call to 911. 911 told him they would send a tow truck, so he waited, appreciating the Corvette’s seat heaters more than ever. Eventually, the traffic cleared and Oldham was able to let the car roll backward to a spot on the highway where there was less snow. The car hooked up, and he was free.
After calling 911 to let them know he’d no longer need their assistance, he drove to the nearest hotel and waited out the storm. In the morning, he got back on the highway eventually making it to Detroit without any further hiccups.
So if you’re thinking of taking your Corvette Stingray out during a winter snow storm, we’d suggest at least getting a set of winter tires first. That is, unless you want to explain to 911 why you’re driving a brand new Corvette during a snowstorm.
Dont miss Oldham’s full account of the mishap over on Edmunds.
Comments
I read the article and laughed the whole time. And not a “oh those guys” laugh but a “this non-driving looser” laugh. you have a manual (I assume) RWD car WITH snow tires and a LSD, and you are getting stuck because the road is a little slippery? UMMM NO. you turn OFF traction control, you then put it in the highest gear the car will pull away in without lugging, and you slip the clutch while gently modulating the throttle and smile as your high hp car smartly pulls away.
I say this as a guy who owned and daily drove TWO 400+ hp RWD cars in Misawa Japan, where they don’t plow, and getting 10-20 inches of snow in a night is common. Sounds to me like Edmunds relies too much on electronic aids and not on driving skills honed from regularly pushing the limits in adverse conditions. I don’t know of a single “hard core driver” who can’t wait to go out in bad weather and hone his skills in his sports car.
But then again, as I’m reminded all the time on the web; my car friends and I are of a different breed. And NONE of us have gotten our sports cars stuck because it was “slippery”. Snowed in? Sure! But a little slippery? Not even…
Completely agree, I used to have an 850Ci back in ’05 in Scotland, took it in the mountains and learned the tricks. I have yet to drive a car with stuff like eLSD and a good TC, but I agree on the fact that driving in the winter without any toggle on/off driving aids is net superior to driving with them, especially since the LSD in itself screws your traction.
Well the only thing that would stop this car is deep snow because of the ground clearance.
I live in the great lakes snow belt so we know snow and a lot of snow. I also have had 3 winters in a Pontiac Fiero with Eagle GT tires and can say Pontiac did build excitement. I had no stability or traction control and I even had the wrong tires and only when the snow got deep and the front tires would ride up on the snow did I have issues but I still made it home.
Locally here I have a few C5 and C6 models I see out daily no matter the snow. While not my first pick for a winter car they can get though just fine. The only real issue is ground clearance here and just using your head would be a world of difference along with good basic winter skills.
Let’s be honest here…a ‘Vette is hardly the ideal the ideal snow vehicle. Would you try racing a Greyhound bus in the Indy 500? I think not. But to call 911 because you are stuck in snow doesn’t show a whole lot of common sense. On the other hand, when you aren’t used to driving in such conditions, it is sometimes a little intimidating. Yes, we get plenty of snow where I am.
WTF They SHOULD have known better and not even tried it. Would have been best to have waited it out, oh well nice try anyways. 🙂
Lets face it some folks can drive in snow and some can’t. Living here and growing up in it there is not issue to driving damn near anything in the snow.
The real issue is too many people had little to no car control skills as they were never taught and todays cars have so many electronic controls they have no idea how steer out of a spin or how to regulate the brake pedal.
scott, you got that right. I’ve been without 4WD now for just short of 10 yrs. Do I miss it, yes but learning to drive without it and fwd with traction control does pretty dang good if you know what you’re doing. Also slow and steady for the maneuvering does wonders whether in town or on the hwy. 🙂
Yes, after they plow the roads you can drive your 400hp rear drive car in winter weather. I am sorry, ten inches of snow or even two inches of snow and ice, and you will not get going on even the slightest of incline from a standstill with wide tires.
I don’t care how good you think you are with a clutch, it’s simple physics.
Nobody said anything about driving a sports car in snow with summer tires or on unplowed roads.
The point is Edmunds got a properly equipped car stuck on a plowed, slightly inclined highway, because the driver was completely incompetent.
The only disadvantage the Vette had was its ride hight and the driver. And the driver let the car and himself down.
Thanks Jz
Odds are this was some cat from California that has little to no snow driving experience. Hell if you have ever been on the 5 in LA in the rain these people are crashing all over as the oil slick road are beyond their driving skill set.
jz
I agree there are bad drivers and those who rely too much on electronic assistance but what you are telling is a lie here. Maybe you have never really seen snow. Or an incline.
CSP troopers have to chain up here in Colorado in order to drive when it’s really bad. They drive in this stuff all the time and the rear drive Crown Vics and Chargers are at their limit when it’s icy and slushy. And each, like you, has a story about pushing ten inches of snow in their vehicles. I have just never seen it.
I believe you can stay on the road with good tires, I do not believe you can start on an incline on an icy road in a Corvette without chains or studs.
I live in the snow belt of Lake Erie and we get a lot of snow here in the foothills. Also I have spent many a trip in WV mountains in snow. So I do know snow.
JZ’s point was this was a car with proper winter tires on plowed highways and the guy chickened out.
JZ made a clear point how if the snow was deep then the Corvette would be having an issue. Generally most cars with 10″ of unplowed snow would have an issue regardless of chains, Studs or Flame Throwers.
The worst winter I had was in a 72 El Camino with a Big Block in it. Nose heavy and no weight in the rear was a challenge but it went right up the hills with no issues. I did lose it once because I was young and driving too fast. I hooked a rut in the road and almost saved it till I over corrected one time too much. Lived and learned.
The reality is today that one chains can not be used on the majority of the cars anymore as most companies do not design the space in anymore since so few people face the need. Studs are not legal or are restricted in many areas so that is also no longer an option for many. Finally winter tires are a help but even then they are not really designed for cross country trips as the average life is 15,000 miles and they do wear heavily in warner weather and higher tire temps.
The bottom line is this car had the right tires and the roads were plowed and the drive just did not have the needed skill to deal with this.
The guy I see daily in his C6 has no issues. I kind of have respect for him as he make the drive with no issues and is normally picking up his mail when I pass by.
Hell I have one guy here at work who has a motorcycle with a side car and he rides snow or sunshine. I saw him one day take off in about 8 inches and just powered along. Amazing what a Russian bike will do with 2WD.
Corvette on snow/ice? Elephant on a frozen pond. Confirmed in CO, MT, WY and NM