Jazz in the snow ?

[guest4161]

How do you find your Jazz performs in the snow ?

I have Avon Ice Touring tyres fitted to mine,just had run on snow and wasn`t
particularly impressed !

[guest1521]

Mine's a 1.2 2009/GE Jazz with 'summer' tyres.

Absolutely great in snow compared to all other vehicles I have driven! Why? Low power, front-wheel drive, lightweight, relatively narrow tyres. Always helps to keep power/revs well down. Such as moving off in 2nd gear (if stuck with wheel-spin) and being one gear higher than you'd normally be in 'grippy' conditions. Then always as smooth as possible with maximum anticipation. (This from someone who's had lots of enjoyable driving experience in slippery conditions.)

By the way, I've seen video 'proof' that a two-wheel drive car on snow with 'winter' tyres will 'beat' a 4-wheel drive SUV with summer tyres. And winter tyres greatly enhance grip and stopping in temperatures below 7 degrees. So they're a great safety aid even without snow lying around.

[guest4161]

Last 2wd I had was a Fabia which was pretty unstoppable fitted with Lassa winter tyres,have my doubts
about the Avon`s more than the Jazz tbh.

[madasafish]

In 2012 I went up a half mile long 1 in 4 hill with 12cms of virgin snow - just.

Had to disable the traction control to do so.

It's as good/bad as I would expect with summer tyres on.. Michelin Energy...

[culzean]

i have also found Michelin energy savers to be good in snow - they have soft high silica compound rubber and very flexible sidewalls to help keep tread flat in cold weather.  Never got stuck in the Jazz with ES fitted,  Civic is a bit more problematic but only because of wider tyres and more power.   My wife in her Jazz fitted with E-Savers has driven past various cars stuck on the snow covered hill out of our estate, much to annoyance of the male drivers she parked at the top and went back and asked them if they needed a push.

http://www.tyresavings.com/articles/help-advice/technology-of-tyres/silica-technology-explained

and high silica metzler motorbike tyres are legendary for their wet and cold weather grip
http://www.metzeler.com/site/com/products/tyres-catalogue/Roadtec-Z8-Interact.html

[guest4078]

We are 'lucky' here in SW Herts, we haven't had snow just some ice earlier in the year. We do have some flooding but nothing like the areas in the news.

I have now started using all season tyres. Last year I used summer/winter tyre sets and had no problem. This year I got a deal and I have Bridgestone A001 on.

They have coped with the wet very well and ride well over the broken road surfaces well. They have a 'chunky' tread pattern, but are not quiet and unobtrusive to drive with.
Only the closed roads have physically kept me from any appointments.

[guest3753]

My Jazz was great in the snow a couple of years back. Others have said they have had no problem with it and had passed others stuck.  It was reviewed that year as the best car in it's class to deal with the snow.  Just nice smooth acceleration and deceleration, my had got normal tyres on, no special snow tyres and had no problems on my 20 mile trip to work at 5 in the morning on virgin snow.

[guest869]

Great in the snow due to lots of the weight over the front wheels. The petrol tank under the front seats also helps the forward weight bias. Though I tried tweaking the hand brake round a bend and the rear end stepped out very quickly!

Tyres make the biggest difference though. With winter tyres my Jazz coped with a Swedish winter but then so did an old Citreon AX I used to drive.

[guest4324]

How do you find your Jazz performs in the snow ?I have Avon Ice Touring tyres fitted to mine,just had run on snow and wasn`tparticularly impressed - See more at: http://clubjazz.org/forum/index.php?topic=5417.0#sthash.KpQuuFWN.dpuf

What age are the tyres and how much tread do they have left? Winter tyres older than 6 years will begin to harden or crack inside the tread pattern and normally you shouldn't go below 3mm tread. You can see the age on the tyrewall with the DOT number which shows week and year of production. Also check the pressures are correct.
 Virgin snow is always the best to drive in, it's when you're on compact or slushy snow that winter tyres really make a difference. I've been here 15 years now and have only ever got stuck once on a 1:5 hill with sheet ice.

[guest4161]

3 month old, 80% tread !

[stevie d]

Always found the Jazz to be excellent in the snow. Never failed to get to work in our 1.2 GD and never bothered with winter tyres either.
Steve.