the noises just means all those three letter acronyms are working. also the best winter driving tips that I've learned. slow down especially through turns. leave way more room in front of you especially in icy conditions and lastly winter tires wont save you in you get out of control. also a great tip is go find a big empty parking lot full of snow and practice, see what happens if you turn to sharp or slam on the brakes. learn how to counter steer if you start drifting.

 

I think you're on the right track. Tires make a HUGE difference. I'd choose a Honda Civic with good tires over a Jeep with bad tires! Under 'typical' (road) conditions tires are more important than 4WD. If you're going off-road or encountering deep unplowed snow, then everything is important.

Simong's advice about the parking lot is gold (and its a lot of fun ).

As for the automatic tranny, I presume you have the CVT? That drives me crazy in snow, so I lock mine into an appropriate 'gear' for the speed I intend to travel. Otherwise the revving is confusing -- its impossible to tell if I'm losing traction or if the engine is just surging to provide more power.

 

Tires make a HUGE difference.

Bingo!

This morning, I was sliding sideways in a curve going downhill at a massive speed of about 5...10km/h. Downhill and covered in ice, that part of the street just had very, very little traction on it. If I hadn't had my studded winter tires, I wouldn't have had any chance of staying on my side of the road.

I see a lot of you guys like to run one set of tires all year long. In snow, all-terrains and such do have some grip. But do be careful about ice. (And really, even on snow, my Yokohama All-Terrains are no match over my Nokian Hakkapeliitta 5's.)

I didn't find much difference between AWD and locking in 4x4 mode though. ESP on in snow is a must.

I think it depends on the conditions. Mushy enough surface, I prefer to use the 4x4 lock. I feel it makes the Jeep behave in a more predictable manner - it just drives forward, instead of the "losing traction, okay power to the rear, here we go, back to front wheel drive, oopsie, losing traction again"-type hesitant feeling I get in AWD. And in deep enough snow ESP fully on can stop you from spinning your wheels enough. Not really something that'll normally be an issue once you get moving, but driving over a mound of snow during parking for example, using at least partial off gives you a better ability to maintain forward momentum. Just don't forget to turn it back on once you clear the obstacle.

(I found a pretty good parking space yesterday, the only problem was that the snow plow had left a berm of snow that turned out to be slightly higher than my ground clearance. You need a bit of speed to make it over something like that, so losing momentum would be bad. Just spinning your tires like an idiot is not the idea here, but a little wheel spin is preferable to stopping and getting high-centered. Although, come to think of it, I didn't use ESP partial off yesterday... But driving over the snow berm felt a little iffy for a second there, so I should have.)

Oh yeah, and if you're in that deep snow, using AutoStick to lock it into first gear gives you more precise throttle control.

With FDII there is only "L". Since "L" is the crawl gear

Umm... No it's not. L in FDII is the low range, not a single gear. You can shift to it at any speed, the computer won't let you break anything. (Just like with AutoStick, it won't let you stall or red-line the engine.)

 

Snow tires which you already have on, and press lightly on the brakes on the slippery stuff. I find the ABS a bit too sensitive and kicks on too quickly. When it kicks in on snow/ice, you basically have no braking at all.....one thing I hate about ABS.

 

From:

http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/safety/winterdrive/winterdrive.shtml

Stay alert, slow down, and stay in control — the three key elements of safe winter driving. Drive according to highway and weather conditions. Keep a safe distance between you and the vehicle in front of you to avoid situations where you may have to brake suddenly on a slippery surface.

Two-second rule:

1. Pick a marker on the road ahead, such as a road sign or telephone pole.
2. When the rear of the vehicle ahead passes the marker, count "one thousand and one, one thousand and two".
3. When the front of your vehicle reaches the marker, stop counting. If you reach the marker before you count “one thousand and two,” you are following too closely.

In winter, and especially during poor weather conditions, double the two-second rule.

Here is a link to Transport Canada's winter driving tips page too
http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/safevehicles-safetyfeatures-winterdriving-tips-700.htm

 

I use the warning lights and sounds as a test to see if I'm doing it right. If the brakes go into anti-lock mode or the ESP comes on, I figure I'm moving too fast for the conditions.

You are on the right track. Tires do make a huge difference.

 

WINTER!!!!

Ahh i love the wisconsin winters. My tip for you is to keep the esp on, and if you really need it to lock in the 4wd. Ive never had a problem getting through ANYTHING with just starting the jeep and going. I had the stock SRA's on for 2 winters and went through anything, just be smart and pay attention to the road conditions and you will be fine, the patriot is one of the best vehicles to drive in winter, IMO, but lots of others would agree.

 

There's one thing to remember about 4WD (Patriot/Compass):
with proper winter tyres it accelerates and turns very well
but stops like any other car.

 

We've had some bad winters the last 2 years, and I only locked 4wd in once, on the roads. I leave ESP on on the road too, and only turn it partial or full off when off road.

Good advice already given, but let me reinforce that you will go fine, but just be sure and leave enough room to stop.

I like the low gears in the FDII, and use that to slow down a lot before I use the brakes.

In bad conditions I try to be as steady and smooth as I can, when pulling out, during normal driving, and especially when coming to a stop. No sudden turns or stops, and no quick acceleration.

 

I like the low gears in the FDII, and use that to slow down a lot before I use the brakes.

Okay here is another one for you. On the standard CVT you can down shift through the "gears" and gently use the engine braking to slow down (steep grades, heavy load). With FDII there is only "L". Since "L" is the crawl gear, can you still down shift to "L" to slow down on a grade at highway(45-55mph) speeds??? Does "D" slow down more in FDII than FDI so you don't need to move the gear selector? I certainly wouldn't throw another vehicle into 1st gear to slow down. How does the CVT work on FDII? Is it smart enough to know you are just wanting to gently slow down using the engine?

I go on some steep grades where I would rather use the engine/gears so I don't wear out the brakes, so they work when I need them. I haven't driven a FDII down a hill to know how that works.

 

My all season radials that came with the Patriot (Goodyear Wrangler SR-A) have less than 6000 miles on them, practically new. I am going to wing it this winter with the AS radials as I just don't have the money to fork out right now for snow tires. I always drive slow. I am hoping the auto stick will help me out going down hills, combined with the extra weight over my last vehicle not to mention the 4WD. I guess I'll find out soon enough.

 

The SRA's do rather well in the snow. I didn't find a single hill I couldn't climb. All the other advice is spot on and I use the FDI auto stick to downshift while braking (especially downhill). I didn't find much difference between AWD and locking in 4x4 mode though. ESP on in snow is a must.

 

I didn't find much difference between AWD and locking in 4x4 mode though.

For example, it's much easier to make donuts in the snow with locked 4WD

 

a few tips from my experience (grew up in midwest with plenty of snow and having lived in the "south" for 9 years with plenty of ice).

- people with 4x4/awd often over estimate their abilities and the capability of 4 wheel drive.
- there is no substitution for experience
- 4 wheel drive will help keep you from getting stuck, you can still slide!
- more often than not, when you slide in 4 wheel drive, the entire vehicles slides and does not fish tail like a 2 wheel drive. I'm not saying you will never fishtail, just saying it happens less frequenty than in a 2 wheel drive.
- don't let people "push" you to drive faster/more aggressively. often people (see first point) drive faster than I am comfortable with and try to pressure me to drive faster.
- it's very easy to over correct on snow/ice/slush
- some police officers can be a little uptight when you get a nice snow and it covers your tag. I always keep mine clean and visible.
- often you'll see people in 2 wheel drives be extra nice and let 4 wheel drive vehicles go in front of them so they can drive in the tracks in snow.
- be very cautious at red lights and stop signs, especially those on hills. Often you'll see people in 2 wheel drive vehicles run them because if they stop they will get stuck (happened in several states I have lived).

- Dan M

 

If you think you're going too fast, you are.

 

Just some practical defensive driving tips:
1) Don't forget you're on snow! There's always a lot of accidents in that first snow, no matter where you live, because people have gotten used to good traction for the last 6 months, then, YIKES! -- too late they remember.
2) When approaching intersections, the car in front of you may be able to stop much quicker than you can because they'll come to bare pavement first, while you're still on hardpacked snow.
3) Remember a Jeep is made to go slow through deep snow. On a regular road you can't stop or corner any better than anyone else! Notice the disproportionate number of 4WDs in the bushes next time it snows -- that's why.

(I got great practice driving on snow because I worked p/t delivering wedding cakes -- I had to drive like I was on snow all year round -- no steering, no brakes.)

 

Drove to work today on pretty icy roads, and up some steep hills. no problem. ESP never engaged, stock tires did fine. Much more sure-footed than my old XJ.

 

Sa-y-y, while I'm at it, anyone ever had this problem? Sliding down a grade on hardpacked snow with good snowtires, I couldn't quite stop. Antilock brakes kept on buzzing their little hearts out, and I believe prevented me from making a full stop. Up ahead there was a snowplow coming toward me with its left wing onto my side of the road. I finally chose a soft snowbank to shmooze up to. In retrospect, if I'd snapped off the ESP, would that also disable my ABS so I could actually stop?

 

From what i understand, if you do the ESP "full-off" (hold the ESP button down for 5 secs.) then it also disables ABS.

That said, disabling ABS would have done nothing for you. No traction is no traction. You can't manually out-stop an ABS system. It wasn't preventig you from stopping, it was preventing your wheels from locking up, at which point you'd have ZERO control sliding downhill, as opposed to the limited control that you did have.

The best thing would be to shift into a lower gear, but even then it probably wouldn't have helped in your situation. Too steep, too slick, and a (relatively) lightweight car, not much you can do.

 

As far as I know there is no way to disable the anti-locks.

Like you, I grew up driving in snow, and I really don't need, nor like the ABS.

 

Is it the same in America as it is over here? On the first day of the snow everyone drives as if they're newly arrived from Saudi Arabia and have no idea what the stuff is. On main roads into town where at least thirty, perhaps forty on straight sections of unswept road is possible you'll find you're stuck in jams, creepin' along at three/six miles per hour. It's as though we've never seen the stuff before in our whole lives. The TV is full of news about how the six inches of snow brought London, Manchester, Liverpool to a halt, babies were delivered in helicopters and so on.
The crazy thing is, though, that after about three weeks of this everyone's zippin' around like maniacs! Almost everyone you see is driving way too fast for the conditions and the main highways are littered with cars in hedges, ditches, bushes and the like. It's nuts! It's like we've lived all our lives in Greenland and are just as crazy as the Greenlanders.

Rocal

 

If anything, throw it into neutral and hang the hell on.

 

Thats how I normally drive. haha

 

rocal, yes it is pretty much the same. On one highway I drive on, there is a hill, now going down this hill is no problem as it runs straight, no stops at the bottom, no curves, nothing. But when the roads are snow covered some folks seem to feel the need to come to a complete stop at the top of the hill, in the middle of a 55 MPH highway. Causes more problems for folks by them stopping then anything else. And it makes me CRAZY! Everyone would be much better off if they just slowed down, rather than come to a complete stop, as some folks behind them get stuck on the uphill side. Of course I don;t get stuck, but there's not much you can do when the folks in front of you are sliding around except to hope they don't slide back into you.

 

Are you talking about Route 28 S, right before you get to Cheswick?

 

Never forget this: yes, you have a 4WD, which means you can accelerate well. But when it comes to braking, even a Reliant K can brake from 4 wheels. So the smartest thing I can say is slow down. And find an empty parking lot and practice loosing control and recovering. It needs to be a reflex. And fun!

 

Yep, folks up here in the Great White North also have amnesia with the first week of fresh snow. Most guys drive fast as they would on dry road conditions; they over-estimate their new winter tires. You'll think they remember the life time of snowy roads in Canada. It's demolition derby time!

I try to avoid driving during the first couple of snowfalls; and take public transit. It'll be much faster than being stuck behind a string of collisions; never mind being directly involve in one.

Driving by looking far ahead, with a stick, enables me to anticipate problem and do engine braking whenever possible. Hitting the brake pedal is the final option.

 

Rocal> You pretty much described the evening commute in Seattle on Monday. I live 3 miles from work and it took me 2 and half hours to get that far. Glad we're not the only ones to have that insanity.

I've just been driving around on the stock tires with no problems. I just don't let the other 4x4s push me into going faster. Especially after I had an incident where a pedestrian was walking in the road, in the dark, with dark clothing. I wasn't going fast but I started to slide when I hit the brakes. The ABS did help stop me faster than a car without them though.

 

Here's a tip. Stay home if you live in Seattle.

 

The best tip i can think of is to avoid spinning your tires, at all costs. I've seen people in AWD vehicles try to tackle a relatively shallow incline by slamming the accellerator and wondering why they can't make it. Instead, TOUCH the gas pedal -hell, let it idle in gear if you have to- just to start rolling, then increase as necessary.

Last year, while stuck in traffic caused by a freak snowstorm, i watched a Nissan Frontier try to make it up a hill by flooring the pedal. He actually managed to go backwards because he simply had no traction. A kind person stopped in front of him and towed him up the hill. The "tow" vehicle was a bone-stock Toyota Tercel on all-seasons rubbers.

It goes to show that the judicious application of horsepower is not necesarily the answer to everything. Just most things.

 

Thanks for all the replies guys. Most of it is common sense, put your beer down, put both hands on the steering wheel and drive slow & deliberate.

FYI: I drive two other 4WD Jeeps, a 95YJ and an 04KJ both with the Part-Time 241 transfer case so I know how to drive in the snow.

And I still think the Patriot is an AWD not a 4WD but I could be wrong.