# 330i in snow?



## Volt (Sep 30, 2002)

How many days of the year do you drive in the snow? I live in Michigan and they usually clear up the road in less than 24hours in Ann Arbor. I would go with the 330i. It's a more fun car to drive.


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## steve (Jan 7, 2002)

I had Pirelli Winter 210s on my 325i all winter. Not a problem -- ran like a snow plough. As good as any 4x4, and way more fun to drive.


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## Artslinger (Sep 2, 2002)

The only problem I have is if the snow is deep the front SP spoiler acts as a snow plow, with the XI this would probably not be a problem because of the extra road clearance. A suggestion I would make is if you have a lot of ice on the roads you may want to consider a snowtire with ice traction capabilities like a Blizzak tire. The trade off would be a more squirmy tire, because of soft tread and more grooves in the tires.


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## yamato (Feb 11, 2003)

Artslinger said:


> The only problem I have is if the snow is deep the front SP spoiler acts as a snow plow, with the XI this would probably not be a problem because of the extra road clearance. A suggestion I would make is if you have a lot of ice on the roads you may want to consider a snowtire with ice traction capabilities like a Blizzak tire. The trade off would be a more squirmy tire, because of soft tread and more groves in the tires.


the snow plow effect is my serious concern as well. how can we protect the spolier in the winter other than not driving?


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## ff (Dec 19, 2001)

Phil F said:


> I agree. I would add, though, that the performance "trade-offs" with BMW's AWD system really aren't that great. The thing that the anti-xi crowd are ignoring is your driveway. With an xi you will get up that steep, icy incline. With an i -- even with snows -- you will probably be stuck at the bottom.


OK, I'll submit. The "i" doesn't climb snowy/icy hills as well as one would hope. I did not make it up a fairly steep hill that was coated with glare ice last winter, while the FWD cars were making it up (albeit with great difficulty). On average terrain, though, I'll still stand firm that the "i" with snow tires goes through snow better than FWD cars on all-seasons.

For what it's worth, I've never had a problem on icy driveways with the "i".

For the few number of days that climbing icy hills is a problem, I still say that the tradeoff of poorer handling Xi is not worth it.


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## Spiderm0n (Dec 19, 2001)

Volt said:


> How many days of the year do you drive in the snow? I live in Michigan and they usually clear up the road in less than 24hours in Ann Arbor. I would go with the 330i. It's a more fun car to drive.


did it ever occur to anyone that the anti-xi guys all live where its flat? OF COURSE, if I lived where its flat I would have a different opinion of what I needed as well. I imagine that when I am in PA I drive many of the same roads as Phil, and unless you want to not drive for weeks on end you need a good winter car there. As a skier I also like the ability to drive snowy hilly roads. It depends on where you live, and how much you drive in the winter.


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## Bavarian (Jun 15, 2002)

J330 said:


> 'm trying to decide between a 330i and a 330ix. I live in a snowy area and have an inclined driveway. This would push me toward an ix. (I own an A4 Quattro). However, I have heard that an ix does not handle nearly as well as the RWD version. Someone suggested just getting snow tires for the 330i. Does anyone have experience with a 330i with snow tires in lots of snow? Thanks!


I live in Toronto, Canada. We get enough snow and ice to really rest out AWD cars here. While my old A6 2.8 Quattro was on RAILS in the snow, I would defintely not waste my money on BMW's AWD. It's the biggest piece of $hit in the AWD world. Just slap on some winter rubber on your 330i and drive! That's what I do.

I use Toyo SnowProx 950S tires in all four corners. I have never gotten stuck yet. I have an underground garage since I live in a townhouse. And basically, the ramp into the hole is very steep. It is never heated or anything. I daresay that except my neighbor with his Pathfinder, I am the only one coming in and out when the ramp is covered. I ALWAYS get out in one shot, and come back in without losing control.


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## Phil F (Mar 16, 2003)

Bavarian said:


> I live in Toronto, Canada. We get enough snow and ice to really rest out AWD cars here. While my old A6 2.8 Quattro was on RAILS in the snow, I would defintely not waste my money on BMW's AWD. It's the biggest piece of $hit in the AWD world. Just slap on some winter rubber on your 330i and drive! That's what I do.
> 
> I use Toyo SnowProx 950S tires in all four corners. I have never gotten stuck yet. I have an underground garage since I live in a townhouse. And basically, the ramp into the hole is very steep. It is never heated or anything. I daresay that except my neighbor with his Pathfinder, I am the only one coming in and out when the ramp is covered. I ALWAYS get out in one shot, and come back in without losing control.


I lived in Toronto for more than ten years; and it is "flat world". It hardly provides the kind of terrain that puts AWD to the test. If I were to move back, I'd probably get an i too. Mountains--or even big hills like we have here in eastern PA--are very different in the winter months.


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## Bavarian (Jun 15, 2002)

Phil F said:


> I lived in Toronto for more than ten years; and it is "flat world". It hardly provides the kind of terrain that puts AWD to the test. If I were to move back, I'd probably get an i too. Mountains--or even big hills like we have here in eastern PA--are very different in the winter months.


Yes, the area around Toronto is rather flat. However, unlike many states in the US, if oyu go up 50km north or more (Barrie, Orillia) or around Peterborough or Niagara Falls, you can get VERY serious accumulation of snow and ice. Every New Year's I travel to celebrate with a group of Bulgarian friends I have who live in Binghampton, NY. On the way, I pass through Buffalo along the 95. Every time I've gone through that area, it was DEADLY!!! There were cars "ready on display" in ditches. Furthermore, the roads had not been cleaned at ALL. And in such an environment I occasionally poke out into the left uncleared lane and drive faster than the other 90% of guys in the right lane. Winter tires can really help...and make sure you have the damn DSC on.


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## Steelgreybimmer (Jul 1, 2003)

J330 said:


> Thanks! From what I am reading it seems that traction control plus a good set of snow tires is the better solution.


I just bought a 330xi. My prior car was a 2000 A4 2.8 Quattro. I considered all the drive train options before I made my choice.

A couple of things to consider. It is acknowleded that all season tires will not do on an i in the winter. You don't just put on snow tires when it snows, you put them on at the beginning of winter and leave them on till the spring (here in NY we had snow into April this year). Well, there goes the handling advantage of an i for up to 6 months of the year. Snows handle like sh--. With an xi, you can run performance all weathers all year long.

So here is your choice. A car that has marginally superior handling during the warm weather months Or a car that has vastly better driving dynamics during snowy, icy OR EVEN JUST WET conditions.

While the xi costs more, you are getting a more complete machine. The defenders of the i should realize that if it has any handling advantage over the xi, it is miniscule at best. The xi handles extraordinarly well. Far superior to my old A4. It is set up for a rear wheel bias and is very neutral during dry conditions. Unless you are driving right at the limit, there is no perceptible sacrifice in dry weather handling.


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## J330 (Jul 9, 2003)

Steelgreybimmer said:


> I just bought a 330xi. My prior car was a 2000 A4 2.8 Quattro. I considered all the drive train options before I made my choice.
> 
> A couple of things to consider. It is acknowleded that all season tires will not do on an i in the winter. You don't just put on snow tires when it snows, you put them on at the beginning of winter and leave them on till the spring (here in NY we had snow into April this year). Well, there goes the handling advantage of an i for up to 6 months of the year. Snows handle like sh--. With an xi, you can run performance all weathers all year long.
> 
> ...


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## J330 (Jul 9, 2003)

Steelgreybimmer said:


> I just bought a 330xi. My prior car was a 2000 A4 2.8 Quattro. I considered all the drive train options before I made my choice.
> 
> A couple of things to consider. It is acknowleded that all season tires will not do on an i in the winter. You don't just put on snow tires when it snows, you put them on at the beginning of winter and leave them on till the spring (here in NY we had snow into April this year). Well, there goes the handling advantage of an i for up to 6 months of the year. Snows handle like sh--. With an xi, you can run performance all weathers all year long.
> 
> ...


Interesting analysis. I guess for me the real benchmark is the handling of my A4. If the xi is better than the A4, I won't really notice that it is worse than an i. Also, my driveway IS fairly steep. Sveral FWD cars have gotten stuck. Several people suggested staying home, but I really don't have that option. There are a significant number of times that it is clear in the morning, but snowing before the end of the day. It is a good point that if you put snows on an i, you really have poor handling for 5-6 months anyway. I guess what I need to do is go drive an xi. Maybe I could rent one for a day or two to see how it handles on the roads I am familiar with. Thanks for the thoughts.


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## Spiderm0n (Dec 19, 2001)

Steelgreybimmer said:


> A couple of things to consider. It is acknowleded that all season tires will not do on an i in the winter. You don't just put on snow tires when it snows, you put them on at the beginning of winter and leave them on till the spring (here in NY we had snow into April this year). Well, there goes the handling advantage of an i for up to 6 months of the year. Snows handle like sh--. With an xi, you can run performance all weathers all year long.


I think this is a very good point. All the guys who say it only snows a couple days, but they run winter tires all freaking winter long .... how is that a good thing? Who cares how tight your suspension is when your sidewalls can't handle moderate cornering?


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