How bad are E30's in the Winter

[E30BeemerLad]

There seems to be a strange attraction to Lamposts in your household Lee.
You were,nt Spaniel,s in a previous incarnation, were you

Aye, 1 a piece now, i did a better job though. Mind you, I probably would have driven the soarer home from the spanking I gave the Touring, they are a properly built old bruiser

[stonesie]

Mine was not bad in the bit of snow we had early this year, this time its got double the low down grunt so it could be interesting


The best car i have ever had for snow bashing was a 1.1 4 speed pug 205 It did many a backstreet in leeds at a 45° angle with the handbrake firmly on

[tunnyx]

The back ends can be very lairy in damp/icy weather, as mine proved to me back in February

Torrential rain + ice + mud draining off field onto inner lane of dual carriageway =

i'll have yer wheels, how much ya want....

[TheHeap]

you turn traction off in the snow as it cuts the power and you don't go anywhere., f**king useless. Was the only way to get my ladys Z3 out of our road last year was me driving it sideways up the road until i got it to salted tarmac!

E30 heaters are the awsome come winter nothing can touch them!

Thats what i'm saying my E36 just didnt want to move in the snow and ice would rather go in a circle than a stright line tried changing in to higher gears, traction off traction on but i wasnt having any of it

I don't get any of this trouble in my e36 318is i have had it maybe 3 yrs now and it's been a ok.

if you're after a winter sheeeter i got my mk3 golf up 4 sale which you should defo get ya monies back in the spring

[Morat]

E30s are pretty much useless in the snow, especially if its icy and you're on a hill. To be fair, its not just E30s - anything RWD will struggle compared with FWD let alone 4x4s. Of course tyres still make a big difference, but I'd park the E30 if I were you.

[Alex]

wish we had the 325IX

looks like good fun to me

[youtube][/youtube]

[pac1982]

if you're after a winter sheeeter i got my mk3 golf up 4 sale which you should defo get ya monies back in the spring

Sounds like just the sort of thing i'm looking for can you PM me a few more details?

[Morat]

In my dream garage there's an iX touring on snow tyres, ready for snowy days

[town325i]

just load the boot up with about 7 bags of sand from eh smiths that's all i do and mine drives fine

[Morat]

Judging by your sig pic you forgot to take them out again too!

[lloydp]

As suggested by my dad: box of bricks or a bag of sand or something in the boot to get some weight on the drive wheels and its fine. My touring survived last winter quite well this way, and our old merc did many winters in Norway the same (though it also had the benefit of steel-studded snow tyres). I managed my 25mi commute in the snow just fine when many others failed to rock up.

There's an ice-driving school in France that uses a 325iX complete with yellow-tinted headlights for instructing. Sadly we only got the 205 Junior complete with mystery 'shove it and hope' gear lever and Exorcist-spec instruments.

[Ollie_bwoii]

I am lookign forward to passing my test and driving the chromie, but I don't want to kill it or me.

4x4's are great in this weather! My Dad used to have a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and to get passed all the cars sliding up a steep hill near my house in the snow this year, he drove up and along the verge running alongside the road.

[BadDave]

winter where I live gets pretty harsh ! there are no grit spreaders, they can't down the lane

here's my tourer last year it was stuck there for 2 weeks, i lost control in a field after having a bit of fun! ..



one of my others ,an auto never moves in the snow ! I darent's risk it

That's just in a few hours up here.

[casper8r]

Being the driving legend I consider myself to be I thought "pah, what winters" last year during the snowfall. Guess what - no friggin chance of driving a 325i auto on wide summer tyres in snow, it simply does not work. Not even Ayrton Senna would be able to drive it, no matter how gentle you are with the throttle.

Having driven an old chromie 318i during several real winters with months of snow and temperatures reaching -30 C they're ok as long as you have proper winter tyres. As suggested some weight in the boot would help, mostly to avoid getting stuck in deep snow. You can debate until the cows come home whether you need winter tyres in UK but having experienced both I'd rather spend £400 on a set of winter tyres for a peace of mind.

[pac1982]

I should be alright with the weight in the boot as its got a massive MDF boot install and lots of bass in there

[stonesie]

My LPG tank doubles as a handy boot-weight

[town325i]

Judging by your sig pic you forgot to take them out again too!

that was possibly changing from 1st to 2nd a bit harsh at the pod the other month

[Speedtouch]

The back ends can be very lairy in damp/icy weather, as mine proved to me back in February

Torrential rain + ice + mud draining off field onto inner lane of dual carriageway =

i'll have yer wheels, how much ya want....

Unfortunately, it was a Cat B write-off, and the insurance company wouldn't let me buy it back

Thanks for the offer though

[nicey]

e30's in winter, no probs when you live wales!, you get used to all sorts in the countryside!

Skinny tyres, gentle on the controls, slowly does it!, drove 25 miles on untreated roads, car would n't make the last 15 foot onto my drive!!,I live at the top of a big hill, going down at 3.45 in the morning with other peoples car's parked on the road either side.......

[bpowell555]

the problem doesn't lie with the E30 but the driver. I learn't by hitting a tree on Christmas day in 2001 in my e30 318i with a severe running out of talent moment. Never had a problem since! Just stick to the RWD rules, no booting it out of corners, lifting off etc unless your talented

you turn traction off in the snow as it cuts the power and you don't go anywhere., f**king useless. Was the only way to get my ladys Z3 out of our road last year was me driving it sideways up the road until i got it to salted tarmac!

E30 heaters are the awsome come winter nothing can touch them!

The heater kicks ass, I drive with it on full and the window half open

[bpowell555]

I'll try the bags of sand tip if there's snow... my fwd derv has traction control and was absolutely superb in the snow - doubt the e30 will be anything like it

[polsta]

Anyway, it doesn't snow until February down South.

im glad of that, we dont get a great deal of snow here thank god, just the odd couple of days

interesting read this thread, glad ive got my xr3 for the real icy roads and snowy weather

[Felix79]

Mums Ford KA it is for me then. I've seen prams with wider wheels and that thing.

[murran]

welded diff and studded tyres on some old vauxhall rims!


there was no where i couldnt go. was a little understeery but a quick pull on the handbrake sorts that out!

[tez180]

haha! ^

Now we're talking

[bpowell555]

mmm winter tyres

[bigredbmw]

am just gonna put mine in the garden for winter this yr dont want to risk brakin it ...... al use ma trusty new transport











150 quid ..... my new work horse saves the beemer gettin broke in the winter lol

[nomadx]

I spent a few days driving a 3.5 ton rwd sprinter in the snow last summer, that got interesting a few times


My audi A4 Q is wonderful in the snow!

[dazleeds]

if you cant drive through a british winter safely

then you shouldnt be driving one at all

[Speedtouch]

if you cant drive through a stone wall safely

then you shouldnt be driving one at all

[bigredbmw]

i can drive thru winter properly i drive ma flatbed van 365 days a yr .... but with the amount of money i have put into it plus am turning it into a show car

[dazleeds]

if you cant drive through a stone wall safely

then you shouldnt be driving one at all

now that was lowwwwwwwwwww

but funny

[march109]

if you cant drive through a stone wall safely

then you shouldnt be driving one at all

now that was lowwwwwwwwwww

but funny

What time of year did you plant yours into a wall Daz?

[danbear]

I love driving in the winter, especially in the snow. A nice bit touring boot will come in handy for shovels and supplys lol

[dazleeds]

now that was lowwwwwwwwwww

but funny

What time of year did you plant yours into a wall Daz?

it werent winter

think it was july