W123 in snow - What to expect....? - Page 2 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Archdukeferd · #16 12-18-2009, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snookwhaler

He'll be fine...

This will not last that long and is not a regular occurrence. Just throw a couple bags of sand in the trunk or some firewood. When I lived up in NC, I always had a set of cable chains in case it got really bad or I "had to be somewhere".

Just to illustrate the variance in NC, conditions in the mountain areas of NC are currently bad enough that I'd stay at home unless its an emergency.

Bags of sand or firewood aren't even close to cutting it. My AWD subaru is about 1/2 mile down the road I live on (brand new tires in past 6 weeks), had to walk the rest of the way up after breaking trail for 30-45 mins overheated the tranny. It wasn't looking good anyways, the road is just short of a mile but uphill the whole way and has a couple steep pitches I don't think I would have gotten up regardless. 1-3' of snow all over the place.

A W123, chains/studs or not, is not making it up my road today. Simply not enough ground clearance. My lifted jeep with nearly 2' to the belly and 33" mud/snow tires would have been fine, but that's a different animal.

Not sure how things are in Greensboro (probably 2-3000' lower in elevation) but if they're anything like they are here, "fine" and "driving a W123" don't belong in the same sentence. I doubt mine would get out of the parking spot I put it in this afternoon.

Sev · #17 12-18-2009, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Archdukeferd

Just to illustrate the variance in NC, conditions in the mountain areas of NC are currently bad enough that I'd stay at home unless its an emergency.

Bags of sand or firewood aren't even close to cutting it. My AWD subaru is about 1/2 mile down the road I live on (brand new tires in past 6 weeks), had to walk the rest of the way up after breaking trail for 30-45 mins overheated the tranny. It wasn't looking good anyways, the road is just short of a mile but uphill the whole way and has a couple steep pitches I don't think I would have gotten up regardless. 1-3' of snow all over the place.

A W123, chains/studs or not, is not making it up my road today. Simply not enough ground clearance. My lifted jeep with nearly 2' to the belly and 33" mud/snow tires would have been fine, but that's a different animal.

Not sure how things are in Greensboro (probably 2-3000' lower in elevation) but if they're anything like they are here, "fine" and "driving a W123" don't belong in the same sentence. I doubt mine would get out of the parking spot I put it in this afternoon.

how about the legendary 240d, with the four cylinder engine. surely that can make it up the hill if it were lifted

Archdukeferd · #18 12-18-2009, 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sev

how about the legendary 240d, with the four cylinder engine. surely that can make it up the hill if it were lifted

Lifted and if we adapted some sort of turbo to fit on the 4...

Oh and stickers, we're gonna need LOTS of stickers to get that thing up the hill.

ptwheatstraw · #19 12-19-2009, 01:00 PM

i live in berks co. pa when it snows more than 4 in. good snow tires on all 4 wheels are the only way to go.fill the fuel tank and fill the trunk with beer.

bustedbenz · #20 12-19-2009, 01:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Archdukeferd

Just to illustrate the variance in NC, conditions in the mountain areas of NC are currently bad enough that I'd stay at home unless its an emergency.

Bags of sand or firewood aren't even close to cutting it. My AWD subaru is about 1/2 mile down the road I live on (brand new tires in past 6 weeks), had to walk the rest of the way up after breaking trail for 30-45 mins overheated the tranny. It wasn't looking good anyways, the road is just short of a mile but uphill the whole way and has a couple steep pitches I don't think I would have gotten up regardless. 1-3' of snow all over the place.

A W123, chains/studs or not, is not making it up my road today. Simply not enough ground clearance. My lifted jeep with nearly 2' to the belly and 33" mud/snow tires would have been fine, but that's a different animal.

Not sure how things are in Greensboro (probably 2-3000' lower in elevation) but if they're anything like they are here, "fine" and "driving a W123" don't belong in the same sentence. I doubt mine would get out of the parking spot I put it in this afternoon.

I'm in winston-salem, and yesterday was bad enough I didn't care for the idea of going out too much. 3-6 inches of snow depending on where you were. Certainly wouldn't have tried it in one of the Benzes. I've slid off one icy road already in my life and have no intention of sliding off another.

Junkman · #21 12-19-2009, 03:37 PM

I grew up in Chicago. We drove whatever we had. You learn to deal with winter. I'm now in middle TN. No one here knows how to drive in snow. I stay off the roads so the idiot behind doesn't plow into me. NC has little snow. Go slow & you'll be fine. Better yet, stay home so the idiot behind doesn't tear up your beloved MBZ.

Archdukeferd · #22 12-19-2009, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Junkman

NC has little snow. Go slow & you'll be fine.

Negative. The mountains in WNC offer conditions every bit as bad as the great lakes midwest. I grew up in OH and have spent plenty of time in MI and IL. The main difference is that it rarely gets below -10 here.

I will agree that lots of people in this region have no idea how to drive in the snow though...

The key reason you can "run what you brung" in chitown and other places is that its FLAT. No amount of skill or snow tires will get a RWD vehicle around when it dumps in the mountains.

When it gets this bad, 4wd AND chains is really your only bet. I saw at least 2 6wd plow trucks fail to make it past the first 1/4 mile of my gravel road this morning after I skied down to my subaru and shoveled it out so I could back it down the hill. If they'd had chains they would have been fine, but they didn't (don't ask me why, pretty amateur)...

Now I'm off to work, where I'll have to remind myself that the 10' of frozen, white material underneath the snowcat is "little snow." And that anyone with some skill and some blizzaks could be showing up DOT trucks with a lil' old W123...

t walgamuth · #23 12-19-2009, 04:31 PM

Mercedes generally have good balance front to rear and with a little extra weight and good radial tires they will do as well as any rwd car which does not have limited slip or traction control and better than most.

snookwhaler · #24 12-19-2009, 05:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Archdukeferd

Just to illustrate the variance in NC, conditions in the mountain areas of NC are currently bad enough that I'd stay at home unless its an emergency.

Bags of sand or firewood aren't even close to cutting it. My AWD subaru is about 1/2 mile down the road I live on (brand new tires in past 6 weeks), had to walk the rest of the way up after breaking trail for 30-45 mins overheated the tranny. It wasn't looking good anyways, the road is just short of a mile but uphill the whole way and has a couple steep pitches I don't think I would have gotten up regardless. 1-3' of snow all over the place.

A W123, chains/studs or not, is not making it up my road today. Simply not enough ground clearance. My lifted jeep with nearly 2' to the belly and 33" mud/snow tires would have been fine, but that's a different animal.

Not sure how things are in Greensboro (probably 2-3000' lower in elevation) but if they're anything like they are here, "fine" and "driving a W123" don't belong in the same sentence. I doubt mine would get out of the parking spot I put it in this afternoon.

LOL!! Yea.... It is a real problem over in Greensboro.... ROFL.....

I used to live in Deep Gap, NC. Believe me.... I know all about mountain roads and snow. But back then I had a Toyota with 8 inches of lift and 35's. I never had a problem. Even during that bad storm back in the mid 90's. The only "Real problem" up there is when you get ice storms and then snow on top of it, combined with thawing and re-freezing over a few days. That is when things get hairy.

Like I said before. He'll be fine.

pawoSD · #25 12-19-2009, 11:31 PM

My 300SD does fine with a set of Yokohama IceGuard tires on it. We've had quite a lot of snow already this season, and I've had 0 problems at all....amazing traction. Who needs 4 wheel drive! Not me.

my83300cd · #26 12-20-2009, 10:05 AM

The same storm has blown thru CT. Now that my son had shoveled the 20" out of the driveway, its time for the 'which car will get up the hill to the road' contest. Will it be the 01 beetle on 17" toyos? The 300CD on toyo stock size radials, or will it be the '59 beetle on stock bias plys?

Any guesses?

#27 12-20-2009, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by my83300cd

The same storm has blown thru CT. Now that my son had shoveled the 20" out of the driveway, its time for the 'which car will get up the hill to the road' contest. Will it be the 01 beetle on 17" toyos? The 300CD on toyo stock size radials, or will it be the '59 beetle on stock bias plys?

Any guesses?

I'll take the '59.

pawoSD · #28 12-20-2009, 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Craig

I'll take the '59.

Same here, and I bet the new beetle will do it too.

okyoureabeast · #29 12-20-2009, 10:59 AM

Haha you guys talking about snow! It's cracking me up.

Snowfall like this is a yearly occurence in the snowbelt especially in Erie!

I plow throw snow without a care. I grew up on 12in + snow fall.

Archdukeferd · #30 12-20-2009, 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snookwhaler

LOL!! Yea.... It is a real problem over in Greensboro.... ROFL.....

I used to live in Deep Gap, NC. Believe me.... I know all about mountain roads and snow. But back then I had a Toyota with 8 inches of lift and 35's. I never had a problem. Even during that bad storm back in the mid 90's. The only "Real problem" up there is when you get ice storms and then snow on top of it, combined with thawing and re-freezing over a few days. That is when things get hairy.

Like I said before. He'll be fine.

That's awesome, deep gap is literally about 30-45 mins from me. Same story with my jeep, modify a proper 4wd and get some decent sized tires and you're good on everything but ice or long pitches of uphill, deep snow. I actually have taken it head to head with a pinzgauer in deep (10-20') snow and the gauer didn't make a good showing for itself.

I guess from my perspective I'm the snowmaking manager at hawksnest (if you remember that resort) and I spend most of my time looking at the absolute worst conditions NC has to offer. I spent about 15 hours last night wading around in natural snow that's anywhere from knee-6'+ deep. Hey, its my living. I tend to get offended when people say things like NC has little snow.

This morning at sunrise I promptly clocked out, cracked a PBR and dropped in on some beautiful waist deep, untracked powder...

I'm sure he is fine, but we seem to be on the same page here. I urged him to stay inside, sit by a fire and drink scotch because you can't control other driver's stupidity. I think that's a better alternative to getting in a fender bender or stuck in a ditch because you wanted to go grocery getting, hence keeping trips out to work and emergencies.

Now the best part? IT'S STILL SNOWING!!!