Vibe AWD In Snow

[agksimon]

I traded my FWD Vibe in for the new AWD and wanted to know how they do in snow, as I got stuck a lot before. My wife has a Hyundai Santa Fe, which has a lot higher ground clearance than my new Vibe and does fairly well in 6-8" of snow. What can I expect? Because of the low ground clearance, will I be plowing snow with the front end?

[kowell]

The vehicule's height is the same as your previous vibe so this should be your better comparison point. The vehicule is AWD but it's not an SUV so you'll have to be resonable regarding where you want to drive it. I previously drove both a Kia Sorento 4x4 and a Subaru legacy AWD. The subaru had a ground clearance similar to that of the vibe and I never got stuck with it, of course there are some snowy areas (more than 1 foot of snow) where I didn't go because of the ground clearance but did go with the Sorento. If you equip the car with good winter tires and remain reasonable in where you expect the car to go trough you shouldn't have any problem. You definitly shouldn't get stuck in streets or your driveway.

[BlueCrush]

I have never had a problem in snow with my '05 AWD and I have only ever used all season tires. I used to be lowered 2" and was even plowing snow and still didn't get stuck. If you get a lot of snow, I would recommend snow tires and you shouldn't have any problems.

[NibCrom]

It can't be any worse than the FWD version.

[keithvibe]

my 06 awd i have driven with the stock all season tires in snow as deep at 6-8inches with out any problems. Granted the tires were BRAND NEW.I did have trouble getting around the second season on the same tires in 4-6inches of snow.. I never got stuck but the wheel spin was quite a bit more.I would say get snow tires and you can rest easy that where ever your wife may be able to go in her Hyundai Santa Fe you can go in your vibe.Be prepaired for a substantial loss in MPG when your awd system is kicking in more in the snow.

[AKLGT]

AWD makes a world of difference. also, the ride heighth is pretty decent compared to most cars, so you should be just fine.

[starmatt]

I think the awd vibe does really well in the snow. I've got studded snow tires on mine and it's done really well this winter (which set some local records for snowfall). I can't say that I ever drove it in more than an inch or two of snow, but I do have a long commute (about 50 miles each way) and there were plenty of times that I saw other cars off the road when I wasn't. Come to think of it, there were a couple of times that I had to plow through a little bit of snow (4-6 inches) on the driveway to get to the road. The vibe handled it pretty well, but our driveway is about as flat as they come and only 10-15 yards long. I don't know if the undercarriage hit snow or not (except where the town plows pushed larger amounts right at the road). It handled that much snow fine anyway.It certainly handles snow a lot better than my previous car, which was a rwd sedan, but that's not saying a whole lot.

[Sublimewind]

Quote, originally posted by agksimon »I traded my FWD Vibe in for the new AWD and wanted to know how they do in snow, as I got stuck a lot before. My wife has a Hyundai Santa Fe, which has a lot higher ground clearance than my new Vibe and does fairly well in 6-8" of snow. What can I expect? Because of the low ground clearance, will I be plowing snow with the front end?Do yourself a big favor and get some steel wheels and some snow tires... AWD paired up with a decent set of snows is practly un-stoppable... I've have my AWD subaru in 24" of snow, snow comming up over the hood and kept on a goin... you can get away with the A/S tires, but, you are soooooooooooooooooooooooo much bettrer of with even the CHEAPEST snow tires..