A-Bodies in the snow?

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Not my car.

Just a picture thats been floating around the intermess for years.
 

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jpywell52 said:
I'm curious about others experience in the snow. I know a lot of you have cars far to nice to see action it he winter but as my attempts at trading my valiant for a 4wd truck have (not surprisingly) failed. It looks like I'll be driving the scamp this winter. My job requires me to be available for emergencies regardless of weather (in fact bad weather is often what means i need to be there). Right now I'm running a stock rear end drums in the rear discs in the front and am sure it would be dicey but wondering how those of you with limited slip, posi whatever have faired in the winter? :coffee2:

Pictures would be both entertaining and useful.

Cheers!
Click to expand...

OK, here ya go! pics!
Anyway, we have been driving at least 1 Dart per winter for more years than I wanted to. I even had to drive my avitar 64 for 3 winters too!
Dart winter secret X2;
1: Buy Snow tires at tire store and pay the extra $15.00 for studs to be put on.
2: Buy 2 $5.00 Sand bags at lowes and put 1 on each side in trunk behind axle the axle, on the trunk extensions above rear frame boxes. (leverage)
Bonus secrets;
1: No sudden movements, ie: flooring it, sudden stops, sudden turns, radical lane changes, easy does it every time on snow and ice.
2: Always full tank gas, jack, spare, 2 blankets, flairs, flashlight, ballast resistor, triangles, CB radio, Flashlight, Bag-O-Salt and anything else you can think of for weight in back.
Winter pre flight;
1: Engine compartment; hoses, belts, filters all should be checked if not replaced. Hose down entire engine bay with WD-40.
2: Chasis; New under coating on body parts only on underside, WD-40 on all non painted parts on entire undercarrage, axles, leaf springs, etc. If ya do it right it will take 3-4 large cans of WD-40 or you can use a 50/50 mix of kero and ATF.
3: New wiper blades and de icing washer solvent. Small tarp to cover front windshield when parked and expecting snow/ice. (no scraping)
4: Carry a small canister of lock deicer in your pocket.

This year we're going to try it in a 79 Aspen Wagon.
Happy Slooshing!
:cool:
 

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I had a friend that used to drive an old Buick Skylark slightly jacked up in the back (air shocks) with 50 series Remington XT120's all winter long. I ask him once how he did it and he told me he let the air out of the tires to 10 to 12 pounds of pressure when it snowed! This was back in the 1970's and we got a shitload of snow back then in WV. As some of you may know the only flatlands in WV are dragstrips! He also had acouple of sandbags in the trunk. roadrunnerh is right about neons, they are tanks in the snow and you can buy a 6 pack of them cheap!
 
Never driven mine in the snow, though I do have this picture from when my '74 got caught out in a snow storm because there wasn't room in the garage :eek:ops:

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For snow use I have a $500 4x4 Extended Cab 5.2L Dodge Dakota with an 8.5' Snow Plow. And for a backup, my '84 D50 and my '87 D50

If the snow gets deep enough to keep my '84 D50 from getting around, I would have bigger things to worry about :D Especially since my '92 Dakota and '87 D50 have both cut paths through 3'+ of snow and were the only trucks on the road (not even the state plow trucks were out in those storms) and both of those trucks had 30" Winter Tread tires. The Dakota is running stock suspension and 30" Winter Treads, the '87 had 4" of lift and 30" Winter Treads (with a 7.5' Snow Plow)

I believe it was 2009 or 2010 when we got slammed with about 38 - 40" of snow over night. My little '87 D50 was the only truck on the road (in fact, I was the person who cut a path into town) except for a Hummer that got stuck at the end of a driveway and spent over an hour trying to get back into the driveway :finga:

My winter rigs :

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i had to go to the parts yard last winter for some s10 parts. the guy drove me threw the yard looking for what i needed in a front wheel drive automatic saturn. it was muddy , slush and snow and this thing walked threw the whole yard up and down fire trails. he told me that it never got stuck.
 
I drove my Dart through the past 2 winters, although last winter wasn't a typical western NY winter. My car handles in snow just fine, it's nothing special just a slant 6 four door daily driver with a sure grip out back. I've driven on un plowed roads with 4-5 inches of snow on them without a problem. Just make sure you have good tires, brakes that don't pull to one side, and some weight in the back and you'll be fine. Remember 40 or so years ago these cars were nothing special, people drove them in snow all winter long and they did just fine back then, there's no reason why they shouldn't be OK now.
 
I haven't driven an A-body in the snow since the 80s but they are not great in the snow. Good tires will make a BIG improvement over what we had in the 70s & 80s, even the all wether radials from the 80s were a huge improvement back then. But any front wheel driver will be much better. Get a Neon or even a brand X FWD and save the old iron. Yes the lower tire pressure will improve traction not only in snow but also sand and such.
 
Snow driving is easy, when I learned there was no fwd cars.
Only 4wd trucks and rear wheel drive cars.
Skinny snow tires on the rear, studs help alot on ice, and a set of tire chains in the trunk if you need them.
I remember along time ago coming down the interstate in my dads 66 fury with chains on the rear, there was more 4wd's and cj-5's off the road than cars.
 
Only snow my Demon has ever seen. I did, however, drive my 440+6 powered '71 Challenger year round back in the mid 80's. Handful is an understatement.

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I don't drive them in the snow,but they sure know what it is:banghead:
 

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I have to say, I am enjoying seeing these pics of old Mopars sitting in the snow! Back in the day, they all saw snow, lol.
 
The original owner of my Fish said that they used to drive it back and forth between Central IL and Colorado Springs at all times of the year, so I'm assuming it has seen snow. Considering the condition of its left rear quarter and rear valance I think that would be a safe bet. He didn't seem to think it gave him any issues in the snow. One thing to keep in mind about studded tires, though, is that you should check your state laws. IIRC, in my state of IL they are illegal. Not sure about New York, but considering the weather Upstate, not to mention you've got the Catskills, you'll probably be okay.
 
Posi will make it fishtail when traction is lost....Scamps are low and have poor clearance in deep snow, as My dart,darts,etc. If You are called out in bad weather, meaning heavy snow....You will not have alot of fun....My experience with living in Buffalo NY...I never had a 4 drive wheel vehicle until 2 years ago.(46 years driving experience)..rear wheel drive only trucks was always an adventure in poor weather regardless of ground clearance..Try real hard to get a 4 wheel drive or at least a front wheel drive(they get traction much better than rear wheel only)I can recommend a jeep Patriot or liberty model if 2 wheel is all You can afford. Wife has one since 08 and it goes through everything very nicely.
 
I used to drive my 68 Barracuda fastback year round. Mild built 318 with 4 bbl and dual exhaust. With an open rear it could be a little tricky. After I swapped in a 3.23 sure grip, no problem. I lived in Detroit where they do not plow the neighborhood streets. With the sure grip I loved going around the neighborhood in the snow. It got better traction than the wife's 95 Neon. the low gear ratio and narrow tires went through the snow with no problem.

Get a sure grip and go for it.
 
terzmo said:
Posi will make it fishtail when traction is lost....
Click to expand...

This is true but with sure-grip you can stay on the gas and the tires will continue to dig and push the car. With an open rear that one tire will start spinning like mad and you'll be stuck going nowhere which is far more frustrating. As long as you have good control of your right foot it works pretty well...
 
My '66 Dart 270 made approximately 40 trips up to the White Pass ski resort on U.S. Highway 12 in the southern Cascade Mountains of Washington State back in my younger days (100 miles round trip on a twisting, snowy mountain pass). Ski racks attached to the gutters and the vehicle loaded with five growing teenagers. Never had any problems and there were likely a few reasons:

When I bought the car from the proverbial "little old lady" found an unused set of four "walnut" snow tires in the trunk. Don't think they make them anymore. They had tiny pieces of crushed walnut shells in the rubber resin for added grip. Didn't hurt that the holes were there in the tires to have the shop insert studs. Have seen a few guys mention studded tires in earlier replies, but I know they are not widely used in some areas of the country. The other key for the stock Dart was that the tires were really narrow on the little 13-inch wheels which seemed to result in less slippage. Some might not know, but here in Washington the DOT does not use salt, which likely leads to the fact that there are a bunch of non-rusted out older rigs in our part of the country. No salt=good for classic cars, but also good for tow truck companies dragging guys out of the ditch.
 
66dartman said:
find an old air cooled vw beetle for cheap. I used to buy them and drive them through the winter to save my nice car from getting beat up. The heat in them is no good, but they do pretty well in snow. I bought one that I drove home recently for $400. It needs work, and I have 3 4x4 vehicles, but I couldn't pass it up.
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Back here on the east coast? Forget it! Those cars rusted away loonng time ago & now they are a collectors item. A good used Honda civic or Accord would be good.
 
My ex standing by dads car in street in front of the house

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winter 1978 Indiana had a blizzard and he drove home after it had been snowing all day, took him about 1 1/2 hours to go less than 10 miles. This must have been the sunday or monday after the snow.

Dad drove this for over 5 years

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slant 6 3 speed on the floor and I think G 60 14 radials on 7" deep dish cragers on the rear
 
+1 on the buy a cheap FWD car
My 1993 Dodge Intrepid with 186k miles
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and not really a snowy picture but this thing was a champ as well!
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Drove my 65 Valiant in fresh snow that was about 1.5 feet deep, it pushed through with no problem, and even with 4 wheel drums stopped ok. My 65 Fargo 4x4 on the other hand with military tires, pushed through great, but was horrible to stop, unless you like sliding sideways into oncoming traffic.
 
Great to see this thread growing. Thanks for the responses seems the consensus is its better to avoid it both for the sake of the car and for ease and safety of driving.
 
(It's worth saying again)

I love seeing these pics of old Mopars in the snow! We only see these cars now in some state of restoration or at a show / car cruise.
 
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