S60R too low for snow?!?

[Mitch]

My buddy picked up a 2004 S60R AWD last year and hasn't gone through a winter yet with it.

When I asked him the other day what he was going to do for the winter with regards to tires (he's running the stock 18"), he mentioned that he was just going to not run it and drive the family's 850. He is concerned that the car is too low for our Eastern Canadian winters.

I mentioned to him that the AWD system really kicks in the snow and that he would really enjoy the car during the winter.

He would have put 17" steel wheels and tires, but then was too concernd about the height.

Any thoughts on height issues?

Thanks!
-Mitch

04 XC70
99 Passat 1.8T
69 Triumph GT6+

[Art]

With the appropriate tires, I think that the R's would be quite capable of being driven during the winter. In fact, I've seen plenty of cars with lower ground clearance out here riding on prairie snow. Here's (http://www.swedespeed.com/news/publish/Features/article_785.html) more proof. :)

[tom's new car]

I had no problems with my A4 with a sports suspnsion, but he won't get anywhere with the tires he's got on there now...........I'd recommend a set of pirelli snowsport 240's in a -1...(235/24/17)........with those, the car would be a gas to drive in the snow

[Gundo]

We had a S60 AWD with 17" wheels at our VT house that was absolutely fantastic in the snow - with a 16" set of wheels and narrow diameter snow tires.

The 17 or 18" wheels quickly get packed with snow and road junk, making them wobble and shake.

If you are driving in a lot of snow on a frequent basis,I would not recommend driving on the stock 18" R wheels in the snow.

[skibo]

We typically get 100 - 150" of snow a year, here on the southern shore of Lake Erie. Until we got the XC70 in 12/04 we got by with a FWD Honda Civic, which is probably lower than an S60. I never got it stuck, but then I wasn't blazing any trails, either. You just have to be reasonable about where you take it. Even when huge amounts of snow falls in a single storm, it takes a while, and the plows pass every now and then, so it's rare that there is more than 2 or 3" on the road at any one time.