[Yoda]

I have a 2005 Audi A4 convertible and a 1991 Subaru Legacy, both all wheel drive. I have just been driving the Audi since I purchased it in spring 2007. New Year's Day I drove three hundred miles to visit family and I-68 in Maryland was treacherous. Most traffic was traveling 40 mph; I saw two faster trucks spin in circles before ending in the median. I gently tested my brakes going down a 6 degree hill and had no brakes. My traction sensor kept flashing but I did not slide.

I drove four miles this morning and slid in the parking lot of McDonalds; I saw a man fall down after stepping out of his vehicle. Returning home I was going up a slight grade and started sliding toward the ditch (better than the creek). I backed up several times and tried again but every time I slid. A new alert light was on; I didn't have my owner's manual but later found it was a bulb out. But I didn't know what the alert meant so called for a tow truck. He said the tow trucks would not be going on the roads until the dept of highways cleared them better. Freaking great. The tow guy said I should check to see if snow was packed around one of the tires. I did back up through eight inches of snow without shoveling. It looked okay though. I parked the car and a neighbor drove me home.

I am wondering if I should drive my Audi or my Subaru. A month ago I was told the Audi's tread was wearing on the inner back tires. Not sure if tread is sufficient for these weather conditions. I put new tires on the Subaru a month before I quit driving it. The Subaru has over two hundred thousand miles but no problems except perhaps needing a new battery. I am not sure how the weight of the Audi and the Subaru compare. The Audi has air bags. I don't think the Subaru does. I can add insurance to the Subaru for less than fifty dollars per month. If I wreck the Subaru there would be less financial loss.

I am not certain which vehicle would be better to drive in snow. What do you think?

[bebop]

it very well could be you need new tires. poor tread does not work well in snow and ice.

[Yoda]

Originally Posted by bebop

it very well could be you need new tires. poor tread does not work well in snow and ice.

That would be a vote for the Subaru then because it has better tread.

[Timgt5]

I am with Bebop, tire condition is very important for traction. Most importantly is the driver though. Almost any car will go in the snow if the driver understands his/her machine and uses caution if they have to drive in bad weather. No heroics, just increase follow distances, slow down, tap your breaks gently. Also remember if you skid, turn in the direction of the skid to straighten your car out. Your Subaru has awd, and with new tires you are less likely to wreck.

If you "subie" has been maintained, there should be no problem with the engine. Subarus "boxer" engine is a tough and durable as they come.

Hope this helps.

[VickiesPath]

My father was a rural mail carrier in southern Oklahoma for many years in 1964-1986. After driving numerous foreign and domestic cars, many of them four wheel drive, even the IH Scout, a VW Beetle, and a Jeep model, he settled on the 4WD Subaru and all tolled had six of them as he put over 200K miles on them each year. They were the best car he ever owned.

[Perna]

I had a Subaru for the snow driving (now have a Ford Explorer) and it was fine in snow but sounds like you're describing ice. No vehicle can drive on ice, except maybe a zamboni with studded tires.

The Audi is four wheel drive (the Audi people try to make it special, call it "quattro" :-) and the Subaru is all wheel drive; there's a difference. Four wheel drive works 2 and 2 in pairs where as all wheel, each wheel works independently so the wheels with the best traction work (each wheel has a computer to do traction sensing).

[Yoda]

Originally Posted by Perna

The Audi is four wheel drive (the Audi people try to make it special, call it "quattro" :-) and the Subaru is all wheel drive; there's a difference. Four wheel drive works 2 and 2 in pairs where as all wheel, each wheel works independently so the wheels with the best traction work (each wheel has a computer to do traction sensing).

hmmmm That is something I didn't know.

I was watching my neighbor trying to drive the Audi out of a slippery spot and I could see the left front tire was spinning and the right front tire was not moving. I wasn't quite sure what to make of that.

[Perna]

You use to have to "turn on" four wheel drive and Audi is proud of being one of the first with permanent four wheel, it just was all the time and it only worked front two or back two but now I think it can work left side or right side, whichever senses the best traction. There's all kinds of other stuff too (or use to be), "high" and "low" four wheel, etc.

I'm prejudiced with the Subaru :-) My dealer, when I bought it, made me come to a Saturday 4-hour workshop that was really exciting/interesting. They took us to the garage and had one up on a lift, showed us all the stuff underneath and how to change oil and transmission fluid, etc. The Subaru was different from most cars back then (2001?) and they did the classes for self-defense I think. They had stories of customers emptying out wrong fluids or towing the car wrong, etc. The oil amount is "odd" too so you can easily overfill it (so I never took it to Jiffy Lube or "cheap" places where young guys that didn't know/care might be doing the changing).

But I loved that car, named mine "Gyro", short for gyroscope as that's what it felt like to me driving up hills. It just felt really sure-footed. The only problem I ever had in snow was it being too small/low to the ground so if there was much snow, it couldn't get through. My daughter-in-law coveted it and husband and I are retired and go everywhere together so we tried making it with one car and gave her the Subaru, son sold her car and gave us the few hundred dollars he got for it and on we went. I got to driving more often again though so bought a used Ford Explorer (my husband couldn't drive/fit in the Subaru and he can an Explorer) and we use that as our snow car now.

Yoda! Audi sounds very nice~~~

Light Year Tires are best for the snow. Really...

[VickiesPath]

I had no idea there was a difference with the "Scoobydoo" either. No wonder my dad liked it. He was driving in mud!!!

[sunrise]

For short distance driving in snow and ice, chains work great. It sounds like the all wheel drive capabilities of your Audi are insufficient now, whether due to tire treads or whatever. Can you just chain up? Last winter I had chains on my tires for close to 2 weeks straight for non-freeway driving. It's impossible to go on bare-road freeways with the chains, but for everything else, they work great (except for lots of stretches of bare road, but they don't plow in my area, so not an issue). If not chains, then snow tires can help a lot.

Because of last winter's heavy snows here (and I also needed a new car), I bought a Subaru a few months ago. I would really like it to snow so I can see how it does. When I went to the Subaru dealer, which also sold VWs, they told me how last winter, they could drive all the Subarus from one part of the parking lot to another, but the VWs were stuck until they got the lot cleared of snow. Of course, they want to sell Subarus, but still, Subes are known in these parts as the car to have for snow and ice.

I understand your concern about airbags. Last summer I totaled my 2006 Honda Accord and had the front and side airbags deploy. I feel they really helped me survive with only minor injuries, plus the body frame was very strong and held with survivable deformation.

Good luck. Be safe. Try chains!

[Yoda]

Thanks for all your responses.

Tuesday I had my Subaru towed to my service station. When I last drove it there were no problems so I thought most likely it would need just a new battery and oil change and probably not much else. WRONG. The mechanic told me mice had chewed through several wires and it had developed some other issues while sitting. He estimated it would take at least $1000 and probably more to fix it. He said if it were his he would not fix it. Bummer. I had been counting on the Subaru to be my son's car.

The mechanic said I would only get ~$75 at a junk yard. I put new tires on the Subaru a month before I stopped driving it and my driver's manual says tires are generally good for six years. The tires cost $500 new. I think I am going to try to sell it as is and see what I can get out it. If somebody has a car that uses the same size tires it would have some value. So how much should I ask? $200? Offers? Surely I can get more than $75.

It was supposed to warm up a bit today but the high was 31 degrees. I walked up the road to where my Audi was parked and took some pizza boxes for traction. The main roads are now clear but side roads and where the Audi was parked still have lots of snow. I rocked the Audi back and forth and got enough momentum to get out of the snow. I didn't have to use the pizza boxes. My neighbor looked at my tires and said he thought they looked decent. My mechanic had told me they were wearing unevenly on the inside rear a bit. This has been our worst winter for quite awhile so perhaps I was not realistic about road conditions. I'll talk to my mechanic again when I go in to get new rotors.

If all else fails I guess we'll have to ride Dusty.