Re: [bmw] Winter Driving

["M Kohlbrenner" <mkohlbrenner@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

From: "Chris Pawlowicz" <cpawlowicz@domain.elided>

> Bryan says
> >My mechanic suggested that I add some weight to my trunk this winter to
> >make it easier to drive on the ice and snow. He claims a lot of people do
> >this, and use sandbags to add extra weight.
>
> while this was a common tradition (and still is for people with pick-ups),
> it is probably not a necessary or useful thing to do in your bmw
>
> old RWD american cars and even modern pick-ups are front-heavy.. so
> adding extra weight to the rear helped get a bit more traction to the rear
> wheels
>
> your BMW is almost perfectly balanced 50/50...

This is true only of the more recent models.  I can tell you from
experience that my E34 is much better balanced than my E28
was and it does a better job of accelerating in slippery
conditions than the E28 did with the exact same tires.

Wtih that said, I never had any trouble driving the E28 in the
snow without extra weight in the trunk and it was a real blast
since it was so easy to break the rear end loose and hang the
tail out.  Also, since there wasn't as much weight back there,
it was pretty controllable -- with the lower moment of inertia
in yaw it was harder to build up "too much" momentum
which can result in a spin.

If you have a concentrated weight near the rear bumper, it
will indeed help with acceleration in slippery conditions, but
it can also work against you if you get more spin started than
your tires can control.  You just have to remember this.

So, I guess I agree that if you have a newer BMW, just get
good tires.  If you have an older one, you might think about
supplementing good tires with a bag of gravel in the trunk.

Gravel is nice to have if you get stuck...

Regards,
Mike Kohlbrenner
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