So, you crazy MT.netters ought to be able to advise me on this.

I'm about to plumb in a working heater core. I'll be throwing on a decent set of snow tires soon. I'll be disconnecting the wastegate as well so the turbo doesn't really spool. I'll also be picking up full coverage insurance.

What else do you guys do for winter driving in fucktons of snow in YOUR Miata's?

 

1. find parking lot
2. ???
3. profit?

 

Moar like....

1. Find deserted snowed-to-hell backroads (...which are everywhere)
2. ???
3. Profit

Seriously, that made me want to winter DD the Miata. So. Much. Fun.

 

Don't know, but we got our first snow today! It's gone already, but it stuck for 3 or 4 minutes.

Obviously, you want an AWD vehicle for winter. Which is why I purchased a RWD V8 coupe for all my winter driving.

 

AWD + turbo = fun

 

Use your foot to control boost. I drove the miata for a few winters back when I lived in WI. Never got stuck and that was with all-seasons and no limited slip. Since you live in WA, you already know how to drive in snow. Doesn't change anything just because its a miata.

 

Park car in garage. Whip out my ****

I mean my subie


Bleen were you the one that recommended "how to succeed with women" to me?

 

Proper studded tires, a nice frozen lake with a nice track, all the power you can get, profit!

 

Thanks Messiah. If you managed it in WI, I sure as hell can pull it off in WA.

DAMN YOU SWEDES!

Seriously, the mere idea would petrify most WA people although that sounds fun as hell to me. One of these days I swear I'm going to spend some substantial amount of time in Sweden just to experience the crazy Swedes.

Nope. That sounds like something Pushy would recommend.

And if I get a Subie, it's gonna be a WRX STi that I promptly will get 50billion tickets in immediately, so yeah. :(

 

ALWAYS have tire chains in your trunk. ALWAYS have a HEAVY jacket/pants/coveralls with you just in case you are stranded. Always bring a cell phone, and hope you have reception.

I DD'd the miata a few winters, one of which was turboed. I wouldn't worry too much, its alright in the snow.. kind of. I have a FWD beater so i don't have to do that anymore though.

 

Even Mazda had some fun the winter before last

Just needs one foot of solid ice, but that's not easy to predict in advance.

With a power level closer to a "proper" Miata it looks a bit more fun

 

You dont have to go all the way to Sweden for ice racing lol

 

OMFG!

I MUST MAKE A TRIP TO SWEDEN NEXT WINTER! I MUST! That's amazing!

If I'm going to ice race, Ima do it the right way. I typically take a trip to Europe in the winter anyways!

 

Watch this:
IrnieRacing AMSOIL Miata, HD Rally Demo 2009, BC Canada on Vimeo

 

My old turbo '94 was a year round daily driver for 2 years. I ran 175/65/14 studded snows and it would go anywhere I wanted even in my very hilly town. The only thing that could stop it was being high centered when the snow was very deep. Hell in that 22" overnight blizzard in 2010 I was out having fun blasting through the wind blown drifts with snow coming over the hood/roof at times until it started getting too deep to keep up enough momentum. My '07 Forester turbo isn't as fun to drive in the snow as the Miata was.

 

Blizzaks, make sure the heater works and the top seals. It's worked well for me the last few years.

 

I picked up some Michelin X-Ice Xi2's on closeout from TireRack. Good snows on a Miata are quite fun.

There's been some "snowcrosses" held in Deer Park (N. of Spokane) in the past few years. You might want to keep an eye out for them.

 

Winter mode:

 

Here in sweden we just change tires and go out and have fun.


Good seasong to pratice drifting. Snow == tires last forever.

Monst winters where i live we have ~6-8 weeks of drive on the ICE. Minimum 10cm ice on the thinnest place and an average of ~15-20cm. Usely on smaler lakes.



my previous car in the winter:

 

quattro.

Or move to California. 70 degrees and sunny here today, although I drove the Audi because I haven't bothered to take the Hoosiers off the Miata yet.

--Ian