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TommyC

Shropshire, Snow, and stuck BMWs

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Yesterday afternoon/evening I was driving back to Telford from Oxfordshire for the weekend. M5 traffic as usual so I ditched it and went through Kidderminster up the A449 & A442.

It took 3 hours to get from Kidderminster to Bridgnorth as we had to get round a few stuck BMWs and a stricken Lorry.

There were a few time I thought I'd end up stuck as it was very difficult to get moving again in the stoooop-start-stooooop traffic!

I actually found it better and easier to get going with traction control fully off. It seemed to interfere too much and hinder things, not help?!

Also decidedly to have some low speed fun on the twisty bits of our estate... and ended up perpendicular to the road and stalled 😳 15 point turn saw me to my driveway with some emabarrassment 😂😂😂

Anyone else having any Snowy moments/adventures?

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Yeah, same for me. I got stuck going uphill yesterday morning. Electronics was interfering too much, couldn't do anything other than turning traction control off completely. I needed RPMs to get the wheels spinning and make some grip on a fairly icy hill. 

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23 minutes ago, Lowe said:

This is exactly what single press of TC is for 👍🏻

I tried all combinations of buttons. Only one that worked for the situation was everything off... 😬😵

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Big roundabout near my house has the main carriageway running through the middle so traffic lights control entry off the slip roads onto the main stretch. At the lights yesterday morning, TC on, merc next to me, gunned the throttle and the back end just sort of moved to the right without going forwards too much, after a second or 2 forwards progression appeared but the merc was long gone....

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Snow can be wonderful source of sideways/rally fun :).

But I advise (from my own negative experience in past :( ) to never go above vsc sport when driving on public streets in winter or when wet though. On streets it's not just self that can be endangered with hooning, but also other drivers and pedestrians, and mistakes cost much more, due environment with many uncontrolled variables and one that is not designed to decrease them (eg. kerb design, one way direction, lessening of blind corners, short-distance, well-known from repeated/lapped many times track), one not made for mistakes to cost less, not allowing to push more to limits with more piece of mind. Instead it's spinning out & hitting kerb with damaging suspension and paying more for repairs & insurance, versus if on track, spinning out, sliding off track and sliding a bit till stop, then continuing speed lapping.

Complete TC off or pedal dance should be left for specialized winter tracks or icy lakes, again, where mistakes are less costly and where there are less uncontrollable variables like opposite direction traffic, blind corners, idiotic unpredictable maneuvers of some one notices too late.

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11 hours ago, maurice said:

Exactly, the button is there for a reason.

More snow due today, and I'm due back in Oxfordshire tonight! It shall  be getting some use! 🙂

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I wonder what buttons they have in X-Drive BMWs?

Whatever they have, it doesn't seem to work...?!

The maker of this video is clearly an Audi fan, but it made me laugh! Mostly because it was stuck BMWs causing most of the issues on friday night, and at one point when I was leaving a bit of 'run-up room' I was passed by an impatient Audi!

 

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LOL. I remember the one time in the three winters I had winter tyres on my GT when it actually snowed.  I was able to drive down a snow covered lane at 60mph on a dual carriageway and just drove past everyone else. Brilliant! Though I could have just used the cleared lane of course. When it wasn't snowing though? No good at all! I did enjoy those five minutes though. :)

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I would say that video is heavily biased and none of the BMWs were on tyres that work. Working in an environment that is split between tarmac and off road, I know even a Hilux struggles in a muddy field if running road tyres and not ATs.

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1 hour ago, TommyC said:

I wonder what buttons they have in X-Drive BMWs?

Whatever they have, it doesn't seem to work...?!

The maker of this video is clearly an Audi fan, but it made me laugh! Mostly because it was stuck BMWs causing most of the issues on friday night, and at one point when I was leaving a bit of 'run-up room' I was passed by an impatient Audi!

 

I have a BMW 1 series xDrive and for snow and off road you turn off traction control which BMW recommend. I have not been stuck in mud (I work in building industry and on site a lot) and had no issues in the snow.

I had Continental winter tyres on my previous Beemer and they worked really well with no problems. 

Might pop out and try snow Mode in GT but tyres on wheelchair don’t grip to get to it lol!

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On the island that is the UK it is, which is due to the Gulf Stream of course which gives the UK a very unusual temperate climate. So it's warmer than it should be given how far it is north and on the western side of the UK it has a very mild climate, so snow hardly ever happens. Yes, I know we are missing out on a lot! 

We live in a weird place when it comes to weather! 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24305230

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