Lowe 191 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 OK, so tomorrow I pick up my GT86. It's coming from a dealership up north just outside of Blackburn, and the likelihood is it'll be snowy. I'll be sticking to main roads and motorway to get back to Newcastle Under Lyme, but obviously at some point I'll have to get on the smaller roads and to make matters worse I live at the top of a hill. From memory the car had Primacy's on the front, but had newish Bridgestone Turanza (sp?) on the back. I'm not going to be able to get winter tyres on it tomorrow so clearly will just have to be careful. I'll be imagining there's an egg under the throttle obviously, but beyond that do any of the more experienced of you out there have any hints for me? I don't want to bin her on the first day! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rob275 1817 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 You'll find it will go nowhere and spin on the spot unless you turn traction control off, also make sure you scrape your drivers window thoroughly before opening the door otherwise you will end up with a window which doesn't go up properly. Sure there's a reset but it makes more sense to prevent it from cutting out to begin with. If it's snowy it's unlikely you will get up the hill Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lowe 191 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 I'm guessing traction control is one of the buttons on the centre console? Might have to leave the car at the bottom of the hill and walk Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
long-gone 152 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 Find a nice big empty car park and have some fun. 1 Foulsmell reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Paul 442 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 TC off, FULL POWER! 1 AJ124 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Squadrone Rosso 82 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 Alternative transport 1 KevinA reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rob275 1817 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 35 minutes ago, Lowe said: I'm guessing traction control is one of the buttons on the centre console? Might have to leave the car at the bottom of the hill and walk Yes there's a VSC and TRC button, TRC will need to be held for 3 seconds to turn it fully off otherwise it will only be off under 30mph (which actually should be fine if you're just trying to get out of a rut) 1 Lowe reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nerdstrike 186 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 Primacy HP's are simply awful in cold+wet conditions. Since those are on the front, you need to be wary of understeer. The Turanzas sound like a middle-of-the-road tyre, hopefully they will grip a little better! My thoughts: Traction control off button is back left of gearstick, and re-enables above 29 mph, but you can disable it again when you go slower. GT86/BRZs communicate well when grip is short, so you shouldn't be surprised by the conditions. Pay attention to steering feel as a barometer of grip available. You should feel an exaggerated sense of peril compared with family cars, which should keep you from doing anything silly. The car is brilliantly set up to dance on the limit of grip. VSC is quite conservative - the car will neuter power if the wheels spin, and it will try to compensate for understeer. It's bad when you're driving sportily, but safe under marginal conditions. On sheet ice, you're on your own. Throttle control is pretty sharp, so be gentle. If traction fails entirely, putting weight in the boot can help, especially sitting a couple of dudes on the lip. Watch out for steeply cambered streets as the rear will slither toward the kerbs if the wheels spin. Snow socks can be had for about £40, but their use is very limited. Some bits of cardboard or fabric might suffice for getting you out of a rut Pack a shovel in the boot 1 Lowe reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rich 378 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 I'm in the northwest and the snow is pretty minimal up here. You shouldn't have a problem - I was able to drive to work without issues, it's more wet roads than full on snow conditions. 1 Lowe reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lowe 191 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 Really appreciate that insight Nerdstrike. Will take some cardboard and a shovel just in case. Been looking at the traffic cameras and it appears it's not too bad today - where I live it was completely white over and a couple of inches thick so I might be alright. Cross fingers for me peeps! 1 kaisersalsek reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rich 378 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 Blackburn is apparently almost snow free, or so a friend there tells me. You should have some time to get used to the car before having to worry. 1 Lowe reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lowe 191 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 Ah great - appreciated! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lauren 2259 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 You'll be fine. Sport mode in normal driving. If there's a lot of snow, turn everything off as otherwise you'll get nowhere. Hope you picked it up okay. All the snow is gone now though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shiftspark 41 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 I was in Colne this morning and couldnt get my car up a small incline so had to park up the road.Theres snow on the hills but most of the roads are totally clear.Youll be fine. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lowe 191 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 23 minutes ago, shiftspark said: I was in Colne this morning and couldnt get my car up a small incline so had to park up the road.Theres snow on the hills but most of the roads are totally clear.Youll be fine. That's where the car is haha! Vantage Toyota, Colne. Looks like most of the snow has gone around us too, so should be OK. Just sorted insurance and whatnot, can't wait to pick her up tomorrow! 1 GT86-Ian reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shiftspark 41 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 Ive been there all week but thought it was too far from Blackburn ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Foulsmell 120 Report post Posted January 13, 2017 These worked for me last year. Easy to put on and very effective. http://gb.michelin-lifestyle.com/en/michelin-easy-grip-snow-chains-1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gringosteve 213 Report post Posted January 14, 2017 Had my first snow drive in the 86 yesterday. 1. Struggled to reverse off my slopped drive even with Traction control off 2. Slowly progressed down our hill, tested brakes before bottom. They locked. Slid at very low speed for a fair distance nearly hitting a parked car 3. Sliding built up a bit of snow in front of the tyres so then couldn't get moving down the hill again until I wheel spun the snow out of the way. In summary, it was entertaining considering only half an inch of snow. I have a lot of snow driving experience (worked in Finland for a winter) but this was my first attempt with RWD. In heavy snow it will be staying on the drive. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Keethos 842 Report post Posted January 14, 2017 Try driving in a higher gear than normal, so when setting off, try it in 2nd rather than 1st etc. Less likely to light the wheels up and instead, just creep away. 1 Gringosteve reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lowe 191 Report post Posted January 15, 2017 Well I got her home yesterday with no issues. Snow held off and whilst it was wet, it was actually fairly sunny. Still took it easy on the way home, just cruised in the inside lane and was surprised when I got just over 47 to the gallon as an average across the 80 or so miles! 3 Lauren, Keethos and Rich reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nicebiscuit 655 Report post Posted January 15, 2017 Went out on mine in the snow the other day. Brilliant fun. And that was with winter tyres on. Biggest issue at low speed is the sharp throttle, but as others have said you know exactly what it's doing so it's not going to get too lairy. Wouldn't have fancied it on the Michelins though. One thought was just how treacherous British conditions are - the snow/ice/slush combo you get here is a world apart from what you get in properly cold countries. Driving on snow in the Alps was a breeze by comparison. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shiftspark 41 Report post Posted January 15, 2017 How did you manage 47mpg ! I was doing 40 miles from Urmston to Colne and the best I could manage was 41mpg after 400 miles. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lowe 191 Report post Posted January 15, 2017 I'm pretty good at hyper miling cars, I spend a lot of time on the M6. The journey home had a fair few 50mph sections which obviously help, but I was up to about 43mpg by then anyway. Gentle throttle and anticipation is the key, along with trying to make the most of downhill sections whilst slipstreaming when going up. I reckon I'll be able to crack 50mpg with a bit more getting used to the car. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lauren 2259 Report post Posted January 15, 2017 Cruise control on following trucks at around 56 mph will see you over 50mpg. 1 Lowe reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
surrey86 352 Report post Posted January 15, 2017 Yep I did Manchester to Caterham at 49mpg doing a steady 70mph, helped by the 50mph sections. 1 Lowe reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
