Navy1981

I own a 2007 GS350 and I love my car! I need to move up North and now I am thinking about selling it because I'm afraid of driving a RWD Vehicle in the snow. Anyone know how my Lexus will handle Snow and icing conditions? Should I sell and buy an AWD SUV?

Thanks,
Rudy

masboy

iTrader: (30)

sell it and buy AWD GS350

iLub3GS

DONT DO ITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT, just slap on some snow tires. If you don't care for modding then yeah, get a AWD... I actually haven't gotten stuck in snow yet. <-awd owner

Navy1981

Thanks for the inputs. Still unsure though...

verly6565

gs350 AWD=SNOW MOBILE
GS460=POWER SLIDER

blue00

Car companies love you.....I think that SUV is among the worst and unsafest idea for a mainstream driving. As for snow, AWD vs RWD makes no difference whatsoever for safety. Both drive trains will loose traction and fail to stop equally if you do not have winter tires. From a dead stop, AWD has an easier time going in the most slippery conditions. It is more to do with weight over the drive wheels than AWD, the GS is a heavy car and RWD should not have any harder time going than a FWD econobeater that has no weight.

Get winter tires...

TRD_Power

There's a thread floating around on here somewhere that has a pic of a GS460 caked in ice/snow/mud. He said the thing just had snow tires on and put it in snow mode; turns out they're little mountain goats in the snow. I personally won't test this with my GS, but it was pretty wild looking in the pic, haha.

SLOW4DR

iTrader: (2)

I drive my 430 in the snow, we got ****ted on yesterday and I made it around okay. I have some yokohama snow tires and they are subpar. I have friends with blizzaks on their gs460s and an isf in the winter that don't have as many issues as me in the snow lol. So invest in a nice set of snows and you'll be fine.

anthrax144

I have a GS350 now with Conti DWS and haven't had any issues with the snow. Mind you, we haven't got a whole lot the last couple years but I have yet to get stuck. Before that I had an IS350 with summer tires and did run into a couple occasions were I was spinning my tires like mad but was able to make it around town. Word of advice, turn OFF the traction control. At the first sign of slippage, it shuts down the power to the wheels so you are pretty much dead in the water. Snow mode, snow ties and traction control off is really all you need. Like others have said, AWD only helps you get moving, it does nothing to help you stop. Stopping is all in the tires. Since most AWD vehicles have all-season tires and not snow tires, drivers get a false sense of security and are actually worse off than a RWD car with snow tires. Good driving skills + good tires = no problems.

verly6565

The way I look at it some people can handle the snow in a rwd car but some dont like the feeling of being stuck on a hill, Im a pretty good driver in snow working for the city, but my common sense tells me awd is going to help me a little better than rwd
Especially if you have kids in the car

LexLeezard

For many years, up here in Alberta (and BC before that) my wife and I have been running well-equipped AWD Volvo wagons and Toyota 4Runners with top-end studded snow tires. But the big surprise this past year was: our "new old" 2008 GS460 is very good in truly bad snow / ice / low temps. Winter tires are studded Hakkepellitas which are excellent.

But I was still worried that the open diff and lots of HP on the GS460 would make things a bit touchy, nasty and maybe even dangerous. Not so.

The roads in our complex are often left unplowed for days, and highways after blizzards here are perpetual disaster zones. But I never once had problems, and never got into trouble or ever got stuck with our GS460. Smooth sailing in all conditions -- astounding! Simply going into snow mode and just being sensible -- zero difficulties, 100% success. My two bits' worth.

Cheers / Lexleezard

PS -- last image is of new Nitto Motivos installed yesterday for spring / summer / fall. I am very impressed with them so far. The 100,000KM warranty plus the reasonable all-weather ratings convinced me. Our faithful studded Hakkepelittas are resting for the time being, recovering in preparation for next winter!

2GSKaizen

iTrader: (1)

Yeah, I rock a set of Michelin snow tires on my 430, and I'm fine. Snow mode on, traction off for the real slippery stuff. It's not worth the headache of messing with getting another car, all because of the 10 days a year the streets will be crappy.

LexLeezard

Ten days of crap, huh? Nebraska -- isn't that where all those palm trees are, and beautiful white sand beaches? Not much like S. Alberta, that's for sure! Until the past week or so, up here we've had "crappy" streets / highways -- since last October. More than half the year. Problem has been: the "crap" has been a couple of feet deep most of the time. Mind you, we only have three seasons: blizzard, mud, and construction. The blizzard part keeps all the stuff underneath hidden for a while so it really doesn't look too bad ... better when you can drive on top ...

Cheers / Lexleezard