Bandit

I live in the foothills of Lake Tahoe and need to deal with curvy, steep mountain roads that also have snow and ice on them (a lot of the stuff...) Being from Southern California it is a bit of a challenge for me to drive here in the winter and with a new baby, I really want to be as safe as possible. That being said, how do you think the RX 300/330 holds up to these conditions compared to X5, ML 350, XC90, and others in regard to traction?

JRB

Assume you have the AWD model? If so I think it will be comparable to the others that you mention. I don't think anyone has much if any first-hand experience yet with the RX330, as the first ones were not delivered until mid-April. If you want the absolute best available winter traction, go with a separate set of winter tires. I have placed an order for some Blizzak's to be mounted on separate alloy wheels, but here in Minnesota with its more uniform colder temperatures, excessive tire wear is not as much of an issue as it would be for you. Most of the time you would be driving on warm, dry pavement which tends to wear the softer compound out quickly. If I were you I think I would try the stock tires out first, and just drive carefully and see how they do.

j4ydubs

I had a chance in early April to try out our 330 in the snow. Here's the thread I created back then.

Snow Thread

Summary: I was very impressed with the RX330's performance in 4-6 inches of snow.

John