That would be Metro Washington, DC lol. In NYC they know how to handle it, here when we have more than 3 inches of snow, its an event. Schools close at 1/4" of snow. When I lived in Bethesda it would be days before our street saw any sort of plow after 4+ inches of snow. During an actual snow event they don't bother to even attempt to treat anything but major arteries, and those are done half assedly, one lane, lane that just abruptly ends, etc.

Where I live now we have private street maintenance, so the roads in our community are promptly cleared, and cleared all during a storm, but once you leave my community and get onto publicly maintained roads, the difference is dramatic. The other part of it is nobody knows how to drive in the snow here. You have to maneuver around people sitting at stoplights who can't get going, spinning out of control all around you. You can't plan for hills and stops because of morons around you.

Then you have to get off of roads and into driveways, parking lots, housing developments, gas stations...all of which are slow to be cleared.

So in short, its MUCH more difficult to get around here when it snows than places you've lived. Its hard here for them to maintain a good snow budget and equipment because we may go a couple winters in a row with NO snow, and warm temps, and then the next year we have two 30 inch storms and 70 inches total for the winter...

A 5-6 inch snowfall here shuts the area down for 1-2 days. 10 inches, probably 5 days.

 

I found myself wincing as I read portions of your remarks lol!!
My neighborhood/area is very similar to yours, in that amidst a heavy snow event, our town sends out plows to maintain the residential areas, but some of semi-main arteries are tragic at best.
I'll say this though, if we have to get out, the LS stays in the garage and we drive my wife's Pilot. No need in being blatantly silly.
I forget sometimes you reside in that geographic region where winters are simply unpredictable, so snow event preparation in conjunction with "excellent" drivers can make for some pretty interesting commutes.
This past weekend my wife and I went out to dinner and a comedy show afterwards. When the show concluded, as soon as we approached the exit doors, all you saw was white. I wasn't happy because the commute without snow was a good 50 minutes.
Most were being cautious and using common sense, driving about 35mph on the expressway...
But as always, you have the occasional SUV or lifted pick-up with mudders on, flying down the highway past everyone, not only endangering themselves, but everyone else that's on the roads with you!
Why?

 

I have an '08 LS RWD and I live in Boston. I put studded Nokian Hakka 8s on the car and she is unstoppable in the snow. The studs may be a bit of overkill, but I live up a large hill, and my driveway itself is on a hill. The car is extremely sure footed and stops beautifully. So much so that I prefer to take it vs. my wife's all season clad AWD SUV. The LS performs better in the snow. Pay attention to your traction control- sometimes, it''s better to turn it off in certain situations (but remember to turn it back on after the situation has passed). Also- I put Blizzaks on my previous car- a Honda Accord, and they were also fantastic.

A RWD LS needs winter tires in the winter if it gets snowy or icy near you, period. I agree with your instincts to buy them. Once the temp gets above 40 degrees AVERAGE, take them off.

BTW- remember- most cars can get moving in the snow (but it's a lot better with winter tires). The ability of a winter tire to actually STOP your car is where they shine.

Here's a video taken last week of my LS going up and out of my driveway (remember, uphill!) on 4.5 inches of unplowed snow.

 

Thanks for all the replies to my topic. Yesterday I was freaked out and ready to buy winter tires to ensure that I can at least use my car when it's needed. I'm still leaning that way and most likely have them on from December-March every year.
Best of luck to everyone this winter!

 

We just had the first significant snowfall since I bought my car almost 3 years ago. I have winters all around (GT Radial Champiro Winterpros). Didn't get stuck once in soggy snow (about 14 inches).

 

I live in Lake Tahoe area so I have some experience. I have LS460 AWD. Traction would be probably O.K. even on all season tires but I would never risk driving without winter tires. The tires are the most important thing for your safety. Just consider that in some European countries it's not even allowed to drive in winter without winter tires.I use Bridgestone Blizzak WS80 and I am really happy with them.

 

I was very worried about driving a rear wheel drive LS460 in the winters of New aenglan do, but once I bought snow tires there was nothing to worry about. The car's traction control system is outstanding and the snow mode helps if it's slick. I drive through the worst winter in Boston's history two years ago and the thing performed flawlessly. There was a point that I found myself driving in nearly a foot of unplowed snow, and had no trouble not only going through it, but climbing hills. Amazing. I'll have to find the pictures I took while driving on the coast the day after we had another massive snow storm, the snow drifts were higher than the car...it was nuts.

I'm on my third year with Toyo Open Country G-02 snow tires and they've been great, but the tread has worn quite a bit since I bought them (22,000 miles). Hopefully I can make it through this winter before buying another set.

 

I hear you KansasHawk. I been driving a LS for 6 winters now only time i kind of got stuck was in my own driveway. I was pulling in and had to stop so the overhead could open. Only had 3 or so inches of snow. Had to let it roll back and try again. I do not run winter tires because our winters can be mild with a heavy snow maybe 2 or 3 times and it don't stick around long.

Just take it easy and plan your route.

Back in the 80's i had a TransAm for a few winters i got stuck twice had to use sand bags for that one. Fun times.

 

Funny story that happened today. I had to air up my spare tire because it was causing the low tire pressure warning to pop up. That warning is now gone after I aired it up but I looked up my current tires just to see what i'm currently using. They are Bridgestone Turanza ER33's. They are freaking summer tires!! No wonder they handled horribly earlier this week. OMG, I felt like a idiot. Mind you i've had the car since July so this is my first winter but still that's pretty bad.

So my question to everyone is should I invest in all seasons or winters(3-4 months a year)? I'm leaning toward the winters to keep the summers the majority of the year.

Also, does anyone have any experience with Tire Rack or Discount Tire? I see that some people have used Studiess Ice and Snow but i'm looking at Performance winter/snow. Since it doesn't snow a ton in Kansas.
Regarding the sandbags, how much weight do you use? That seems to be the easiest thing to add

 

I am sure that you do not need studded tires. You do not live in mountains and even people who live in mountains are usually O.K. with studless winter tires.
It's probably better to have a separate set of winter tires and wheels. I recommend 18" wheels, it's better for winter (and also cheaper). You can purchase a set of 18" wheels on ebay for about $500-$600. You also do not need performance winter tires (although I am not sure what you mean by performance tires). Standard winter tires on 18" wheels like for example Bridgestone Blizzak WS80 work usually much better at snow than some high performance tires on 19" or larger wheels.
If you want to have a separate set of tires, you will also need TPMS sensors (or you can ignore the dashboard light). It's an advantage if you buy aftermarket TPMS sensors which are cloneable (they can have the same IDs as your original sensors) so you do not have to care about registering new TPMS sensors every time when you swap your wheels.

 

That would explain a lot!

You know my position, I would buy all seasons.

For sand, if they have 50 or 60 lb bags, I'd put one over each wheel, and double it if that doesn't help as much.

 

Haha...Yes I was freaked out when I couldn't get out of the neighborhood!! I'm actually relieved it was the stupid tires and not the car....
Thanks for your input about the tires and the sand bags.

 

Anytime!

 

Another option is "All Weather". This is not the same as all season. All weather are a true winter tire with snowflake symbol that can be driven in Summer. Hankook makes these (Optimo 4S) and Nokian WRG3 is another. There are others, but these two are the leaders. They are speed rated as well.