Should my LS500 AWD with 20” all-season tires be able to handle Jackson, Wyoming in late December?

 

Jackson Hole?

 

Uh, well sort of the same I suppose. House is near the airport.
I thought about renting a truck in Denver, but really hate doing that.

 

renting a house?, staying with friends? Going to be driving much when you get there? They have a truck do take you around?

Flexiblity time wise getting there and home? I would not be keen to drive in bad weather in any place.
You cool putting chains or other things for grip if you get in a pickle?
Some variables to consider. Im sure there are more.
Im running the same tires as you so I'd be doing this in my head.

 

Friends’ house, but they won’t be there. Prob. Won’t be driving much. They have an FJ40, but I won’t use it. I’m not messing with chains if I take the LS. Will chains even work on an LS500?

 

They have some alternative material things to get out of a jam I suppose. As for long distance or is it going to hurt the AWD system I don't know.
Perhaps others with more northern exposure can chime in and be more helpful.

 

The first morning you wake up to 12" of new snow you will wish you left it in the garage.

 

Chickened out on the Jackson trip, but did make it to CO. LS500 AWD snow mode worked well with all-season tires.
Only part I don’t like is seeing my car caked with ice and dirt. Can’t wait to get back home, clean it up and apply another coat of Zaino Z2 Pro.

 

Mine’s been fine in upstate New York. On par with RX350 and BMW 540i xDrive- all running Michelin all seasons (Cross-Climate 2s on the LS, Pilot Sport 4s on the BMW, and LTX Defenders on the RX350 - all purchased about 8k miles ago, all rotated every service (3500 mile intervals).

 

Upstate where?

 

Hudson Valley all the way up past Albany a few times a month plus travel on either 87 or 9 to NJ

 

Traveling there on interstate highways and living there are two different things. Sometimes it's more difficult to travel a mile than it is 60. I still wouldn't live in the snow belt and have the LS as my primary driver. Wake up to 12" of new snow and you are screwed.

 

Only trouble with our ES 300h on "17 Blizzaks's is ground clearance. Sticks fine on plowed roads but scrapes and slides very loudly when turning into an unplowed driveway.

 

I drove 906 miles yesterday, mostly I-70 in Kansas.
Colorado to Arkansas, no snow thank goodness.
I would be hard pressed to find a better road car.
F150 used to wear me out on that trip.
Google Maps now shows where the LEOs are. That’s pretty neat.
Apple CarPlay, Apple Music, Google Maps, 416 horses make for a good road trip.

 

I have three homes and a condo in the tri-state area. The three homes are in three locations ascending up the Hudson Valley, the condo is in NJ across the river from the city. I both live in- and travel- extensively through the region. I’m also originally from New England and spent my winters in VT and northern ME (think Rangeley) so, with respect, your point is not lost on me and factored into my response.

I guess it should go without saying (maybe it
doesn’t!) that a car with five inches of unladen ground clearance will not do well in multiple feet of new snow. That’s why I keep a competent SUV.

In the event common sense is elusive - an LS500 will never be a good off-road or high-pile snow vehicle but its weight, AWD system, and (ideally) winter tires make it a perfectly competent performer in the type of snow a reasonable person would drive a sedan in. If it’s a few feet you’re obviously going to end up snow plowing and should use an SUV though 99% of the population should not be driving with a foot plus on the road- regardless of vehicle type you can’t cheat simple physics.

If you’re only going to drive in limited snowy conditions and never really drive when more extreme weather events occur I don’t see a problem with an LS as a primary driver because the risk is limited. If you feel that you’ll need to traverse more extreme winter conditions regularly I’d recommend an X5 or maybe a GX with good winter tires to handle snow.