Snow driving in the M4

[Motoxr392]

Let me preface this post by saying that I also have an Expedition for a winter beater with a heater. But....how do these things handle in light (2" or less) snow? Are they as bad as I imagine? My last rwd car that saw snow was an 04 GTO cammed and tuned on summer tires. It did surprisingly well if I just let the rear end push it through everything.

[agentrnge]

~50/50 weight balance, lsd, winter(snow) tires, no problem. Mind the salt. e39, e38 with open diffs and snow tires/all seasons respective got me around in as much as 3-4" without issues (no giant hills). I keep the m3 snow and salt free ( 2 exceptions where I hit unexpected stuff ).

[SMGCFP]

You have to have winter tires. Don't drive in the snow or in temps below 35 degrees with the summer tires. Not only will you wear them out faster, it will feel like your driving with bricks for tires and they stop slower and will not grip if icy.

Most importantly, it's no fun to drive the car when you have to worry about traction.

[SYT_Shadow]

Like any car that is used in winter, it should have winter tires.

Back when I only had an e46 m3, on my drives to canada I passed many suvs and pickups that had flown off the side of the road, while I had no issues.

With winter tires, these cars work perfectly fine. If there is enough snow for it to turn into a snow plow, eventually it will have an issue.


My sis lives in Canada, and I visit often. I've done that drive many times during snow emergencies, blizzards etc, and always gotten there without incidents. In a RWD E46 M3.
Now I have more cars and use an X3 or X5, but it goes without saying that those vehicles have dedicated winter tire setups just the same.

[SteveYem]

I have no experience with my F80 in the snow (and don't plan to), but I daily drove my 350z for a few winters and it did fine in light snow up to a few inches of it on a set of Bridgestone Blizzak winter tires. It takes a bit of practice and some judicious throttle, steering and braking inputs, but it's very possible.

[Motoxr392]

Can we run 19" or even 18" wheels? Mine has the factory 20" 666's, and doesn't look like much extra clearance to the caliper to run a smaller wheel. Sounds like a set of winter tires and wheels would be a worthwhile investment. I hate driving my Expedition lol. It really only gets driven to plow snow and haul stuff.

[SteveYem]

Originally Posted by Motoxr392

Can we run 19" or even 18" wheels? Mine has the factory 20" 666's, and doesn't look like much extra clearance to the caliper to run a smaller wheel. Sounds like a set of winter tires and wheels would be a worthwhile investment. I hate driving my Expedition lol. It really only gets driven to plow snow and haul stuff.

Yes, both 18" and 19" wheels can fit on the F8X platform; in fact, both have been offered as OEM equipment on that platform. I don't have the BMW wheel model number off-hand for the 18" wheels, but one of the common 19" models is 437M.

[SYT_Shadow]

Originally Posted by Motoxr392

Can we run 19" or even 18" wheels? Mine has the factory 20" 666's, and doesn't look like much extra clearance to the caliper to run a smaller wheel. Sounds like a set of winter tires and wheels would be a worthwhile investment. I hate driving my Expedition lol. It really only gets driven to plow snow and haul stuff.

the car came stock with 18" wheels, the 513M, and there is a plethora of aftermarket options that don't break the bank. I use Bimmerworld TA5Rs.

I use high performance winter tires, like the Michelin PA4, and it handles incredibly well on cold, dry asphalt, while still having plenty of traction in snow.

[summilux]

My M3 has no issues with snow. As others have said get winter tires (I use Michelin X-ICE. I also use 18" rims.

[couchflyer]

Just don’t drive a M4 in the winter.

[YXEM5]

I drove my F80 this past winter for the first time. I used my staggered OEM 437 with a good set of winter tires. It handled everything from ice to deep snow pretty well. It is still a rear wheel drive car so it's not perfect but I wouldn't hesitate to use it again if I need too.

My car is a stage 2 I quickly realized that was going to be a problem and flashed back to stock.

[Alvin Mpower]

I drove my through 2 winters and couple snow days on Continental DWS06 +, never had any issues.

[afadeev]

Originally Posted by Motoxr392

how do these things handle in light (2" or less) snow?

On snow tires - fantastic. Lots of fun!

On summer tires, you will have a hard time pulling in and out of the garage. In all likelihood, you will not have enough traction to get back into the garage!

Originally Posted by Motoxr392

Are they as bad as I imagine?

Decidedly not, but then again, we have no idea what you are imagining.

Originally Posted by Motoxr392

My last rwd car that saw snow was an 04 GTO cammed and tuned on summer tires. It did surprisingly well if I just let the rear end push it through everything.

[M3SQRD]

My f82 on Pirelli performance winter tires on 513M wheels with 245/40 F and 265/40 R is easy to drive in snowy conditions. I’ve driven in conditions with ~6-8” of snow and it performed flawlessly. With snow > 10” thick, I’d strongly recommend getting a set of Winter Snow & Ice tires in 245/40 square tires mounted on 18x8.5 wheels (or a squared set 18x9 513M wheels).