Yaris in the snow?

[gabagooo]

Hi -

I purchased a 2007 Bayou Blue liftback in October. It is equiped with the 15 inch wheel option and an automatic transmission. MY question, with the stock tires, how does the Yaris do in the snow? Does it perfom well?

Thanks!

[johnnyfive]

well, got 14 incehes of snow today, and the car drove great on the hard pack now, and the fresh snow that was not above my 2" lowered foctory front lip on my sedan...

overall good drive, but i was definetly driving the smallist snowplow on the road today ><

[the.shau]

I have a LB, auto, 15", and live in near Chicago which had 8.5" of snow fall today.
Got out of my outdoor parking space fine. No problems at all, even with a snow pile behind me. I had no problems diving in the snow. Even the defroster gave me no trouble (in warmer weather, 30-40 degrees I do have fog up problems). I was driving on the expressway fine with traffic. I never seamed to bottom out and the tires seamed to handle it all well.

The only "problem" was I had dealer installed mud guards (key word..had..), they currently reside somewhere else because they are no longer on my car, just the bolts that held them in are left...

<PS> Meijers has a car shovel combo (shovel and scrapper) for $15 and it fits in the LB nice...

[swng]

I would like to share a link to a review about the Yaris in snow:
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/mc/06yaris.htm
Admittedly, this may not be the first time that this link is posted, here or somewhere else, but it is relevant here.
Enjoy!

[foober]

I'm in montana and we've got 1 and half feet of snow now. The roads are intermittent icy snowy. To play it safe I bought some good snow tires. The Bridgestone Blizzak WS-50 snow tires work great on my yaris. My yaris seems to be very well balanced and the front wheel drive is a dream. Just point the car where you want to go give it some gas and it goes. I was a bit worried with how it would do in snow and ice cause its so light. But its gone through both nicely. I like it better than my 4 wheel drive toyota tacoma in the snow.

edit; just went through a horrendous white out snow storm. And I had to lead the way for other cars to get down the road. I was wondering how it would do in the snow and ice. And I'm way impressed now. I think it may have trouble in really deep snow but going through a couple inches of snow is no problem.

[gabagooo]

Hey Guys,

Thanks so much! I'm glad the car does well in the show with and without snow tires. Good luck digging out and be careful out there...

BTW - my Yaris fogs up as well....odd.

[Jem_hadar]

Originally Posted by swng

I would like to share a link to a review about the Yaris in snow:
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/mc/06yaris.htm
Admittedly, this may not be the first time that this link is posted, here or somewhere else, but it is relevant here.
Enjoy!

Thats a good article. I remember reading it last winter before I even got my Yaris

[swng]

Thanks Jem hadar for the comment about the article. Glad that you still like it.
Regards to you and your nice Yaris.

[Black Yaris]

I can't wait for snow!! I can't wait to see how she handles sideways in a parking lot :)

[KittenRD]

It's good to know it handles well in the snow. I was wondering the same thing, but kept forgetting to ask. I am getting my car around the 15th of the month so just in time for snow!

[marvinng]

Originally Posted by swng

I would like to share a link to a review about the Yaris in snow:
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/mc/06yaris.htm
Admittedly, this may not be the first time that this link is posted, here or somewhere else, but it is relevant here.
Enjoy!

because that car is tested with michelin x-ice, which is premium winter tires. i'm running michelin x-ice on my yaris now and i can confidently say that ANY car with michelin x-ice will handle fine on the snow. but remember, that's not the oem all season that came with the car.

i dunno what oem rubber you're getting in the states but up here in canada the yaris came with bridgestone re92 from the factory. they are the worst tires i've ever driven. very little rolling resistance (contributing to better fuel economy). barely ok in dry, horrible in wet. before snow came, i replaced them with michelin x-ice (not because of that canadian driver review, instead my friends working at toyota highly recommends the x-ice).

don't be too fanatic about the performance of oem rubber in snow. if they're the bridgestone re92, definitely buy some decent winter tires before the snow comes.

[swng]

Originally Posted by marvinng

because that car is tested with michelin x-ice, which is premium winter tires. i'm running michelin x-ice on my yaris now and i can confidently say that ANY car with michelin x-ice will handle fine on the snow. but remember, that's not the oem all season that came with the car.

i dunno what oem rubber you're getting in the states but up here in canada the yaris came with bridgestone re92 from the factory. they are the worst tires i've ever driven. very little rolling resistance (contributing to better fuel economy). barely ok in dry, horrible in wet. before snow came, i replaced them with michelin x-ice (not because of that canadian driver review, instead my friends working at toyota highly recommends the x-ice).

don't be too fanatic about the performance of oem rubber in snow. if they're the bridgestone re92, definitely buy some decent winter tires before the snow comes.

Thanks for the comments!
I think you have already experienced a couple of days of driving in snow in BC. It snowed heavily a few days ago. You know, I am in BC too.
Yes, I have been told more than once that x-ice tires are great. I believe they are. On the other hand, the Yaris' front wheel drive configuration plus its relatively high ground clearance and light weight may also help a little. Also, the ABS, EBD, rear window wiper (HB only) and fog lamps on the RS altogether help a little too.
Sure enough, snow tires are essential for any serious driving in snow.
Safe and happy motoring!

[eflb55]

ya i just get a really slick covering of snow and took it out like 20 minutes ago. it didnt handle as good as you guys are saying, did take a little while for it to accelerate. anti-lock is nice though and worked effectively.

[swng]

Please allow me to qualify/clarify my previous comments.
IMHO, even when well equipped with winter tires and everything else, a car still handles less well in snow than on dry roads. So I guess that when one says a car handles well in snow, one is in fact saying that the car handles relatively well in snow (now I am risking stating the obvious).
Safe and happy motoring to everyone!

[eflb55]

ya my family has an f-150 which is what i drove before the yaris and unless the snow is higher than 10 in you barely notice it

[tds12]

Do the anti lock breaks growl when they enguage? Mine are quite loud when I have tested them.

[Pars]

I was out for a short drive on a light put slick cover of snow and It's my Yaris's first time on snow/ice. The ABS didn't do a good job and the pulsing was somewhat harsh with very little result. I suppose the icy condition and the stock tire's poor ice traction defeated the ABS. Hopefully it'll work better with some winter rubber. Since the braking was very bad in the ice, I should focus on snow tires with good ice traction to compensate.

One positive is that the turn-ins and quick side to side transition was impressive even on ice with the stock Bridgestone.

[eflb55]

ya i was a little scared the first time i heard it. i thought a chunk of ice had gotten stuck near my tires. they are pretty rough but do the job.