Stuck!: techniques for getting out of snow and ice
 

Soooo.. my car is stuck.

I drove around all day today with no problems at all but my neighborhood streets and driveway are feuding against me.

Basically i've gotten myself to the point where i'm parked on the side of a road i should not be parked on and i cannot move because i have ZERO traction. I'm by myself, all my neighbors are old and i don't know anyone that lives near by who i could barrow for a push.

What's the best technique for single-handedly getting my car moving again when you're sitting on compact snow and ice facing up a slight inclined road and then up my driveway?

Thoughts?

borrow someones chains? find a club member in tacoma to help you out? if i wasn't all the way up in redmond i'd come give you a hand

Get some sand or gravel to put under the tires. Some people talk about using cat litter. This is bad when when the temps are just below freezing. Cat litter is made from clay and when it gets wet (from warm spinning tires) it is just as slick as the ice. Second, get rid of those summer tires. When the weather gets cold, the rubber gets hard and won't grip.

Sand and a piece of cardboard or plywood to stuff under the tires

i agree, use something to help traction and rock that baby!!!

Kitty Litter works pretty well too. Also, make sure you turn off your traction control when you try and move. I know it sounds counter intuitive but on snow, what happens is as soon as 1 wheel starts slipping, the traction control steps in and cuts power and brakes on the slipping wheel. The button for this is just above the hood release, next to the dial for dashboard lights.

Another thing to remember is on Snow, torque is your enemy. Try starting off in 2nd or even 3rd gear instead of 1st. Honestly though, kitty litter + traction control off goes a long way.

Just be careful

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnFwu0xsy0s

Well, i did a lot of shoveling, chipping ice away, sand, salt, plywood, the works. I got stuck four different times while making rounds around the block (i live on a road with a slight decline so if i lost my position in the wrong direction and ended up on the down side it was around the block again!! :banghead: )

After four tireless hours i gave up and parked it at the corner store. Tomorrow is a new day. My roommate and girlfriend will be here so hopefully we'll be able figure something out.

I watched countless able bodies drive by while i was single-handedly trying to rock my own 3000lb car on to two planks of plywood. People these days....:icon_no2:

Thanks for all YOUR help though.

RX8club.com members once again proving they're outstanding members of society.

That sucks dude. Move to Texas, ten people would have stopped.

HAHAHAHA

what an idiot. The one guy who offered to help me out offered to tow me. I said there wasn't a solid place to attached a tow line. I have no idea if what i said was true but i'm never letting an idiot with a truck touch my car.

I had that happen to me on my birthday last year. I used those really long plastic zip ties/cables. I have ones that are about three feet long in my trunk. I put those on, turned off traction control, and got going no problem. That was with my shitty summer tires. It works great. Certain types of cat litter work well, but have not tried it before.

I'm moving to California before summer if all goes to plan :)

don't you have the oem tow hooks in your trunk?

Seems to me that having somebody tow you would be your best bet since just getting you moving doesn't seem to help much after all the times you've been stuck. You complained that nobody wanted to help then turned the guy down that could probably help the most. When I saw your post initially I thought "Too bad he's not closer to Snohomish. I could tow him up his driveway with my truck." I have summer tires on so my 8 so it doesn't leave my driveway when it snows. Take the guy up on getting a tow next time!

Hey, for $1k you can get 17 x 7" wheels + Snow Tires.

Probably actually. Never really noticed if they were in there but i wouldn't doubt it.

As for the tow, it would have got me un-stuck, but i'm not sure he would have been able to get me up my driveway -- just how it's laid out. Best option? Maybe, but when he started poking around under my front bumper looking for a firm place to tow. I started imagining something along the lines of that video. I'd rather go the safer, more difficult route than HOPE he knows what he's doing.

I'll figure it out tomorrow. Hopefully she doesn't get too cold out there tonight ;)

Bah! 1k can be spent on stuff like AFE SS, BHR ignition and Progress sway bars....:)

and remember

EDIT: yes, i am just crossing my fingers that this is the worst of it.

I'm so torn... because it's a lot of money, I JUST dropped the money on an AP and am dropping more for Jeff to tune it in a couple weeks. I just don't have the cash on hand to drop another $1k into wheels and tires without cutting into reserve funds with no justification. Rent and car payment are coming up this week and the next too. AND I have to pay insurance this month. So a lot of costs rolled in all at once.

On the other hand. I REALLY wish I was out doing donuts right now :lol:

Note to everyone else who reads this. Learn your car so you can pop the tow hooks in at moments notice. The tow truck driver for Road Side assistance isn't going to be any more knowledgeable than average Pick-Up driver, so you need to be your own best friend on that point.

Second, keep your momentum, and drive like there are eggs on all the pedals and the steering wheel, and gear shift. I was out passing subies with snow tires in my 8 on summers yesterday. Granted, that was more because I really didn't want all the trouble associated with stopping on hills, but if you're smooth and calm, and plan way ahead for all your maneuvers, you should be mostly fine on most moderate grade hills. The steep, really icy stuff is a different matter. There's not much to do about that.

BTW, next winter I'm introducing a snow series, so if you're on the fence about snow tires, don't be. We'll be heading into the great white wilderness a few times to play.

why not this winter? i'm sure there's a lot we can all learn out there

Sorry to hear about that. Hopefully you can get your 8 unstuck out of the snow before it totally gets covered. As for me ever since I heard about the snow storm coming to our area, I already have my 8 nice and cozy in our garage. Although my 8 has Toyo Proxes4 All Season tires, I don't want to risk it getting stuck down the road. Our house is in a subdivision that has an uphill incline coming in and out of Cathcart Way in Snohomish. With this amount of snow and ice, I'm pretty sure my 8 won't make it up there. There's already a 350Z, an S2000, and a BMW 3 coupe stuck at the buttom of our subdivision. No way I'm bringing my baby out there. :Eyecrazy: I just use my wife's Honda Odyssey, which I have tire chains installed, to trek out in the snow. Only down side is that I have to also drive my wife to and from her work. :) I'd rather be warm and cozy in my couch playing Gears2 on my 360 at home. hehe :lol:

Damnit Kris...

*smashes open his piggy bank and looks inside*

'Cause I don't have snows or the funds for them right now.


Don't worry, you've got 'till next winter before you NEED them.

Try Les schwab. They do 90 days same as cash. You could at least split the payment with no interest. I got a quote from them for $1200 just tires in stock size. And 1230 for 17in wheels and tires. Those were there most expensive ones though.

I have been debating on tires also but I am hoping this is the worst part of our winter. I think I will spend 1k next winter on a beater car instead though.

Yeah, my plan was to work from home and keep it in my nice cozy garage but i had to go x-mas shopping.

After today's snow and ice it's still stuck at the corner store. I walked down to give it a little TLC. De-snowed and ran for a while, hopefully it stays happy.

Bah! come on warmer weather. Get here already -- at least by Wednesday!