New Mazda5 not working out so well in the snow...
#11
01-31-2011 | 08:03 AM
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 2,726
From: southern New Hampshire
actually I think it is fair. While the tires on the 5 are nothing great, even on clear roads, ANY all season tires perform poorly on temperatures just above freezing and below. The stopping distance is severely compromised. The rubber compound on all seasons is just too hard for the winter roads. The relatively low profile of the tires on the 5 make it especially condusive to poor performance in snow.
- Continental ExtremeContact DWS
- Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus
- Nokian WRG2
#12
01-31-2011 | 08:20 AM
Junior Member
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 12
Once again I have to disagree; there are All-Season tires availible in the 205/50 R17 size that perform extremely well in cold weather, even really cold weather as in well below zero, a few examples follow:
- Continental ExtremeContact DWS
- Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus
- Nokian WRG2
http://www.canadiandriver.com/2003/0...t-sport-as.htm
"My suggestion: get Michelin’s extremely capable Pilot Alpins for the snowy months and keep the Sport A/S tires on for the other three seasons."
again, they might be ok in snow and ice, but nothing beats a winter tire for traction. It just doesn't make sense not to.
#13
01-31-2011 | 10:26 AM
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Junior Member
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 2
Thanks for the feedback everyone. So, if I want the best traction in snow and ice, it sounds like I should opt for some winter wheels with dedicated winter tires. Realistically though, it gets bitter cold here in MA before it snows, and I don't have a garage or much free time, so jacking up the car and replacing all 4 tires and/or wheels probably isn't going to happen. Most likely, I'll opt for some better all-seasons, favoring ones that rate well for winter conditions.
#14
01-31-2011 | 10:56 AM
Junior Member
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 12
Thanks for the feedback everyone. So, if I want the best traction in snow and ice, it sounds like I should opt for some winter wheels with dedicated winter tires. Realistically though, it gets bitter cold here in MA before it snows, and I don't have a garage or much free time, so jacking up the car and replacing all 4 tires and/or wheels probably isn't going to happen. Most likely, I'll opt for some better all-seasons, favoring ones that rate well for winter conditions.
I found some used Mazda 3 alloys for the same price I would have paid for steel rims.
#15
01-31-2011 | 02:09 PM
Senior Member
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 360
From: Mustang, ok
...how can I improve things?
I noticed something else when having to pull the car: there is practically nothing to latch onto. I reached under the front bumper, and it was plastic as far as I could reach. Looking under the car, I had a hard time finding any frame. After much looking, I finally found a small hole in a steel member behind the passenger-side front wheel well, and put a hook in it. This worked, but I'm still wondering where the best tow attachment points are hidden. Is there any place to get hooks under the front end? Do I have to remove the bumper first?
I noticed something else when having to pull the car: there is practically nothing to latch onto. I reached under the front bumper, and it was plastic as far as I could reach. Looking under the car, I had a hard time finding any frame. After much looking, I finally found a small hole in a steel member behind the passenger-side front wheel well, and put a hook in it. This worked, but I'm still wondering where the best tow attachment points are hidden. Is there any place to get hooks under the front end? Do I have to remove the bumper first?
I havr an 08 Mazda 5 on the front of the vehicle to the left of the grill as your facing it... there should be an access panel of sorts with threads behind it. in the rear of the vehicle... in the tray just above the spare tire... there should be a bolt with an eye welded on the end of it. This will thread into the front bumper to make a tow point. I can only assume that the 2010 model is similar. hope this helps
#16
01-31-2011 | 04:48 PM
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 2,726
From: southern New Hampshire
how far below zero? and how are they in the snow and ice? all seasons are a compromise in every season - i'd rather not take that chance.
http://www.canadiandriver.com/2003/0...t-sport-as.htm
"My suggestion: get Michelin’s extremely capable Pilot Alpins for the snowy months and keep the Sport A/S tires on for the other three seasons."
again, they might be ok in snow and ice, but nothing beats a winter tire for traction. It just doesn't make sense not to.
http://www.canadiandriver.com/2003/0...t-sport-as.htm
"My suggestion: get Michelin’s extremely capable Pilot Alpins for the snowy months and keep the Sport A/S tires on for the other three seasons."
again, they might be ok in snow and ice, but nothing beats a winter tire for traction. It just doesn't make sense not to.
I've also driven them routinely through snow six to eight inches deep, and navigated my way to work and back (90 miles round-trip) the day of that nasty ice storm back in December of 2008 where we were without power for eight days.
Are these tires as all-around capable in adverse winter conditions as a set of dedicated winter skins? No. That said, on cold dry roads (even really-really cold roads) they are significantly more capable than winter tires; and for my personal driving style, I'll take the better handling 95% of the time over the 5% of the time when I'm dealing with roads covered with winter precipitation.
#17
02-05-2011 | 07:54 PM
Member
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 44
i to have never had my 2009 mazda5 stuck in the snow or my new 2012 mazda 5 stuck in the snow .. here in ohio we just had a big ice storm hit us my drive way and our side street is soild ice ... my van goes right out the drive way and on the street just to point out how slick it is i get up to 20mph and hit the brakes hard and the van will slide 20 feet befor it stops .. my new van has T. C. it helps but is not needed to get the van going i just got back from the store and we are getting a snow storm right now and there is 5 inches of snow on the roads and my new van drove just fine . allso you never did say if your van had a auto or manual transmission with a manual trans its easy to spin the tires on ice . a auto trans with T.C. is much more easy to drive on ice with my 2009 van did not have T.C. and i never got stuck and we had some bad winters here in ohio . spencerfvee
...how can I improve things?
My wife got a 2010 Mazda5 this summer, stock options, and while the kids love the space in it, we're starting to regret not getting an AWD vehicle now that we've got snow here in New England. The car gets stuck in the snow with remarkable ease--even on our flat plowed driveway, it gets stuck if the ground is a little icy. The front wheels just spin on the ice and no amount of forward/reverse or turning the steering wheel helps. Twice already I've had to rock the front end of the car side to side to dislodge it from an icy patch (while my wife hits the pedal), and this morning I had to use a tow strap and my Sport Trac to drag the car sideways to free it after pushing and rocking didn't get the job done.
I noticed something else when having to pull the car: there is practically nothing to latch onto. I reached under the front bumper, and it was plastic as far as I could reach. Looking under the car, I had a hard time finding any frame. After much looking, I finally found a small hole in a steel member behind the passenger-side front wheel well, and put a hook in it. This worked, but I'm still wondering where the best tow attachment points are hidden. Is there any place to get hooks under the front end? Do I have to remove the bumper first?
Is there any way to improve the snow-worthiness of this vehicle? The tires are really thin with not much tread, are there all weather ones that are significantly better? I'm more of a truck guy, and I don't know the options for this car, so any mazda5-specific advice would be much appreciated!
My wife got a 2010 Mazda5 this summer, stock options, and while the kids love the space in it, we're starting to regret not getting an AWD vehicle now that we've got snow here in New England. The car gets stuck in the snow with remarkable ease--even on our flat plowed driveway, it gets stuck if the ground is a little icy. The front wheels just spin on the ice and no amount of forward/reverse or turning the steering wheel helps. Twice already I've had to rock the front end of the car side to side to dislodge it from an icy patch (while my wife hits the pedal), and this morning I had to use a tow strap and my Sport Trac to drag the car sideways to free it after pushing and rocking didn't get the job done.
I noticed something else when having to pull the car: there is practically nothing to latch onto. I reached under the front bumper, and it was plastic as far as I could reach. Looking under the car, I had a hard time finding any frame. After much looking, I finally found a small hole in a steel member behind the passenger-side front wheel well, and put a hook in it. This worked, but I'm still wondering where the best tow attachment points are hidden. Is there any place to get hooks under the front end? Do I have to remove the bumper first?
Is there any way to improve the snow-worthiness of this vehicle? The tires are really thin with not much tread, are there all weather ones that are significantly better? I'm more of a truck guy, and I don't know the options for this car, so any mazda5-specific advice would be much appreciated!
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