Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Ellis]

[]

Do you all remember the winter of 2010/2011?
This photo was taken on December 22nd 2010 after yet another heavy snowfall.
I will admit that without my 1962 Series 2a Land Rover then I would have been unable to travel anywhere.

Thinking back over all the cars I have owned, old and modern and 4x4's excepted, the best one to drive on ice and snow was the Ford Angla 105E with skinny radials and a 50 kilo bag of cement in the boot!
The worst were the Triumph Dolomite Sprints and the Stags were hopeless.

The Minis coped quite well with town and country tyres on the front but I was surprised in December 1981 when I was a passenger in a 1969 VW Beetle 1500. Even on a steep hill covered in compacted icy snow it gripped the road with aplomb and drove up with disdain for the conditions.
I don't like VW Beetles normally but even I was impressed.

The best modern on snow was a Vauxhall Corsa Mk 1 1.5 TD GLS. With a heavy front end and relatively narrow tyres it would go almost anywhere. The Fiat Panda diesel was all right but not as good as the Corsa.

Which cars, past and present do you remember for their abilities good or otherwise in adverse or wintry conditions?[/img]
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Starting Handle Expert

1964 Jaguar Mark 2 3.4 litre
1962 Land Rover Series 2a 88"
2002 BMW M3 E46 Cabriolet

[peter scott]

Like Ellis I remember the cars with the engine over the driving wheels would romp up hills past the load of slithering others like my mother in law's Cortina. She later traded it in for a Hillman Imp that had much better traction but a much worse heater!

Peter


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https://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[Rick]

My Mk1 A40, with its skinny tyres, was always excellent in snow too.

RJ
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[Ronniej]

I note the reference to how well a VW Beetle deals with snow.
A long time ago VW ran an advert in America for the Beetle.
It showed a Beetle driving over snow bound roads and stopping beside a large shed.
The driver gets out and enters the shed.
A few moments later there is the sound of a large diesel starting up and a huge snow plough emerges.
The voice over then says "So that's how snow plough drivers get to work!".

[D4B]

Excellent, here it is Ronnie J,

http://youtu.be/qfirnP08FP0

[Ashley]

I had a 2CV that was better than my Land Rover in snow and ice

[D4B]

[JohnDale]

Sometimes it doesn't matter how fat or skinny your tyres are!

There's a Saab in there somewhere



Ah,there it is



Guess it's stopping there anyway



Cheers,JD.
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1958 Ford Zephyr Mk2 Convertible
1976 Ford Granada Ghia.

[Den]

Keep them coming. I love it!!
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Den.
Reporter-"How's it feel to be Henry Ford the Second?"
Henry Ford ll-"I don't know. I've never been anyone else."

[Phil - Nottingham]

We weakened in 2010 and had a new Mini Cooper - did not like it and it lived outside for the 5 months we had it. We used it in bad weather as the aircon was good but snow and water fell into your lap from the roof when the electric windows dropped when they defrosted enough to become unstuck.

No problems like that with the Land-Rovers and all the other classics and we miss it not at all


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Rover P2
Rover P4
Rover P5 & P5B
Land Rover S2 & S3
Morris Mini Traveller Mk2

[Richard H]

This was my transport during the winter of 2010-11:



I also have a photo of it buried in some even deeper snow during the winter of 1990-91 (I believe) which I must scan in.
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Richard Hughes

[roverdriver]

Model A Ford. 4.50 x 21 tyres bit through the snow to the hard road underneath. After I drove up a fairly steep hill in the snow, I drove back the same way to find a 'Road Closed' sign at the bottom, and a cluster of disabled modern cars.

With the A in mud or thicker snow, it was useful to carry a length of heavy rope under the seat. Tie the rope onto one rear wheel spoke, then lace it over the tyre and around until back to where you started. Do that on both wheels and it was almost impossible to get bogged- the rope was, somehow even better than chains.
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Dane- roverdriver but not a Viking.

[Stevo]

This was from the winter of 2010....I should of covered the van!

In the mid 90s when I lived in Leicester I had a Mk 1 Ford Fiesta for my first car and it was great to drive in the snow.

[Peter_L]

This was the day before we had 4ft level and 6ft drifting.

[lowdrag]

1962/3 was the worst in my memory. Woke up on the 27th December 1962 only to see just the top half of a double decker Southdown bus. Couldn't go to work for weeks because the roads were blocked, and used to drive one of the farm's Landies across the fields delivering milk and bread. The best moment was going shooting with a friend and him falling off the edge of the field into the cut where the road was. I unloaded the gun and used it to help him out. Then he said he could hear music. I thought he was nuts until we saw the aerial, and there was the Bentley belonging to Sid Hull, a farmer who'd sold out for building a housing estate, and it was weeks before they dug the car out. I seem to remember the engine was ruined, so that must have been a tidy bill!

But it is that time of year, and here's a photo I treasure. Happy Xmas everyone.