Heh, tire chains...

[Sarra]

Yeah, this has to be like the 3rd time now, but I got my car stuck in the snow again tonight.

However, I was prepared for the worst, with a shovel and tire chains.

I wasn't prepared to have BOTH chains SNAP on me! Both of the chains came off, one ripped off and wrapped around my axle, the other came off but I stopped before it got wrapped too bad.

I'm running Prielli winter tires too. =\

I'm the queen of getting subies stuck. >_<

Edit: It also doesn't help when you get the chain stuck on the brake caliper, but that doesn't explain why the second one came off. =\

[Reason]

Are the chains off? Is there any damage?

[shazapple]

ugh, chains. Id never put chains on my car. Id rather have a shovel and a hand winch.

[ooberdoob]

hand winch.





come along boy. its a come along.

(shit i was down south too long)

[shazapple]

I was going to say comealong, but I wasnt sure if you yanks would know what im talking about :P

[Sarra]

ugh, chains. Id never put chains on my car. Id rather have a shovel and a hand winch.

I typically would agree, however this snow was deep, heavy, and there was a lot of it. It did help to dig tire tracks part of the way, but after that it was just pathetic. Also, this was at like midnight, so it was rather cold...

[Sarra]

Alrighty, pulled the tires off (jackstands are the coolness), no damage to front suspension from the chains, brakes look good still.

However, the front end of the car drops a lot on the suspension, I wonder if I need some shocks...

[AussieDan]

What tire size are you running that you can even fit chains on there? I may be way off but I didn't think there was anywhere near enough clearance to either the strut or the fender lip for chains...

That said, if you're dealing with that kind of snow I'd recommend picking up a set of dedicated winter tires, like the Nokian Hakka2 or RSi. The Pirellis (I'm assuming your running the popular PZero Nero M+S) are a great all-season tire, but there is no comparison between anything like that and a real snow tire when push comes to shove.

You may also want to look into swapping to outback suspension if you have frequent 'off-road excursions' ;)

[Manarius]

As I recall. Chains + AWD = no. Maybe I'm mistaken?

[Sarra]

What tire size are you running that you can even fit chains on there? I may be way off but I didn't think there was anywhere near enough clearance to either the strut or the fender lip for chains...

That said, if you're dealing with that kind of snow I'd recommend picking up a set of dedicated winter tires, like the Nokian Hakka2 or RSi. The Pirellis (I'm assuming your running the popular PZero Nero M+S) are a great all-season tire, but there is no comparison between anything like that and a real snow tire when push comes to shove.

You may also want to look into swapping to outback suspension if you have frequent 'off-road excursions' ;)

No, not running the PZero. I would NEVER run all season tires on my car. =\ I run a good winter tire for winter, and a good summer tire for summer.

Clearance? I'm in a 2000 Legacy sedan, it's not an outback. Clearance isn't much of an issue, there's a good gap between the fender and tire, and also between the suspension and tire.

You should be able to run chains on an AWD car. I may spend a few extra bucks and buy another set, so I can run a chain on each tire. Also going to get a come along, or two, or more, they would be extremely helpful for the conditions I enjoy driving in (especially when I come across stuck cars).

[shazapple]

Check the manual. I know theres a section in there about tire chains and I know Subaru doesnt favour them, especially on only two wheels!

[Sarra]

Well, considering I was going up a snowy hill and the front tires were on snow and the rear tires were getting all the way down to solid ground, my center diff woudln't really know the difference.

I'm running 205 60R15's IIRC, either, 60r15's or 50r15's, whatever's stock on the 2000 Legacy.

[NewGenSTi]

Might want to try one size narrower on your winter tires. wider tires tend to float on snow more causing more slip and less grip. I have a set of bridgestone blizzaks on my legacy and I couldny manage to get stuck even if I tried this winter... Also had Blizzaks on my STi and man these things are unstopable.

[shazapple]

My winter tires are 185/70/r14 and studded, they work very best :)

[ivwarrior]

Check the manual. I know theres a section in there about tire chains and I know Subaru doesnt favour them, especially on only two wheels!

I also knew there was a section, and was pretty sure you were wrong there, so I read what it actually says. This is from my 1997 Legacy manual, and I know it read pretty much the same in years prior, so I doubt Subaru has changed their stance since. If I'm wrong, someone post what a newer manual says.



Tire Chains
----------------------------------------------------
CAUTION Tire chains cannot be fitted with P205/55R16 tires for GT models because of lack of clearance between the tires and body.
----------------------------------------------------

Driving on snowy grades or icy roads may require the use of tire chains, in which case put the chains on the front wheels only. Use only SAE class S type chains that are of the correct size for your tires so as not to damage the vehicle body or suspension.
When driving with tire chains, drive at speeds below 19 mph (30 km/h).

When a temporary spare tire is on a front wheel, replace the temporary spare tire with the rear tire on the same side of the vehicle, and then fit chains on the front tires.

[Legacy4Life]

I run 195/65R15 in the winter on steal. I find they're cheaper and like NewGenSTi said, narrower tires are better in the winter.

Narrower tires have more road pressure per square inch because the same vehicle weight is distributed over a smaller surface area. Therefore better bite for the treads.

I haven't moved to studs because I do a lot of highway driving and studs are loud and worse on gas mileage.

[supra90turbo]

I'm from MA and call it a comealong too...