passat in Snow

under2x

Member
Joined
Dec 20, 2011
Location
Colorado USA
TDI
2012 Passat TDI SE manual
The stock tires are terrible in the snow. First week of owning I put on snow tires, haven't had any problems since then.
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
I have 205/55 x 16 XIce in the garage, on biolines, off my traded 09 Jetta.

Will the car look really odd with these on it? I assume they'll fit...I've gotten used to the 18"s, and am trying to wear out the Hankooks. Replacement tires are more $$$ than I'd like...
 

TomB

Veteran Member
Joined
May 1, 2003
Location
Cle Elum, Washington/Las Vegas, Nevada
TDI
2015 Audi TDI Prestige Sport
The Hanooks are OK in the snow. You definitely want snows to get around.

On ICE they sucked, even Blizzaks on the 05 had an issue with the ice the other day, but the Hanooks were especially horrible on the ice.

I am looking at getting the Yokohama Avid Envigor for the summer tires since the Hanooks are NOISY. I know the Yokohamas are as good as the Michelins for sound.

I am looking at getting the Blizzaks WS70's with the 16" Passat SE alloy rims. At least then the car will look like other Passats. :)

As well I want to use chains, so looking at the SCC Super Z6 (model SZ135) low profile chains too.
 

eprater1

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Location
Spartanburg SC
TDI
2012 Jetta TDI w/DSG(transmission failed w/800 miles on it) 2012 Passat SE w/Sunroof -65k traded in on 2013 Passat TDI SE w/Sunroof 2006 Ford F350 on 37's, few things deleted, little methanol injection, few things modded, few more filters added :)
i had about a 250 mile trip up I-26 accross I-40 then down I-75 about 3 weeks ago. snow and black ice in all lanes the entire time with multiple accidents, jack knifes and weaving cars in the process. i drove at very moderate speeds the entire time and only got the traction light one or two times (during steep uphill grades). during braking i only noticed the abs kick on once and that was partially on purpose checking out the avaliable traction. im sure what i saw was very minor compared to many parts of the county but overall i was very pleased with the manners of the Passat and performance of the tires.....not as good as my 4x4 f350 on 37" bfg m/t's :) but that isnt an apples to apples comparison.
 

TomB

Veteran Member
Joined
May 1, 2003
Location
Cle Elum, Washington/Las Vegas, Nevada
TDI
2015 Audi TDI Prestige Sport
i had about a 250 mile trip up I-26 accross I-40 then down I-75 about 3 weeks ago. snow and black ice in all lanes the entire time with multiple accidents, jack knifes and weaving cars in the process. i drove at very moderate speeds the entire time and only got the traction light one or two times (during steep uphill grades). during braking i only noticed the abs kick on once and that was partially on purpose checking out the avaliable traction. im sure what i saw was very minor compared to many parts of the county but overall i was very pleased with the manners of the Passat and performance of the tires.....not as good as my 4x4 f350 on 37" bfg m/t's :) but that isnt an apples to apples comparison.
What size tires? What brand? Hanook or Continental?
 

germ

Active member
Joined
Dec 28, 2011
Location
Bend Or.
TDI
2012 Passat tdi 6sp man
I just bought some Michelins Primacy XV4's and traded the Hancooks. We have had lots of snow in the last three weeks. These tires seem to function very well. I have not had the experience of black ice yet. I'm sure they will be squirlie.( the only thing that works is studs)
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
tomB...I'll try to get my 16s on this weekend, maybe even try to post a photo. As I said, I've gotten so used to the 18s, don't know how the 16s will look...in real life, not a photo...
 

TomB

Veteran Member
Joined
May 1, 2003
Location
Cle Elum, Washington/Las Vegas, Nevada
TDI
2015 Audi TDI Prestige Sport
tdiatlast,

Please do post, I want to see. The tire diameter is the same so it should like similar, just more rubber than rims.

Has anyone else noticed how the disk/rotors/brakes look so beefy through the standard 18" rims. The large disks are awesome.
 

physicshogon

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2011
Location
Virginia
TDI
2012 Passat
I just bought some Michelins Primacy XV4's and traded the Hancooks. We have had lots of snow in the last three weeks. These tires seem to function very well. I have not had the experience of black ice yet. I'm sure they will be squirlie.( the only thing that works is studs)
Where'd you go to "trade in" your tires?
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
My 205/55 X 16s won't work, at least according to TireRack. All that means is that they won't sell me that size, as VW recommends 215/60 X 16. (I know they WILL work, but they're not really big enough for the car...)
 
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NSTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 26, 2002
Location
Nova Scotia
TDI
15 Passat
Can you turn off traction control on the 12 Passat? Somebody told me you can't on it or the 12 Jetta?

Don
 

LuckyBob

Active member
Joined
Sep 28, 2011
Location
Ontario
TDI
Passat TDI 2012
Snow Tires - Awesome on this car

How are the new Passats in the snow?
The stock 18's were a little scary in the snow, after one week of this I ordered Bridgestone Blizzak WS70 215/60R-16 mounted on OZ 16" wheels, an incredible difference the car is now a blast to drive in the snow, very predictable handling and the traction control doesn't interfere anywhere near as much. You can also get the ass to swing out a bit with a little hand brake as you corner. I highly recommend using Winter tires on this or any car.
 

eprater1

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Location
Spartanburg SC
TDI
2012 Jetta TDI w/DSG(transmission failed w/800 miles on it) 2012 Passat SE w/Sunroof -65k traded in on 2013 Passat TDI SE w/Sunroof 2006 Ford F350 on 37's, few things deleted, little methanol injection, few things modded, few more filters added :)

brent_strong

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 10, 2008
Location
Franklin, TN
TDI
2012 Passat TDI
I had quite good luck with the 17" Hankooks from my SE w/sunroof. Drove it about 1600 miles from Nashville to northern Michigan through some pretty nasty weather and they handled well. All the back roads up north end up as compressed ice with snow on top and it did great on that as well.

If you live in an area with a lot of snow and ice, I'd always recommend snow tires, but in my experience, the Hankooks are just fine for snow/ice if you don't drive through it enough to justify another set of tires.
 

RoadRunnerTR21

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2011
Location
Trinidad, TX
TDI
2012 Passat TDI SE w/sunroof
I had quite good luck with the 17" Hankooks from my SE w/sunroof. Drove it about 1600 miles from Nashville to northern Michigan through some pretty nasty weather and they handled well. All the back roads up north end up as compressed ice with snow on top and it did great on that as well.

If you live in an area with a lot of snow and ice, I'd always recommend snow tires, but in my experience, the Hankooks are just fine for snow/ice if you don't drive through it enough to justify another set of tires.
I'd rather not want to find out how it does in snow or ice. When this happens in east Texas, we are in deep sh$t anyway so there won't be much driving done. :D
 

WildBill

New member
Joined
Dec 6, 2013
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2014 Passat
My 2014 Passat TDI SEL Did Fantastic in North Texas Ice Storm!

Very impressed with my TDI's performance this week in a North Texas Ice Storm. If you are going to drive a sedan in the snow, I don't see how you can get much better than the FWD Passat. The accelleration is so easy to control to prevent spinning, and the ABS Brakes had me stopping straight every time. We had about four inches of freezing rain and sleet fall this week, so that is about as deep as I think you'd want to attempt without getting high centered in a rut somewhere, but very impressive still. I was one of the few in the crew that made it to work, and I have a 30 mile commute to Dallas.

I pulled into a school parking lot which was closed for the day, lot's of open room to play, starting, stopping, turning. The most impressive thing to me were the brakes, which I would slam on at 25 mph to see what would happen. You can feel the ABS at work, and I was simply amazed at how I stopped straight every time. I drove by fender benders and abandoned vehicles which were turned opposite traffic the whole way, and ended up driving a coworker home who didnt want to attempt it.

So, on flat roadways, I am very confident now with this vehicke in snow and ice. I wouldn't want to do any serious downhill though without proper tires. Storms like this don't happen every year in my neck of the woods, but nice to know I am covered when it does happen.
 

rustycat

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2012
Location
seattle
TDI
2015 passat sel
Very impressed with my TDI's performance this week in a North Texas Ice Storm. If you are going to drive a sedan in the snow, I don't see how you can get much better than the FWD Passat. The accelleration is so easy to control to prevent spinning, and the ABS Brakes had me stopping straight every time. We had about four inches of freezing rain and sleet fall this week, so that is about as deep as I think you'd want to attempt without getting high centered in a rut somewhere, but very impressive still. I was one of the few in the crew that made it to work, and I have a 30 mile commute to Dallas.

I pulled into a school parking lot which was closed for the day, lot's of open room to play, starting, stopping, turning. The most impressive thing to me were the brakes, which I would slam on at 25 mph to see what would happen. You can feel the ABS at work, and I was simply amazed at how I stopped straight every time. I drove by fender benders and abandoned vehicles which were turned opposite traffic the whole way, and ended up driving a coworker home who didnt want to attempt it.

So, on flat roadways, I am very confident now with this vehicke in snow and ice. I wouldn't want to do any serious downhill though without proper tires. Storms like this don't happen every year in my neck of the woods, but nice to know I am covered when it does happen.


Here's good video on ECS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIxeIKYEU-Q
 

NSTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 26, 2002
Location
Nova Scotia
TDI
15 Passat
I find the 13 TC works very good, not as intrusive as the 2003 Passat. I haven't seen a real need to turn it off.

Don
 

hudsonian

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2013
Location
Calgary, AB
TDI
2013 Passat Highline TDI
I have been running my 2013 passat here in Calgary in a relatively hard winter so far this year. Drove her in a foot of snow this week and had no problems. I mounted 17" michelin x ice 3 on momo win 2 alloys, all great, they are very quiet on normal roads as well which is a big plus
 

pparks1

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2013
Location
Westland, Michigan
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SE
I just put on some General Altimax Arctic's 215/60/16's on my 2013 Passat TDI SE yesterday. Haven't yet had any accumulated snow thus far in Michigan to drive in, but that time will come soon enough.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
Just got home from work and aside from the worn out Hankooks being terrible, the stability and traction control works well. Very smooth.
 

ABS

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2003
Location
South Central Minnesota
TDI
2014 Passat SE TDI, 6MT
The car is respectable in the snow. Traction and stability control are top notch (although I do wish there was a switch to turn it off on the 14's..) Stock tires (Hankooks) aren't the best skins I've driven on, but with only 4300 miles, they behave decently.
 
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RoadRunnerTR21

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2011
Location
Trinidad, TX
TDI
2012 Passat TDI SE w/sunroof
I'd rather not want to find out how it does in snow or ice. When this happens in east Texas, we are in deep sh$t anyway so there won't be much driving done. :D
I posted this quote 11 months ago and now it has come true. Flight cancellations from the NE delayed my return to Dallas by a day. In some respects that was a blessing. That said, on Saturday morning I had my first opportunity to drive the Passat on icy roads and I was very surprised how well it handled the poor road conditions. I never really had any issues at all other than a few bridges that were like cobblestone roads. I did learn one thing that I thought I would pass along. Long ago (over 40 years) I learned a technique that I would use when driving a vehicle with a automatic on ice. If you are slowly trailing another vehicle and they start to slow down, I would put the vehicle in neutral and coast as opposed to using the brakes. The advantage here is that the drive wheels would stop trying to move the vehicle forward and you would naturally slow down. This technique does not work with the DSG. As we all know, at slow speeds when you lift off of the accelerator our cars slowdown on its own pretty well. If you were to pop it into neutral, you will have the sensation of speeding up. So the lesson learned for me is to always leave the car in gear. It does a great job all by itself.
 
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