Winter Driving

[moutso]

Ok, this may sound "basic" of me. lol . I just got the new 2018 x6m. Someone correct me if I'm wrong...but I don't need to do anything when driving in snow right? I just put Winter Tires on (21" Yokohama). But my question is do you change anything on your drive settings? The car is always AWD right?

Thanks,

[onfireX5]

Right. You are good to go.

[Alberta]

There's no "snow mode" like you can find on the Range Rover's.

Just leave the settings the way they are

[gblansten]

Probably don’t want the throttle setting on Sport Plus.

[lv42day]

Actually in slippery snow conditions you should (MUST) turn on your MDM, it makes a big difference in slippery conditions. I actually tested it and found it really does work, the car will take off with no issues and keep going in a straight line as opposed to fish tail.
Drive carefully and enjoy the holiday.

[6lacksheep]

Originally Posted by lv42day

Actually in slippery snow conditions you should (MUST) turn on your MDM, it makes a big difference in slippery conditions. I actually tested it and found it really does work, the car will take off with no issues and keep going in a straight line as opposed to fish tail.
Drive carefully and enjoy the holiday.

Youre saying instead of leaving full traction on in slippery conditions, you should turn MDM on?

[lv42day]

That's correct, it allows for a certain amount of tire slippage on snow to get you going. You still have 4 wheel traction. I actually experimented over the last 2-3 days with it, and it makes the car incredibly stable from take off and straight line performance. There is also a YouTube video on it, but I did not totally believe the the video until I tried it myself...

[Skyracer]

^^ Interesting. Had more fun driving in a snowstorm today and found the vehicle felt reasonably competent, but not as confidence inspiring as my '04 RS6 of distant memory. Probably the tires, but I'll give MDM a try.

Of course, it's fun to talk about straight line acceleration, but that's rarely what gets you into trouble in the winter, is it? To the OP, just remember 4 driven wheels without traction is no better than 2 driven wheels without traction; adjust speed accordingly! ;-)

[lv42day]

I agree totally, straight line is fine but bends.....slow down!!. I do not recommend trying to find out where the "break traction" point is on a bend. As the other poster said, drive very carefully, if someone wants to go faster than you, let them, its just not worth the risk.

[Roundown]

Originally Posted by Skyracer

^^ Interesting. Had more fun driving in a snowstorm today and found the vehicle felt reasonably competent, but not as confidence inspiring as my '04 RS6 of distant memory. Probably the tires, but I'll give MDM a try.

Of course, it's fun to talk about straight line acceleration, but that's rarely what gets you into trouble in the winter, is it? To the OP, just remember 4 driven wheels without traction is no better than 2 driven wheels without traction; adjust speed accordingly! ;-)

The X5M has proper left/right torque vectoring - did/does the RS6?

Would think that with the right tires, the X5M should stand with any vehicle in snow (clearance not withstanding).

It's a shame Nokian doesn't make Hakka R2s in our size.

[Maverik259]

Originally Posted by lv42day

I agree totally, straight line is fine but bends.....slow down!!. I do not recommend trying to find out where the "break traction" point is on a bend. As the other poster said, drive very carefully, if someone wants to go faster than you, let them, its just not worth the risk.

Lol the last part of this sounds like my mom when I was 16 going on my first drive alone in a car. Good advice none the less!

[arrivederci]

Originally Posted by gblansten

Probably don’t want the throttle setting on Sport Plus.

That's the FUN mode...definitely have that turned on!

[Skyracer]

Originally Posted by Roundown

The X5M has proper left/right torque vectoring - did/does the RS6?

Would think that with the right tires, the X5M should stand with any vehicle in snow (clearance not withstanding).

It's a shame Nokian doesn't make Hakka R2s in our size.

I don't think torque vectoring was in general use in 2004. That being said, I'm just reporting my recollections of how the RS6 drove. Since I've been without that car for 8 years now, a head to head comparo isn't going to happen.

R2's are available in 275-40-20. I would think this size could be used as it would not give a substantially reduced overall diameter from 285's. I keep thinking I should have gone with them, but the Scorpions are really nice on cleared roads, and let's face it, that is where most winter driving is done, in between the periodic bouts of snow.

[Roundown]

Originally Posted by Skyracer

I don't think torque vectoring was in general use in 2004. That being said, I'm just reporting my recollections of how the RS6 drove. Since I've been without that car for 8 years now, a head to head comparo isn't going to happen.

R2's are available in 275-40-20. I would think this size could be used as it would not give a substantially reduced overall diameter from 285's. I keep thinking I should have gone with them, but the Scorpions are really nice on cleared roads, and let's face it, that is where most winter driving is done, in between the periodic bouts of snow.

That's a fine size. The R2 compound is rather unique.

Not worth swapping out the Pirellis, but worth picking up when they need replacing.

[hinton]

i have the r2 suv hakk's on 20's for snow on a square setup. if you have any questions about the winter tires i would be happy to answer.

[lv42day]

How do the hakka's handle the weight of the car, is there any wallow?..

[hinton]

I have not experienced any sluggish or wallow response. I do throw it around a lot in snow and drift with everything off in sport+ mode and all traction off, it seems to behave very well, maybe not as tight as when on the michelin summers, but i have not felt excessive rolling on the softer tire.

I will post an update with the tire specs or dimensions. I did go to a 20 inch rim, 5 bolt pattern, with the proper offset and bore dimensions. I think the rim width is 9 or 9.5, i will double check when i go out this morning.

I also had the r suv on the other x5, the 3.5i from 2013 with OZ rims for winter in a square setup too, i drove that for three winters before giving to the wife, and that seemed fine too with regards to body roll.

UPDATE:

rims are 20 inch, 74.1mm bore, 5 x 120mm bolt pattern, 9 inch wide

UPDATE:

the r2 suv is 275/40/20 all around.

UPDATE 3:

MAX LOAD is 950kg, max speed rating 170km/h

just FYI i did a curb weight test with my summers on and 3/4 of gas in the tank and it weight 5202lbs, i was not in the vehicle when it was weighed.

[botis1028]

Whatever you do....don't drive in the snow in MPSS in the X5M/X6M. Thankfully I only got some curb rash that was quickly fixed, but I ordered some Yoko's the next day.