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STUCK IN DEEP SNOW

14K views 69 replies 26 participants last post by  oldhaven 
#1 ·
The other day, we had 10in. of snow in our driveway. I was backing out with my 2008 Touareg, and the tires where just spinning. So I put the vehicle in low, but to my surprise, the vehicle could not get out of it. Then I preceded to try the rocking back in forth maneuver, described in the manual. You know, put it in drive, and then in reverse, over and over. This did not help either. I was totally surprised. I thought a Touareg could get out of something like this. Any thoughts?
 
#32 ·
That was a thing of beauty, Nikoloz. It's time to buy new all-seasons. I looked at the Nokian WRG3's. Looks like a high rated tire. Yeah, with no place to store winter tires, I'll most likely go with these. The only problem is, if I purchase a fifth tire for the spare, it obviously won't fit where the factory spare sits.
 
#34 ·
Buying a 5th for a spare isn't worth it. You need 4 identical tires on any AWD vehicle...if you're 75% worn and one of the tires is destroyed, you need to buy a new set of 4 anyway.

There aren't any full sized tires that fit back there...just use the inflatable thingy to limp to the tire shop, and get the bad tire repaired.

In my experience Nokians are tough tires, just avoid driving through the nail factory parking lot ;)
 
#33 ·
I bought my beast with Nokian WR G2 s fitted and I loved it, very good all season tyre, The ones you want are newer models and must be even better. If you are going to buy 5th one as well you need 5th same as others and you will need to carry it in the boot or on your roof all the time
 
#35 ·
Everyone decries the spacesaver spare but it's okay on surfaced roads and more robust than folk realise.

Just don't exceed the 50 mph / 80 kph limit to avoid transmission damage.

And if you fit a full sized wheel that is not identical to the other three on the car, treat it with the same caution as the spacesaver and stick to 50/80 as above to avoid damage to the transmission.
 
#38 ·
Yes, of course the handling will be affected and common-sense should tell you to drive within the capabilities of what is fitted to the car, but the spare is not always exactly the same diameter even for tire/wheel combinations that VW fit to the Touareg as standard.

As I have explained on here many times, tire sizes, apart from the hole in the middle which has to be exact for obvious reasons, are nominal and the overall diameter of different tire patterns and makes can vary by quite a bit.

The electronics in the transmission are able to cope with variations in wheel diameter up to those speeds. Above 50 mph / 80 kph you risk damaging the transmission.
 
#43 ·
FULL SCREEN AND TURN THE VOLUME RIGHT UP!

 
#44 ·
#45 ·
Yup!
 
#46 ·
As the owner's manual states, 'never use low range in snow.' Too torky and will cause tires to loose bite. Need a very gradual application of power to the wheels. My old Isuzu Trooper had a snow traction setting that would apply slow, gradual power so you didn't get a sudden shot of turn.

As others have said, quality dedicated snow tires are the way to go. And the skinnier the better. I have had amazing experience with Nokian Hakaplitias WR snow tires. They turned my Audi A6 into a snow cat.
 
#48 ·
Low range is the worst thing possible for snow...the Treg already has a ton of power in 1st gear in high range with any engine. The last thing you need when stuck in snow is more power. If you're looking at a 40 degree rocky incline (it'll look like a vertical wall), THAT'S when you use low range.

Locking diff in snow usually has the effect of crabbing the vehicle sideways. Typically undesired. Locking diffs are great when you have opposing corners on the ground and the other two in the air i.e.: front driver and rear passenger wheels on ground, other two teeter tottering. You lock the center diff to force 50/50 front/rear axle power distribution, you can then lock the rear to force 50/50 left/right on the rear axle.

Since 99.9% of people never get in either of the two above scenarios, it might help understand why VW dumped them for the NAR T3.

Back to snow, the situations most people find themselves in is 1. snow/ice on one side of vehicle (i.e.: both passenger tires) and pavement on the other side (i.e.: both drivers side). Try this out for yourself and hammer the throttle...you'll notice the Treg pulls straight and accelerates hard. Most other vehicles will just steer to the slick side and you'll find yourself in a snow bank. Situation 2 is deep snow or stuck...High range + ESP off + good tires is the deep snow formula. You don't need any fancy gadgets for either of those two situations...the vehicle deals with it automatically. That's why you pay $60K for one of these things :)
 
#49 ·
Is there a third selection on this dial? Didn't see anything in the manual? I did select Low range, when I was stuck. I'm wondering why there was so much spinning. I know a lot of you had said, the right tires are key. But was it a contributing factor that one of Vehicle Car Technology Auto part
the differentials weren't locked in correctly? And is the ESP button in the off position, supposed to give you more traction in stuck situations? Yes, the ass end of the vehicle was sliding to the side, when I was spinning. Most undesirable, since I was getting closer and closer to the brick wall on the house. And is it possible to have all four tires digging in at once? With a Touareg, my thinking is this- in deep snow, you should never be stuck.
 
#50 ·
Is there a third selection on this dial? Didn't see anything in the manual? I did select Low range, when I was stuck. I'm wondering why there was so much spinning. I know a lot of you had said, the right tires are key. But was it a contributing factor that one of the differentials weren't locked in correctly? And is the ESP button in the off position, supposed to give you more traction in stuck situations?
There are two selections, high and low. While in low range you can select to lock the center differential to give 50/50 power to the front and rear axles.
.
 
#51 ·
If you're on a 10 speed bike and you're on wet grass, the worst thing to do is put it in 1st gear....you will spin the tire and wipe out.

same thing happens when selecting low range, your new 6th gear is shorter than 1st gear in high range. Its like having 12 gears, 6 hi, 6 low...6low is shorter than 1 hi.

So....don't use low range in snow...and stop playing with the diff locks, they are useless in this situation. see post 48 above
 
#53 ·
same thing happens when selecting low range, your new 6th gear is shorter than 1st gear in high range. Its like having 12 gears, 6 hi, 6 low...6low is shorter than 1 hi.
I think you'll find that the gear ratio ranges overlap quite a bit, in most two speed transfer cases first and second low range, then closely followed by first high, third low range with second high very close after, and so on.... If you're curious of how close the overlaps are, do the gearing calculations.

Ok, just ran the numbers, for 2008 six speed, transfer case ratios are 1:1 high, 2.66:1 low, gearbox is (from first sequentially) 4.15, 2.37, 1.56, 1.16, .86, .69.
Run them out and it is in order 1L (11.04), 2L (6.30), 1H (4.15), 3L(4.14), 4L(3.08), 2H (2.37), 5L (2.27), 6L(1.83), 3H(1.56), 4H(1.16), 5H(.86), and finally 6H(.69).
 
#52 ·
I see. Because after all the spinning that I did, I proceeded to dig-out behind the front tires. And also, behind and in font of the rear tires. Then I switched the dial back to high. And mysteriously, I just backed out of it. Trust me, I would love to buy a brand new Touareg. But with that $60,000 price tag, my boss would need to up my pay....I'm going for a 2014 Touareg. But time is running out. My 2008 with 95k on it, is dwindling on it's trade-in cost.
 
#55 ·
I agree entirely, extra low gearing is needed very, VERY rarely by skilled drivers, but unfortunately it most often serves to get inexperienced drivers into situations they will regret.... Often very expensive situations!
 
#56 ·
I'm off road every day and, with my Michelin Latitude Cross, have never used LO or diff locks even in deep mud.

Careful route selection, and a point and squirt works for me!
 
#57 ·
I'm off road every day and, with my Michelin Latitude Cross, have never used LO or diff locks even in deep mud.

Careful route selection, and a point and squirt works for me!
I think you hit the nail on the head for virtually any situation Nooby, route selection is probably the easiest thing for the driver to control, and less often used, especially when fuelled up mates are looking on!!!
 
#58 ·
low range, esp off, 2nd gear on tiptronic, don't apply max power.

Your tyres have 80% less grip when spinning than when they are at the same speed as the earth moving by.
 
#59 ·
One thing that gets ignored is the use of LO when reversing a trailer.

I don't tow any more, but on my Range Rovers, if I needed to reverse into a really tricky spot, then selecting low ratio and gently tickling the throttle as required gave me all the time in the world to twirl the steering wheel and get the trailer into its slot first time.
 
#60 ·
One thing that gets ignored is the use of LO when reversing a trailer. I don't tow any more, but on my Range Rovers, if I needed to reverse into a really tricky spot, then selecting low ratio and gently tickling the throttle as required gave me all the time in the world to twirl the steering wheel and get the trailer into its slot first time.
On dry pavement?
.
 
#63 ·
As above, it will be okay as long as you don't lock the diff on a dry hard surface.

And, yes, slow and steady works great with all sorts of things!
 
#65 ·
Is this what I think it is?




Posted at
Twitter user @bxiie tweets: "Dude, where's my car? Framingham, Mass"

 
#67 ·
#66 ·
^^^ :-k

If it snows any more, you are going to have to install larger wiper blades.

Just to find the car. :evil_laugh:
 
#70 ·
Just so I can remain on topic, here is a picture of the 50" snow we have had here in Maine over the last 18 days. The 2013 Touareg Lux had 12,604 when we got it in January. It had Michelin Latitude M&S tires which were OK on snow but not great on ice, so I put on studded 17" General Altimax Arctic XL, and what a huge difference! I had been spoiled by the Audi A4 with studs and now I am happy again.

Ron
 

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