# TT good in snow?



## Niander (Sep 14, 2015)

IM wondering if the TT is good in snow as its 4 wheel drive isn't it?
But maybe its not permament?
I have to turn off the esp button the system is faulty..dont know if this makes a difference?


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## Hoggy (May 8, 2002)

Hi, Much better at moving than FWD or RWD, but no better at stopping...Recommended to have ESP "off" in snow.
Hoggy.


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## poor1 (Dec 28, 2011)

Brilliant in snow limited only by the ground clearance.


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## VdoubleU (Jan 29, 2015)

I can't wait for the snow. Already feeling the benefits pulling off quickly in rain as everyone else is wheel spinning :lol:


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## Samoa (Apr 4, 2014)

VdoubleU said:


> I can't wait for the snow. Already feeling the benefits pulling off quickly in rain as everyone else is wheel spinning :lol:


Scares me senseless on snow & ice as I also run winters, where I spend half my time looking in the rear view mirror planning out when I need to take evasive action to avoid being humped from behind

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## Niander (Sep 14, 2015)

So normally 4wd then?


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## David C (Apr 15, 2013)

Niander said:


> So normally 4wd then?


It is FWD until the fronts start to slip, then it starts to send power to the rear.
It will use the ABS sensors, so a fault with those may hamper the 4WD ability.

Good tyres will help, as will not driving like a kn#b...!


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## M18NTT (Dec 30, 2011)

Samoa said:


> VdoubleU said:
> 
> 
> > I can't wait for the snow. Already feeling the benefits pulling off quickly in rain as everyone else is wheel spinning :lol:
> ...


Agree with that. It's not about what the TT can do - and imo it fairs pretty well - but more about what others are likely to do unto thee. I was very impressed with the TT in the snow but the other twats on the road scared the living daylights out of me. I valued my NCD too much to risk it on a regular basis.


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## firediamonduk (Dec 24, 2013)

Driving on snow is a skill most other people seem not to have... I have never had much of a problem driving in snow until some numpty gets in the way because they have slowed down before going up a hill and then got stuck... And as others have said, no car stops well in the snow and am always scared of other people running into me... Not had any proper snow in the 2 years i have owned the TT yet but done some deep slippery mud and it coped with no issues at all...

As someone else said ESP probs may well stop your 4wd from working and is also an MOT fail so you will need to get that sorted...

And remember just because you can pull away easy doesnt mean you can stop... :lol:


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## Spandex (Feb 20, 2009)

firediamonduk said:


> And remember just because you can pull away easy doesnt mean you can stop... :lol:


This is the most important point. Every snowy winter, this forum is filled with boasting threads from people who charitably laughed as they passed stuck BMWs - then a few days later all the threads appear where people admit to hitting kerbs, or worse, as they slid past a junction or straight-lined a corner at the bottom of a hill.

Sometimes it's better to be working from home with your snowed-in BMW parked outside, than sitting in your crashed TT wondering why the Quattro didn't save you. As WOPR says, "The only winning move is not to play".


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## asahartz (May 24, 2014)

For some of us working from home isn't an option. And if I don't go to work I don't get paid- not any more.

But I did find my TT excellent on snow last year - for a sporty car on standard tyres. Obviously it's not like an off-roader, but it's far better than a normal 2wd. I used to drive my classic Minis in the snow, with winter tyres, and they always got me anywhere I needed to go. The TT does it in greater comfort on standard tyres. Both are limited by ground clearance - my TT is pre-facelift and totally stock, so relatively high, but it still gets scraped by deep snow at times.


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## David C (Apr 15, 2013)

firediamonduk said:


> Driving on snow is a skill most other people seem not to have...


I was lucky that when I was learning to drive in the winter of 1985-86, I had a double length lesson booked for a driving test.
It snowed and the test centre cancelled all driving tests because white lines were not visible :x .
My driving instructor offered a free cancellation of his time, or we could go out driving in the snow for a double length lesson.... so I went out driving in the snow :mrgreen: 
We did all the usual stuff including emergency stops on snow covered roads plus a lot of driving round.
Very good experience very early in my driving years.
It snowed the next winter too, so I went straight out in my Alfasud and built up some more experience :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Cars with no ABS or traction-control (etc.) teach you to be able to drive properly when there is little grip.


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## droopsnoot (Sep 5, 2002)

Mine was rotten last year, just on frosty roads. I am hoping that's down to the no-brand tyres that were on it, as it was decidedly twitchy. I had one problem on snow a few years back (when it was on Michelins, I think) where all four wheels locked up and it slid inexorably towards a junction - fortunately the chap approaching from the other direction gave me plenty of room. I second comments about learning how to drive in snow, though I must say I don't live in an area where it's much of an issue - in the slide above I hadn't got the first clue what to do.

I must admit I'm comparing it to my previous car, which was an eighties Audi Coupe quattro. With fixed 50/50 mechanical four wheel drive, lockable diffs and relatively narrow tyres, it always gave the impression of being much happier on snow. No ABS, though, but it did always feel more "planted" than the TT does.


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## Niander (Sep 14, 2015)

Hmm mot fail? how do they check for that its ok up to 20mph then starts to go shit but they don't drive a car for an mot do they?


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## David C (Apr 15, 2013)

Niander said:


> Hmm mot fail? how do they check for that its ok up to 20mph then starts to go shit but they don't drive a car for an mot do they?


It's 4WD, so they may drive it for the brake test.

But if it is that bad you should be fixing it anyway.....


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## bobclive22 (Apr 5, 2010)

Last winter I watched a newish Merc and other cars slipping and sliding in front of my lounge window, the Merc finally had to be towed up the incline by a van. My FWD TT just sailed up the road with no quattro. The main issue is younger drivers have no idea how to drive in snow and ice, they appear to think that if the car starts to slide you just give it more revs.


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## firediamonduk (Dec 24, 2013)

It's a fail if the warning light is on during the test... If it doesn't come on then you will still get a pass. Doesn't mean it shouldn't be fixed...

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## asahartz (May 24, 2014)

droopsnoot said:


> Mine was rotten last year, just on frosty roads. I am hoping that's down to the no-brand tyres that were on it, as it was decidedly twitchy. I had one problem on snow a few years back (when it was on Michelins, I think) where all four wheels locked up and it slid inexorably towards a junction - fortunately the chap approaching from the other direction gave me plenty of room. I second comments about learning how to drive in snow, though I must say I don't live in an area where it's much of an issue - in the slide above I hadn't got the first clue what to do.
> 
> I must admit I'm comparing it to my previous car, which was an eighties Audi Coupe quattro. With fixed 50/50 mechanical four wheel drive, lockable diffs and relatively narrow tyres, it always gave the impression of being much happier on snow. No ABS, though, but it did always feel more "planted" than the TT does.


Frosty roads are a different matter to snow. There's more grip on snow (unless in freezes). I've driven a lot in snow, in 2wd, fwd and rwd, and full size 4x4s, so I have a lot of experience and I think I know fairly well what I'm doing on snow by now.

I had a real brown trouser moment in the 2010 snows. I was in a classic Mini on standard Yokohamas, and on my way home it snowed over ice. I managed to get most of the way home by a circuitous route avoiding the traffic, but it left just one hill in a village to negotiate. I managed to get up to the top, around abandoned cars, but going down, as slowly as the car would allow in first gear with engine braking, I realised I was catching up with the Fiat Punto in front which was going impossibly slow. If I braked I would just slide, so two choices - either hit it or try to go round it. I chose the latter, at which point I found I could not steer! With headlights coming towards me up the hill I thought a collision was inevitable. At this point, fate smiled on me - I hit the kerb, bounced off, and slotted the car between the oncoming vehicle and the Punto! I've never been so glad to get home - there was so much snow I had to dig the Mini _into _the drive!


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## GARAGE HERMIT (Mar 7, 2015)

in snow, never a problem when i had my reliant robin,, true,,


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## Niander (Sep 14, 2015)

Yes get it fixed ...but drives great with it switched off ...fixing other things at the mo such as wheel bearing and exhaust
and a woman moaning about cash spent :lol:


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## FiveDirty (Apr 12, 2015)

I've owned a lot of cars and hired many cars in my working life. Not all tested in the snow of course, but the only car I've driven that had no real problem on snow was an old beetle. Not quite sure why it was so good, probably the big skinny wheels and / or engine over the rear. Was the only car to get out of our street one bad winter. (Off roaders excepted of course).
Just lurched out and went over it no problem. Didn't stop too well though


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## poor1 (Dec 28, 2011)

FWD revolutionised driving on slippery surfaces, but not a patch on the Quattro 4x4.

RWD Mercedes and the like are hopeless.

A grounding on motor cycles helps appreciate road conditions too.


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## mighTy Tee (Jul 10, 2002)

The TT is a relatively light vehicle on big wide tyres, so cutting through the snow for traction on the road below is not great, ideally a snow tyre width of approx 135mm would be be far better.

As previously said the TT is better than most at pulling away, but crap at stopping. Oh and just look how many tales there are on here by peps who over-drove into a corner and clobbered the kerb doing major suspension and wheel damage


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## poor1 (Dec 28, 2011)

Not much of that on the Solent :wink:


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