Snow Traction Problems... Please help!

[sphinx]

I have a 2000 Silverado Ex Cab 2WD. It is my first winter with the vehicle and during the first snow fall ( all of 3" ) I could barely move the truck in the snow. The tires are in good shape...I'm worried about what will happen when I see 6"+ of snow.

 

Should I change to dedicated winter tires? add weight to the back of the bed? Any suggestions would be very appreciated!!

[iron_786]

weight makes all the difference in the world, i built a wooden frame between the back wheels and got some of those 5gal buckets that the restaurants throw away and fill them with sand, i would say 6-8 buckets, a few pounds wont do it u need probly in excess of 400, and as far as tires i would go with all seasons, snow tires wont help u much on ice but the weight will.

[cyclejerk]

Tires, tires, tires!

tires are definitly worth the $. As iron_786 say's, they wont help on ice but WILL help with snow. I have dedicated snow tires for my wifes minnie van they are 10 times better than her all seson tires. Weight is also needed for sure.

[BlackSilver]

I suspect you haven't driven a rear-wheel drive vehicle in snow before. Weight may help a little (don't add much or you'll have handling problems because the rear will want to come around on you in turns), but mainly you just need to have a lighter foot on the throttle than with a front-wheel or four-wheel drive vehicle. Both my trucks are 2WD with regular "all season" tires and no weight. I go anywhere I want with no problems.

[asepgrad98]

I have a 2wd also and i feel your pain. if you come to a stop on ice on an upward hill you are screewed. Good thing i live in NC where it only snows once a year.

[Butch 02 Denali]

My guess is you don't have the G80 locker option? If not, that's the #1 thing you should add. An Eaton limited slip will probably do the best for you since you have a 2wd truck and probably aren't planning any severe off-road adventures! Adding the weight in the back will be necessary whether you add the posi or not. I use 2 boxes I built behind the wheelwells on my 1990 ext cab 8 ft bed 3500 plow truck. I fill them with appx 2-300 lbs of lead on each side for the winter.

 

Butch 02 Sierra Denali

[SilveradoWV]

Weight may help a little (don't add much or you'll have handling problems because the rear will want to come around on you in turns

I am not a big fan of adding weight either. Kind of messes up the whole front to back weight distribution of the truck it seems.

[stebob]

You can also add several 80lb bags of water softener salt. This can do 2 things for you. 1 weight for added traction. 2. Salt if you happen to get stuck. If you have a water softener you can the dump it in when the winter season is over. This is what I used to do with my 2wh open diff truck. Made a big if and there was more than once having the salt got me out of a jam. .02

[c5vetteman]

Weight may help a little (don't add much or you'll have handling problems because the rear will want to come around on you in turns

I am not a big fan of adding weight either. Kind of messes up the whole front to back weight distribution of the truck it seems.

But by adding weight to the rear, aren't bringing the truck closer to the ideal 50/50 weight distribution. I thought that the closer you are to 50/50, the more neutral handling you would have. Wouldn't a lighter rear end result in oversteer (end swinging around in a turn) and a heavier rear end result in understeer (front end pushing through the turn)?

[Guest 007FL]

I haven't had to drive in snow/ice for a while but I'd recommend the salt bag option. Unless you have a heavy duty suspension I wouldn't go more than 300 pounds. Too much weight on the back WILL lighten the front and trust me, when you get on ice you'll wish you could steer your truck. Use the weight but go easy on it (and your right foot).

 

c ya

[bummed-n-Md]

with my old S-10 long bed, I always added about 500lbs of sand over the rear axile. The sand was handy (like the salt ) if I got stuck. Having the weight kept the truck from swapping ends in slippery weather and gave me added traction.

 

My current truck is 4x4 but I still add about 500lbs of sand for those occasions when the road is real icy and even in 4x4 may 'slip' some. When I'm not in 4x4 mode, the sand helps keep the rear wheels 'down' in wet weather.

[carguru]

Weight may help a little (don't add much or you'll have handling problems because the rear will want to come around on you in turns

I am not a big fan of adding weight either. Kind of messes up the whole front to back weight distribution of the truck it seems.

But by adding weight to the rear, aren't bringing the truck closer to the ideal 50/50 weight distribution. I thought that the closer you are to 50/50, the more neutral handling you would have. Wouldn't a lighter rear end result in oversteer (end swinging around in a turn) and a heavier rear end result in understeer (front end pushing through the turn)?

You could get around much better with a little bit of weight in the bed. It does bring the weight distribution closer to 50/50 making handling more neutral. The weight will aid in the rear tires getting traction. Just make sure you put the weight over the rear axle and stabilize it so that it doesn't shift in the bed. As iron_786 said, 6-5 gal buckets of sand will do nicely. Each would be around 60-70 lbs each. I would not go much more than 350-450 lbs. More than this, there will be a bit more of a rear bias making the front too light and you will just plow through turns. Weight combined with good snow tires will get you around pretty well--as long as it is mostly snow.

[Shaners]

Around here most of the larger hardware stores sell "tube sand". These are 70 lb bags of sand in a long narrow tube type bag.

 

I'd get 3-4 of these and put a 2x4 behind the wheel wells and lay them between the 2X4 and the tailgate.

 

Snow tires will greatly improve your traction also. The All-Season tires that came on your truck are more like a 3-season tire as far as I'm concerned. Some all-season tires are better then others for snow traction, but most won't bite like a dedicated snow tire. Snow tires also have alot of "sipes" that help on ice too...

[tmoreau]

I dont know which tires your truck came with, I had the wrangler S/T's and they SUCK!!! Let me repeat, THEY SUCKED! I made sure I threw them out before the snow this year (my third winter with this truck) and got some all terrain tires. The difference is night and day. You should add at least 150-200 lbs(all the way at the back of the bed), although more like 350 would be great and you wouldnt need the leverage of putting it all the way at the back.

 

When I had my 800lb atv in the bed I could climb an icy snowy driveway that ALL two wheel drive vehicles had trouble with, more than half had to be pulled up the hill. My truck had excellent traction and handling with the atv... unless I stopped on a hill. That was a bit too much weight for daily driving but still didnt affect my handling much, if at all.

 

Lockers and posi's have just as many trade-offs in the snow as advantages, dont jump into that too quickly unless you know what your getting in to.

[melbertbloosfan]

Don't look at it as problem, but an adventure!

Anyway, my '02 2WD came with General A/S tires that, when new, were pretty ok in the white stuff. Now at 1/2 tread, they are pretty NOT ok in the rain or the snow. Look to your tires first.

Second, you gotta have some weight in the back end of that thing. I use a (now solid) bag of quickcrete in mine along with some concrete pavers I have laying round. Probably around 250 lbs total just behind the axle. ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD!!!! (Can you hear that ok?). Rides a helluva lot nicer too.

G80 locker is a lifesaver - just don't nail it at a standstill or asideways ya go.

Add the weight, look at the tires and drive like a blue hair and you should be fine.