Performance in snow?

[Letas]

No one needs 4x4 for snow unless they're commuting via frozen logging road every day.

It's a trend Ive seen in recent years where people swear up and down they can't own anything not AWD or need a second car because of snow or something. Absolutely pointless. If my lowered 60s muscle car can make it thru 3 brutal midwest winters with a teenager behind the wheel, I'm sure the Slate will be fine

I’d agree to an extent- nobody in the Midwest needs AWD/4x4. Driving mountains is a different beast. I grew up in WI but spend my winters up and down the Sierras now.

Personally I want a 4wd option to avoid ridiculous chain control laws. That being said. I feel much better in a Subaru than I do my FWD sedan in winter.

 

[AZFox]

I think the Slate will have above-average snow-driving capability.

I had a VW Beetle (rear-engine OG Beetle, not a New Beetle) with snow tires. It handled snow like a champ. Kinda makes sense when you consider it was engineered in Germany where it snows.

 

[OldGoat]

Well Teach your Subaru has likely spoiled you. I have 350 feet of gravel drive that we don't plow since the stones will end up all over. None of our other 4 wheel drive type vehicles over the years could top the Outback. When it was gone, I began buying snow tires for various vehicles and YES they make a big difference. The Slate should get darn good traction over the rear drive and having snow tires will be (pun intended) icing on the cake. I'll for sure get an extra set of steel rims and snow tires, along with the sand bags in the bed and expect to deal with whatever winter can dish out. Winter however can limit your range to the point of 20-30 % loss so those of you in real winter states do need to be aware of that and if you are going to be doing some longer drives, maybe opt for the bigger battery. But for daily driving locally you can top off at home and be ready the next morning.

 

[Tinker]

Hello! I made my reservation a few weeks(?) ago.

I just wanted to know... Considering that this initial model is not AWD, how do you think the RWD Slate perform in the snowy roads of the Midwest?

Please be easy on me, I do not have any experience with EVs and I have driven AWD vehicles for more than a decade for the sake of safety. I had a bad experience with my FWD when it went spinning in the snow with my baby daughter with me in the vehicle.

As cool as I think the slate will be. It would not be my go to car if I lived in an area with a lot of snow and Hills.

 

[sodamo]

One of the most important things I learned about driving in snow (Maine) is knowing when NOT to drive.

 

[SichuanHot]

I used to drive my manual E46 325Ci in the snow before I sold it. It had an open diff. All I needed was a good set of snow tires and the thing was rock solid. RWD is no issue as other mentioned and Slate has the added advantage of the centrally mounted battery balancing out the weight distribution.

 

[Tinker]

That’s true, snow tires do make a Huge difference. It’s just a pain to store them and put them on. But there are places I’d own snow tires, even on an awd

 

[cvollers]

AWD didn't become prominent in the automotive industry until the mid 1990's. Until Audi developed Quattro rarely any automobile had AWD. Certainly from the 1940's through the 1980's most all cars were RWD. Commerce did not stop during these 50 years of massive commercial growth in the USA because only RWD Detroit sedans were being driven around on bias-ply Goodyears. Lol.

AWD is the most over-hyped must-have equipment group known to mandkind.

Agreed. It’s also very different from 4WD.

 

[Tinker]

I respectfully disagree with your perspective. While it's true that there weren't many AWD vehicles in the past and RWD cars performed adequately for most situstions, they can struggle in more challenging conditions like ice and steep hills. That's where AWD, 4WD, and tire chains really shine.

I think a lot 4WD systems have been replaced by AWD options, which are often more affordable while still providing decent traction. AWD serves as a great middle ground for most of us. Side note, i don't think all AWD systems are created equal; some are definitely less capable than others. I remember driving a AWD Honda up an icy hill once, and being motionless with just a single tire spinning out of four. Even though my old subaru had open diffs, I at least got two tires spinning on that same hill before the traction control would start helping.

 

[Pop 13]

Thankfully I'm in North Carolina where snow in mostly an aberration. That being said, I agree that the battery placement should make it fine in snow. But then I grew up on basically no FWD vehicles and sand/salt in the trunk.

 

[evtruth]

I can't speak to the Slate truck specifically, but all of my EVs have performed FAR better in snow than any ICEV I've owned. I've read many accounts of even RWD Teslas performing very well in snow due to the low center of gravity and the slight additional weight cutting through the snow.

However, as ANY "car person" will tell you, tires can also make a HUGE difference. If you've got 4x4 or AWD and bald tires... Good luck. That's why there are so many types of tires - winter, summer, all-season, high performance all-season, ultra high performance all-season, off-road, etc.

 

[Tinker]

that’s very true about the tires.

 

[AZFox]

Add some Driver Skill and Appropriate Tires to your Slate and you'll be cruising right past AWD SUVs that are stuck in the snow (on the other side of the road... they're crossovers). Don't stare. Keep your eyes on the road.

Seriously though, the Slate will have ABS and enough brains to do Automatic Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning, and Pedestrian Detection. It stands to reason that the Slate will have enough brains to apply the brake to a wheel when it loses traction, thus sending power over to the other wheel that does have traction.

Having an electric motor for instant ability to apply or remove torque can't hurt.

Oh... and Traction Control is #1 on the list of Safety Features on the Slate FAQ Page, so there's that.

 

[SichuanHot]

Add some Driver Skill and Appropriate Tires to your Slate and you'll be cruising right past AWD SUVs that are stuck in the snow (on the other side of the road... they're crossovers). Don't stare. Keep your eyes on the road.

Seriously though, the Slate will have ABS and enough brains to do Automatic Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning, and Pedestrian Detection. It stands to reason that the Slate will have enough brains to apply the brake to a wheel when it loses traction, thus sending power over to the other wheel that does have traction.

Having an electric motor for instant ability to apply or remove torque can't hurt.

Oh... and Traction Control is #1 on the list of Safety Features on the Slate FAQ Page, so there's that.

A simple brake vectoring system is probably one of the simplest things to program for a rudimentary ABS system. All you need to use are the wheel speed sensors and an accelerometer meshed into a PID or equivalent loop assuming that there's an ABS pump in the brake fluid loop. No doubt Slate will employ some form of that since it's even easier with an EV.

 

[Luxrage]

I grew up and lived in Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, and all through those years I was driving a big V8 Thunderbird with rear-wheel drive and no ABS/Traction Assist. Rarely did I ever have a problem as long as I stayed on the surface streets. Ditto what many other members have said about the poor weight distribution of ICE vehicles. I had to weigh down the back with sandbags which would come in handy if I ever did get stuck. In that car stopping was more of an issue than getting going with how heavy the front end was.

And as far as people's comments about how 4wd and things is relatively modern by car standards and the prevalence of RWD vehicles all the way up till the 80s, there's a great archive upload by Dallas SMU from 1977 of morning commuters in big RWD boats getting on in the ice. Cigarettes and beer in hand!