Hello everyone. I'm a new member and own a Phantom Blue Mazda3 5sp, Touring. It's a comuter car for me as I drive 100 miles a day back and forth.have a quick question about tires that I couldn't find the answer to on the forum. While I do love the car, I've so far found it to be one of the worst front wheel drive cars I have ever owned for driving on snow or ice. I'm hoping the problem is mostly that I should get a set of dedicated snow tires for the winter and notrely onthe stock Goodyears. It slips and slids on the smallest of inclines if I don't have a head of steam. The traction control warning light is on so often my wife thought it was permanent. Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Particularly what tire and size would be best.

Thanks in advance
brap

 

The RS-A's are generally thought of as a pretty poor tire all around, especially in cold temperatures and in snow/ice. If you live somewhere that gets a good amount of snow then get a dedicated set of snow tires and you'll be totally happy.

 

It's trendy in the auto industry to reduce weight, because it improves gas milage. It's also trendy that small cars (or may all cars) are getting larger and wider tires. The combinationof both might be OK ontarmac at high speed provided the aerodynamic down-force would compensate for the lighter car for the tires to have equal or better grip. But in low speed while on snow/ice, wide tires and a lighter car do have tendendy to "float". You are right in thinking about dedicated snow/winter tires (esp with skinnier tires).

My 1987 toyota corolla (with 13in tires, 165 in width) did lot better in snow than a bmw 7, a happy find when i moved to upstate NY in 2001 from california, where i often felt "lifting up" on freeway 5 btw LA and San Diego at 75mph.
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Desire4you

 

What Win and "Spots" said.
Skinnier tires cut through snowbetter.A long skinny patch is what you're after, not thewide square one a wider tire affords.Wide tires float, as Win stated. And snow tires are usually made of a softer compound.
If you have the 2.3L engine and therefore bigger brakes, the smallest diameter you can run is a 16". If a 3i, a 15" will work. I'd recommend getting the smallest wheel you can (width and diameter)and the skinniest snow tire.
Also, our cars arefairlypowerful for their size and weight. A carefully planted right foot will also be part of the equation.
For turning when the car doesn't want to, you can use the hand-brake to assist. Scares the sh*t out of people the first time they see you do it, but you never in your life make tighter turns once you get the hang of it.

 

Could also have something to do with the FWD vs RWD and the incredible difference in HP/torque between the two cars. :P

 

Yup!! Best snow car I ever had was my old Volvo sedan...

... BEFORE Idropped/stiffened the suspension 2" to replace the saggy OE rear springs,added a rear bar,stiffer shocks and droppedin a higher performance B20E engine to replace the twin-SU'ed, underpowered anddying B18B.
After that it wasn't the same in the snow, but much better in every other way.
Like everything else in automotive technology it was a compromise, but one that I chose.

 

Thanks for all the input. I was hoping it was the tires and not the car. Our other car isa Subie Legacy GT so maybe I'm just spoiled. We live on the south shore of MAwhere it doesn't snow that much but it does get icy. I assume that changing to a high performance all season would propably not be that much of a difference either. I was hoping no to have two sets of tires and to change them twice a year. But I guess there is no real substitute for dedicated snows.

 

A 3 with snows will hands down outperform a legacy with all-seasons. The AWD helps mostly when starting but the snows will help in all maneauvering.