Home Forums Articles How To's FAQ Register
Go Back   Xoutpost.com > BMW SAV Forums > X5 (E53) Forum
Fluid Motor Union
User Name
Password
Member List Premier Membership Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Xoutpost server transfer and maintenance is occurring....
Xoutpost is currently undergoing a planned server migration.... stay tuned for new developments.... sincerely, the management


Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 04-06-2010, 07:32 PM
c4racer's Avatar
Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Northern CA
Posts: 819
c4racer is on a distinguished road
First snow w/ my 4.6is

I bought my X5 last summer and outfitted it with a set of 19" wheels with 265-50-19 Pirelli Scorpions for the winter. For one reason or another, all my prior ski trips this season I did with my Audi. So I went up for a powder day yesterday and got some good snow driving in with the X5.

I drove up to the Arnold area from the Bay Area on Sunday evening through torrential rains which turned to snow around 3500 feet. It was total white out conditions over the Big Trees summit on Hwy-4 just East of Arnold, and the road was not all that well plowed. I had no issue with traction and kept going at a steady 25-30mph which was as fast as I could see. I made it up to the cabin in Dorrington on even less plowed roads with no drama.

We woke up to a solid 7-8" of fresh snow from overnight at 5000 feet:




The 20 mile drive to the ski area was accomplished again with no drama - never even got the beast loose, although with so much tq available it was easy to get sideways if I wanted to

Overall I was quite happy with how it handles snow. Not quite as hooked up as my Audi with quattro, manual and 235-40-18 performance snows. But not that far off either. Certainly acceptable. And the added ground clearance made it much easier to drive out of the driveway in the morning without clearing it first even in more than half a foot of snow.

Had a great day skiing 19" of fresh, cold powder all day long - one of the best powder days I've had in several years in fact. This was yesterday:



And since hardly anybody was there skiing, we were able to get mostly fresh tracks all day. And then I skied right up to my car at the end of the day because I parked right by the lift!!

__________________
2003 4.6is - SOLD
2003 M5 Imola
2008 Mini Cooper S
2011 Mazda CX9
Reply With Quote

Sponsored Links

  #2  
Old 04-06-2010, 09:18 PM
chilliwilli's Avatar
Member
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: International member
Posts: 2,202
chilliwilli is on a distinguished road
Nice...i'm mad jealous of all that West Coast powder y'all are still gettin'
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 04-06-2010, 09:21 PM
motordavid's Avatar
RetiredBum & Semi-RenaissanceMan
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Mtns of Western NC, & SW FLA
Posts: 16,816
motordavid will become famous soon enoughmotordavid will become famous soon enough
Titz pics! (lift shot is excellent!)
Don't miss the snow, but very good post story & pics, imo!
GL, md
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 04-06-2010, 10:56 PM
RMak's Avatar
Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 321
RMak is on a distinguished road
I agree... that lift shot is excellent. I'm actually sad that the snow season is over here on the East Coast.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 04-07-2010, 12:48 PM
c4racer's Avatar
Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Northern CA
Posts: 819
c4racer is on a distinguished road
Quote:
Originally Posted by chilliwilli View Post
Nice...i'm mad jealous of all that West Coast powder y'all are still gettin'
This is the second time in the last 5 or so years that I remember getting such a nice cold powder dump in April. It happens. Somewhat rare, but hey - I'll take it. I'm sure that was the last powder day for the season. There is enough snow to ski into May, but most resorts will close early due to lack of business. Once spring hits it seems CA folks find other stuff to do since we have so many options. I'd just as soon keep skiing, but that's just a NW raised guy talkin'...
__________________
2003 4.6is - SOLD
2003 M5 Imola
2008 Mini Cooper S
2011 Mazda CX9
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 04-07-2010, 12:50 PM
c4racer's Avatar
Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Northern CA
Posts: 819
c4racer is on a distinguished road
Quote:
Originally Posted by RMak View Post
I agree... that lift shot is excellent. I'm actually sad that the snow season is over here on the East Coast.
Just a fluke btw - I had my phone out and decided to grab a quick shot while it was in my hand. Sometimes it is better to be lucky than good
__________________
2003 4.6is - SOLD
2003 M5 Imola
2008 Mini Cooper S
2011 Mazda CX9
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 04-07-2010, 01:48 PM
Hit Redline's Avatar
Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: SoCal
Posts: 623
Hit Redline is on a distinguished road
Cool pics. nice the know the X is capable of this.
__________________
2002 X5 4.6 Sold
Dinan CAI, TB, Mass Air, Stage 4 engine & tranny software, X-pipe
2004 745Li
1997 Ford Mustang Cobra Vert
1985 Mazda RX-7
13B-REW single turbo 60-1, Haltech, Meth injection, MSD Ignition, and much more
2008 Mazda Speed3 Hypertech Tune


Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 04-07-2010, 02:20 PM
c4racer's Avatar
Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Northern CA
Posts: 819
c4racer is on a distinguished road
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hit Redline View Post
Cool pics. nice the know the X is capable of this.
Damn near anything with AWD and the right tires is capable in the snow, in my experience. I used to drive a FWD honda accord / 5speed with snow tires back in college and took it to the snow all the time. that was back before they required chains on non 4WD vehicles in CA, and I never put chains on or got stuck. It's mostly about the tires. In high school I drove a '63 Impala with studded tires on the rear only and a few bags of sand in the trunk. that car did great too. Never had an issue and I drove it all the time in the snow because I skiied every weekend back then. It's all about tires and driving style / experience.

My set-up on the X5 is not ideal with 265 width tires - surely 225-245 would be better, but a good quality dedicated snow tire does wonders. And these look better with the 4.6is body work and perform quite good in the dry and wet too.

__________________
2003 4.6is - SOLD
2003 M5 Imola
2008 Mini Cooper S
2011 Mazda CX9

Last edited by c4racer; 04-07-2010 at 02:27 PM.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On





All times are GMT -4. The time now is 07:13 AM.
vBulletin, Copyright 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd. SEO by vBSEO 3.6.0
© 2017 Xoutpost.com. All rights reserved. Xoutpost.com is a private enthusiast site not associated with BMW AG.
The BMW name, marks, M stripe logo, and Roundel logo as well as X3, X5 and X6 designations used in the pages of this Web Site are the property of BMW AG.
This web site is not sponsored or affiliated in any way with BMW AG or any of its subsidiaries.