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Couldn't help myself - leased an ICE for bad weather driving

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Have a p85-love it.

Live in NY. Boat beach in summer. Must get to work even if blizzard. I know model s is good in snow... But leased a dirt cheap 200/mo 4x4 (only took 7500 miles as don't plan to drive it except for weather boat or beach).

Hope to never use it but probably good I did it I think?
 
I disagree! My first winter test with my first Model S went over Gorman Pass into Frasier Park during a snowstorm. I was driving right by other 4 X 4's stuck in the storm and I was with 21's and no chains. I think you spent unwisely.

I think it's kind of like range anxiety. It just takes some time to become used to your EV and what it can do for you.
 
I disagree! My first winter test with my first Model S went over Gorman Pass into Frasier Park during a snowstorm. I was driving right by other 4 X 4's stuck in the storm and I was with 21's and no chains. I think you spent unwisely.

I think it's kind of like range anxiety. It just takes some time to become used to your EV and what it can do for you.

My first winter with the S was a very poor experience. The following winter I got snow tires and did a fair bit better, but I don't think there's beating AWD.
 
Let's be honest. The S, while a fantastic car in the snow when outfitted with snow tires, is going to get bogged down in a heavy 12" snowfall if the roads aren't plowed. If the OP absolutely must get around in those conditions then he made the right choice.

Personally, I drove the S in all sorts of ugly conditions last winter but there was never more than 3-4" of unplowed snow on the roads, even in 18" events. I don't miss my AWD at all.
 
I disagree! My first winter test with my first Model S went over Gorman Pass into Frasier Park during a snowstorm. I was driving right by other 4 X 4's stuck in the storm and I was with 21's and no chains. I think you spent unwisely.

I think it's kind of like range anxiety. It just takes some time to become used to your EV and what it can do for you.

ditto! even though I hate the goodyear tires they did very well in the snow and on several different occasions I drove past trucks stuck on unplowed roads and I just gracefully drove right through past them like nothing was wrong. even one was being hooked up by a tow truck and both the driver and the tow truck were looking at me like WTF how does he not get stuck?? lol

IMO you wasted your money. you should have bought a second set of rims and put Nokian winter snow tires on if you were really that concerned.
 
As someone living in Norway I can say the tires are essential. Get Nordic Nokian studless tires and air suspension. Let the creep very slowly start you up and go very easily on both the accellerator and brakes and you should be fine. Of course if you routinely drive on unplowed roads with snow higher than the suspension at Very High then you don't need 4x4 you need serious ground clearance. You still need good winter tires on the winter vehicle as well. 4x4 is NO substitute for proper tires unless you like driving with chains.

Cobos
 
Winter driving is 45% tires, 45% skill, and 10% vehicle. Get good winter tires (I use hakkapeliittas), learn how to drive in the winter, and your average rear wheel drive vehicle will outdo 90% of the 4x4s on the road.
I used to drive my Mercedes S class on our Canadian roads in the worst storms without any issue, passing stuck SUVs and trucks with no difficulty. The Tesla is well known to be an even better vehicle for this than my 1980s vintage mercedes was.
 
I'm a skier and sometimes when I get back to the car after a big dump there's over a foot of heavy NW on top of what was already in the parking lot. At that point it's really nice to have a subaru with all weather tires. Winter "off-roading" is pretty fun if you are used to it and play it safe, and you almost inevitably end up going past some stuck 4x4. Then you get out to the highway and there are basketball sized chunks of snow and ice that you have to drive over and ruts half the size of a tire and tons of people that have slid into snow banks. Would love to see a video of an MS plowing through that kind of winter driving instead of the icy lakes which doesn't really resemble the NW or I assume NE winter driving experience. Looking forward to seeing the X marching through those conditions.