I will say that ABS once really saved my butt. It was right after ABS started to come out in the 90s. I was wizzing down a single lane on a wet day when some idiot pulled across the lane and just plumb stopped. I slammed on the brakes and ABS or not I was going to t-bone him. Then at the last minute I realized I could also turn, and I made a controlled hard right into the driveway he pulled out of. Only the ABS allowed me to make this maneuver in perfect control. Angry as I was at him, he couldn't stop thanking me for saving his new car.

 

I'm getting a 2012 Durango Crew AWD on Friday. I currently drive a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo (before that 1987 Jeep Wrangler). The one thing I'll miss from the Jeep (and believe me this list is very, very limited) is the ability to get the back end loose in the snow to **** off my wife! ha ha! I understand this AWD is very well balanced and constant. On the Jeep it was slip initiated power transfer to the fronts, so you had a small window to fish tail around corners if you pumped the gas.

Pumped to get this Durango though. EDIT: I'm from Wisconsin and praying for snow this year again.

 

@mmark27,

From Kenosha here....it's also my first Winter driving the AWD Durango. Just got an '06 SLT with the Hemi a couple months ago but am unable to drive her so far due to a hip replacement. Patiently waiting a couple more weeks so I can get the OK to drive again.

Should be fun in the snow tho, had a '98 Durango a few years back and in 4WD that sucker was fun to romp on in the snow.

 

I thought everything was electronic on the Durango and I read that the Jeep SRT8 had a fuse you can unplug to make it RWD, does anyone know if this is true?

 

The factory Goodyear's. They accelerate fine, just stopping is an issue on slick surfaces. The wife's old 02 Accord stopped much, much better and so does my diesel pickup. I'm not sure if the tires are bad quality or if that is what you should expect out of a 20" wheel with a wide tire. I will get that question answered in about 3 years when we get new (different) tires.

 

Weight difference make a big difference between the accord and the DD, not sure about your diesel pickup but i would think the tires do make a difference. Something similar to taking air out of your tires when driving on sand. In the winter you don't want to do that but the wide tires do not help. I believe Dodge went for looks as opposed to 100% winter worthiness, but its still workable, you should be driving easier and giving yourself more space in the winter and with ice cover roads anyways.

 

Tire section width has plenty to do with snow capability. The wider the tire, the wider the contact patch, the less force/in2 on the ground, and the less traction. 20 in wheels are almost purely for aesthetic purposes. I got 'em and love 'em, but know full well them don't perform as well in the snow, and cost a lot more to replace. Fashion conscious costs... ;-)

 

I have Michelin Latitudes on my D. I can say its scary to drive with these tires. Short distances would be ok if taken slowly. Snow does not intimidate me. I love the challange that snow can bring and would aways look for an excuse to drive in it. Of all the vehicles I owned this is the first vehicle I would rather just stay put. I owned a 340 Duster & 5.0 Mustang that felt safer in than the D. They were fun. The D just takes that fun away. Maybe my 4 Explorers spoiled me with how well they tracked straight and true through anything. The D's wide 265/60 tires just don't seem to always go where you point them. I had a few moments where I thought I was going in the ditch. I just mounted Goodyear Grip Ice WRT SUV tires, but they're still 265/60. Consider downsizing to a 245 or 235 tire if you do any serious driving driving.

 

Anyone else have more snow experiences to share? Also the tire width seems to be the issue here, as opposed to the vehicle itself...its like walking around in the snow with dress shoes as opposed to boots.

 

Ok, i just got a chance to take my D out in the snow for the first time last week. First snowfall was about an inch of wet stuff. Second snowfall was 21" inches of very wet heavy snow, followed by 50 mph winds and severe drifting. My D has the Goodyear Fortera 20" wheels/tires.

Oh, and for perspective I previously drove a 2002 Maxima with Blizzaks in the winter, also drive wife's 2008 Odyssey with Hankook Optimas.

In the first snowfall I had the opportunity to practice emergency braking, sudden cornering, and acceleration in an empty parking lot. It performed all of them very well. With traction control on I think it interferes a bit too much on slushy snow and ice.

At low speeds, I could not make it fish tail under acceleration unless I turned of the TC. Did not have enough room to try anything stupid over about 25mph.

After the 21" snowfall I had to take the kids to our rural daycare provider. Roads had been plowed but there was a good layer of snowpack, and many powdery drifts up to perhaps 24" on one side. I drove through them slowly to avoid damaging the low front end, and it just smoothly powered through it.

Overall I am stunned by the performance. I have never owned anything AWD or 4WD, but really had not expected it to do so well given how well it handles on dry pavement. My experience before this had been that tires tend to excel at summer and winter conditions but never do both very well. Not the case here.

Also should mention on the washboard snowpack in town, my wife commented that her van was much more bumpy and less controlled compared to the D.

Steve