Daughter picked up a gorgeous '04 x type with awd. 2" of snow in MI and she spun it 180 from a dead stop. On our driveway, snow covered, I had her hit the gas and rears spin only.

VC fluid problem? Normal? Tires are 50% of new I'd say.

Don't tell me to put on snows-as I have Blizzaks on a Saturn and obviously they run great. Michelin Harmony on a Saturn are ok, same tire on a Taurus are real good-front end weight is more with a Taurus, hence the difference.

I had a Safari van awd once and never spun anything, ever. Couldn't get it stuck.

Been reading-possible that at low speeds this happens but not > 20mph?

 

You say a 2004 so there is no VC.

If you look in the space between the cupholders and the shifter, is there a button to deactivate DSC or are there three coin slots?

If there are three coin slots then you don't have DSC. If you bought a 2004+ with no DSC, then the symptom you described is normal for the car. A 2004+ without DSC only has fully functional AWD on dry pavement. Once wheels start slipping all bets are off.

I have the same configuration, and have found that if one of the rear wheels starts to spin I can apply the parking brake slightly to divert more power to the front wheels. Poor man's traction control if you will.

 

We were looking at the manual and it mentioned DSC, but we couldn't find the button. Did see 'sport mode' button.

Car isn't here now. Will check and repost.

 

No button = no dsc!

Sorry

 

There's your problem right there. They are just plain worn out, at 50% they are useless as snow tires - no matter the brand.

In order to wear them out to 50%, they have been driven year-round no doubt. You need to consider some new snow tires.

After a number of years with studded snow tires on my '02, I absolutely swear by them. Before you point out that my '02 has the earlier VC - yes it does - please know it does not have DSC, either.

That was not the issue with my car initially. On the way to get the studded snow tires mounted, my car acted just like yours, a-slippin' and a-slidin' (scary as hell!). In addition, I could not even drive over a 4 inch berm of snow to get into the tire shop, the AWD acted more like "All Wheel Disaster".

With the studded snow tires, I have not lost traction once (accelerating and braking like an old man, of course) at any speed, on any surface. Cornering, the car is stuck to the road like a cat holding onto window curtains.

Invest in some studded winters snow tires for your daughter, and make sure to change them out when the snow is gone so you don't wear them out in the Spring.

At 50% tread, snow tires are shot. Worn out. Generally worthless.

The AWD will work perfect when you "stud up"!

Best 'o luck.

Check it out!

 

PS - the forum member Karaudio23 has a posting over in the "Private for Sale / Trade" section for a nice set of fancy ($450) or factory($300) rims for your new snow tires, too.

The $300 set is a good deal, methinks.



Having the Studded Snow tires on separate rims makes it a breeze to swap them off and on as needed.

 

02-03 are incredible in the snow you can put a snow plow on the front and plow everyones drive way lol, my transfer case is still solid as a rock.. i change the fluid every october 1st ,when the heat has died down through the summer.










i have dsc but i take it off ...when i drive my x in the snow its like driving on dry ground,its better than my wifes suv

 

I dont get it. Some say x types are amazing, others say that snows will stop rear spin? Come on. Im 50 and drove crap rwd cars in MI. They spin. No weight in back. Snows help, but FWD with snows is amazing. The weight over front does the trick. FWD without snows is amazing. So, that lastest post says his 02-03 is amazing. What am I to do? Blizzaks are 160 for this car. 75 for my daughter's saturn...

I am just really miffed that awd with stock tires isn't really good. Should not need snows. Bro has a 99 talon, awd, says he cannot be stopped in Tahoe area. Studs not legal in MI.

Im just angry that it appears this car is stuck being a dud, and I"m not convinced snows will suddenly make it a stud. She literally cannot drive it in 1" of snow if she has to go up any incline...

 

I'm afraid everyone is right, you are kind of stuck because of the change in 2004 away from the VC in the transfer case. Without the DSC the wheels when traction is lost at a wheel you are basically stuck. I am not technically savvy enough to explain it, but there is a ton of information on the differences between the pre and post 2004 cars on here. Do so searching to get a better idea. Compared to other AWD cars out there and people's traditional idea of it the 2004 and up X-Types do leave a lot to be desired in winter traction. Mine is a 2005 with the DSC and it does work pretty well though.

Not sure what kind of tires are currently on there, but if they are high performance summer tires even a good AWD won't help you. And if they are worn besides that makes it even worse.

 

Don't think it has DSC. Does have sports mode...

 

Don't know why you keep mentioning sport mode, but that has nothing to do with the subject. Sport mode only changes the shift pattern, allowing later shifts for better acceleration. Every (automatic) X-Type has sport mode whether or not it is equipped with DSC, they are not related in any way whatsoever.

 

I have an 03 with the VC so no problems (I live in Alberta where we get 5 months of snow and ice). A suggestion to get a non VC, non DSC car started is to gently apply the handbrake. This will transfer more drive to the front wheels and will keep the rear wheels from spinning, but don’t use it other than to start or else you’ll wear your rear brakes.

PS Since this thread has completely turned to tires, I have winter tires as well and yes they do make a big difference.

 

Did you read the "X lame in snow/ice" thread?

Snow tires will help a lot, we just put Nokian Hakka R on ours and it made a huge difference. I had ours out in the north pasture snow with the Hakkas - I could stop going up hill and restart without spinning out. No way it would have done that with the original tires, I would have had to back down the hill and take a big run at it.

 

While still mostly budget-dictated, I specifically sought an early model due to the viscous coupling.

I have had the privilege of having to drive in extremely slippery conditions on summer tires, and while it does get going pretty well, it doesn't stop that well at all. It was goddamn scary. Winter tires, especially studded like mine, make an absolutely massive difference.

In a VC-equipped car, the viscous coupling makes sure the speed difference between the front and rear doesn't grow too large.

In a non-VC car, the central differential is "open" so at least according to my understanding power takes the route of least resistance just like electricity does. If you get wheelspin on one end, all the power will be "leaking out" that way. With the superior traction of winter tires it is harder to get wheelspin, thus power ought to be distributed more equally.

The DSC is a "jury-rigged" fix for the lack of VC, so when a wheel is spinning too quickly in relation to the other wheels, the DSC applies brakes to that wheel, forcing the power to "find another route" in another wheel.

Or something

 

Very well put Aonsaithya. He is correct about the DSC with one exception. I wouldn't call it a Jury-rigged. This control of wheel spin is used on numerous cars. I had it on my 93 Lincoln Mark VIII. It worked nicely.

You really can drive any vehicle in the snow or ice if you use caution. Next time it snows take a look at all the police cars, how many Crown vics or Chargers do you see driving around. They are both only rear wheel drive and they don't have DSC or anything like it. They get around just fine.

 

You'll find that the "police package" almost always includes LSD as one of the features.

 

I'm gonna try Blizzaks and repost what we find out. Possible the issue in the awd caused a fuse to go out and thus, no awd?

 

No fuses in the AWD system, it's purely mechanical. And with an open center differential one of four tires can spin all by itself.

Here's another discussion on the subject; AWD tested in the mud. - Page 4

 

Yes they do but they really don't make that much of a difference in snow. One wheel will all most always spin when it loses enough traction.

 

The point is that it is not just one wheel spinning, but rather that torque is also delivered to the other wheel. Even if you spin both wheels, it is immaterial as long as the wheel with better traction is able to work. In some situations you need a bit of spinning for most effective use of the LSD.