Tremor in the Snow

erty176

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Hi all,

Gonna be moving to Wisconsin soon and as it's approaching November, I was wondering what people's thoughts were on the Tremor in the snow on stock tires? Any accessories that might help out? Originally from Pennsylvania so not 100 percent new to winter, but am new to driving a truck in winter. Used to drive a crown Vic with snows.
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ranger-rick-roll

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Hi all,

Gonna be moving to Wisconsin soon and as it's approaching November, I was wondering what people's thoughts were on the Tremor in the snow on stock tires? Any accessories that might help out? Originally from Pennsylvania so not 100 percent new to winter, but am new to driving a truck in winter. Used to drive a crown Vic with snows.
Stock tires are snow rated so throw some weight in the back to get weight over the rear axle and it should be really great in the snow.
 

JeeperCreeper

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Unlucky for me, I have a few days experience with this in my Tremor.

Here's the long version.

So I live in Alaska. It's an odd place. This year has been brutal as I've had snow at my house over a month now. So our roads are garbage. I live on the side of a mountain and our roads are generally maintained, but they are never "good". Here's some pictures of the last month on our neighborhood page, these aren't mine.
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So I don't know if you can tell, but plowing just blasts away the deep layers, and you drive on perpetual ice and dusty snow. So studded snow tires are the norm for my neighborhood.

When I lived in Pennsylvania, we had wet snow that normally wasn't around for more than a few days. So I either ran non-studded winter tires or normally just 3PMS (3 peak mountain snowflake) all terrains.

So tires matter, obviously. I have run the Grabber AT2 on my Jeep in PA and IN, with great results. I ran the air way down, like 18 psi in the winter for extra grip.

So I have no doubt that the ATX tires on the Tremor would be as good as any all terrain. You can always air down to your comfort level.

Having said that, there is a big difference between winter-rated-all-terrain and true winter tires.

So on to my Tremor. I got it on Friday. Drove it home in a snow storm, about an hour drive, then onto my mountain road. From the dealer, it obviously had the Grabbers. And obviously I'm in a brand new truck and new platform. I took it gingerly. I took it most of the way in 2wd. Did fine. But on some parts of my road, the traction light would kick on after the rear end wanted to kick out. Predictable but it wasn't like I was driving on Velcro either. I ended up going into 4wd at the end just because of some technical turns in my commute. I will say I'm a very confident snow/ice driver, so if my wife was with me she'd be yelling haha.

The next day I went right to the tire place and got the new Hankook iPike X. (I guess the Tremor will always have an XXX series tires... ATX and IpikeX)

Screenshot_20211018-224921.png


They are awesome. Much more stable on my road. Very much better than the Grabbers.

The next day, I went to the local general store and bought 7 sixty pound bags of sand for the bed.

Sticks even better now. I have no concerns driving the Tremor through a blizzard with the bags, tires, and optional 4wd systems.

Having said that... I also have some Jeeps. My wife has a Renegade with winter rated all terrains. Hands down, the AWD/4WD system with SUV weight distribution will eat the Tremors lunch for daily commuting in bad weather. That's the downfall of trucks vs SUV. Now, with her studded winter tires, that little toaster of a car is a mountain goat. But that's a bigger discussion about systems and differentials and yada yada yada.

So summing it up, yes, the Grabbers will kinda get you through. Adding weight to the back helps. But honestly, get winter tires. It's the one thing connecting your brand new vehicle to the road. You will notice a difference. And it's not that much more expensive because you are only using your tires half the year.

But the Tremor is still a truck and limited for daily road commuting verse other options.

I love mine though, so I plan on having more snow adventures.

More pics to prove it is in snow.

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halligan1201

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Hi all,

Gonna be moving to Wisconsin soon and as it's approaching November, I was wondering what people's thoughts were on the Tremor in the snow on stock tires? Any accessories that might help out? Originally from Pennsylvania so not 100 percent new to winter, but am new to driving a truck in winter. Used to drive a crown Vic with snows.
Snow rating and winter tires are not the same; the main concern where you're headed will be cold weather performance. I've lived in northern Illinois (15 minutes from Wisconsin) my whole life, so similar weather to what you'll see. Winter tires are made of a rubber compound that stays soft and will grip when the temps drop. All-season and AT tires with snow rating don't perform the same. I have always run separate wheels/tires during spring/summer/fall and then winter wheels/tires in the cold months. I plan on doing the same with the Tremor - cheap aftermarket or steel factory wheels for winter with winter tires on them.
 
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erty176

erty176

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Thanks for all the replies! It sounds like I should be ok to get through at least this winter, with the long term solution being winter tires with steelies like I used to have on my crown Vic. Vic used to have hakkapelitas and they performed very well for the Pennsylvania winter. Will likely look at similar for the tremor. Did Ford make a factory steel wheel that fits the tremor or is aftermarket best bet?
 

BlackRanger01

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Just put in 4H if there are snow on road, otherwise leave it in 2H you will be fine. I drove on snowy roads with my FWD cars with All Season tires and they were fine.
 

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Sorry to hijack this thread again. Mini snow storm (relative) this morning. Commute was extra slippery. Had to run it in 4wd to prevent from spinning my tires even with traction control on. But in 4wd with tires and sand bags, ran great with no slippage.

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BlackRanger01

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Sorry to hijack this thread again. Mini snow storm (relative) this morning. Commute was extra slippery. Had to run it in 4wd to prevent from spinning my tires even with traction control on. But in 4wd with tires and sand bags, ran great with no slippage.

IMG_20211021_073431821.jpg
IMG_20211021_073256735.jpg
This is the way.
 

JeeperCreeper

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Sorry to hijack again, but I have some annoyances.

The cameras and sensors: we are blizzarding up here, and the dash keys popping up "camera blocked" or "parking sensors offline" or something dumb like that. It's just annoying as I'm in white out, ice covered conditions and my truck keeps dinging at me while I'm trying to drive. I will fist-fight the electronics engineer if I get the chance. Yes, of course they are covered and blocked, literally I'm driving a giant ice cube. And it doesn't just do it once.

Raptor style wheels: the raptor alloys on the Tremor suck. They hold so much snow and ice that my truck shakes on the highway like I'm driving on rumble strips. My Jeeps never did that even when snow wheeling. The OEM wheels will be replaced next season.

Overall the truck is a beast, but doesn't mean it's perfect.
 
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erty176

erty176

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Good to know! They are predicting the first snow of the season for tonight, so I will see if I get the chance to give it a go. I was thinking about changing over to another style of rim once the lease is up anyway, so the packed snow doesn't bother me. If you turn the parking sensors off via the switch on the center console, does it still bing at you?
 
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Pinski66

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Would like to know what rims and tires you go with. I hope you post pics.
Snow rating and winter tires are not the same; the main concern where you're headed will be cold weather performance. I've lived in northern Illinois (15 minutes from Wisconsin) my whole life, so similar weather to what you'll see. Winter tires have are made of a rubber compound that stays soft and will grip when the temps drop. All-season and AT tires with snow rating don't perform the same. I have always run separate wheels/tires during spring/summer/fall and then winter wheels/tires in the cold months. I plan on doing the same with the Tremor - cheap aftermarket or steel factory wheels for winter with winter tires on them.
 

halligan1201

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Would like to know what rims and tires you go with. I hope you post pics.
I was hoping to go with the Method MR316 for my winter wheels but they are still on backorder at Discount Tires. I'm not sure on winter tires yet. I have Michelin on my VW and they've been great but honestly will probably go with which ever major manufacturer I can get a decent price on.
 

JeeperCreeper

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IMG_20211113_135108270_HDR.jpg


pLeAsE cLeAr fRoNt cAmErA


Like I said, I'm running Hankook tires. I'll try and get cool steelies for next winter. The General tires and Raptor wheels will be for summer.

Something with deeper offset to avoid scooping ice/snow
 

DukeCanBuildit

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Chiming in from the Great White North - I’m running General Grabbers on my Ranger and often drive to my home town in a snow belt - deep, heavy, wet lake-effect snow - no problem.

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You’ll be fine on your stock tires.
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