siberian

As I mentioned in various posts, all my cars are driven year round; whether 40 below or 90 above the Touareg, RS5, Macan and the soon to join our stable C4S will as well. I'm wondering for those of you who have the Sport Chrono pack and live in snow country, have you used the WET mode? According to the literature, sensors are inside the wheel well (rather than on the inside glass as for the wipers) and detect road conditions. My question is this, by the time the car has been on the road in 4+ inches of snow the entire wheel well is covered in packed snow. So how does that work? No signal form the sensors and low temps means "snow" for the drivetrain? Thoughts/comments?

siberian

gcurnew

Short answer: it doesn't work (very well). In deep snow, my experience is that Normal mode works better than Wet. Wet mode in snow dials back the torque and throttle responsiveness in an attempt to prevent any wheel slippage...as those who regularly drive sports/high powered cars in snow conditions, a bit of sliding and tire slippage - as well as having the ability to control forward motion with the right pedal - is preferable to letting the car decide how much control it will take away from the driver.

siberian

Thanx! My roads are way better in winter than summer (gravel and pot holes etc.) just sorry that I won't be able to get my studded Nokian that I have on all my other vehicles. Looking forward to the fun and who knows I might even entice some of those who hibernate their 911s in winter to come out and play !

Benedict14

Random question time.

I love that people drive their 911s in winter conditions. It’s a German car after all, and it’s designed for it. Especially the C4 etc.

I might be misremembering, but in the 991 gen they recommended stepping down the stability PSM for snow or icy conditions. Allowing for more unrestrained throttle response - with the understanding that restraint is needed. Is that still a thing with the 992 ? Or is that irrelevant with the all wheel drive models ?

gcurnew

With PSM on in snow/icy conditions in my C4 in Normal mode, a bit of slip & rotation is allowed but get your foot into it too much and the nannies intervene (they intervene faster and much more harshly in Wet mode). With PSM off, the right foot can induce sizable, usable (and fun) oversteer...but corresponding counter-steer is required to keep the car moving in the intended direction. All very controllable with PSM off in my view for someone with a modicum of winter driving skill and experience. With PSM on in an AWD 992, there's no drama but little fun; it just goes where it's pointed. Note that I also have PTV+ in my C4, which alters the driving dynamics in snow and ice...a C2 or a C4 without PTV+ will rotate differently.

inastrangeland

I tried wet mode in the snow and found it to intervene too much. Probably great for someone with little snow experience or running summer tires in a deluge. I use sport mode as it keeps the clutch engaged when I let off on the throttle. So far, my C2S has handled great in some pretty slick snow and ice. You don't have to wait for the sensors to go off to put it in wet mode. They just are there to tell you that you should put it in wet mode. You can try it any time.

siberian

Agree. Driving in snow a large part of the year and if Porsche follows the same approach as VDub/Audi, the latter's ESP (Electronic Stability Program) senses tire slippage and routes power to those from the others. That is in my book precisely what I DON'T want to happen. I don't want the wheels that have traction transferring power to those that don't ending up with no wheels having any traction. As soon as I sense black ice, or tricky driving situations such as going up/down my very steep driveway I disengage the ESP. Olga my skid steer OTOH has chains on all wheels and a turbo diesel and doesn't bother with such contraptions of course

Just my 2 cents.

siberian

CanadianNorth

For us, WET mode has been the preferred approach for Winter driving. In the graph on the gauge, you can see that it distributes a bit more power to the front wheels vs Normal or SPORT mode. And, the transmission starts off in 2nd gear. Roads are well plowed here, we just have to be mindful of ice, slush or black ice. And, good Winter tyres are a must. This approach is working very well so far.

CanadianNorth
2019 Cayenne E-Hybrid
2020 992 Carrera 4 Cabriolet

siberian

What tires are you running?

Just curious if the sensors in the wheel wells are there to pick up snow, I can guarantee in the first 100 feet the wheel well will be 6 inches deep with snow. So I asked does that mean if no signal is received from the sensors it assumes "snow"?

siberian

John Mclane

Mine picks up slush, and I think it helps when it's too soupy, even on Alpins. Fresh snow I drive in normal and don't do any shenanigans on empty streets.