ldw

For those of you who are concerned about the lack of traction with summer tires in the snow, and will not drive in snow because you became so alarmed that you thought you would crash at 20mph....
a set of winter tires will transform the vehicle into something which will be easier to drive in the snow than 90 percent of the other vehicles on the road. With proper winter tires, the car transforms from dangerous(summer tires) to a blast to drive in the snow.

Phil G.

I have no problem with my C4S in the snow. Snow's outside, car's inside

Seriously, I'm a big believer in AWD cars in the snow - I've had Audis for years for that reason as my daily drivers.

AudiologisTT

if it's mostly flat you'll be ok with snows 90% of the time
but I would stick to well plowed roads
(even with the better clearance of the base model, the car is low and clearance is an issue in lots of snow)

playing with it to drift and slide in snow covered lots (with PSM catching you) is priceless

getting stuck in your driveway
(4 snow tires on, of course, PSM on or off)
with only 3 inches on the ground..
priceless for the neighbors but very embarassing for you

(ask me how I know, lol!)

cheers

PogueMoHone

If you do the Porsche Ice driving school, they use the C4S, both here and in Europe, why do you think that is?

I am sure they have a good reason(s). Having done both programs, if I had snow to deal with I would take the C4S all the way. You could manage with the C2S, but why bother since there is a better and easier alternative?

thebiv

I can't speak for the C2S, but the C4S handles great in snow with snow tires. I drive mine year round in Minnesota. One time I took it out after an 8" snowfall before the plow guy showed up to test it out in deep snow. I have a pretty steep incline in my driveway. I stopped at the bottom in the middle of a fairly good drift and had no problem driving staight up. I was very pleasantly suprised.

PAULSPEED

Hi,
a C4S will not be any better than a C2S with street tires. My
brother spun in the snow with his C4S.
Paul

rountreed

Agree, but a C4S with snow tires will be much better than a C2S also with snow tires.

JFScheck

NEVER in a DITCH with my Cayenne becuase I take the 19" summer sports off and place my 18" "All Season" tires on in late November. Getting ready to place the 19's back on now...

With ABS and All-Wheel-Drive on Summer Tires and some slush or snow is like driving on a skidpad.

Tires make the difference in Everything!

ELUSIVE

Am I the only one that thinks is crazy to take a Porsche (C2 or C2S) to Vermont skiing?
The car might be able to get traction with adequate tires but it has no ground clearance.

I lived in Vermont until I was 21...it can snow a lot and in a very short period of time. A 911 of any variety is the last car on earth I'd want to be in when that happens. Ok, maybe a Corvette would be worse. It's not a traction issue, it's a ground clearance issue....and the 911 has very little!

JFScheck

For me the C4S is welcome in heavy rain or "junk" on the road - when it Snows I use a true 4-wd vehicle with clearance and locking diff - even with all wheel drive a C4S is too low to the ground (not only having to drive over "ice/snow pileups" but also for all the stuff slinging at ya from other vehicles)...

THUS - why I have a C2S and a Cayenne (any 4wd with some clearance will dooooooo)...

DMR

I live in Boston and have a 997 C2 with Conti WinterContacts and have taken it to Vermont skiing several times without a problem. I also drive it regularly in the winter, here. My experience has been that the rwd 997 behaves very well in the snow if fitted with good winter shoes. I think the benefit of having a rwd 911 in the spring, summer, and fall outweighs the need for awd in the winter. In the end it all comes down to personal preference, and no amount of awd can replace good judgement and caution when the roads are slick.

P-Nuts

I have a C2S with 19" Snow Tires on Carrera Classics for the winter, and 19" PS2's on Lobster Forks for the summer. No issues with any snow seen in CT for the past 2 winters. C4S would probably give a bit more traction on steep slopes. My drive is about 20 degrees angle an I have occasionally had to take a couple of stabs to get up it after heavy fresh snow.

Le Chef

Each to his own. Live in peace with your Porsche. If you enjoy driving your C2/S and see reasons why you wouldn't drive a C4/S so be it. And if you prefer it the other way round that's good too.

I think Porsche probably realized that they had two types of 911 driver who could both make financially viable targets. Today I'm more than happy with my C2S but can imagine a time in the future when I might switch back to a C4S. That's the joy of owning a Porsche - we have wonderful choices. And more importantly we don't really need to justify our choices to others to "win".

Enjoy!

slknox

I have a 997 C4 with 18" winter tires and had a blast this past winter in the Detroit, MI suburbs. I find that the clearance is actually good and the traction is great. In bad winter weather, no problem outrunning all those Explorers and Jeeps around here.