Well, we recently had snow in the Seattle area, and the annual tradition of having my wife complain about my rear wheel drive sports cars is now in full gear. Since the wifey drives the truck to work, I'm left on the bus because my E63 AMG is a death trap if there is any snow on the ground. Of course, I could simply drop her off at work and misappropriate the truck, but she revels in my bus riding misery, so she insists she "needs the truck" (with an "I told you so" look on her face). Marriage is a great institution if you like institutions.

So, I'm looking for an opportunity to rationalize a 997TT purchase, i.e., "hun, this is all wheel drive. I can drive this is in the snow! For my safety, I should get this...." lol

So my question: Is the 997TT practical with snow on the ground (assuming I put on some winter tires)? I've never owned an all-wheel drive car (4 wheel trucks yes), so I'm curious as to whether 997TT owners go sledding. Keep in mind I'm in Seattle, so the snow isn't all that bad (though people here do not know how to drive in the snow).

Any honest feedback would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

looks aaaight!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6llEEg6txSc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzoOQ6HtT00

 

I'm sure the all wheel drive system works great in the snow. But with such low ground clearance deep snow is the issue. I think any snow over 3 inches and the front lip will take a beating. What about a Cayenne?

 

It's never the car that's capable in the snow it's the tires that are going to be the deciding factor. If you have some good tires on most anything you should be fine to a reasonable degree in any condition. With AWD your in great shape if you have some good tires.

I would endorse the Perrelli Scorpion Snow tires. They are the only one's that will fit anyhow. It's a studless snow tire that will still be "capable" in the rain so put those on for the winter and laugh at Audi owners in the Seattle area as they spin all four tires. I noticed most audi owners in the area have "summer" tires and attempt to drive in the off chances of snow and fail with results.

 

i did a similar thing...went from an m5 w/ snows to the 997tt...bought snows...there are several "year round" 4 seasons members here who do it understanding of course that snow depth is your biggest obstacle

in the end, my wife didnt want me to "ruin" the turbo so i bought an mdx...lucky me!

 

I may have insight on this issue as I went from e55 to 997 tt for just the same problems you did. I couldnt get inside my garage with the e55, there is about a 2 degree ramp, so pathetic. There is now 50 cm of snow and -10 Celsius here in Finland and I am currently driving the tt to work as the streets are plowed. You will never get stuck with the tt, but there are a few issues. Your front spoiler will scrape the ground from time to time and if there is too much snow, you cant take this car. The esp is also totally different from amg. It allows the cars end to go sideways, and on slippery roads this is fun, but actually dangerous. I have nokia hakkapeliitta tires. New tires. Also from plowing the uneven roads are horrible in comparison to amgs airmatic. I have a SUV for the really bad days, with no snowplows in site. This said the awd is awsome, you will never get stuck in snow!

Edit: The 996 TT I drove prior to buying the car was much more civilized in snow with esp on. I think the new PDK cars have Porsche torque vectoring that makes the car behave easier at slippery surfaces.

 

My personal feeling is that you can drive it in the snow. There are videos that show the TT reveling in the snow, and I know that with snow tires it is a huge improvement....however, the one thing that hasnt been added is that the car is soo low and being a sports car just doesnt induce the right feelings in bad weather. I speak obviously from opinion when I say that to me your better off getting a cayenne Turbo and really enjoying yourself year round, especially if you already have an E63, or sell the 63 and get the turbo and cayenne turbo

 

4th winter, 1st snow of the yr yesterday, with snows mounted kicks butt.

 

Umm, why don't you just put snows on your E63 It will work great.

 

this car won't be seeing snow!

 

Drove a modified Prosche tt with 650hp and blizzak tires. No issues except the ground clearance if the snow was too high. Else, this thing was a blast to drive in the snow.

 

A buddy of mine puts on winter tires on his 997TT every winter and drives them all over the place. The only thing you'd have to be worried about is getting high centered. It happened to him and he sent me a picture of it!

 

I've driven my 997TT for 3 winters in Calgary, Canada with Sottozero's. Never been stuck or have an issue with traction. Obviously i'm more cautious in the winter and tend to stay further back from other cars for safety and rock chips purposes.

My car is stock height and occasionaly i will scrap the front lip in residential roads where the plows haven't been out. This only occurs on the roads where the cars take the exact same route creating tire tracks and leaving a snow mound in the middle. Then when i come along, i will scrap the top of that mound but i drive slow and my front lip still looks good (have it painted and 3M'd for a bit extra protection).

hope this helps...

 

Unless I lived in places like Scandinavia or Alaska I would never drive my TT in the snow with other drivers on the road. Especially in a place like Seattle where drivers aren't used to snow/ice (it's a freakish event there, isn't it?). Call me crazy but I don't want a smashed >$100K car.

 

Mertin has a good point there, people here do not know how to drive in the snow. Even I have to admit that.