[jmo]

hi all, i fell in love with the maverick hybrid immediately and thought it would be the perfect next vehicle for me. however i am concerned about the FWD capabilities in winter, I'm new to the truck world but i know that FWD is uncommon in pickups, after talking with a friend, they brought up that since most of the weight will be at the front of the vehicle that the rear wheels may be more prone to losing traction. i live in Michigan and would be getting snow tires for it, but i was wondering how you all thought the hybrid could handle winter driving

 

[Doug]

I live in central IL and also pondered whether or not the fwd was a good idea. I currently have an AWD so was this a smart move? I have driven plenty of fwd sedans in the snow and never had an issue. Safe and cautious driving can make up for a lot. I plan on adding some weight (sand bags) in the bed during the winter and that should hold down the rear end.

 

[CASD]

VW..had a FWD Small Truck..... Just get a set of Winter Tires like Blizzaks.. and you'll be fine

 

[stoptothink]

The tires are exponentially more important for traction in the snow than how many drive wheels there are or where they are placed. Having 4 drive wheels may help initiate forward movement, but they have no influence over what causes the huge majority of weather-related accidents: stopping, turning, sliding. Considering I've had zero issues in 15yrs in a snowy mountainous area with 3 different FWD vehicles (all with much less ground clearance than the Maverick), I'll buy a set of snow tires and not worry about it.

 

[Rob XLT-CG]

Should be fine with the aforementioned snow tires or even a high quality set of all weather tires (not all season). If you are truly worried wait for the AWD hybrid in the next year or two (very slight speculation).

From my experience, the rear wheel drive on the back of a truck that has no weight in it won’t help any way.

 

[Toddio12]

I echo what other's have said and will bring up one more point. The hybrid battery is heavy. It will balance out the weight distribution quite a bit. It should be a fairly well balanced vehicle.

 

[russross]

I would also add that FWD is much better than RWD in the snow. When I lived in Boston my office was on a slope and we used to gather around the window on snowy days and laugh at the fancy sports cars with RWD fishtailing all over the place and sometimes unable to make it up a modest slope, while the cheaper FWD sedans just chugged along fine even on all-season tires.

Echoing what others have said, the tires matter more than anything else. There are some great youtube videos doing comparisons of AWD with all-season tires vs FWD with winter tires, and the winter tires win on almost everything. It's not even close. The only place AWD really matters is acceleration, where it does make a big difference. But acceleration is rarely the problem in snow, it's braking, turning, etc. If you live in a snowy area, the best thing you can do is swap to proper winter tires for half the year. Everything else is secondary to that.

 

[Platinum2]

hi all, i fell in love with the maverick hybrid immediately and thought it would be the perfect next vehicle for me. however i am concerned about the FWD capabilities in winter, I'm new to the truck world but i know that FWD is uncommon in pickups, after talking with a friend, they brought up that since most of the weight will be at the front of the vehicle that the rear wheels may be more prone to losing traction. i live in Michigan and would be getting snow tires for it, but i was wondering how you all thought the hybrid could handle winter driving

I live in MI, also. I have always had FWD vehicles and never had a problem, especially with all of today's driving aids. That said, I got the AWD for when I tow snowmobiles up north through the winter and get firewood from my woods. My cars are all FWD.

 

[Mrchips0401]

hi all, i fell in love with the maverick hybrid immediately and thought it would be the perfect next vehicle for me. however i am concerned about the FWD capabilities in winter, I'm new to the truck world but i know that FWD is uncommon in pickups, after talking with a friend, they brought up that since most of the weight will be at the front of the vehicle that the rear wheels may be more prone to losing traction. i live in Michigan and would be getting snow tires for it, but i was wondering how you all thought the hybrid could handle winter driving

would highly recommend a Scandinavian brand snow tire (Vredestein or Gislaved) reasonably priced, have a great grip compound. i used them in PA, similar winters as MI, even in 20+ inch storms. Would recommend adding a bit more weight in the rear bed (sandbags or similar) and keep a full tank of gas (added weight) when weather turns bad…you’ll be fine.

 

[bpcooper14]

I've had one RWD vehicle, an isuzu amigo 2wd manual. I lived in Maine for 3 yrs and survived with it. That being said, I'm in TN now and opted for FWD. We have family in Chicago and Ohio and I'm confident I won't have a problem traveling to either location.

 

[Al M.]

Would 4 snow tires cause excessive interior noise whenever driving on bare pavement?

 

[Mephistopheles]

Would 4 snow tires cause excessive interior noise whenever driving on bare pavement?

I would just suggest buying 3 peak rated A/T tires. Several manufactures make them now, and they basically get almost the same performance as decent snow tires, while being good most of the rest of the year. As a newer Wisconsinite, I plan to tear off the stock scorpions and go get me new tires about a month after I buy the vehicle. I'll stash the others in my garage for a rainy day (no pun intended).

 

[Mrchips0401]

Would 4 snow tires cause excessive interior noise whenever driving on bare pavement?

No, they shouldn’t…..but get snows that have a good amount of natural rubber compound which is what grips the road surface thru cold/snow/ice covered roads….synthetic compounds are for temperate/warm/hot temps.

 

[Wire4money]

I would just suggest buying 3 peak rated A/T tires. Several manufactures make them now, and they basically get almost the same performance as decent snow tires, while being good most of the rest of the year. As a newer Wisconsinite, I plan to tear off the stock scorpions and go get me new tires about a month after I buy the vehicle. I'll stash the others in my garage for a rainy day (no pun intended).

I strongly disagree. I had the BFG with the 3PMS and they were horrible in the snow compared to dedicated snows.

 

[Mav]

Dont buy it. Get a real AWD.

 

[biker4now]

I am from Oklahoma, but I take about 6 ski trips per year. I have had a a couple front wheel drive vehicles on these trips, an Equinox and an explorer, neither one has ever had one bit of trouble in the snow or ice, both with regular, all-weather tires. Front wheel drive is all you need.

I have also taken probably 10 ski trips in my rear wheel drive 2013 f-150. Sometimes, that was rough, but I have never actually gotten stuck. Just drive smart.

 

[stoptothink]

I strongly disagree. I had the BFG with the 3PMS and they were horrible in the snow compared to dedicated snows.

Nokian makes fantastic snow tires, but my experience with their all-weather (wr g4) was not good in either winter or summer. All-weathers would be the perfect solution for us, but I'll stick to the hassle of a separate set of winter wheels and tires.

 

[Mephistopheles]

I strongly disagree. I had the BFG with the 3PMS and they were horrible in the snow compared to dedicated snows.

Not everyone lives where you can stash a spare set of tires, so they are a better compromise than buying regularly A/Ts or destroying your snow tires during the summer time. If you live where it snows more than a few feet a year, and it never gets hot, sure get snows.

All I know is the Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady let my little FWD Chevy Cruze eek around like a snowplow. I was house hunting right during our repeated snowstorms up here without much issue. Relative to my Stock tires that I only had a year (so they weren't too worn), the WeatherReadys were like magic. There is no replacement for careful driving, I was just offering an option for people without the space to swap, and without the climate that makes using snows year-round viable.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Nokian makes fantastic snow tires, but my experience with their all-weather (wr g4) was not good in either winter or summer. All-weathers would be the perfect solution for us, but I'll stick to the hassle of a separate set of winter wheels and tires.

I think it depends on the brand, but I personally had great luck with my WeatherReady's for city driving, and will be putting the well regarded Wildpeaks on my Mav (FX4) since they carry the same rating.

Wire4Money is right when the climate dictates that snow is on the table much of the year.

 

[olyeller]

I ordered AWD. I’m going to be making trips in winter over the Siskiyous and the Grapevine. AWD does help with acceleration but it does also provide a less jarring deceleration as well. Downshifting is becoming a lost art.