I figured this place needed to be lightened up a bit! All the topics are all so serious! So I have taken the liberty of taking a picture of my car after some recent fun I had in the snow with it! This photo represents a number of firsts for me. This is the first time since I owned the car that I really had fun actually operating it! This is also the first time I've ever owned a RWD car have been able to do donuts and generally act juvenille with such a vehicle!

I highly recommend all owners go find an empty parking lot and have some fun.
crossfiredonuts.jpg

 

Nice! Looks like you had fun.

 

man that looks like fun..im in the south with no snow.

 

Fun in the snow with rear drive, is a good education as well.

You get to spin round and round, and figure out how to use these skills in real situations

 

GDC,

You are definitely correct. I have run into a few instances prior to the snow where it seemed like the rear of the car suddenly came out from under me. But because of my inexperience with rwd, I couldn't really react fast enough. Luckily the stability control does its job very well (too well sometimes!).

So yeah pulling donuts in the parking lot has started to introduce me to the relationship between the steering and throttle. In my fwd cars, it was all about the relationship between steering and brakes (or simply a sudden lack of throttle, without brakes). Though I really noticed my fwd roots coming out when I was cutting the wheel very hard hoping for some sudden weight transfer, but all that really happened was understeer. Moderate steering input and using a little more throttle than I was comfortable with really got the reat out though.

I will say though, doing a 640 was all about being silly. There was no car control lesson there! :-)

I guess the big test will happen this evening on the drive home as it's been snowing all day. Though it's been those big fairly wet flakes which may or may not stick. Or they may stick in some spots and not in others---which is even worse!

 

AllEuro, you hooligan!

 

Waaaay back when, my father decided the driver's ed training we were getting didn't really teach us how to control a car. So early one Sunday morning he woke me up and dragged me to a heavily snow covered K-Mart parking lot. There we began my education in the fine art of powersliding and general car control. FWD cars were few and far between back then, and Michigan got plenty of snow. Dad did some racing in Belgium before immigrating to the States (he actually raced with Paul Frere back in the early '50s) and said he learned how to do long powerslides on the circuit at Spa Francorchamps. Figured I had a pretty good teacher back then.

Good times, and fond memories of hooliganism with Dad!!

 

Due to my mis-spent youth, I know you can do the same thing on a wet, freshly mowed football field. It's just messier and you don't want to get caught!

 

If nothing else, that is a super cool picture of your XFire!

Great post.

roadster with a stick

 

Believe it or die, In VA you can get that activity classified as RECKLESS DRIVING. In short 12 points, 1 year in Jail and not good, so be advised that its all good till the man is on the scene. ME I do donuts on the 4 wheeler in my 2 acre backyard, priceless and safe from tickets. Woody

 

yeah, the good ol' Communist State of Virginia. motor vehicle laws generally suck in this state.

 

I would have to say that having traction control takes a little getting used to. I'm used to a 94 t-bird, followed by a 97 cobra. The first couple of slides with traction control, led me to overcorrect. Yeah I used to be able to do that anytime in the cobra, wet, dry, snow. Man I miss that car! have fun and be safe. chris

 

lol i have never seen a state with so many crazy laws and so many warning signs when you cross into the state as virginia.

it cracks me up when i cross the state line and within 10 seconds you see sign after sign telling you what all you will get fined for and a "oh, and welcome to the state too" sign lol.

 

Funny, I see no footprints in the snow. You had an accomplice?

 

Looks like it was fun! I used to do stuff like that tin pastures and wet grassy fields, with permission of course It's 70+ here so no "snow donuts" for me

 

That looks like fun! Before I got my new tires, I wore out the worn out rears by "exercising" them in the walmart parking lot near midnight. The security goons tried to keep up in their golf carts. I did a power slide nearly 360 degrees around them. I hate walmart.

 

Love the pics! My dad used to come home (car salesman) with something we could slip, slide, get away in, drive us to a parking lot and we would have a ball. My new tires should come from Tire Rack on Friday and I have planned to do something fun with the old ones before install! (My husband doesn't approve - ... - thinks I will either "get in trouble" or hurt Xfire. Just want to have some fun . . . and my slick Michelin PS will accomodate. Besides, I wouldn't ever hurt my purty baby Xfire!

 

you are one cool lady if your husband is worried about you finishing off the old tires...we WILL expect some nice burn out photos....light'em up baby....lol

 

While it does look like you had a blast..... I find it interesting that it is the first time that you really had fun driving it. Every time I turn the key over in mine, it is a precursor to a joyful adventure. I hope you have many more fun times in your near future.

 

Looks like a lot of fun!!! I am in MS and we don't get any snow here ever, but I have done that in the rain before and had a great time. I can only imagine it in the snow!!!