I've been running General Altimax Arctic tires this season. so far, no problems. Last season I ran the Stock Bridgestones as I run the OEM tires the 1st winter, then switch to Dedicated snows. We've had a few dumps this season and have had no issues however, on nasty days, I take the Ridgeline when I can.

Vermont has a "Safe Roads", not a "clear roads" policy which means the roads are likely going to be snow covered for a while after a storm hits. I've Driven a Civic coupe, an integra GS-R, an altima, and the Fit in snow (besides the ridgeine) and the lightest vehicles do the best with the right tires. The lighter the car, the less weight you have to turn when rounding corners. The right tires provide the grip and the light car makes it easy to move around. FWD cars need their weight over the drive wheels. RWD & AWD cars need equal weight over drive & steering. The rear wheels on most FWD cars are just along for the ride and the less weight in the rear, the less likely it is to slide around on you.

The Civic was great with snow tires in the snow. The Integra was good (harder suspension and more torque). The Fit should be great because torque is almost your enemy when trying to move forward and the fit has... well... very little torque.

FWD, most of the weight over the front wheels, lightweight, little torque... the Fit should do quite well in the winter with the right snows tires... We'll see.

~SB

 

Greetings from winter wonderland. My '10 fit has done pretty well on the stock Dunlops here in snowy and cold Minnesota. Tires are OK on snow covered roads(every day here now) but pretty spooky on ice. I agree with an earlier poster about the myth of heavy cars being better in snow. Inertia goes up exponentially with weight so light car will get kicked around more by drifts and ruts but will always accelerate, stop, and turn with greater ease than a heavier one. Relatively narrow appropriate sized tires are the key. Anyone tried Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires on their Fit? I have them on my Subaru Impreza and they are hands down the best all season tire I have ever tried--even pretty darn good on ice.

 

I drove for the first time in ice and snow Sunday night, so I don't have a good comparison. Though I'm happy to report I only lost traction once, and that was changing lanes and I broke the left front wheel loose and spun it up to about 3k. Nothing major, but still.

 

I can't help but think an electronic throttle controller in one of the EC modes would be beneficial while driving on icy roads.

 

Funny, looks like specboy and I posted darn near the same thing within minutes of each other. He's right on the money. My old '86 Civic Si hatch (1900lbs and 89hp if I remember right) was an absolute terror in the snow with the right tires. Except for really deep snow conditions I'm not sure my Subaru (3000lbs, 165hp) could catch it. One of the best things about a Northern climate is driving in the snow, at least when the traffic is clear.

 

I have Michelin X-ice2 on my 09 Honda fit sport
it handles extremely well in the snow and on pure ice, it slides a little but nowhere close to regular all season tires.
I have the Xice 2, 175 65 15's on used Honda fit steelies, thats what the dealer here is putting on the 09-10 sports, i bought mine from tirerack. tires were $330 50 to ship...and received a $70 rebate.

if you can afford the expense, winter tires are amazing and worth every penny, Michelin Xice, blizzak and the Altimax arctic are the top 3 best winter/snow tires.Anyone of those you would be happy


nokian is also very good, the studded ones are great for ice, but they are hard to find and pricey.

 

Well, if we get a big snowstorm, I simply plan to NOT drive.

I know that isn't an option for some people in some locations...

But as Scar Face said, "Who do I trust? I trust Me!"...that's how I feel in snowstorm driving. Whatever I have driven, and I have driven vehicles notoriously BAD at winter driving...I've felt confident that I could handle it. With proper tires, and handling. But since my Fit is less than a year old? I'd rather not take it out on the streets surrounded by the usual snow storm idiots that would inevitably slide INTO my car.

So maybe in 2-3 years, I'll feel better about taking it out...but for now? Snow means No Go...even if, as I suspect, The Fit would handle reasonably well.

 

Yes, the above statements are further supported by the more frequent occurrence we saw in the news of bigger trucks and SUVs in the snow ditches rather than smaller vehicles.. difficult to stop. .....4WD or AWD only minimize spinning and improve traction during take off but will do little to stop the vehicle. That's when a lot of SUV drivers miscalculated their stopping distance and ended up in the ditch

The primary stopping capability of a vehicle will rely on the 4 small contact surfaces between the tires and the icy road below, aided by ABS and VSA. Hence, the driver's life line will be a good set of tires.

When driving the FIT during snowy conditions, it is usually very frustrating to see in your hind view mirror, a bigger SUV, VAN or truck tailgating you impatiently because, as many had already mentioned in this thread, us, FIT drivers requires a shorter distance to stop due to our smaller mass. Who's ever bigger mass tailgating behind you will very likely ram your behind when you execute an emergency stop because they need a longer distance to stop and they normally miscalculate the agility and shorter stopping distance of our smaller mass FIT. That's my pet peeve when driving my FIT in the snow