Postby BCpathy » Thu Jan 21, 2016 3:12 pm
Well, winter here in BC, Canada is coming close to an end. Or at least a pause. Who knows what's still to come.
Had my/our first winter with the PF and thought I share my experience.
I live up ontop of a very steep driveway that starts with along, narrow curve which turns away from a 10 ft drop. The curve is followed by a steep part (approx. 10%). After about a hundred feet, that hill then eventually stops at a 90 degree turn towards the narrow gate and the cattleguard. It ices up like crazy when temps are just over 0 celsius in the day and it freezes at night.
Last winter, I shoveled until my back ached like hell. EVERY DAY!!!
My wife had to drive the kids around in our late FWD and I wanted to make sure, they get in and out safely.
This winter, we were armed with the PF and a brandnew set of studded Hakkapelitta 8. I decided to not touch the driveway at all, and gave it a shot at first snowfall.
After a few nervous drives down the hill on the nasty snow and Ice mixture, that had build up from driving on the snow, I quickly found out, that the Pathfinder/Hakkapelitta mixture would save me all the shoveling of the previous year.
It has made its way up and down the driveway in snow and Ice for the entire winter, without a single time feeling unsafe. Even when the snow piles up just under ground clearance level, the Pathy easily plows up the driveway like a tank in 4Hi. I didnt need to use 4Lo a single time. I only engaded it a few times, to make sure its functioning.
I should probably mention, that there were other vehicles, that tried to make it the hill. Me in my 2WD truck, and some visitors in AWD SUV's and FWD. All the visitors and my Truck have snow tires. All ended up parking at the bottom of the hill and walked up to the house. For a few weeks, nobody could reach our house, BUT US. One of my buddies made it up here in his 4x4 truck twice. But on both of those days, the driveway wasn't too bad. Some snow, but no mayor ice build up.
Needless to say, my wife is in love with her PF and says she never wants to let it go.
A few mornings at the end of last/start of this year, when we had a good 6 to 8 inches of snow, and I HAD TO get to work at 5.30 in the morning, the side road i live on, had been neglegted by the plow trucks for over a week.
The ice that had build up under the snow snow felt deadly only walking on it. I had left my 2WD truck right down at the gate. This way I though I could take it to work, without having the problem of bringing it safely down the driveway. It didn't even make it out of the spot, I had parked it a few days earlier, So I had to take the wife's PF to work.
Well, what can I say. I wasn't late at work a single time, not even a minute. One morning, the pathfinder plowed its way through snow, that it pushed flat with its belly. I was literally going through more snow, than i had ground clearance for. Still going like a tank that day. I saw several cars in the ditch on my morning commute on those days. There was even one deadly accident only a couple miles from my work place. Right on that same highway I had driven on only shortly before. A SUV went right into the lake, due to slippery road conditions that morning. That same day, I hardly noticed, that I was driving in snow, going over 40 mph, in 2WD. It felt like pavement to me. The hakkapelittas glued the Pathfinder to the road. The was no slipping at all.
I even towed a trailer with firewood, with a total weight of 2500 lbs (I weighed it at the local scales) up the drive 4 times within two days. Excluding the trailer weight, thats a good 7000 or so lbs of wood, that the PF managed to tow up that iced up, snow covered driveway.
I took the PF up into the hills, on a steep logging road, to cut our Christmas tree.
Up there, the road was solid ice. Walking on it was difficult. The kids were having trouble staying on their feet. The PF on her Hakkapelittas made it up and down all those steep graded and sharp turns without trouble. 4Hi and 20 to 30 mph, and the yellow slip light on the dash didnt come on a single time.
In fact, only our cattleguard makes the slip light go of, when its really icy.
Great truck, that has won our hearts after only being with us for half a year. And if anybody is in a situation, similar to mine. Where you have your family traveling in the vehicle by themselves, through neglected roads and up and down VERY steep grades in icy conditions. And especially, when you don't off road in the winter. Then I would strongly advise the factory studded Hakkapelitta 8 tires. Best tire I ever had. And in combination with the Pathfinders 4x4 system, make you unstoppable by snow and ice.
I hope my winter review will assist others in deciding, if the pathfinder is capable of getting you through, more or less harsh, winter condition.
IMO, a clear YES