blinkbass23

driving my car in the snow and i skid and shift from side to side regularly my brakes i step on lighetly and it makes this noise my foot vibrates like a mother and i skid out 360's no traction whatsoever and esp on any ideas am i crazy or is the messed up?

Y2KE320

The vibration you feel is the ABS working. My suggestion is go get 4 Bridgestone Blizzak winter tires for driving in snow and ice.

clkcadet

Holy sh*t these cars are not meant for the snow..... we didnt see a snow storm coming here in brooklyn new york (they said late pm snow showers) but when i got out of work there was a couple inches on the ground....the car held up well even with my michelin pilots but you must be very very gentle on the gas pedal thats the key. As for turning you are on your own this car can not turn...I am fortunate enough that i only need to make 3 actual turns on my ride home from work...i only made it through 2 safely...on my final turn my car skid out going 5 mph and i bashed into the curb when i checked it out i only noticed a very bad case of curb damage to my rear rim....thank god that is all that happened to my baby
Next time if i hear a rumor of even the smallest hint of snow coming i will be using another form of transportation(an escalade should make it through i hope lol)

mis3

Yes, my CLK is also bad to drive in snow. With 4 brand new Pirelli 210 winter tires, this helps but nothing compared to my previous car, a front-drive Honda Prelude.

Next winter I think I will put a few sand bags in the trunk.

1iron

I live in Toronto, and this is my second winter with the CLK.

Previously, I had a C-Class for 4 years, and an Acura Integra before that.

I consider the CLK the best of the bunch in the snow, so long as:

1. You have decent snow tires (currently have Michelins, but have had Blizzaks in the past---both are very good);
2. You turn the ESP system on; and,
3. You have experience driving in the snow.

If only 2 out of 3, you are in trouble!

scovit

I live in Central Jersey and have Blizzacks on my 05 CLK500. I must tell you the car is not bad because of the torquey traney and the tires.

What did people do when there were only rear drive cars?

mis3

I remember one time when I was in Montreal, I went into a restaurant and parked my car in the street. When I came out after a few hours, there was more than 12-inches of snow around the car (Honda Prelude). I actually had to kick the snow to open the car door. I warmed up the car for a few minutes, backed up and off I went.

I am not sure if my CLK can handle this.

dem

i couldn't make it up my driveway. i guess the car stays in the garage as long as there's snow on the ground.

1iron

Do you have snow tires?
Did you press the ESP button?

dem

no, no snow tires... and the ESP was flashing like a disco as i tried to go up the driveway in D. i had to switch to 5th just to get up.

clkcadet

didnt know you can do that, my car can only start off on second if its in "C" ....i wish in "S" mode it can just start on which gear you like instead of it holding it as the highest gear (for example if the dash says 4 it wont shift higher than 4th unless you hit redline)
is there any way to change the settings on the transmission so when i shift up or down it will do it immediatly? by not shifting immediatly it makes the car too uncomfortable to drive and/or as if the trans is having a problem shifting

dem

couldn't tell you why or how... all i know is that D - 4 would peel rubber. as soon as i tried "5" the car moved.

could've been the ESP. one of the gear heads here would probably know better.

974AGK

Hi there Living in Scotland we generally see snow from November through till about end March ! Waht i did was buy a 2nd set of 18" wheels & put on winter tyres , my brother with an ML can even pass me as the CLK has fantastic grip at all times ,but can be boucy when the snow goes & not quite as responsive as normal tyres .
krgds
EckCLK 270 CDI 03/03 245Bhp Obsidian metallic black , full factory fit amg kit , 18" Amg factory fit alloys , Full Command/ Sat nav + [Tv Courtesy of Steve from N/L ]
Linguatronic , Auto climate control , Full memory seats /Steering , Automatic/Tiptronic , Full leather napa/two tone , Brabus Twin chrome tail pipe , Tinted Windows , Bi xenon , Rain Sensitive Wiper's , Keyless go , Tuning Chip , K & N Air Filter . [Winter tyres on just now] Other toy Mv Agusta F4 Fully Tuned .

BklynBenz

exactly. they dealt with it and learned how to handle their car. thats what you guys should do. i take my clk and cl out all the time in nyc and nj in the snow and yea it slides all over the place, spins out, doesnt stop on a dime and all that but whatever. you learn how the car reacts to the conditions and you deal with it. if i wanted a car that was an ultimate winter performer, i wouldnt have picked a MB.

E55Freak

ok...I've been reading these cars are terrible in the snow. So today we recieved snow, but most of it has melted already. I'm expecting some ice tommorow morning. So my question is should I keep the ESP on or off? I have the michilen sport tires..and I'm nervous about the car sliding and wrecking my new MB.

TLo

Check out the continental Extreme Contact tires. They can handle Minnesota snow and still drive nicely in the summer. I wish they'd make 'em for the M-class.

dem

keep them on.

tomtomtomtom

Go with the Michelin Pilot sport A/S. It made 100% difference in the traction and handling in the snow. Those who live and drive in the snow learn to drive as Bklynbenz has stated so well. We are up to 86" of snow in Boston this year, so we have had a lot of practice