martinlarose

Have a 2011 ml bluetec and live in nova scotia . Had a 2007 e 350 before thinking about getting the bluetec sedan as I miss the car. Drove a new bluetec sedan in Florida in march and liked it very much. My only concern is driving it in the winter months even with 4 good snow tires . I have read some comments on this forum but would like to hear from those who have experienced the winter months in this car without the 4matic

troymir350

So would I! Thanks for posting. Just got our Btec couple weeks ago. Love it but looking at snow tire options for normal Michigan winter.

ImInPA

I have a 2011 E350 Bluetec and put 4 Michelin X-Ice snow tires on for winter. It was just fine.

Kar don

I just got one too, plan on running the all season tires in the winter.

DC-IT

This Winter is one of the worst here in Toronto with the recent ice storm + power outages and lots and lots of snow.

I had the 2013 ML350BT with 4Matic which I traded in last Summer for the 2013 E250BT and was a bit apprehensive about RWD in Winter.

But based on my past experience with my BMW 335D (RWD) with Winter tires from 2009~2013, I was betting that it'll be fine with the E350BT so long as I have dedicated Winter tires and rims.

The first day it snowed the roads were quite slippery and it was blizzard like conditions but I was able to drive over 60 KM in these conditions without much incident.
That is until I was about half a KM from my home when I had to go up a steep hill and make a Right turn to get to my house.
The Chrysler Minivan in front got stuck near the top of the hill and I was right behind and got stuck too.
There was no traction and I could not move forward so luckily the cars behind waited way back at the bottom of the hill!

I had to reverse back down the hill as I couldn't proceed.
After several attempts the minivan managed to get going so I proceeded to advance forward with an all clear road ahead and this time managed to use the momentum to get up the hill and made the Right turn successfully!

Other than that first incident the E350BT was able to cope with any snow + ice conditions so far.
This morning we had another major snow fall overnight and I had to drive my wife to the train station at 7 AM. The roads were very slippery with fresh snow fall and the roads were not cleared.
The E350BT made it without any problems. Just have to drive according to the road conditions and don't speed.

See the attached pics taken this morning:

mikemargolis

I live in New England, and bought my E in Feb 2012, so this is my second full winter plus a half.

By the way, here's a pic out my bedroom window this morning, so we do get some snow!



I went to tire rack and bought four wheels, tpms and Blizzak snow tires. I have had ZERO issues, but do have a bit of advice.

When I bought my snows (fall 2012) there were not any decent run flat snow tires, so my snows are regular pneumatic tires. That means I would have no spare, so I do leave a full wheel and tire in the trunk, meaning this time of year, I have half a trunk, not a whole one.

I see on tire rack they now sell rft snows. I wish I'd bought them, will replace my Blizzaks when they're worn out.

As far as driving in the snow goes, I have had absolutely zero issue with getting stuck. I grew up in Connecticut, and so have been driving in the snow for my whole life. Keep good snow tires on the car, go easy and be smart.

I have not had a wish for AWD in the 35,000 miles I've put on my car.

DC-IT

You left your beloved E outside in the cold Winter?
Mine is garaged every night so when I drive off in the morning it's free of any snow.

mikemargolis

It's a car, for God's sake, not an object of worship.

DC-IT

It's just a car agreed but a $60K car not a Hyundai!

Other than parking in my garage I do drive mine like I stole it and will be putting between 50~60,000 KM per year now that I've only one vehicle (I gave the Jetta to my daughter).

DerekACS

To answer the OP's questions, I have found that driving a RWD E320BT or E350BT in winter conditions (snow and ice) is not a problem provided that the car has proper snow tires installed.

I drove my previous E320BT on some very snowy mountain highways - no problems. I always placed an extra 50 lbs. of bagged sand in my trunk for extra weight to increase traction. An extra rim/tire placed in the trunk would serve the same purpose, but it would take up more space.

listerone

My BT,as well as my "d",were *terrible* in snow.Of course I suppose I could have improved things by using winter tires rather than the standard "all season" tires.My rule of thumb,with both,was "keep speeds down,plan ahead,stay on well plowed roads".I've just put a deposit on a RWD BMW 328d and I assume it will be as bad...so I'll keep the same rule of thumb.

DC-IT

Winter tires are a must have for RWD to cope with the un-plowed roads.
My 335D went through 3 Winters without any hitch on cheap Hankook Winter tires.

Congrats on the 328D. Did you consider the Touring (wagon)?
I saw in Bimmerfest one new owner had NOx sensors replaced when SES lights started showing at 1,700 and 2,400 miles.
Apparently others are having similar issues.

For now I'm staying away from BMW's Diesels for a few years and see how the new models fare.

Come MY2017 when M-B introduces the new inline 6 BlueTec I'll likely get one.

telemakhos

I had an old RWD E class and I managed with winter tires but it was not great. FWD cars would move away from a stop while I would spin and slowly make headway. My wife even refused to drive it in the winter as she found it dangerous compared with her FWD car.

I now have a 4Matic E and it is fanatastic in the winter with winter tires. I live in eastern Ontario so face a fair bit of snow and freezing rain. I would not go back to a RWD car if I had a choice.

In Canada the 2014 E250 BlueTec is 4Matic - are you planning on importing a non 4Matic from the US?

martinlarose

hi all as you can see I did get an e but got the 550 and not the diesel I have 20000 flawless kms on it. I put 4 pirelli sottozeros on it in November and so far it is excellent in winter conditions and we certainly have had a winter here in Nova Scotia this year..the tires and the 4 matic certainly makes it quite easy to get around...

listerone

Nope,I have no need for a wagon.As for emissions problems with BMW diesels I had a couple with my "d" which I assumed were due to teething problems...mine having been,IIRC,one of the first passenger vehicles they ever produced requiring DEF.I've also seen posts regarding others who've had similar problems.I,personally,don't expect the same degree of reliability from a BMW or Merc that I enjoyed with my two Infinities (almost 100,000 miles combined without a single non-scheduled service visit).The "excitement factor",which was totally lacking in my rice burners, makes up for the occasional service visit.