Na they will have to do for a few seasons..as per the heater yes all season car wash as I also hard piped a pressure washer and hot soft water..a must with our seasons. Heater is on a timed stat so garage is warm every am..

 

That's too pretty to take out in the snow, you need a different winter vehicle, viola, no more tire problems.

 

He has a Lexus now for the snow!

 

I just came back from skiing in Eastern Canada this past week and on the way home I had about 300 miles of snow to go thru. The stock Dunlap's were not all that bad. The vehicle didn't have any issues with steep hills or snow. Of course, on the northway, traffic was going about 55 in a blinding snow and the road was fully covered, so I just kept a pace that worked. Had only one difficult area where the road was going down a steep hill (for the interstate) turning to the right but the road was pitched to the left. There were all sorts of warning signs about slippery road and even going at what I thought was an appropriate speed, I felt the "systems" taking over a little. As I continued around the curve, there were at least 6 vehicles off the road in the medium that all spun around, one on upside down. Some of them had zipped past me 10 minutes earlier, they were all SUV's and pickup tricks. Physics is going to control everything in particular a 5,500lb vehicle without snow tires

 

hey Nanook, what wheels are these? they are the regular ML Sport Package 20s? any issues clearing the break calipers?

 

Not sure if they are ML Sport but they are genuine MB 20"...cleaning calipers no issue

 

I just checked MB's site for the winter wheel options.. the one you bought has a lower offset (+41) that would clear the Breaks with no issues.. unfortunately the spare wheels that I have is the other option that MB offers with a +57 offset.. not sure if they would clear

 

I confirm since I have the same winter rims :-)

 

I am glad I live in FLorida! It is pretty to look at but having family in Wildrose Wisc, I would hate to live in it!

Enjoy!

 

I used to own a 2006 X3, bought it new and although it was a pretty reliable little SUV it handled poorly in snow (and I am being nice). I used to travel to the swiss alps every other weekend and got stuck regularly. Then one weekend we drove my gf's mothers A6 Allroad Quattro to Gstaad and that thing handled snow like a Champ, it was unreal the way it cruised through any kind of weather!!
Audi FTW

 

Don't you think that the tires are the biggest influence in this? Judging traction alone in low grip conditions is a function of tires more than the system. Comparing different awd systems to each other can only be done fairly if you have the same tires. The tires are the only part of a vehicle that actually contact the ground, so no matter how good a vehicle's awd system is if the tires aren't good the vehicle isn't going to perform well. I had a Touareg a couple of years back and driving it through the first snow storm with its stock "snow tires" (can't remember what they were) was the worst snow/ice driving experience of my life. I thought it had the worst awd/traction control/ABS etc. I immediately changed the tires to Pirelli Scorpion Ice & Snow tires.... Next time in those conditions it was by far the best vehicle I had ever driven...night and day difference. I think most here can attest to the fact that tires are more important than the awd system in snow/ice conditions as that is the direction the conversation has gone.

Either way, I think the 4matic deserves a little credit here as it is pretty good. Especially with the on&off road package. In fact, I would go as far as to say that an ML with that package is barely less capable than the new Range Rover. The RR has a deeper fording depth, and can articulate more so it has a grip advantage in certain conditions. But neither are Jeep Wranglers either.

Take a look at these videos.... I wouldn't call this extreme as the title says (well maybe for a road focused SUV) but its telling of the ML's capability none the less. Keep in mind that this vehicle has an "aggressive" set of Dunlop M+S GrandTrek's that aren't sold in the US so don't expect yours to necessarily handle some of these obstacles as easily as this ML.
Winter is coming, stay safe my friends.

 

Bah..they call this extreme off road ?

Now this is extreme...I may give this a try with my ML next summer

 

Piece of cake with all that ground clearance you have

But seriously, that thing is crazy! Gotta love 4 wheel steering.

 

I've had 2 MDXs - a 2008 tech and a 2011 Adv, and both performed excellent in the snow. I always ran them w factory all season tires and many times thru 8-10" of snow and never had a problem.

 

Snow is all about ground clearance and tires. My '03 4Runner is great in the snow with Nokian snow tires. Of course, it is a top heavy, body-on-frame, solid-rear-axle pig at all times...

 

I think 4Matic certainly can handle most of the road condition even in extreme freezing rain that we had here last winter, with the proper winter tires my GL drove through that with ease.. I certainly hope with the lower profile winter tires on my new ML can do the same this year!

 

We don't get too much snow here in Portland OR but we do in the mountains. I have run Blizzacks for years and have had no problems. They would take me wherever I was brave enough to go, which I admit the older I get the more I believe that discretion is indeed the better part of valor. Having said that it only works if the drive setting is in the 'snow' position. if left in normal the car can become squirrelly.