The tires and the RWD is not what's gonna get ya. It's the ground clearance.
Any kind of deep snow and the car is gonna get hung up.

 

I'm not sure I believe that. In general, snow tires are rougly eleventybillion times better than all seasons for snow traction.

 

Those were Cheryl's exact words to me... but with that being said, I can certainly understand your doubts...
I have Goodyear Eagle ReponseEdge tires on my wife's '99 STS
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....le+ResponsEdge
and they are simply awful in the snow (great on dry surfaces).

On the other hand, I have Firestone all-season tires on my '97 Bonneville, which unfortunately are not made any longer (Affinity LH30). These are virtually as good in the snow as my old Michelin Alpins were that used to be on the STS.

So here you have 2 different "all-season" tires from 2 manufacturers that are at opposite ends of the spectrum with respect to their ability to perform in the snow.

Best regardSS,

Elie

 

Well does anyone have a G8, thats a good start to figure out if its good in the snow. They should be similar

 

I have driven both a SS and LT in the snow without snow tires (they were manufacturing validation cars). They do okay until you need to plow through deep snow (more than 4", un-plowed) or need to climb a hill. It was tough getting the cars up my driveway one evening due to those conditions.

I have also driven engineering prototypes equipped with snow tires and the cars are very good in the snow. Tires make all the difference. I even buy dedicated snows for my FWD cars. If you don't mind the winter grit and salt on your car, put on a good set of snows and have fun.

JP from snowy Buffalo, NY!

 

We did it in the first ever published 2010 Camaro road test. The roads were horrible.

https://www.camaroz28.com/articles/2010camaroroadtest/

One thing I remember saying to Settlemire during the test drive is "I could drive this all year 'round right here in Detroit"....and the roads in the Detroit area suck. Michigan weather makes it worse.

Just because previous Camaros couldn't do it, doesn't mean this one is bad. Granted it won't be as good as a FWD with snow tires, accommodations should be made.

 

Saw your vid on YouTube...it gave me hope, but those roads looked pretty clear. Were they not?

 

Define "clear". In some places, sure. In other places, potholes and slush and general cold crap where evident.

Realistically, you cannot expect to drive a Camaro (or any RWD car) in the snow without being cautious and a decent set of all-season or snow tires. Also remember that in the decades before FWD popularity, people did it every day with no traction control, ABS, or any other convenience that made it easier.

 

I'd definitely get some snow tires for the winter, and certainly drive slower and more carefully. But my main question is...is that enough? Or will spinouts and poor traction be unavoidable?

 

I drove my 85 olds 442 through the winter for years. While it didn;t have anywhere near the power of a new camaro, it was TERRIBLE. UNTILL I put snow tires on it.

Automatic that shifted so firmly into 2nd it would chirp the tires on dry pavement above 50% throttle. It wouldn't pull into the garage in ONE HALF INCH of snow. and were not talking a big slope, it was maybe 5 degree incline. The car would just not move. 3.73 gears and no posi, the 1 tire just spun and spun.

AFTER snow tires, I could still spin the RR tire for BLOCKS in the slushy stuff. But it was always controllable, and if I was light on the throttle would go anywhere.

Just remember to get snows on ALL 4 CORNERS. It makes a BIG difference in turning and stopping. And yotu need to do that too, especially to avoid all the other idiots out there.

Heck, I even opted for snow tires this year on my AWD car. Didn't htink I would ever do it, but after having so much MORE traction, Im hooked. Its fun to race 4x4's in the snow now, lol.

 

I'm gonna echo this comment. There is no reason why the new Camaro will do poorly in the snow. It's big and heavy (doesn't "float" on the snow like a lightweight) and has good traction control. Put some decent all-weather or (even better) snow tires on it, you're good to go. I've been driving my 98 SS (no traction control) in the winter for 6-7 years or so and I'm from New England. We get a LOT of snow (6+ feet this year for example).

Only problem is going to be ground clearance. Too much snow == snow plow == forget about it.

Dope

 

I picked up my CTF Camaro, V6, 18s back when there was still snow on the ground, and I thought it handled pretty well.

 

For the most part, I don't think this new Camaro sits any lower then most FWD sadens or compacts. This Camaro is not like previous, as Jason D mentioned, and if you do run into a ground clearance issue with this Camaro, the only vehicle to get you through it at that point would be a truck or a van.

As long as you know how to handle a RWD in the snow, you should have no problem. Snow tires will help, but probably more fun without

 

It's the COMBINATION of RWD and low ground clearance. Where I'm from, that car will be stopped dead in it's tracks.

Adam seems to think 72" of snow a year is a lot. Let me tell you something about Central New York; we can get 72" in a MONTH. It's not uncommon to get 130-160" per season. Hell, the winter of '92-'93 brought us 193" of snow.
We don't think anything of a snow storm until it looks like it will bring 20" in a relative short amount of time.

Areas just 20-30 minutes north of Syracuse can get upwards of 300-400 inches of snow per season.

It's extremely rare to see a Camaro, Firebird, or Mustang out in a CNY winter.

A CNY winter will render a Camaro useless.

 

Hi:

I drove a 1995 V6 (3.4L) Camaro with 5-spd from 1995 to 2001, and a 2002 Z28 (6-spd, with traction control) from 2002-2007 thoughout Minnesota winters.

Admittedly it is relatively flat here, but I had no trouble with traction. The Z28 was better, because of the traction control.

When turning corners on snowy city streets, I found it was best to depress the clutch, otherwise the car went straight on.

If the snow was deeper than 5 inches, I stayed home, because the front air dam (under the car) acted like a snowplow, and the car did not have the traction to overcome this.

Obviously, you should treat the gas pedal with respect, but I feel the challenges of snow driving a Camaro are over-estimated. I had all-weather radials.

Regards
AT