..
I need a better winter car... 4936The Malt Hound Well, the "snowbank" was *on* the road. :-) Here are two more pictures. In the first I'm parked *off* the road while taking...
...that piles up on the underside of the car.
it depends on the quality and structure of the snow. if there is light, fresh snow at -10C it will generally not pack under the car. if there's a hard, packed bank of snow blown by the wind or a plough at 0C, there's a fair chance of getting into problems. we've got snow from Nov to April, and winter tyres are mandatory. during my 15 years of winter driving with RWD cars I've gotten stuck on the road (showelwork and-or pushing required) twice: once by losing traction on an hill, and once by parking on a spot where there was packed snow which collapsed under the wheels (but not under the car).
my current AWD 525ix is quite a good snowplow actually, drove it on a frozen lake once and couldn't really see because of all the snow flying on the windshield...
in practice, with summer tires you will lose traction before the packing happens, unless you're driving 50mph+, in which case one is a complete idiot IMO :)
the difference between winter and summer tyres on ice can be visualized by thinking about running on an iceskating rink with a) ballroom dancing shoes and b) heavy studded army boots.
