Canadian winters

[cbr954rr]

Wondering if any Canadians can shed some light on how these fusion energi's are for driving in snow?

[muzicman61]

Not Canadian but we had plenty of snow this last winter here in the midwest.  The added weight of the batteries probably helped but I thought it handled well.  

[4cylinder]

Canadian temporarily living in metro Detroit which is close enough - I practically live in Ontario and with all the Tim Hortons here it feels like I'm already back across.

 

The Energi is fine in the snow with a good set of winter tires. Do not try to drive on snowy/icy roads with the stock low-rolling-resistance all-seasons. As a front-wheel-drive car it is naturally quite stable and unlikely to fishtail as long as you make turns slowly and carefully. If you live in an area where plows and salt are applied very quickly and frequently, you might be able to get away with keeping the all-seasons on all year, but I really wouldn't take that risk to save a few hundred bucks. 

 

I put on the winter tires in mid-November and remove them in mid-April. Snow has yet to be an issue for me, though obviously I don't try to take the car off-road into really deep pockets of snow. I see 4WD SUVs with summer or all-season tires getting into trouble all the time when it snows and it's always a facepalm worthy moment. 

Edited June 14, 2018 at 10:14 PM by 4cylinder

[cbr954rr]

Thanks for the replies.

I have always had a 4X4 ford explorer for the winter beater\grocery but she\s done now. And i dont really want to drive the Focus RS in the winter so im considering a Energi as a daily driver. I definitely will buy winter tires and rims. 

Thanks for your input everyone

[murphy]

Thanks for the replies.

I have always had a 4X4 ford explorer for the winter beater\grocery but she\s done now. And i dont really want to drive the Focus RS in the winter so im considering a Energi as a daily driver. I definitely will buy winter tires and rims. 

Thanks for your input everyone

Be sure to get winter tires for all 4 wheels.  Only the front tires drive the car but all 4 wheels are used to stop the car.

[4cylinder]

I personally use 17" Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2 winter tires (reusing the stock wheels) and they have yet to disappoint me even during the arctic blast that hit the midwest hard. Unfortunately I have lost two of them to impact breaks with Michigan's horrible potholes. I found that out when I went to a shop to swap my all-seasons back on and they showed me fat bubbles along with massive dents on the inner lips of the front wheels :( Not covered under the tire warranty and I had to pay a disposal fee on top of that... Anyway like murphy said, make sure to do all 4 when you need to. I'm going to buy replacements for the two ruined ones when I see a good price.

 

Some users here who have a separate set of wheels in addition to winter tires go with 16" on steelies instead which isn't a bad idea - more rubber and less rim = better ride and better grip, while steel wheels are easier to repair in case of pothole impacts.

 

Winters also make me appreciate the lack of horsepower in the Energi - I'm unlikely to accidentally give more acceleration than I intended which could be disastrous in icy conditions. 

Edited June 15, 2018 at 02:36 PM by 4cylinder

[Electriffic]

I live in Helena, Montana and I'm still running summer tires. I'm pleased with the Fusion's snow and ice performance...better than I expected. It does better than my Leaf and Sienna. Normally I buy studded winter tires but I don't think the Ford needs them as much as my other cars.