[Ken FL 2 ME]

New QX 60 and heading to Maine..how does the AWD do in the heavier snow and ice in New England? I used to have a mountain climbing Jeep Scrambler that wouldn't get stuck...wondering how this luxury AWD will do outside in the winter...any experiences?
Thanks all....

 

[avishal26]

I live up in Calgary, Canada - my QX is awesome in the winter - with the right tires of course. It has no issues getting around in any weather!! The AWD system is pretty good and works well with the Blizzak winters

 

[Young04]

New QX 60 and heading to Maine..how does the AWD do in the heavier snow and ice in New England? I used to have a mountain climbing Jeep Scrambler that wouldn't get stuck...wondering how this luxury AWD will do outside in the winter...any experiences?
Thanks all....

I live just outside of Boston and I don't think it does particularly well in the snow. My wife's Touareg does far better. Both have the same winter tires on them (the T-Reg's are actually wider by 20mm). We got a couple of feet of snow last week and for sh*ts and giggles, I backed both cars out of the garage and tried to see how they would do in that snow. T-Reg handled it no problem - felt like I would never get stuck. The QX60 got stuck immediately. I remember seeing some videos on the internet showing how the QX/JX's AWD system doesn't do a good job of transferring power to the wheel that has traction.

To add to this, the QX60 does not do well in turns or stopping either. The car, to me, feels light and flinty. Gives good smooth highway ride, but I wonder if it's a detriment in the snow.

Overall, I think this vehicle is good for getting you home in light or moderate snow but is not intended for more extreme conditions.

 

[AndrewC]

Winter tires do help and I hope it's what you have planned to get, however it's not an absolute must as you can get by with all seasons, just have to be aware of their limits.

 

[ANKulin]

The day before yesterday I took my QX60 up a stretch of road here in Toronto with a 15-19% grade. This was after a snowfall, the road had about 8-inches of snow. Cars were turning around and telling me to go the other way. I made it up without any issue. QX is an AWD model, running with 18-inch Michelin X-Ice2 snow tires (new in November), had car set to run in snow mode.

 

[InfinitiFan]

Knowing how to drive in winter conditions is key, for years i have used all season tires and got by safely, but then my all seasons got so worn out that i was fish tailing way too easily, this was in a QX56....

 

[Almatti]

I'm a little nutsy about knowing how things actually work. I read manuals much to the chagrin of my associates who say: "You Do That, Just Drive The Car?"

The manual or the Infiniti web site do not actually describe how the AWD system works, other than torque goes from the front wheels to a 50-50 mix when needed. Does that happen at any speed? Other than Dumbing Down the throttle, does Snow Mode do anything with the AWD system? On my other AWD Infiniti cars : 2007 G35X (best cat I ever owned with power and 5AT - head snapping throttle [loved it]), 2010 G37X (the new 7 speed tranny was Laggy ), 2013 M37X ( very good car, not popular with few on the road but was the Best Bargain in that category) had SNOW Modes. In those sedans, according to the manual, the 50-50 split front to rear wheels stayed locked up to 12 MPH and Governed the throttle slightly. The 2016 QX60 - the Snow Mode applies a much greater "governor" to the throttle worse than the Eco mode. I realize the previous sedans were all rear Wheel drive oriented systems with traditional ATs not CVTs. But I can't find a complete description of how it works on the Web, again other than Infiniti's web site describing it on a sedan?

Thanks for any input....

 

[Sinecure]

Snow mode basically does two things:

1) Desensitizes the throttle. This is akin to starting a manual car in 2nd gear - a trick those of us who grew up driving manual cars in snow would use when starting on a hill to avoid spinning wheels.

2) It turns off the sensors you may have on the front of the car. Those are parking sensors and the ICC and DCA sensors. Parking sensors go nuts when covered with snow and you slow down. ICC and DCA (for those with Driver Assist or more options on their car), just get messed up by a coating of ice/snow on the front.

SNOW mode makes no modifications whatsoever to how the AWD system works. If someone told you otherwise, they were misinformed.

To answer your question, yes AWD will put up to 50% power to the rear wheels at any speed. Regardless of what mode the car is in.

 

[aller]

I have no troubles with snow - live in Toronto, Canada. Mostly, i`m using QX in city so i cant provide you with much info