Slipping & Sliding in Snow

[Steve92110]

I thought that’s what the “L” selection was for ?

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[timbop]

Nope. I’ve always thought about getting a set but, with over 750 days without snow (until now), it seemed pointless. Besides, I don’t have a place to store a second set of tires.

I'm just over the river in Jersey, and I've never put snow tires on any of my 4 mustangs over 26 years of driving. With that said, 1PD seems to be optimized for dry conditions - especially in the more aggressive drive modes. In my prior stick shift mustangs I got pretty good at feathering the clutch and/or downshifting just right to slow down without sliding or having to hit the brake, but I don't think the go pedal on the Mach-E has enough feel to accomplish the same effect in 1PD. So, I just avoid driving in slippery conditions or turn off 1PD when I have to drive in them.

 

[timbop]

I thought that’s what the “L” selection was for ?

No - the "L" puts it in the most aggressive regen/1PD mode, which is actually more likely to cause it to lose grip in snow/ice

 

[Adventureboy]

If you have snow, there is no better practice than to install true winter tires. Mine handles like a dream with winters.
MME is heavy which can seem like it gives you more traction in snow, but it, and any other car, will slide in icy conditions and it will slide way longer than you want. Winter tires will help tremendously with that, however, don't forget MME is heavy and needs time to stop in the slippery.

I have two teenage boys and a teenage girl and I'm always after them to respect the momentum on slippery roads and slow down with a much more significant safety margin in case things don't go as planned when you slow down (its not just an MME thing).

Winter tires......

 

[tuminatr]

Whisper mode for me and turn off 1pd. Having installed winter tires also makes a huge difference.

You could also consider an all weather tire when replacing the factory tires. Some good ones would be the Michelin Cross Climate 2 or the new Vredestein Quatrac Pro +

 

[RickMachE]

I wonder how many GTPE drivers have the summer tires, and are clueless that it's not snow, but temperature, that impacts their usability. Below 45 you should NOT use them, per the manufacturer.

 

[TheVirtualTim]

In icy conditions, I switch to whisper and disable 1-pedal mode. This lets the car coast when you take your foot off the accelerator -- which can be important to get across icy spots.

 

[MellowJohnny]

The manual suggests Whisper in slick conditions:

WHISPER
Whisper mode is for relaxed driving and adverse weather conditions. This is the best mode for driving in slippery conditions. This mode decreases accelerator response at partial inputs. Steering tunes for comfort. When you release the accelerator pedal, your vehicle slowly decelerates allowing for a more comfortable ride. The interior sound turns off and the ambient lights and cluster graphics are set to blue with a graphic that starts to illuminate blue as you drive efficiently at consistent speeds.

pp. 242 in the MY22 Manual

 

[Jimrpa]

My car seems to be really good in the ice and snow here. I do turn it down to whisper mode but I've left one pedal on for now. Keep in mind that if you feel the rear slipping that that is by design. Ford wants it to feel like a mustang so the traction control will let the rear end slide about 20 degrees before stopping it. I hammered mine in the snow and it does turn to about 20 degrees and just stays there. I can't get it to slip more without being on really slick ice or turning off the traction control.

Oh, this is helpful. I didn’t know the traction control was tuned to allow rear-end slide. That’s why it feels a bit like my Miata felt in the snow.

 

[Jimrpa]

Whisper mode for me and turn off 1pd. Having installed winter tires also makes a huge difference.

You could also consider an all weather tire when replacing the factory tires. Some good ones would be the Michelin Cross Climate 2 or the new Vredestein Quatrac Pro +

I thought the factory tires (on the premium) ARE all-weather tires?

 

[PA Bob]

Whisper and 1PD off in the snow. I still usually find mine is a little squirrelly in the rear.

I thought one pedal driving would be better in the snow. Isn’t it like downshifting in an ICE vehicle? I thought one pedal driving would be safer since it uses the motor rather than the friction brakes is that not correct?

 

[MellowJohnny]

If you have snow, there is no better practice than to install true winter tires. Mine handles like a dream with winters.
MME is heavy which can seem like it gives you more traction in snow, but it, and any other car, will slide in icy conditions and it will slide way longer than you want. Winter tires will help tremendously with that, however, don't forget MME is heavy and needs time to stop in the slippery.

I have two teenage boys and a teenage girl and I'm always after them to respect the momentum on slippery roads and slow down with a much more significant safety margin in case things don't go as planned when you slow down (its not just an MME thing).

Winter tires......

My 17 year old daughter drove in the snow for the first time with me today - first corner she took at dry tarmac speed and I thought "This will be interesting....". Rear end kicked out a little bit but no issues. Pretty impressed actually.

I said "See? That was a bit fast...". Next corner she took at half the speed of the first and said "Wow, you really need to slow down!".

AWD + winters make a big difference, but physics will always be physics.

 

[Gullwingdmc]

I thought one pedal driving would be better in the snow. Isn’t it like downshifting in an ICE vehicle? I thought one pedal driving would be safer since it uses the motor rather than the friction brakes is that not correct?

For me the instinct is to lift off the accelerator when in a slide. Doing that on one pedal drive would be the equivalent of stepping on the brake a little and that’s the worse thing you can do when you’re skidding. So for me I’ve always taken it off so I can coast.

 

[21st Century Pony]

I thought the factory tires (on the premium) ARE all-weather tires?

Yes and that is a compromise.

"Winter tires" somewhat misleadingly called "snow tires" are really advantageous because their rubber compound is much stickier. This gives winter tires far better grip while all-season tires' compound, which turns far harder below 40 degrees, lessen their grip the colder the temperature gets. Yes Winter tire thread also helps in snow yet that is a secondary advantage.

And if things really get bad with a huge dump of snow or truly icy conditions ...look how these grip an inch-thick ice carapace.

 

[MellowJohnny]

I thought one pedal driving would be better in the snow. Isn’t it like downshifting in an ICE vehicle? I thought one pedal driving would be safer since it uses the motor rather than the friction brakes is that not correct?

All drive modes use regen - 1PD is just the most aggressive. As soon as you let off the Go pedal, the car will regen. Friction brakes only kick in at the very end, or in a panic stop situation.

Like I said above, Ford suggest Whisper so when you let off the pedal the regenerative force is less likely to unbalance the car.

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