Rwd and snow

Responsible-Dust-107 | 2026-02-20 01:35 | 21 views

Alright Reddit I need your opinion, I’m looking at getting my wife a model y for her daily commute. We test drove an awd model and loved it. Looking at the options to buy new the rwd has better range and is cheaper, my only worry is how the vehicle will act in snow and ice in the rwd platform. Does it limit power to stop wheel spin and slide or is it like my 72 ford and it’s all in your right foot?

Comments (6)

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Kali587 2026-02-20 02:33

[RWD Tesla in snow.](https://youtu.be/8Z3G5hSiTZY?si=OFbo5MaLR7VDAZZs) There’s a difference between EV traction control and ICE vehicle traction control.

StormTrpr66 2026-02-20 03:55

I would never get a 2WD vehicle for snow and ice. AWD isn't that much more expensive and the difference in range is not that big either. I drive in snow maybe once or twice a year, as in just one or two one-day trip to the mountains when it snows, drove to Lake Tahoe once in the last 3 or 4 years in the snow, and I would not buy a 2WD vehicle. After owning a Subaru for several years I could not go back to 2WD for my daily driver/utility vehicle. A sports car is a different story but my daily driver, AWD. The video that was posted is interesting for sure but still not enough to convince me. The peace of mind I get is worth the extra cost and slightly less mileage. BTW, I'm saying this as a prospective Tesla buyer. I don't own one yet. Looking at the MY Premium AWD.

Defiant-Opposite-501 2026-02-20 10:03

If you live where it snows, get an AWD.

LoneStarGut 2026-02-20 14:48

See this video of a RWD M3 on the track in the ice - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nwhbIOipXQ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nwhbIOipXQ)

Pavehawk224 2026-02-20 16:45

We just had our first winter with our M3 RWD in WV this year. It honestly did much better than I was expecting, and we had a lot of ice this winter compared to the last few years. OEM tires as well. I know AWD would perform better, and winter tires regardless of the drivetrain make an enormous difference, but we didn’t have any problems in snow up to 3-4” so long as you are familiar with driving in snow. Even the reduction in range wasn’t as bad as I was expecting. During snow or ice storms we would place the car in camp mode (on level 2 charging) and the snow and ice wouldn’t stick to the car, so we didn’t have to clear it. Overall, very impressed.

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