Snow in Columbus, OH - No prob! :)

[Mirlen]

Had our first heavy snow here, well heavy by Columbus standards I guess, didn't really seem like THAT much, I think about 12-14", at least that's what was in the driveway when I got home, not that I really noticed until I got out of the car to go blow it...*chuckle* 4Runner handled the weather great with stock tires at reasonable speeds. I did need to put it in 4 Low/Center locked once to back into my parking space at work but that was about it, and when I did that it was like the snow wasn't even there, I thought it was going to start slipping but nope, backed right in! Sweet!

:bigok: Loving my 4Runner! :bigok:

 

[TeryT]

Glad to hear your 4R did so well!

Just read where Columbus actually got 20" which is an all-time record. Previous record was around 14" set back in like 1908 or something.

I'm just glad I'm not back there doing what I used to do - coordinating a snow removal crew for a corporate HQ! It was actually kind of fun, but the big boss was really anal about making sure everything was always perfect - even with snow still coming down by the bushel! :awais:

 

[majewski]

I LOVE IT!

Yeah! Finally got some snow!

Mirlen, I'm just north of you in Delaware. Where are you in C'bus? That was some good stuff coming down on Friday and Saturday, and wasn't it just a ball to go ripping through it in the 4Runner?

Have to agree this is a lot of snow by Columbus standards, but growing up on the east side of Cleveland, this is kinda routine stuff...and we didn't have all these 4-wheel or all-wheel or even front-wheel drive cars back then. Schools are closed again tomorrow which leaves me scratching my head wondering "what the hell?"

 

[Mirlen]

Re: I LOVE IT!

Mirlen, I'm just north of you in Delaware. Where are you in C'bus?
...
Schools are closed again tomorrow which leaves me scratching my head wondering "what the hell?"

I'm near Lane Rd. Park in Upper Arlington, work up at JPMC near the Polaris mall. Ya, not sure why the schools are closed, we had Sunday to dig out so what the heck? Oh well. Day care was delayed a couple hours but opened so that's good... Not much left out there on public places *sniff* I hate snow plows, and I hate salt, just leave the stuff there! *chuckle*

 

[Gromulus]

Re: I LOVE IT!

Yeah! Finally got some snow!

Have to agree this is a lot of snow by Columbus standards, but growing up on the east side of Cleveland, this is kinda routine stuff...and we didn't have all these 4-wheel or all-wheel or even front-wheel drive cars back then.

majewski,

Where did you grow up on the east side? I live in Concord Twp. just a couple of miles from Chardon - snow capital of Ohio (and one of the true lake-effect snow areas in the country).

As you say, this is routine for our area.

 

[banker1]

Anyone get any good pics? I forgot what snow looks like here...

 

[majewski]

Re: Re: I LOVE IT!

majewski,

Where did you grow up on the east side? I live in Concord Twp. just a couple of miles from Chardon - snow capital of Ohio (and one of the true lake-effect snow areas in the country).

As you say, this is routine for our area.

OHHHH, then you probably know about Gravity Hill and Punderson Manor and Squire's Castle, and other local lore! I grew up in Mentor -- old Mentor near the intersection of 615 and 84!!

It's a small world, isn't it? Bet we only have one, maybe two degrees of separation.

 

[MikeinCincy]

We got about 12" where I live in Cincinnati. The 4Runner handled beautifully even with the stock Bridgestones. I had a lot of fun over the weekend. I was really surprised/bummed out that they got the roads cleared off so quickly. I really had to do some searching for some snow covered roads in my area. It didn't help that it got pretty warm on Sunday.

I had a lot of fun until late Saturday night. I was out playing around and I was just driving down a normal 35 mph road and all of a sudden in the blink of an eye my 4Runner starts to veer right and I go into a ditch! It was so embarassing. I had my gf with me. She thought the whole thing was funny. Anyways, my 4Runner got stuck. The back end was in the bottom of the ditch. The rear passenger tire was in about 2 feet of snow. The snow seriously came up to my knees. I was in 4WD HI with the diff. unlocked when it happened. The first thing I did once I realized I was stuck was I locked the differential. I still couldn't get out. Then like 30 seconds after I was stuck, a Suburban pulls next to me (a really nice guy) and he pulls me out. Later that night, it dawned on me that I didn't even try to put it in 4LO with the diff. locked. I wonder if that would have gotten me unstuck. What do you guys think?

Also, yesterday I noticed that the plastic casing that goes around my driver's side fog light is missing. It's like a dark gray color and it looks like it just snaps right on. I called the stealer and they ordered one for me. It was $13.00. I literally have no idea how it fell off and where it fell off. Hopefully the new one is A. The right color and B. It fits properly.

(sorry for the long response!)

 

[Gromulus]

Re: Re: Re: I LOVE IT!

OHHHH, then you probably know about Gravity Hill and Punderson Manor and Squire's Castle, and other local lore! I grew up in Mentor -- old Mentor near the intersection of 615 and 84!!

It's a small world, isn't it? Bet we only have one, maybe two degrees of separation.

Absolutely! I live off of Rt 44, near Quail Hollow. I worked in Mentor for many years (then Cleveland, now Willoughby).

I grew up in the SE suburbs of Cleveland but moved out to Lake County in 1980 after college, married a Concord girl, and have been here ever since.

My brother-in-law and his wife used to live near Polaris Parkway in Columbus but now reside live just south of Cincy in "Florence Y'all".

It is a small world.

(Didn't mean to hijack)

 

[jbs]

Later that night, it dawned on me that I didn't even try to put it in 4LO with the diff. locked. I wonder if that would have gotten me unstuck. What do you guys think?

I doubt 4Lo would have helped. Maybe front and rear lockers, but its hard to guess without having seen how you were stuck. In situations like snow, you are typically traction limited, so the weak link is usually the tires. Good snow tires would probably have helped keep you out of the ditch in the first place (and chains certainly would have, although they are difficult if not impossible to put on after you are stuck). Lockers would have helped if at least one wheel had had enough traction to get you out (I have found that ATRAC doesn't work that well in stopped/stuck situations). Since you were probably at least partially high centered, keeping the full weight of the truck off the tires (which are already lacking traction in the snow), you probably just didn't have enough traction to get out. Making the job easier on the engine by multiplying the effective torque with 4Lo wouldn't have helped, because that likely wasn't the problem: plenty of torque in 4Hi for a medium height snow bank (although 4Lo would be easier on the engine/transmission), but not enough traction. If the traction was marginal compared to what you needed to get out, then lockers would have helped.

No big deal since you got pulled out quickly. Although it can be a bit embarrassing, its a good chance to learn the limits of the truck in snowy terrain.