Have mercs not got traction control to stop wheel spin?

[Jethro UK]

Had to take 3 relatives to visit my wife's mum in hospital in snowy road conditions
Afraid to say my shiny Merc C220 is the worst car I've ever had to drive in these conditions
Back end broke away far too many times despite me driving more carefully than any other car on the road
Have mercs not got traction control to stop wheel spin?
The car is uber fast and uber responsive which is great under normal road conditions but potential disastrous in snow
My previous Rover 75 auto had snow mode which I don't know what it did and never had cause to use but whatever it did my merc desperately needs

 

[EmilysDad]

....
My previous Rover 75 auto had snow mode which I don't know what it did and never had cause to use but whatever it did my merc desperately needs

Your Rover was front wheel drive therefore the weight of the engine was over the driven wheels ..... I assume snow mode set the car off in 2nd or 3rd gear, I thought 'C' (comfort) in your Merc set you off in 2nd gear. Your Merc will have ESP which is the next step up from a basic traction control. Stick a bag of sand or 3 in the boot ie load up the back of the car where the drive is & be gentle with the GO pedal

 

[John Laidlaw]

you will see loads of threads on winter tyres on this forum then maybe you can decide......

 

[Naraic]

I replied on the other side...but here goes again.

The question shows your shortcomings as a motorist, your lack of understanding of extreme weather conditions and your unreasonable expectations of any car let alone your MB. Go out and buy the correct tyres or stay at home, with a hot cup of cocoa.

My car, which has a little more power than yours, can be used in slippy conditions...except if I use the throttle too much. But even the smallest bump in the road will prevent it starting off if it's too slippy...without winter tyres.

 

[EmilysDad]

I replied on the other side...but here goes again.

The question shows your shortcomings as a motorist, your lack of understanding of extreme weather conditions and your unreasonable expectations of any car let alone your MB. Go out and buy the correct tyres or stay at home, with a hot cup of cocoa. .......

Don't sit on the fence .......... tell him what you really think!

 

[GottleibDaimler]

Cheap option - weight in the back, Eco gearbox mode, very light feathering of the throttle, hope for the best

Proper option - winter tyres

 

[Uncle]

Its not the fault of RWD either its wide low profile tyres which are the main culprit.
Years ago I don't remember having any of these issues driving Mk1/MK2 Escorts or MK3/4 Cortina - and my old Anglia never got stuck bring back the crossply's

 

[Jethro UK]

you will see loads of threads on winter tyres on this forum then maybe you can decide......

I've never bought special tyres for the snow and won't start now - just disappointed a car of this calibre suffers from wheel spin when this has been simple to control since 1960s

 

[Jethro UK]

Its not the fault of RWD either its wide low profile tyres which are the main culprit.
Years ago I don't remember having any of these issues driving Mk1/MK2 Escorts or MK3/4 Cortina - and my old Anglia never got stuck bring back the crossply's

That's nothing to do with tyre but to do with technology of limited slip differential - they should have shared it with Mercedes

 

[Jethro UK]

I replied on the other side...but here goes again.

The question shows your shortcomings as a motorist, your lack of understanding of extreme weather conditions and your unreasonable expectations of any car let alone your MB. Go out and buy the correct tyres or stay at home, with a hot cup of cocoa.

My car, which has a little more power than yours, can be used in slippy conditions...except if I use the throttle too much. But even the smallest bump in the road will prevent it starting off if it's too slippy...without winter tyres.

UTTER CRAP!!!!!
Won't be listening to anymore claptrap coming from your direction

I have forgotten more about driving than you will ever know, I have driven more miles than you have and been driving 30000 per year (including snow) since before you were born

There is ZERO excuse for wheel spin in snow - especially on automatic - technology has existed since 60's to make wheel spin IMPOSSIBLE just Merc failed to use it and should never have got into production with such safety deficiency

 

[John Laidlaw]

oh dear oh dear, Jethro ike yourself I have driven for many years and originally from Scotland, remembering the days when we REALLY had snow, not just the pathetic dustings we get now which stop the whole country now. I even remember deciding to go skiing in the cairngorms after watching about 3 feet of snow falling on the A9 overnight ( and I was 2 hours south) - driving North passing 4 x 4 s on the road etc etc.....big difference to now was in those days I was driving a Ford Escort IIMC with 15 in wheels, 'skinny' tyres something like 195 55, NO traction control, nothing! No issues at all. The car had barely 100BHP.
NOW- all cars just about have 17, 18,19 and 20in wheels, profiles like 35, widths 225, 235, 245, 255... OK we all have some form of traction (we all have ESP) but with probably 200BHP + in an average car unless really feathered throttle input will result in spinning wheels, and as Naraic says a bump or impedance will result further in traction loss.....
so, whilst I may have scoffed in previous years on specialist tyres, for one I am converted, and can still use my car in winter (otherwise I would be home with TV and cocoa too!!)
You don't have to take the advice on here or even log on if you don't want it....

 

[EmilysDad]

UTTER CRAP!!!!!
Won't be listening to anymore claptrap coming from your direction

I have forgotten more about driving than you will ever know, .....

But you asked whether your car had traction control and stated that you had a Rover that coped but didn't know why ........

 

[EmilysDad]

... big difference to now was in those days I was driving a Ford Escort IIMC with 15 in wheels, 'skinny' tyres something like 195 55, .......

I doubt they were that big my Cortina MKIII had 165's on it :smile:

 

[John Laidlaw]

probably right, I was struggling to remember correctly it was so long ago....

 

[Neil H]

To the OP,
I agree with most of the above though I am maybe a little more sympathetic!

I can strongly recommend verdenstein Wintrac 4 tyres via http://www.tyreleader.co.uk/car-tyres/ which transform your car over winter. Relatively cheap and just amazing grip. My CLS in the snow two nights ago was just incredible. I was passing 4x4s safely!

I remember my old mini in the snow, light as a feather and ran on milk bottle top thin tyres and nothing ever stopped it. New Mercs and BMWs however are burdened with a setup that limits them severely for average drivers like me!******************

 

[The Pan Man]

UTTER CRAP!!!!!
Won't be listening to anymore claptrap coming from your direction

I have forgotten more about driving than you will ever know, I have driven more miles than you have and been driving 30000 per year (including snow) since before you were born

There is ZERO excuse for wheel spin in snow - especially on automatic - technology has existed since 60's to make wheel spin IMPOSSIBLE just Merc failed to use it and should never have got into production with such safety deficiency

Surely this is a wind up, nobody is that far away from the real world!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[John Laidlaw]

To the OP,
I agree with most of the above though I am maybe a little more sympathetic!

I can strongly recommend verdenstein Wintrac 4 tyres via http://www.tyreleader.co.uk/car-tyres/ which transform your car over winter. Relatively cheap and just amazing grip. My CLS in the snow two nights ago was just incredible. I was passing 4x4s safely!

I remember my old mini in the snow, light as a feather and ran on milk bottle top thin tyres and nothing ever stopped it. New Mercs and BMWs however are burdened with a setup that limits them severely for average drivers like me!******************

Agreed Neil- I have the Wintrac Extremes which preceded your 4's I think and they are excellent......

 

[John Laidlaw]

UTTER CRAP!!!!!
Won't be listening to anymore claptrap coming from your direction

I have forgotten more about driving than you will ever know, I have driven more miles than you have and been driving 30000 per year (including snow) since before you were born

There is ZERO excuse for wheel spin in snow - especially on automatic - technology has existed since 60's to make wheel spin IMPOSSIBLE just Merc failed to use it and should never have got into production with such safety deficiency

Surely this is a wind up, nobody is that far away from the real world!!!!!!!!!!!

wound a few of us up certainly!

 

[MBDevotee]

Its not the fault of RWD either its wide low profile tyres which are the main culprit.
Years ago I don't remember having any of these issues driving Mk1/MK2 Escorts or MK3/4 Cortina - and my old Anglia never got stuck bring back the crossply's

+1

Your Rover as has been said was front drive.

Front drive is absolute carp for everything....... except driving in snow when it's great!!

Also, your tyres as have been said will be low profile, very hard sidewalls, and very wide.

As mentioned, you need to fit the right wheels / tyres for the conditions - you will have summer tyres on at the moment. If you can't fit winter tyres which is becoming the norm now around europe, then you need to put more weight in the boot (although this won't help a lot) and consider snow chains or other fitment.

You say your last car was a Rover, which means it was quite old as they've not been made for a bit or it was a "Range Rover" which I think most will agree will have a slight advantage in these conditions....

Take your tyres down to around 20psi. This will help the sidewalls bulge and will provide a little more traction - DON'T FORGET TO PUMP THEM UP AGAIN BEFORE DRIVING ON CLEAR TARMAC.

But yes, your car does have a very good traction control - it's not that that is the issue - it's that you are not used to RWD

 

[Rotorhead500]

There is ZERO excuse for wheel spin in snow.....

Isn't that a slightly loose statement? You can chirp tyres on dry Tarmac if you're heavy-footed enough! Any time torque and/or power exceeds the available coefficient of friction, slip can/will occur.

Rear-wheel drive cars of the last 10-15 years are notorious for being poor performers in slippery conditions. I had a 123d BMW 6 years ago, on 18" runflats, living in the Mids at the time - took me over 30 mins one afternoon to get it 15ft into the garage..... It was truly awful. Similar with a Honda S2000 2 years later.

Precisely why I've fitted winter tyres to my last 2 Mercs, and driven all over the Midlands and North England during the last 2 winters and had no loss of traction whatsoever.