do newer fbodys...98+ handel better in the winter??? what year is posi standard w/in

[vandelay101]

Guys,

Just wondering if anyone has experience upgrading from a pre98 to a 98 fbody. My car doesn't have posi traction or 4 wheel discs and I feel like one of my tires is always spinning and causing me to almost lose control. I want a 98 firebird in the spring and was wanted to know if they handel better or is posi traction just a joke. Was posi standard after 98 or is it part of the y87? I'm not too familiar with the post 98 cars....can anyone fill me in

[sac2165]

As far as I know, LSD "posi" never came standard, it only came with the Y87.

I'm pretty sure, having the LSD makes controlling the car much more difficult in the snow and ice.

[Scott T]

I have a plain old 2000 Firebird that came with the 3.42 gears and posi. It doesn't have the Y87 package on it. As far as traction. Mine is awful in the snow. Just found out about 5 in the morning how bad it really is. Definately need some weight in the back if you get one with posi. I love my posi though. I do love the ABS too.

[vandelay101]

I thought 1 tire spinning would make the car spin out as opposed to 2 tires spinning the car would go straight. What year did the fbody have a traction control system as opposed tot he stupid 2nd gear start button. I wanna get the best f-body I can for the winter.....anything helps a little.

[1999Maro]

Rear wheel drive cars suck in the snow.. Thats why I have a cavialier..

[Loochy88]

get posi and the 3.42's youll love it. trust me. snow traction wont be any worse. theyre (fbodys) not made for the snow of course.

[ERIC WAY]

the day after i got my Bird home it snowed, i hadntsold my Z26 yet so i wasnt worried, but i needed to move the bird to shovel caus eit hadnt go into storage yet, there was about 3" on the ground and it wouldnt move!!! i thought my father was ggoin to die laughing at me, then when he pulled his 79 Z28 to get somethin out of the shop, he couldnt get back up the little incline, f-bodies are cripples in the snow

[W68Firebird97]

To compare the 2 rears. The posi will spin both tires as opposed to the peg leg. the peg leg in my opinion would be better in the snow. When one wheel spins the other will then grab. And from personal hand experience w/ the posi, when goin up a hill the backend of the car will go to the right. So either way rwd sux in the snow.

[Max2k1Camaro]

Actually, my 01 is better than my 97 in the snow. My 97 had 3.08s Open, and my 01 has 342 LSD. Anyhow, I think that from a standstill, if u have all power going to one wheel in the snow, it wont help. Having another wheels trying to grab traction instead of one is better. Otherwise, you wont get anywhere. It's actually kind of fun driving in the snow now with my 01.

[Ike]

well from the world of jeeps and 2 firebirds:

open on snow 1 wheel will spin all day...the other won't receive power (laws of physics) however, if turning at all, the "dragging" (non-powered; therefore, non-spinning) tire will attempt to keep the backend from sliding out

locked diffs will spin both tires; which is pretty good if you plan on just going straight, but when you must turn (and eventually, you probably plan too) it will get sideways quick

but as you have said rwd is terrible in the snow (should know cause i got stuck today!)

[CamaroBill]

The limited slip (posi) is way better in the snow.

As was mentioned before you only need to have traction with one tire (either one) to get moving. With a peg-leg if your right rear tire is on a slippery surface it will sit there and spin while the left tire is doing nothing.

Here though is the real key advantage: When it is really slick and neither tire has traction, you are distributing power equally between the rear tires rather than sending it all to one tire. This is a major advantage. Combine this with a second gear start, good snow tires and a couple of hundred pounds in the trunk and you will be surprised how easy it can be to get moving on snow and ice. I've even passed front wheel drivers that got stuck in the snow going up the steep hill out of my housing plan this winter on a couple of occasions!