MKZHybridlover Posted December 16, 2013 Share Posted December 16, 2013 My 2011 MKZ Hybrid handles terribly in the snow. I am not sure if this is due to the Michelin Energy MXV4 All Season OEM tires that were supplied with the vehicle OR if the car is too light since it is a Hybrid. Does anyone have any suggestions out there? I inquired at a Ford/Lincoln dealer and they informed me those tires should be good for snow. So either the Lincoln MKZ hybrid is too light for snow conditions (in which case I am disappointed this isn't advertised when purchasing in Michigan!) and no tire will solve this OR the dealer I inquired at didn't give me good information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Hamilton Posted December 16, 2013 Share Posted December 16, 2013 Is your MKZ equipped with traction control and electronic stability control? If it is, is it working properly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MKZHybridlover Posted December 17, 2013 Author Share Posted December 17, 2013 Thank you for responding. Yes, my vehicle is equipped with "AdvanceTrac", the electronic stability control system. It seems to engage occasionally, and to be working. By the feel of the lack of traction, I really do believe it is the type of tires. The Ford/Lincoln dealer is recommending Yokohama WDrive tires, however there is not much information/reviews on this tire. I am also considering Mastercraft Glacier Grip II, BF Goodrich Blizzak WS-70, or Michelin X-ICE XI3. Does anyone have any experience with any of these? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krusty35 Posted December 18, 2013 Share Posted December 18, 2013 @MKZHybridLover, I feel your pain! I have a 2012 MKZ Hybrid. It is AWFUL in the snow. I stopped traffic on Route 2 yesterday outside of Boston because my car couldn't get up a 5% grade. Slipping all over the place. I checked the tires as well. The Michelin S4's are rated 'all season'. I only have 28,000 miles on them. They are supposed to be good for 40,000 to 45,000. They are rated very good for the snow. I can't imagine it is because of the weight of the car. My daughter's Prius is lighter and does much better in the snow. I have a call into the dealer. I am told that in some cases the traction control is not set right and can hamper acceleration in the snow when you need it. I will let you know what I find out. Please let me know if a tire change helps. Slipping and sliding in Boston. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertlane Posted December 18, 2013 Share Posted December 18, 2013 Has anyone tried the Bridgestone Blizzac tires? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MKZHybridlover Posted December 21, 2013 Author Share Posted December 21, 2013 @MKZHybridLover, I feel your pain! I have a 2012 MKZ Hybrid. It is AWFUL in the snow. I stopped traffic on Route 2 yesterday outside of Boston because my car couldn't get up a 5% grade. Slipping all over the place. I checked the tires as well. The Michelin S4's are rated 'all season'. I only have 28,000 miles on them. They are supposed to be good for 40,000 to 45,000. They are rated very good for the snow. I can't imagine it is because of the weight of the car. My daughter's Prius is lighter and does much better in the snow. I have a call into the dealer. I am told that in some cases the traction control is not set right and can hamper acceleration in the snow when you need it. I will let you know what I find out. Please let me know if a tire change helps. Slipping and sliding in Boston. @krusty35 Slipping and sliding in Boston, It's the tires!!!! I just bought the Michelin X-ICE XI3 and had them installed today. Our roads are still covered in slush and snow from the last snow storm, right after leaving the dealership (they had the best price and service in my area), I tested the tires out. OMG, what a difference!! Now I don't have to be white knuckled driving on anything but a dry road! These tires respond very well on slushy road when I really tested them today (and drove my husband crazy), but I really wanted to know if they would be good. I was smiling from ear to ear when the car stopped fast (my husband not so much :)). I decided on these tires after doing more than 4 hours of reading on the internet with reviews, but the tipping point for me was the independent testing posted on Tirerack.com. They had data and graphs and for an analytical engineer such as myself that's all I needed. I am so happy that I have these new tires now. I also wonder now since the Michelin Energy MXV4 All Season tires are especially bad since they are designed for hybrids to give the best gas mileage, aka do not have a lot of resistance to maximize gas mileage??? I will be giving my feedback to Lincoln regarding this. I think they should warn any new customers that they likely will need winter tires in snowy regions. I am just glad that I didn't find out the hard way! Good luck to you, but I definitely recommend the Michelin X-ICE XI3, even based on my 1 day of driving on these! No more slipping and sliding for me in Michigan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctrcbob Posted December 22, 2013 Share Posted December 22, 2013 My former 2007 MKZ with AWD was great in the snow.. (Yes, even though I normally live in Florida, I had it in deep snow in Western New York, in snow and ice in Roswell and West Texas and believe it or not, in a big snowstorm, December 2008, between Jackson Ms and Hattiesburg MS.) Although it was great in the snow, the AWD "PTU" was always leaking, and after they could not fix it, even under warranty, I got rid of it. My present 2011 MKZ FWD has not yet seen snow. (Previous Continentals FWD also were great in snow). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertlane Posted December 27, 2013 Share Posted December 27, 2013 I'm north of Toronto in the snow belt - it's been snowing 5-days straight now. Snow tires, I am told are hard to get because Quebec requires them - thus, shortages. After asking around, it seems that Bridgestone Blizzaks come highly recommended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malcolmd Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 I thought my 2011 Hybrid was pretty good in NJ especially with the winter we had this year. I blew by quite a few cars stuck on my hill and rolled right into my driveway when neighbors were abandoning their cars and walking up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UncleBuck Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 Many times the weight of the vehicle can play a role but most likely tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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