Have any 2001 XC owners in the midwest with the recent snow and more snow coming today got any "live reports" of how the AWD performed on the road or experimenting in parking lots???????????????????

Although I don't have a '01 XC, I can brief you with my 2000 XC stories.. I sorta "tried" to get up my steep hill bringing me up to my home and only made it halfway yesterday.. Yup, got stuck even with AWD and Gislaveds winters. Whatever ground clearance one may have, once you get snow packed underneath there is no way you can move an inch.. not enough weight on the wheels to a have a firm grip. Thank god a backhoe with a chain was passing by to help me out.. We recieved 12" of snow, with blizzards there were some areas with almost 3 feet high!! Now that is being overconfident and I've learned my lesson.. Other than that, the AWD is performing extremely well whether in town or country-side. Practice a lot to get used to it though, it can be challenging at times such as rear-end fishtailing and then recovering from this situation (read previous post below titled "Snowstrom!! LSD questions...". I'm speaking as an experimented winter driver in Quebec, Canada.. Been there done that with FWD's, but this is my first time with AWD, there is a learning curve indeed. Once the hill got plowed, I got up there without any sign of slippage while my neighbors hard a hard time getting through the top of the hill.. so I say it's still amazing that I went halfway (80 feet) in about 2' deep with a 25° incline!! :)

Have fun!

With a driveway with a 25 degree incline , I would install a ski lift. Going down must be scary.

Heheh.. good one! I'm getting used to the severe conditions with the hilly driveway though. The only time I'm scared is when we get freezing rain. In this situation, I'd really love the Cross Country with a low gear. But then again, spreading sand before moving any vehicles is still the wise choice.

Eric;

In a previous e-mail, you mentioned you live in Ottawa area! Would it be too impertinent to ask where you bought your 2000 XC? If in Ottawa, Carling or Volvo St-Laurent and some comments on their maintenance attributes would be appreciated as well.

You can reach me by e-mail @: jmlavoie@synapse.net to dispense the board of this sideline request.

Merci!

Carling and St Laurent now belong to the same company so I don't think you will see much difference in purchasing. I found my best deal at Newport Volvo (St. catherines area) and if buying a Volvo again I would look there or at other Toronto area dealers for a good price.

I have not found Carling's service very satisfactory, one poster here some time ago said he found St Laurent good, word on the street seems to be that Carling and St Laurent are much the same for service as you would expect given that the leadership is the same.

James;

Thanks for the G2 (info)! I did not know they belonged to the same owners! Always useful whet comes the time to purchase a car. In actual fact, I hear all dealers in the Ottawa area belong to 4 owners.

I agree with you that, in this case, Toronto is a very good market to tap from as competition is probably fierce in that area.

Cheers!

Planman wrote:

> Have any 2001 XC owners in the midwest with the recent snow and more

> snow coming today got any "live reports" of how the AWD

> performed on the road or experimenting in parking

> lots???????????????????

Oh yes!!! I had quite a bit of fun playing in the snow yesterday and the evening before. 8.2" of clearance really makes the difference on this new toy. The usual selection of FWD smaller vehicles were getting hung up the minute they left their respective driveways. The XC performed flawlessly!! I even learned how to do quick SNAP 180s with it while attempting to pack down the mother in law's street (as it hadn't been plowed and everyone was getting stuck). The tires are AMAZING!! I know that the previous tire (a Conti) wasn't always considered that great for snow but these Pirellis are truly up to any task you may throw at them!! Truly a tire for all seasons. One less set of rims and rubber lying around in the garage. Braking is also exceptional with this slightly heavier setup. You'll only see ABS when you REALLY hammer the binders or happen to catch some black ice. What is truly phenomenal about this vehicle is the way it'll plow through snowdrifts. Many people in my area have their driveways cleared by plows and as such there is often a large drift of snow left at the end of their driveway partially blocking the street. Cars tend to avoid these packed snow drifts and when they go around them there's not enough room on the road for a car to pass in the opposite direction. Enter the XC. I just POUND through these subtle obstructions with ease and the car doesn't pull to the passenger side when doing it either. Gotta love TRACS eh? The only downfall to this style of driving would be the snow that gets packed into the rims causing the balance to get out of whack. Nothing a pressure washer can't handle though. This has to be one of the best choices around for conditions like these. SUVs are just plain top heavy and take weeks to slow down, cars get hung up when there's more than 6" in the road. Talk about the best of both worlds with this new XC. The only problem I can see with this new toy is that everyone else around you is still driving either a car or SUV and as such, your commute times aren't terribly improved but no complaints here. Dolby and a subwoofer help the traffic blahs fade from existence. Now, if I could just get traffic updates through the nav system.....

I too have a new XC and am just getting some experience with snow driving. Live in Syracuse, NY and winter is arriving. The question I have though is what tire pressure is recommended for this time of year. I know the recommendations range from something like 29 to 38 psi, depending on the load, but is there any recommendations for winter time driving? Any setting better for improving traction? Thanks.