Well, yeah, but...

To say you need them is ridiculous. The rover, with ATs, went through anything and everything just fine this winter. Im sure it had less traction than it would have with studs, but thats what throttle, counter steer, and drifting is for

We got like 8 inches last night. I drove my POS stratus with all-season highway tires 25 miles to work. Granted, the highways are plowed and salted, but I still couldnt see the pavement for most of the commute.

 

People managed in RWD boats in the '70s when they had real winters and all 4 season on barely vulcanized rubberlike compounds hahahaha we can make it with what we got nowadays easy

 

I drove in a recent blizzard - got 3' of snow in a single storm - I went out for dinner. Granted, it was more dangerous, but it was my first REAL storm with the rover, so I wanted to see how it would go.

No vehicles are better at stopping in the snow, but I could only get traction control to kick in when I'd be playing. I took it up the steepest hill I could find in my area, 8" of snow at the time with no issue. Fantastic truck in the snow. I love the long wheelbase compared to my old '98 Jeep Wrangler - Never had the feeling like the back end wanted to come around on me!

Dave

 

I don't quite know what you folks are talking about special winter tires.

I have NEVER had any issues with the Michelin LTX M/S tires.

Neither 10 inches of fresh snow or the steepest hills in Seattle have stopped me. As noted above the TC barely came on unless I was forcing it by hitting the gas hard.

The only problem I've ever had in winter driving the the wiper blades collecting ice and freezing.

Possibly some of you with troubles have The Amigos with warning lights disabled?

 

Huh? Is there a narrow turning radii?? I must have missed that option...

 

Who said you needed tires?



But really, while the Rover can have fun, the possibility of a lesser vehicle having serious loss of control and slamming into you is high. Avoid congested areas, drive with caution, the money you were planning for a new roof rack does not need to go for towing, etc. If you don't have a lot of experience on snow, no need to end up at the body shop. Snow can hide all sorts of hazards, like fire hydrants, curbs, etc. Washington traffic is bad enough in the rain.

But a Rover can handle quite a bit of snow:

 

I lived in the DC area for a bit, during the winter. With a Rover you have nothing to worry about. What you have to worry about are the transplants from the sunshine states (read gov't employees and lobbyists) who don know squat about driving in the snow. If you get stuck behind them, wait 10 minutes and the National Guard will show up and pull them out with a Humvee. Then the dope driving the Humvee will get stuck and you can show them how to properly use and all- wheel drive vehicle

 

My Disco is my ski/board/bike beater truck. So far alone this year, 45 ski trips with it. Granted, not all in snow, but I got it for that reason.
Like others said, it will pull you OUT of anything. Great ground clearance, tons of weight on the wheels and solid 4WD. Even when I got it a few years ago and it had regular all season rubber, it pulled me through a 2 foot blizzard with no issues.
I put a set of AT/S tires on her, and they are much better. But still, I don't particularly like the way it corners or stops on snow. As said, she is heavy, and the best 4WD isn't helping you stop any quicker. As far as handling, same things applies. Toss more weight into a corner, and that is more mass that needs to change direction.
I live in an area with plenty of empty back roads, and I do go out each time it snows just to drive (BTW, I have instructed winter driving events so I'm not just an idiot...I'm an idiot who kinda knows what he is doing). I don't love the handling on the truck, and found it like to plow instead of oversteer with the throttle on snow (exactly the opposite of what you want). SHOULD you find yourself heading towards a curb because of the understeer, and want to hang the tail out quickly to change direction, the quick pull of the parking brake will actually work, even though it is driveline based for all 4 tires. The rears will lock up first, and give you enough of a drift to then power out of.
I would love if you could defeat the traction control like on every other car, as popping the tail out in a controlled skid would be easier for those who know what they are doing. But alas, it is not. So, keep your speed in check, test your stopping distance (without someone behind you) on each new snowy surface you drive on, and keep the shiny side up!

 

I agree that you have very little to worry about in terms of snow driving in a Disco going forward. It will go over and/or through just about anything you point it at.

This must be a TC difference between the D1 and D2.

I have a D1. I agree it seems to tend towards understeer. However, I found aggressive throttle will pop the rear end pretty easily.

 

The facts are that true snow tires are better in snow than AT tires. The additional siping, softer rubber and snow-specific tread design is superior to an AT tire. There are performance type snow tires that are not as good as the more aggressive designs, but these tires allow for better performance on dry or wet roads on more performance oriented vehicles. The rubber compounds used on standard AT tires undergo a plastic transformation at lower temperatures that makes the rubber behave poorly on ice and snow. I have used snow tires on many different vehicles and the difference in braking and handling on ice and snow between a good all season tire and a snow tire is unreal.

That being said, the all wheel/four wheel (for cdl trucks) design along with traction control makes the Discovery a pretty good winter vehicle even without the aid of snow tires. Although not all AT tires are a good choice for snow. Look for a tire with lots of siping and check for reviews regarding performance in snow. I just replaced some BFG All Terrains that came on my truck with Goodyear Duratracs because they were scary in the snow. And stay away from a mud tire. They typically have solid lugs with no siping and are terrible in snow.

Most all season and AT tires will likely work well enough for most winter driving, but with snow tires, traction, handling and stopping in snow and on ice in particular will be amazing.