For many years, a
lowered '86 t-bird (also a Fox platform) was my DD that I also used in the winter.
People drove rear-wheel drive cars in the winter long before there was front wheel drive, ABS, traction control, etc. It was harder, but doable.
However,
today, most of the vehicles today have ABS. So, IMHO,
today, any vehicle that doesn't have ABS and is driven in the winter snow/ice is a HUGE risk because other vehicles can stop in much shorter distances, but the non ABS equipped vehicle will plow into the stopped vehicles.
Any vehicle that can not stop in time is AT FAULT - PERIOD! It does NOT matter if some jerk just slams on their brakes in the middle of the highway with no other cars around. Any vehicle that fails to stop in time, for any reason, was following too close and/or going too fast.
Uhm, my '86 Stang has ABS (from a 97 Cobra), so my Stang is all set for winter driving also. I do drive it ~once every two weeks in the winter when the streets and weather is nice. I have a full set of Blizzaks because my
summer-only ultra performance tires are a death trap when the temps go below ~45F! With
summer-only tires, on the highway during the middle of winter, even with 100% dry pavement, at night when the temps are below ~30F, it can be
impossible to stay in a lane and go over 45MPH.
Yea, do a 40+mile drive on the highway at speeds below 40MPH, praying that you can keep the car in the slow lane and just the slow lane, praying that a cop doesn't show up, and you learn very quickly what
SUMMER-ONLY tires really means. :O
But, back to the T-bird (Fox platform) and driving in winter snow:
Requirements:
1) **REAL** SNOW TIRES!! NOT those stupid cr*p all-season sh** tires. I'm talking TRUE SNOW ONLY TIRES! I love Blizzaks! I strongly suggest that you get a spare set of rims. Tires are
not made to be put on/off rims.
2)
Securely put sand/etc as far back in the trunk as you can. I love " Quikrete Tube Sand".
QUIKRETE® - Sand - Tubesand®
3) Keep the gas tank topped off. That adds even more weight.
4) Do not use "wide" snow tires. For a Stang, a 215/225 is a good snow tire width - nothing wider!
5) Get the anti-slip rear end disks in the differential replaced, or get the whole guts of the diff replaced with a better unit/type.
6) Use studs or chains if the law and conditions permit.
Last, not a requirement, but putting ABS in a Fox stang is a huge help for winter driving (actually,
stopping.
) But, it requires an sn95 5-lug upgrade on all 4 wheels, adding a 94->97 ABS unit, doing a few new brake lines, some brake line routing, and adding the wiring. A number of people have done it.
As for cost and time. I did it for $2.54 and I did it all under 5mins. Yup, and pigs fly out of my ***.
In
reality, you're looking at 2-6 days just to add the ABS setup to an existing sn95 brake setup on a Stang that already has the abs sensors and rings. Cost is
very dependent on what you can get from the junkyard, classifieds, ebay, etc. Getting all of the needed connectors is a big issue.
But, hey, I'm sure that people will tell you that you can do the 5-lug upgrade, new rims & tires, all ABS stuff, have the car covered in diamonds, for a
max of cost $25 and do it in
under a day while guzzling many six packs of beer. Yup, just check the past forum posts.
Good Luck with your Stang in the snow! Yea, it may not be easy, but it is possible to drive.
peace