CTR Owners In Snowing Areas

For anyone owning a Type R in Area that can get below freezing, I got a couple of question:

1. Assuming the car is riding on stock tires what kind of behavior do you get diving when the temperature gets below 40 degrees? I drove my car for the first time at freezing temperature today and I noticed when I initially drive of, I get a one or two "clunking" sound when I made my first turn out of the parking space that sound a lot like the a wheel hop. And that's the only time I heard it.

2. How long should I warm up the car?

3. Any odd symptoms I might experience with the car engine and suspension in cold weather beside the brake squeaking?

The shifter feels less smooth in like the first 10 min, I think much like cold start normally but it just takes longer to warm up. The ride will feel a bit firmer too as shock oil tend to be less viscous in low temp(will warm up eventually). I feel like there are more buzzing sound in the interior from the trims but it wasn't that great to start with...

dn7309 said:

1. Assuming the car is riding on stock tires what kind of behavior do you get diving when the temperature gets below 40 degrees? I drove my car for the first time at freezing temperature today and I noticed when I initially drive of, I get a one or two "clunking" sound when I made my first turn out of the parking space that sound a lot like the a wheel hop. And that's the only time I heard it.

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I don't think anyone would recommend driving on stock tires in freezing temperatures. Many have done it, and many of been okay, but that doesn't make it a good idea. Get some winter wheels/tires. It's cheep insurance.
The popping sound is apparently the differential and is normal (or so I've read). I heard it when driving in the 40s.

dn7309 said:

2. How long should I warm up the car?

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You're probably better off just driving slow/easy until the engine warms up than just letting it idle for 20 minutes.

In most ways, it's just like any other car you would drive in the winter.

Maybe my hearing is bad but I don’t hear anything unusual when I drive in the cold. Cold here means near single digit temps. If your temps are around 40 for a very short period I think you’ll be ok driving slow and steady on oem tires but if it gets colder or stays cold longer a dedicated winter tire does wonders. Oh ya I don’t warm up the car unless it’s been sitting out in 0 degree temps and that is only for a few mins to get some heat inside. Just start and drive if your in the 40s.

RedGiant217 said:

I don't think anyone would recommend driving on stock tires in freezing temperatures. Many have done it, and many of been okay, but that doesn't make it a good idea. Get some winter wheels/tires. It's cheep insurance.
The popping sound is apparently the differential and is normal (or so I've read). I heard it when driving in the 40s.


You're probably better off just driving slow/easy until the engine warms up than just letting it idle for 20 minutes.

In most ways, it's just like any other car you would drive in the winter.

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I’m getting some all seasons installed now before my OEM tires crack.

If you can you can recall where you read about the “popping” or “clunking” sound can you link me to the original info. If it’s not something that is normal I might have to get a dealer to look at it.

Not only are a set of winter tires cheap insurance but an 18inch wheel help with curbs, improves ride quality and has been shown to increase lap times. you'll lose some top speed but if you don't go 170mph every time you are on the road then it shouldn't be a problem.

dn7309 said:

For anyone owning a Type R in Area that can get below freezing, I got a couple of question:

1. Assuming the car is riding on stock tires what kind of behavior do you get diving when the temperature gets below 40 degrees? I drove my car for the first time at freezing temperature today and I noticed when I initially drive of, I get a one or two "clunking" sound when I made my first turn out of the parking space that sound a lot like the a wheel hop. And that's the only time I heard it.

2. How long should I warm up the car?

3. Any odd symptoms I might experience with the car engine and suspension in cold weather beside the brake squeaking?

Click to expand...

I drove my car to work the last 2 days here (i'm also in denver) It was below freezing in the morning and i just took it easy. It has limited traction but as long as you are not getting on it and trying to set a best lap time (which you should never do anyway) on your way to work i think it's fine. The tires are not ideal in freezing temps but not that bad imho. fwd and a mechanical lsd really help ! I have a truck for when it snows or is icy however and only drive the type r when it's zero or very little chance of rain and i park the type r in the garage when it is any chance of snow / icy conditions.

Kevin S. said:

I drove my car to work the last 2 days here (i'm also in denver) It was below freezing in the morning and i just took it easy. It has limited traction but as long as you are not getting on it and trying to set a best lap time (which you should never do anyway) on your way to work i think it's fine. The tires are not ideal in freezing temps but not that bad imho. fwd and a mechanical lsd really help ! I have a truck for when it snows or is icy however and only drive the type r when it's zero or very little chance of rain and i park the type r in the garage when it is any chance of snow / icy conditions.

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Any chance you're the White CTR that only park on S Colorado Blvd on the weekends?

dn7309 said:

For anyone owning a Type R in Area that can get below freezing, I got a couple of question:

1. Assuming the car is riding on stock tires what kind of behavior do you get diving when the temperature gets below 40 degrees? I drove my car for the first time at freezing temperature today and I noticed when I initially drive of, I get a one or two "clunking" sound when I made my first turn out of the parking space that sound a lot like the a wheel hop. And that's the only time I heard it.

2. How long should I warm up the car?

3. Any odd symptoms I might experience with the car engine and suspension in cold weather beside the brake squeaking?

Click to expand...

Better read your manual there are issues with the rubber below 40F and below that there are risks of tire damage. That is why everyone buys other tires and wheels for winter or puts their car on jack stands.

Plombhpa said:

Better read your manual there are issues with the rubber below 40F and below that there are risks of tire damage. That is why everyone buys other tires and wheels for winter or puts their car on jack stands.

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I am quite aware of that. Just Swapped my tires to all season today.

Do not drive on stock tires in winter. They don’t work well below 60F.

Do not drive all seasons in winter - it’s a myth. They’re NOT made for below 40F. This has been a falsity for so long.

Get WINTER tires - technical name. It’s not just for snow but for temps below 40F. Line up 2 cars, 1 with winter tires vs 1 with all season at 30F and see what happens. The winter tires are made with compound that remains soft way down below 0F. You want to down size to 18” and use 245/40/18 to be same as stock tire circumference and speedo. For excellent traction on snow and ice go 235/45/18 which is same as stock circumference and speedo.

Read my write up below as to why winter tires are made for winters ala low temps not just snow and ice. I’m on Titan 7 T-R10 forged wheels and Michelin X-Ice 245/40/18 for winter/low temp setup in Columbus, OH.

Also, everything else you said is normal. Things get stiffer and take longer to warm up simply because of lower temps. It’s nothing new and nothing unique to a CTR...same for all cars.

dn7309 said:

I’m getting some all seasons installed now before my OEM tires crack.

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Get real tires! No use to buy something that gives you the worst of both worlds. All season is useless for summer on a car with so much power, and they are also useless if winter hits you hard.
Greetings from Norway, we have currently -13 degrees (8 f).

I have real winter tires, but they are high-speed winter tires that should manage the CTR top speed. This means the rubber is a bit harder than usual winter tires. I'm not satisfied and I will swap them out with some real winter tires, but they have usually a limit on 110 mph.

I'll add my 2 cents cause I have experience with several winter tires on different cars. In short, get the right type of winter tire for your needs. If you get a ton of snow and ice, get something like a studless/studdable ice and snow tire. If you only get a few storms a year, get a performance winter tire that works better every nicer day.

Studdless Ice/Snow
I put General Altimax Arctic tires on my Impreza, my wife's Mazda CX-7, and later CX-5 when she got that. Excellent price for winter performance, and in tirerack's testing they performed way better than everything much more expensive. I'll get them again on my wife's car if possible, and we got 4 winters out of them.
I've driving different Blizzaks and the X-Ice 3, but I didn't find them any more reassuring than the Generals.

Performance Winter Tires
I just traded in my Audi S6 with about ~575 hp, and ~640 lb-ft of torque. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3's had a remarkable amount of grip. They got me through several ice and snow storms with zero issues, and put down all the power well. Last time it was snowing hard and very icy here I was driving around everyone, especially from a stop on steep inclines. Almost no wheels spin pulling out even with ridiculous power.

On the Civic Type R
On my CTR I just installed 245/40/18 Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3 tires on cheap wheels. I know they won't be able to put down nearly 300 lb-ft in a FWD car, but they will do well, and should handle much better than regular winter tires.

Those are interesting winter wheels and oddly like them. I agree with you as well considering the tires.

Just throwing this out there - not all climates have an on/off switch. Here I'm seeing below freezing to like 55 degrees tomorrow.

All seasons make sense here in the winter. But yeah, in Denver, probably not.