First Winter Test for my LC FE

[Marinna]

Location: Banff & Jasper
Temperature: 15-30 F Mostly
Wheel and Tire: Stock size BFG KO3

I am trying to give the first subtle but real test to my LC. I can barely find more than 4 inches snow to drive on nor did I do any crazy tests like sleeping in the car at 10000 ft in the Canadian Rockies during the winter blizzard (I actually did that before with a Jeep rental). I only have minimal set of accessories on the car like traction pads and one 3 gallon rotopax, which expectedly I did not have the chance to use them.

This is what I’ve learned:
1. I did not notice yet any winter scenarios that really challenge LC at this time, not at 4-5 inches slushes on the group at least. The engine start didn’t even struggle a single bit at 15 F (LC Hybrid has a very temperature friendly starting sequence). Although I would still be interested to know whether it will have any issue at more extreme conditions like -40F

2. KO3 is alright, it is capable but I’ve definitely hit its limits several times with even a drier season in the Rockies. I initially pump 41 psi into the tire, with the temperature drop it mostly stays cold at 37 though.

3. Boxy design is aesthetically pleasing, but it is not practical. So many things hit my front everyday from all the winter road debris to snow and mud trapping to my head light and all the sensors.

4. My floor needs better weather protection for snow and mud. It is so dirty inside now. Hard plastic like WeatherTech is the way to go if you area rains and/or snows

5. My rule to warm up the engine in this weather is 3 minutes from a cold start. Transmission fluid is always the last to heat up, last to cool off. I do not know if any special treatment is needed for this temperature.

6. Driving at Canadian Rockies during the night is very very dark and disorienting. I find AHB is a very handy feature in this case. and for snowy trails and smaller roads at night you would certainly appreciate some additional lighting on LC, though not sure what does the law says, probably borderline I would guess.

7. Not LC related but my car needs a very good wash now. Not even all the PPF and ceramic coating can self-wiping much of them away. Also my PPF guy applied some leftover PPF on the back of my mirror. Not working at all. If you want to keep it mint try to get one of these plastic cover for your mirror instead.

8. I consider jerry-can mandatory for LC for a longer remote trip. The station gap between Banff and Jasper is 230 km. That is 140+ miles in the snowy mountains without any cell phone service. Though it is funny to see how much Tesla is driving around me.

 

[NoMe cruiser]

4. My floor needs better weather protection for snow and mud. It is so dirty inside now. Hard plastic like WeatherTech is the way to go if you area rains and/or snows

My OEM floor mats didn’t work good at all. Snow melted and water got under the drivers side mat. Dealer had to lift up the carpet, dry it out and then offered to purchase floor mats of my choice. I choose the weather techs mainly because that’s what they recommended. They are far superior to the OEM mats.

 

[ultane]

Marinna, thanks for the nice review! It’s nice to put a LC photo, with an inmate. My Miss Daisy is the twin to your LC FE.

 

[b407driver]

...
This is what I’ve learned:
...
2. KO3 is alright, it is capable but I’ve definitely hit its limits several times with even a drier season in the Rockies. I initially pump 41 psi into the tire, with the temperature drop it mostly stays cold at 37 though.

Another lemming buyer of the KO3? Weird. So many people buy them for their looks, and so many of their fans won't acknowledge how the KO series tires have always been marginal all-around performers. No surprise there, and yes, they are great off-road.

3. Boxy design is aesthetically pleasing, but it is not practical. So many things hit my front everyday from all the winter road debris to snow and mud trapping to my head light and all the sensors.

You bought a boxy SUV, how is this in any way surprising? In snowy/wet weather, snow adheres to the leading edge surfaces of things moving through the air, whether you are in a car, a truck or a bicycle. No, these sensors and headlights don't have heaters. Not driving at night in a snow storm is pretty high on my list of priorities, at least if I don't absolutely have to.

4. My floor needs better weather protection for snow and mud. It is so dirty inside now. Hard plastic like WeatherTech is the way to go if you area rains and/or snows

Thus the several duplicate threads here discussing WetherTech and Husky liners vs OEM (I'm sure you've seen them). Anyone who sticks their head down low enough to look at the OEM mat coverage around the accelerator pedal could anticipate that the carpet would get wet.

5. My rule to warm up the engine in this weather is 3 minutes from a cold start. Transmission fluid is always the last to heat up, last to cool off. I do not know if any special treatment is needed for this temperature.

OK... what's your point? It's always been advisable to allow your car to warm up a bit in extreme winter temperatures.

6. Driving at Canadian Rockies during the night is very very dark and disorienting. I find AHB is a very handy feature in this case. and for snowy trails and smaller roads at night you would certainly appreciate some additional lighting on LC, though not sure what does the law says, probably borderline I would guess.

Yes, it's 'dark and disorienting' in the mountains at night, it's not just the Canadian Rockies. I find the headlights of the LC more than adequate, and adding more lights won't help on-road, except to annoy TS out of fellow drivers. Perhaps check your speed if you feel you need more light driving at night. Or your spectacle prescription.

7. Not LC related but my car needs a very good wash now. Not even all the PPF and ceramic coating can self-wiping much of them away. Also my PPF guy applied some leftover PPF on the back of my mirror. Not working at all. If you want to keep it mint try to get one of these plastic cover for your mirror instead.

Of course your car is dirty after driving in winter conditions in the mountains, and I would never try to 'wipe' such crud off to clean my vehicle. Perhaps you should just wash it.

8. I consider jerry-can mandatory for LC for a longer remote trip. The station gap between Banff and Jasper is 230 km. That is 140+ miles in the snowy mountains without any cell phone service. Though it is funny to see how much Tesla is driving around me.

Jerry-can or Rotopax, which is it? I'd personally try to avoid having to 'manually' add gas to the vehicle in wet/sloppy conditions, especially if your Rotopax is on top of the car, getting hammered by slush, sand and/or mag chloride. I tend to stop more for gas in the winter when driving in remote places, and with the LC it's about 35 miles/tank worse than the 5th Gen 4Runner. So I make more gas stops now.

Lastly, what are the goofy stickers on the side of your vehicle? Is that 'arrow' one directing people to where the door handle is???

 

[ultane]

Another lemming buyer of the KO3? Weird. So many people buy them for their looks, and so many of their fans won't acknowledge how the KO series tires have always been marginal all-around performers. No surprise there, and yes, they are great off-road.

You bought a boxy SUV, how is this in any way surprising? In snowy/wet weather, snow adheres to the leading edge surfaces of things moving through the air, whether you are in a car, a truck or a bicycle. No, these sensors and headlights don't have heaters. Not driving at night in a snow storm is pretty high on my list of priorities, at least if I don't absolutely have to.

Thus the several duplicate threads here discussing WetherTech and Husky liners vs OEM (I'm sure you've seen them). Anyone who sticks their head down low enough to look at the OEM mat coverage around the accelerator pedal could anticipate that the carpet would get wet.

OK... what's your point? It's always been advisable to allow your car to warm up a bit in extreme winter temperatures.

Yes, it's 'dark and disorienting' in the mountains at night, it's not just the Canadian Rockies. I find the headlights of the LC more than adequate, and adding more lights won't help on-road, except to annoy TS out of fellow drivers. Perhaps check your speed if you feel you need more light driving at night. Or your spectacle prescription.

Of course your car is dirty after driving in winter conditions in the mountains, and I would never try to 'wipe' such crud off to clean my vehicle. Perhaps you should just wash it.

Jerry-can or Rotopax, which is it? I'd personally try to avoid having to 'manually' add gas to the vehicle in wet/sloppy conditions, especially if your Rotopax is on top of the car, getting hammered by slush, sand and/or mag chloride. I tend to stop more for gas in the winter when driving in remote places, and with the LC it's about 35 miles/tank worse than the 5th Gen 4Runner. So I make more gas stops now.

Lastly, what are the goofy stickers on the side of your vehicle? Is that 'arrow' one directing people to where the door handle is???

Do you feel better now?

 

[Marinna]

Another lemming buyer of the KO3? Weird. So many people buy them for their looks, and so many of their fans won't acknowledge how the KO series tires have always been marginal all-around performers. No surprise there, and yes, they are great off-road.

You bought a boxy SUV, how is this in any way surprising? In snowy/wet weather, snow adheres to the leading edge surfaces of things moving through the air, whether you are in a car, a truck or a bicycle. No, these sensors and headlights don't have heaters. Not driving at night in a snow storm is pretty high on my list of priorities, at least if I don't absolutely have to.

Thus the several duplicate threads here discussing WetherTech and Husky liners vs OEM (I'm sure you've seen them). Anyone who sticks their head down low enough to look at the OEM mat coverage around the accelerator pedal could anticipate that the carpet would get wet.

OK... what's your point? It's always been advisable to allow your car to warm up a bit in extreme winter temperatures.

Yes, it's 'dark and disorienting' in the mountains at night, it's not just the Canadian Rockies. I find the headlights of the LC more than adequate, and adding more lights won't help on-road, except to annoy TS out of fellow drivers. Perhaps check your speed if you feel you need more light driving at night. Or your spectacle prescription.

Of course your car is dirty after driving in winter conditions in the mountains, and I would never try to 'wipe' such crud off to clean my vehicle. Perhaps you should just wash it.

Jerry-can or Rotopax, which is it? I'd personally try to avoid having to 'manually' add gas to the vehicle in wet/sloppy conditions, especially if your Rotopax is on top of the car, getting hammered by slush, sand and/or mag chloride. I tend to stop more for gas in the winter when driving in remote places, and with the LC it's about 35 miles/tank worse than the 5th Gen 4Runner. So I make more gas stops now.

Lastly, what are the goofy stickers on the side of your vehicle? Is that 'arrow' one directing people to where the door handle is???

Not sure why you feel annoyed about my post. Enough that you even have to argue the definition of jerrycan and rotopax or my vision or keep asking my points.

The goal of this post is to share my winter test first hand experience. You can paper analyzed to the bone for all the things about a vehicle, but non of them matters before you do a real world test, that is what I am doing and sharing. This is real world test, not these sugarcoated marketing content.

I only want to comment about KO3. As I posted in a separate thread, I personally have no passion to any rubber, just try to find the right tool to the right job. I need a passing all-around solutions rather than these LTX Trail. KO3 is a better fit for my need than other alternatives, and I want to test their limits in the cold weather.

My love is always about outdoor life, not tires, not LED light, not car wash and being flashing, not even about vehicles. They are tools to help me to achieve the choice of life style. Isn’t that the concept Toyota sold to us for decades about Land Cruiser?

 

[bryan8252]

Another lemming buyer of the KO3? Weird. So many people buy them for their looks, and so many of their fans won't acknowledge how the KO series tires have always been marginal all-around performers. No surprise there, and yes, they are great off-road.

You bought a boxy SUV, how is this in any way surprising? In snowy/wet weather, snow adheres to the leading edge surfaces of things moving through the air, whether you are in a car, a truck or a bicycle. No, these sensors and headlights don't have heaters. Not driving at night in a snow storm is pretty high on my list of priorities, at least if I don't absolutely have to.

Thus the several duplicate threads here discussing WetherTech and Husky liners vs OEM (I'm sure you've seen them). Anyone who sticks their head down low enough to look at the OEM mat coverage around the accelerator pedal could anticipate that the carpet would get wet.

OK... what's your point? It's always been advisable to allow your car to warm up a bit in extreme winter temperatures.

Yes, it's 'dark and disorienting' in the mountains at night, it's not just the Canadian Rockies. I find the headlights of the LC more than adequate, and adding more lights won't help on-road, except to annoy TS out of fellow drivers. Perhaps check your speed if you feel you need more light driving at night. Or your spectacle prescription.

Of course your car is dirty after driving in winter conditions in the mountains, and I would never try to 'wipe' such crud off to clean my vehicle. Perhaps you should just wash it.

Jerry-can or Rotopax, which is it? I'd personally try to avoid having to 'manually' add gas to the vehicle in wet/sloppy conditions, especially if your Rotopax is on top of the car, getting hammered by slush, sand and/or mag chloride. I tend to stop more for gas in the winter when driving in remote places, and with the LC it's about 35 miles/tank worse than the 5th Gen 4Runner. So I make more gas stops now.

Lastly, what are the goofy stickers on the side of your vehicle? Is that 'arrow' one directing people to where the door handle is???

This is just an ignorant post.

 

[b407driver]

Do you feel better now?

I do.

 

[ultane]

This is just an ignorant post.

More of a hateful derogatory post, if you ask me.

I bet he is fun at parties. Every forum has people like him, bullying others for their posts.

 

[ultane]

I do.

Dude, it was a rhetorical question.

 

[axmoicer F]

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience!

 

[Marinna]

Marinna, thanks for the nice review! It’s nice to put a LC photo, with an inmate. My Miss Daisy is the twin to your LC FE.

I want to drive my FE till it’s the last FE on the road. So we are in a competition

 

[b407driver]

Dude, it was a rhetorical question.

As was my statement.