Winter....potholes....and automatics. Ugh!

[Shadow]

This has been a really rough winter here in my part of NY. Lots of snow, plenty of cold temps, black ice all over the roads--probably more than I've ever seen in one season. And now to top it all off--pothole city (insert comical Rope Pusher pic here). Yup, a lot of the roads around here are probably worse than those in a 3rd world country. Road crews don't have a chance in hell of keeping up. Anyone who lives near me has probably heard that the Palisades Parkway (which is a major route into NYC via the George Washington Bridge) is a complete disaster for the 11 miles on the New Jersey side. The New York portion of the Palisades is fine, but once you cross the border into NJ, it's nothing but wall-to-wall potholes all the way to the bridge. It's bad. I mean really bad. People are blowing out tires and bending wheels. Hell, one lady was on the news because her Ford Taurus was totaled after hitting a pothole. Her car was old and the damage was basically to the wheels/tires/suspension, but the cost of repairs was more than the value of the car. LOL...Imagine totaling your car by hitting a pothole!

Anyway, I've been driving my 4Runner exclusively for the last seven weeks now. The Audi is tucked away in the garage, all clean and shiny. I don't think I've ever in my life gone that long without driving a stick....And of course my 4Runner is an automatic, so I've been "stickless" for far too long. The snow has been rapidly melting and the road crews are starting to make a bit of progress with the potholes, so it shouldn't be too long before I take the Audi out for a spin. I can't wait. I'm bored to tears driving the 4Runner every day.

BTW, in case anyone is wondering why I didn't drive the Audi much this winter, there are a few simple reasons: First, despite the fact that the car is AWD, it has summer tires on it, which means it would be pretty much useless in snow. Secondly, 19" wheels with 35-series rubber is a recipe for disaster during pothole season. One good hit on a pothole and I'm probably looking at big $$$ to replace a wheel and/or tire, not to mention getting an alignment. My 4Runner is much better equipped to deal with snow and big potholes, so it makes more sense to me to just use the 4Runner for winter duty and keep the Audi in the garage, out of the snow/ice and road salt. Still though, I'm having stick withdrawal....

[monkeyhunk]

Sounds like you need to trade that 4 runner in for a similar type of vehicle that has a clutch. That would alleviate SOME of your pain for next year st least.

[Shadow]

Sounds like you need to trade that 4 runner in for a similar type of vehicle that has a clutch. That would alleviate SOME of your pain for next year st least.

Yeah, I really don't mind having the automatic in a 4Runner, but then again I've never driven it exclusively for such a long period of time. Besides, there aren't many midsize SUVs that you can buy with a stick these days. I believe the last 4Runner offered with a stick was right around the year 2000, give or take a year or two. Mine is a 2004 that I purchased new and it has been the most reliable vehicle I've ever owned. I was planning to replace it with a Jeep Grand Cherokee and I even went as far as ordering one, but I decided to hold off for a while because there are soooooo many people having issues with the current 2014 models. Either way, it's just trading one automatic for another. I'm just bummed because it's been far too long to not drive a stick. Maybe I'll take the car out this weekend and just dodge the potholes....or better yet--just drive on roads that I know are basically free of potholes in the first place.

[monkeyhunk]

Have you considered Compass Patriot or Ford Escape? I know those all come in stick.

[Shadow]

Have you considered Compass Patriot or Ford Escape? I know those all come in stick.

Nah...I wanted to stick with midsize SUVs. I also like the capability of the 4Runner. A Grand Cherokee should be similar as far as capability. The only vehicle I can think of that is a midsize SUV with that kind of capability and a stick is the Xterra. I do like the Xterra, but it is lacking in refinement compared to either of the vehicles I've mentioned.

Maybe next year I'll just get a set of winter wheels and tires for my Audi and drive it all winter. With the right tires, the car should be fantastic in the snow. Audi's quattro system is supposed to be amazing from what I've read....but I honestly wouldn't know because mine has been on nothing but dry roads. LOL

[Shadow]

Figured I'd beat Rope Pusher to it....

[tankinbeans]

Tankinbeans feels your pain. Our potholes are getting pretty bad, but they're not too horrible you. That being said, last Tuesday I slammed into one head on at 55 mph. Luckily nothing was damaged, but it sure was a wake-up call.

I'm just happy I have Olie back and can use him to get around. He's finally back to decent condition underneath after the rest of the work that's been done, mostly neglected maintenance. He also has new tires all around.

[Rope-Pusher]

Still though, I'm having stick withdrawal....

Ain't that some kinda birth control method?

Our potholes were filled nice and level with ice until some recent thaws and now they are potcraters.

[monkeyhunk]

Tankinbeans feels your pain. Our potholes are getting pretty bad, but they're not too horrible you. That being said, last Tuesday I slammed into one head on at 55 mph. Luckily nothing was damaged, but it sure was a wake-up call.

I'm just happy I have Olie back and can use him to get around. He's finally back to decent condition underneath after the rest of the work that's been done, mostly neglected maintenance. He also has new tires all around.

Tankinbeans refers to himself in the third person like a certain Sesame Street character I know.

[potownrob]

don't forget the 4Runner is also uber taller than the A5 and the A5 probably would've gotten at least kind of (probably not totally with AWD and at least all-seasons) stuck (like a beached whale!!) in some of the snow, probably mangled on some of the snowmounds and possibly damaged from hitting hidden curbs and the like. my car got trashed to an extent by this winter, especially our last big snow storm (the one a month or so ago). the lower section of my front bumper with the spoiler thing (snow scoop??) got broken up pretty bad on snow mounds and riding over snow too high for the car. roof got scraped up but probably my fault for using a shovel one time. wish i had a taller vehicle during that last storm at least since there was a good 6-15 inches down all over and i had to walk around town (while at work etc.) til it was cleared.

[Squint]

Tankinbeans feels your pain. Our potholes are getting pretty bad, but they're not too horrible you. That being said, last Tuesday I slammed into one head on at 55 mph. Luckily nothing was damaged, but it sure was a wake-up call.

I'm just happy I have Olie back and can use him to get around. He's finally back to decent condition underneath after the rest of the work that's been done, mostly neglected maintenance. He also has new tires all around.

Tankinbeans refers to himself in the third person like a certain Sesame Street character I know.

Cookie Monster just want cookiiiiiiiiies.

[tankinbeans]

Tankinbeans likes cookies.

[daleadbull]

Don't even get me started on the potholes. I'm usually very careful in trying to avoid them but last week I hit one pretty hard, I couldn't even see the damn thing. Luckily, I don't think I bubbled a tire or bent a rim after a quick inspection. Can't they just design the roads better instead of just mindlessly pouring more asphalt into the potholes over and over again?

[tankinbeans]

QUIT USING SENSE! Your overlords hate that.

[Squint]

Can't they just design the roads better instead of just mindlessly pouring more asphalt into the potholes over and over again?

Cost is by far the biggest obstacle to better roads. Sure, someone could probably come up with a better design for road paving that would make it last longer/be stronger/better to drive on/etc.. but the cost of installing it would be outrageous and that isn't counting the engineering cost for someone to figure that out if they haven't done so already.

Source: I see wasteful spending daily on engineering projects.