Dangerous Winter Vehicle

[resler]

Thought I had leased a safe car to protect my family. WRONG . . . despite having all the latest safety equipment, Mazda failed to put decent tires on the CX-7. The result . . . on only 2 inches of snow you'll go straight through a turn. On 3 inches of snow, I couldn't make it up my driveway (slight incline). End result is that this car is extremely dangerous on icy or snowy roads, even worse, IMO, than most FWD vehicles. Yes, I could purchase Nokia's but I've leased the CX-7. BTW, only 17K miles on tires which have been routinely rotated. Let the buyer beware, this is one dangerous winter ride.

 

[njaremka]

never will i trust stock tires on my car for the winter. dedicated snows regardless of whats supplied on the car when new.

 

[evilmonkeyMSP]

you're dubbing a car unsafe for winter driving because you didnt take the correct precautions in putting on snow tires? how is that Mazdas fault?

All season tires doesnt really mean all seasons lol

 

[Wintermute]

Thought I had leased a safe car to protect my family. WRONG . . . despite having all the latest safety equipment, Mazda failed to put decent tires on the CX-7. The result . . . on only 2 inches of snow you'll go straight through a turn. On 3 inches of snow, I couldn't make it up my driveway (slight incline). End result is that this car is extremely dangerous on icy or snowy roads, even worse, IMO, than most FWD vehicles. Yes, I could purchase Nokia's but I've leased the CX-7. BTW, only 17K miles on tires which have been routinely rotated. Let the buyer beware, this is one dangerous winter ride.

Are they the Bridgestone Turanza EL42 or one of the Goodyear models (I found the Eagle RS-A and Eagle ResponseEdge)? I was looking at the ratings for OE tires on the CX-7 at Tire Rack and most of them have really crappy snow ratings. Sorry to hear that. I like the CX-7 too. Are you 100% sure they didn't give you summer tires? I wouldn't put it past them to do that. The CX-7 is marketed as more of a sports car than SUV so it wouldn't surprise me in the least that they started putting summer tires on 'em. You may want to switch them out for the Blizzak LM-25 if you are doing more winter driving.

All season tires doesnt really mean all seasons lol

True, but they should have better performance than that. What resler is describing sounds more like summer tires than even low grade all-seasons. The Pirelli P Zero Nero M+S tires for the MS6 have WAY better snow ratings than anything I found for the CX-7 but even so, they should provide some traction.

 

[sanblaster]

I have all seasons on my car and they suck ass on snow and s***.

 

[B1GHAM]

maybe its because of what I drive DAILY, but when I worked for the mazda dealer I took CX-7's out in the snow all the time. I'd Rather it than the tribute or the CX-9.

IMHO it drove like a champ (on stock tires). Very easy throttle modulation and controllability. I found it easy to take turns or swing the ass end around if necessary. Ground clearance was never an issue, and traction was easy to maintain with the right throttle control (as with any vehicle in the snow)

This was in 2-6" of snow with the most serious being a snow/ice storm we had that put down 6-8" of snow and ice.

could the tires have been better? HELL yea, but that can be said with any OEM tires in snow. I am just commenting that I found them to be adequate, I could certainly find worse all-seasons.

So its weird Ive heard a story of the exact opposite opinion here. I felt more than confident with the vehicle and never had an issue with getting stuck. Im not commenting on your ability to drive in snow as I dont know your background, but I find that most people assume that AWD/4WD = cureall for offroad and snow driving. The fact is, if you dont know how to drive it in the snow, youll still get stuck.

 

[Killer]

Thought I had leased a safe car to protect my family. WRONG . . . despite having all the latest safety equipment, Mazda failed to put decent tires on the CX-7. The result . . . on only 2 inches of snow you'll go straight through a turn. On 3 inches of snow, I couldn't make it up my driveway (slight incline). End result is that this car is extremely dangerous on icy or snowy roads, even worse, IMO, than most FWD vehicles. Yes, I could purchase Nokia's but I've leased the CX-7. BTW, only 17K miles on tires which have been routinely rotated. Let the buyer beware, this is one dangerous winter ride.

not mazdas fault. it is your fault for not having the correct tires on for snow and ice.

 

[Kurt07]

There is nothing like a good set of snow tires.

 

[zoomzone]

So, when it is not on the snow, would you still rate it as 'unsafe'? Most Mazdas come with performance tires, so they are not inclined to perform well in the snow.

 

[Mazda3]

Pretty much all of your 13 posts on this site are to complain about something. You're not happy with your car so you make a thread with a "scary" title to hopefully get back at Mazda some how by hopefully scaring some potential customers out of buying a CX-7? That about sum it up?

It's your responsibility not Mazdas to ensure you have proper winter tires. The CX-7 is NOT an unsafe winter vehicle, in fact with proper tires I would say it is one of the safest winter vehicles you could possibly buy.

 

[offset_98]

I don't buy it...we drive our 7 in the snow plenty - be it up in the mountains or on the occasion we get snow up here in the hills. We've never had a problem but then again - having lived in Chicago for 18 years prior, I know HOW to drive in the snow and ice.

 

[AWmustang]

The OEM Turanza's are definately the worst all-season tires I have experienced in snow. But even the best all season will be beat in snow by a dedicated winter tire.

You wouldn't complain that a pair of hiking shoes didn't work well in a race. And you would probably laugh at a woman who was shoveling the driveway wearing a pair of high heels.

The same goes for tires. You have to have the right ones on for the conditions.

 

[1Sleepy93]

Stock tires suck in the snow but stick some decent tires or chains on it and everything is fine. Hell mine isn't even the AWD model.

 

[joevac10]

Thought I had leased a safe car to protect my family. WRONG . . . despite having all the latest safety equipment, Mazda failed to put decent tires on the CX-7. The result . . . on only 2 inches of snow you'll go straight through a turn. On 3 inches of snow, I couldn't make it up my driveway (slight incline). End result is that this car is extremely dangerous on icy or snowy roads, even worse, IMO, than most FWD vehicles. Yes, I could purchase Nokia's but I've leased the CX-7. BTW, only 17K miles on tires which have been routinely rotated. Let the buyer beware, this is one dangerous winter ride.

I live in Chicago where we get tons of snow. I've had my CX-7 for over a year now going through two winters and about a half dozen snow storms. I have the stock tires on my Mazda with AWD. The suv is absolutely amazing in the snow and I have had no problems driving in the snow. You might want to take some snow driving lessing to learn how to drive properly in the snow. It sounds like you don't know what you are doing and you don't know what you are talking about.

 

[erhayes]

+1 Mazd3. We have a malcontent troll. Ed

 

[hectik1]

I don't buy it...we drive our 7 in the snow plenty - be it up in the mountains or on the occasion we get snow up here in the hills. We've never had a problem but then again - having lived in Chicago for 18 years prior, I know HOW to drive in the snow and ice.

I agree. If you know how to drive there are no problems. The DSC does wonders for turning in snow.

 

[resler]

To all who question MY driving . . . I truly believe we have MUCH more snow in NW MI than in moderate Chicago (by comparison). As such, yes, I am accustomed to driving in snow as my 40+ yrs. driving experience would indicate. FYI, the tires are Goodyear Eagle RSA's and yes, they do NOT perform in snow. And, remember, I'm only talking about 2-3 inches of snow, any respectable all season tires should perform adequately. Last point, to the moron who complained that my few posts were negative, well, I didn't realize you could only post positive CX-7 experiences. I've said I loved the car, appearance wise and for the ride BUT when you have a white knuckle experience every time you get a measly 2 inches of snow, something's wrong.
And, I won't put close to $600+ in tires on a leased vehicle. Perhaps I expect WAY too much for a vehicle that cost nearly $30K.

 

[Mazda3]

There's an almost identical thread going on in the CX-9 forum. The CX-7 is a sporty "CUV" not an "SUV". To increase the sporty handling it comes with a sporty tire. As it turns out that tire is total crap on ice. Lease or not it's not Mazda's resposibility to equip the CX-7 with snow tires. Yes there are all-season tires that perform better in the snow, but they might not perform as well on dry pavement. The dry handling is a major selling feature on the CX-7. The title of this thread is misleading to the inexperienced potenial buyer, because the CX-7 is an excellent winter vehicle, one of the best on the market.

Bottom line is that tires are your responsibility and have nothing to do with the design or quality of the vehicle.

 

[AlbanianDude]

To all who question MY driving . . . I truly believe we have MUCH more snow in NW MI than in moderate Chicago (by comparison). As such, yes, I am accustomed to driving in snow as my 40+ yrs. driving experience would indicate. FYI, the tires are Goodyear Eagle RSA's and yes, they do NOT perform in snow. And, remember, I'm only talking about 2-3 inches of snow, any respectable all season tires should perform adequately. Last point, to the moron who complained that my few posts were negative, well, I didn't realize you could only post positive CX-7 experiences. I've said I loved the car, appearance wise and for the ride BUT when you have a white knuckle experience every time you get a measly 2 inches of snow, something's wrong.
And, I won't put close to $600+ in tires on a leased vehicle. Perhaps I expect WAY too much for a vehicle that cost nearly $30K.

Just because you leased the vehicle doesnt mean you dont have to put tires on it, even as a lease you cant take it back with bald tires. By far this is a safe vehicle just like anything needs winter tires. I have a 300C SRT8 and that came with bad tires for a high performance vehicle so suck it up and buy a set of tires when you rear end someone you cant say my car came with bad tires. Tires Breaks and any wear and tear are your responsibility even on a leased vehicle. GROW UP

 

[Killer]

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