California - Winter driving CA/NV

I will go to California in December and drive to/in Nevada, probably at some point at high altitudes with snow. I've never been to US in the winter before, and when I've been driving in mountains during the summer, the roads have always been cleared from snow. Being from a cold country in northern Europe, I'm used to putting on studded or non-studded winter tires on my car in November, and keeping them on until March, and rental cars in my part of the world usually have winter tires on during the cold season.

Is it possible to book a car with winter tires and do I need to do it or are all non-tiny roads kept snow-free? Are tire chains allowed on rental cars?

Thanks for any advice,
tourist (climate confused :) )

I will go to California in December and drive to/in Nevada, probably at some point at high altitudes with snow. I've never been to US in the winter before, and when I've been driving in mountains during the summer, the roads have always been cleared from snow. Being from a cold country in northern Europe, I'm used to putting on studded or non-studded winter tires on my car in November, and keeping them on until March, and rental cars in my part of the world usually have winter tires on during the cold season.

Is it possible to book a car with winter tires and do I need to do it or are all non-tiny roads kept snow-free? Are tire chains allowed on rental cars?

Thanks for any advice,
tourist (climate confused :) ) It depends on where in CA and where in NV. Many people don't realize that CA and NV are huge states. The state of CA is bigger than many European countries combined. So, if you are driving between northern CA and norther NV (San Francisco to Tahoe/Reno) then the driving condition can be scary in the winter. It is not uncommon to have heavy snow on highway 80 with cars losing control and plunging into the snow accumulated on the side of the freeway. Some sections of the roads will require chain (truckee to tahoe) if it snow heavily.

On the other hand, if you are driving between Southern CA and Southern NV (Los Angeles and Las Vegas) then you don't have to worry about it. It doesn't snow along the 15 at all. It's cold and dry in vegas, but it doesn't snow. Btw, Los Angeles and San Francisco are 400 miles apart (6 hours of driving) many out of staters don't realize how far apart they are from one another.

...Is it possible to book a car with winter tires and do I need to do it or are all non-tiny roads kept snow-free? Are tire chains allowed on rental cars?

Thanks for any advice,
tourist (climate confused :) )

The key distinction is cars with four-wheel drive and those without. If you don't have 4WD, you might be required to put chains on your drive tires in snowy conditions.

If you expect to be driving in the mountains during winter out here, I strongly recommend that you book a 4WD of some kind. Then you don't need to worry about chains. Still, you'll want to keep an eye on road conditions, since it is common for Caltrans (the state government transportation agency) to close highways during periods of heavy snowfall.

You can check highway conditions online at:
http://www.dot.ca.gov/

...or by calling:
1-800-427-ROAD

On the other hand, if you are driving between Southern CA and Southern NV (Los Angeles and Las Vegas) then you don't have to worry about it. It doesn't snow along the 15 at all. It's cold and dry in vegas, but it doesn't snow.

This forum is really great, always accurate answers and good advice extremelly fast! Actually, it's primarily in the south, starting from SAN, and now I'm totally relaxed. One of my stops is at Grand Canyon, and I believe the north rim is closed in winter, so I have to take a southern route in AZ.

But the advice on chains and 4WD is much appreciated for future trips.

The only part of your itinerary mentioned so far that would be worrysome is your trip to the Grand Canyon & Flagstaff AZ area.... While the AZ Department of Transportation is usually pretty good about getting snow off the major highways, I've been caught in some pretty ugly snowstorms on I-40 in that area... Make sure you keep up with the weather reports in the area and check with http://www.az511.com/hcrsweb/hcrsweb.jsp to find current conditions and road closures.

A 4-wheel drive vehicle would be a good idea... Especially as many (all?) of the major US car rental chains forbid the use of tire chains on their rental cars (Alamo, National, Hertz). Some will rent "ski equipted" cars with outside racks for the skis and snow tires....but only in the area of major ski resorts. Finding one in San Diego would be *very* unlikely, as the ANY sking is more than 100 miles away.

The key distinction is cars with four-wheel drive and those without.

Actually, as I've learned the hard way, the difference is usually AWD (All Wheel Drive) or not. Sometimes they will let you through with 4WD, especially if the snow is relatively light and your distnace is short. But usually they require AWD to avoid chains. And sometimes it's only AWD with snow tires.

The rental companies don't have a lot of AWD's. so it's best to rent from a larger location, such as a major airport or the main location of a major city. An advance request helps. Usually just reserving a certain car class (like SUV) isn't sufficient to guarantee 4WD or AWD.

But, as noted, only for future reference since you will be in the south.

Here's something I learned when we rented an SUV for a Tahoe ski trip a while back:

The WalMart in Vacaville - en route from SFO/SJC/OAK to Tahoe - sells a huge selection of tire chains. If you don't use them, you can return them without a problem. We paid about $32 for ours (mid-size SUV) and returned them 5 days later, no problem. If you get stuck in the mountains without chains and have to buy them from the guys who patrol the mountain roads, the prices I saw started at about $100.

Twice on other trips we (and all traffic) were stopped by CalTrans and required to show that we did have chains with us before being allowed to proceed on certain routes.

http://www.az511.com/hcrsweb/hcrsweb.jsp

Great link, now in bookmark-collection. :)

The WalMart in Vacaville - en route from SFO/SJC/OAK to Tahoe - sells a huge selection of tire chains. If you don't use them, you can return them without a problem.

That's very clever! I'll remember that!

tourist

Here's something I learned when we rented an SUV for a Tahoe ski trip a while back:

The WalMart in Vacaville - en route from SFO/SJC/OAK to Tahoe - sells a huge selection of tire chains. If you don't use them, you can return them without a problem. We paid about $32 for ours (mid-size SUV) and returned them 5 days later, no problem. If you get stuck in the mountains without chains and have to buy them from the guys who patrol the mountain roads, the prices I saw started at about $100.

Twice on other trips we (and all traffic) were stopped by CalTrans and required to show that we did have chains with us before being allowed to proceed on certain routes.
I used to do that with Pep Boys, if I was going up to the mountains I'd buy a set of chains and hope I didn't need them. When I didn't need them, I would just return for refund.

You could also request when renting the car that they toss in some chains, but there's no guarantee that they will "remember" when you get there, or have enough to honor your request. That's why the DIY option is the best.

From what I've seen on other forums over the years, the CHP doesn't always apply these winter laws the same. Sometimes they look at your sidewalls to see if they as labelled all-season, sometimes they look at the car's badging to see if it says AWD or quattro, and sometimes they take your word.

Actually, as I've learned the hard way, the difference is usually AWD (All Wheel Drive) or not. Sometimes they will let you through with 4WD, especially if the snow is relatively light and your distnace is short. But usually they require AWD to avoid chains. And sometimes it's only AWD with snow tires....

Thanks for that useful correction. I've heard the difference between 4WD and AWD many times. I understand it when I hear it. I then forget it.

Watch out for and don't drive in the dense fog in the San Joaquin Valley. I find it to be the worst fog in the country.