Is it just my car? Or does anyone else have this problem?

I hit water....and if I'm TOUCHING the gas... I'm going sideways. I tried to make a right turn off the freeway a little while ago and ended up almost sliding into another car. Granted the LESS i hit the gas the easier it is to recover, and the less it slides but still----I have good tires on it. And an interceptor-style rear differential.

Any thoughts?

Lots of power and a limited slip rear equal lots of butt puckering situations on wet roads. You just have to live with it.

Limited Slip will definitely help, but also get yourself a set of Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3s. I promise your wet traction problems will be OVER!

Yea a good set of tires that are rated for wet traction will help out alot but with our cars the back end breaking loose is normal and just something that you'll have to learn to control which will come with practice. Other then that you'll just have to live with it doing that.

But one tip/hint, if you see any type of water sitting on the road infront of you, let up off the gas (and put on the brakes easy to slow your speed if needed) and just let the momentum of the car take you through it. Once the car is through the standing water, then gently get back on the gas and take it easy getting back up to speed. Also when taking off from a stop, again just be easy on the gas when you take off and get up to speed. If not, well, you've found out what will happen.

I will have to agree. It's all about the tires. Take the all-season radials off and sell 'em to someone that owns a buick. Those things are worth nothing on a heavy tank firebird. Forget the tirerack wet traction surveys. You need to read the reviews on people that run firebird, camaro, and caprice autos. Sure a good #1 rated wet tire is fine on a mazda or a honda, but if you want wet traction on a GM tank, you need summer performance tires with a high wet track rating.
I currently run with these: BFGoodrich g-Force Sport (great in rain and puddles).
I have in the past run: Bridgestone Potenza RE (very poor)
Also these from the factory: Goodyear Eagle GS-C (very poor)

You could also have some of the lead removed from your foot. That sometimes helps also.
~Scott

Alright, I'll look into a better set of tires, thanks y'all!

Yes i must agree the eagle f1 tires mentioned above are very very very good, you will be able to hook up on wet roads

Anyone ever use "Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS Pole Position" Tires? I know, all season tires aint the best. My Formula has my only car here in New Jersey since 1995 (no, no rust, always wipe off salt in winter daily). Been using all season Goodyear RS/A P245/50 ZR16s. Definately work better when new, but seem to be getting a bit sloppy now in the rain. Usually last me 2 years (around 20,000 I guess), next spring is 2 years. Tried Kelly all seasons once. If you want to die, even in dry weather driving, use those. Absolutely no control in any weather. I have to keep the all seasons. Wondering if I should just stick with the Goodyear RS/As, which I like, but always looking to improve. And at $232 per tire, I am starting to shop around. I see you guys like the Goodyear F1s.......

You need tires rated for wet weather traction and with a high void to rubber ratio. The colder the weather, the more sipes are needed. Also, the colder the weather, the newer the tires need to be. Tires age with use--that means the sticky chemicals within the carcass that give them grip actually evaporate. Run a good set of tires just once in hot weather and their cold performance goes down accordingly. Motorcyclists know all about this problem.

Rule of thumb is to wear out your tires within three years, becuz after that if cold weather traction and stick in the water are what you want, it won't be there when you need it.

This info is directly from Goodyear---up to 0.03 inch water on the road surface, it is the tread compound that determine stick. Above 0.03 inch water depth it is the tread design that determines grip. The problem with modern performance tires is that they use a high rubber to void ratio with few sipes to get handling and dry weather performance, but rely on the compound within the tire to stick it to the road in the wet. When the tires age, it loses the sticky stuff that keeps the tire glued to the road in the wet and all that is left is a smooth surface of rubber which tends to hydroplane on almost any wet surface.

Interesting reading. I definately agree with that, as I definately notice performance decreases on wet roads after 1.5 years +. Recently slowed down my driving to 50 ish in the rain. Starts the hydroplane a bit over 55. Quick turns are getting bad in the rain also, i.e. oops, I almost missed my turn, at 35-40 that was dumb. Went into on ramp but kept going straight a few feet. Perhaps I will just stick with the Goodyears.

All tires will pretty much do the same thing when they age, including the Goodyears. All you can really do, if concerned about wet weather handling, is shop for a tire that uses a high void to rubber ratio--lots of rain grooves, so that as the sticky stuff goes away, at least the rain grooves are still there. Went thru 3 sets of Goodyear GSC's on the Firebird and they were only sticky for about one winter, after that, the back end would break loose whenever it wanted in the wet.

Here on Okinawa, there is an urban myth that the roads are made of coral (they aren't). The coral is supposed to disolve in the rain and that makes the roads really slick and dangerous. When it rains around here, you find out why we get 92+ inches of rain a year (not counting typhoons). What I figured out as the little Scoobie was sliding to a dangerous stop one day....that it wasn't so much the roads, it was the nearly 9 year old tires on the car (well, duh!!). I mean I knew this already, but wasn't thinking too clearly when the used car was bought with tires in "good shape". The next day, had new tires on the car--some Yokohamas that cost about 120 bucks a piece (their highest price tire in this size). Intantly, the slippery roads went away and stayed away for about a year. Have gone thru one hot summer, and this winter have noticed that the tires are starting to slip again. They will only become proressively more slippery as they age. However, we drive so little that the tires will crack and fall off the rims, before the tread even begins to look worn. The slippery roads are really sorta slippery, but the slippery is magnified by the people who drive on rediculously old tires.

I've got Hankook Ventus V4es - H105 - 275/40ZR17s on my 97 for 3 years now and I've had no problems with them at all even now. They stick good in dry weather and when it rains or snows I haven't had any problems with them sliding/slipping either. They're all season/weather tires with a treadwear rating of 420, traction rating of A and temperature rating of A.

Thanks for the input. Adding to my short list. I like hearing peoples personal experiences rather than say the Tire Rack.coms reviews of unknown people.

Yea I appreciate it, even though its a little irrellivent for me at the moment because I just found out my motor is toast o_o.

I've been using Avon Tech M550 A/S 245/50ZR16 tires on the rear for about a year and a half. They do really well in the rain and I have yet to experience any amount of hydroplaning with them. I'll lose visibility before I need to concern myself with hydroplaning as long as there aren't any major puddles. However, don't even try using them with more than a 1/2 inch layer of snow on the road as they are useless. They might be usable if I leave my floor jack in the trunk but I haven't tested that idea yet.

shoot I have some BF Goodrich tires on mine, they hold pretty ok

I've had really good luck with BFG tires. In fact, the regular BFG Radial TA is only the tire that would allow my Corvettes to get thru snow. They always seemed to work. The worst tires I've used were the Goodyear GSCs. Those things worked in the wet for about one season, after that, they were really slippery.

The guy that bought my Firebird installed a set of Hancook tires on it when he removed the Goodyears and they seemed lightyears better than the Goodyears, esp in the wet, but then they were brand new at the time.