Regarding the myth wether or not you get better traction on ice going in reverse with a front-wheel drive.
I don't think the Mythbusters had very good tests of this myth. When I've been driving front-wheel driven cars in northern norway in the winter, if I have been unable to get up a hill I've been told "try doing it in reverse".
I see no reason why you should get more control of the car in turns. You've still got 4 wheels, and you're turning on ice. You're bound to have less control, and in the end you'll most likely spin around.
However, with the car in reverse the engine will push itself up the hill instead of pulling.
And besides - there's the advantage of driving face first downhill again if you can't make it all the way up

Best regards!

quote:

However, with the car in reverse the engine will push itself up the hill instead of pulling.

Pushing/pulling doesn't really explain what makes the difference.

When a car is on a slope the bottom wheels take more of the weight, just like when you have 2 people carrying a sofa up the stairs. Powering the lower wheels will therefore give more traction than powering the upper wheels.

Agreed.
Either way, my point was - they called it busted, but I think they're wrong. I think they should've tested it straight up an icy hill.