Almost that time of year again... SNOW TIRES! Put your 2-cents here.
10-09-2005, 10:29 AM
#1
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Join Date: Jun 2004
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Almost that time of year again... SNOW TIRES! Put your 2-cents here.
Shopping for ultra-high and max-performance summer tires for my '03 Scooby last spring was an easy task. There's a wealth of information out there on the internet, with a pretty fair signal-to-noise ratio. As fall begins, I'm having dreams of AWD snow drifts and Scandi flicks. I've spent an inordinate amount of time in the last week researching snow tires I've come to two conclusions: 1) there is comparably little information and reviews in the snow-tire arena, and 2) some opinions on popular snow tires ARE COMPLETELY DIAMETRICALLY OPPOSED.
Case in point? Bridgestone Blizzaks.
Since I heard about them a year ago I always thought they were the best. People seemed to like their performance in the snow, even if their useful life was short.
Last week I came across an annual snow-tire review in a Finnish magazine. Out of the dozen or so snow tires reviewed, the Blizzaks were DISQUALIFIED! --yes, the WS50 model. Their wet and dry performance was downright dangerously bad.
SOOOOOOOOOO..........
Someone set us straight. Sound off on your favorite snow tires and your experiences with them.
Who makes a great snow tire? Studded or studless?
Deep snow?
Snow rallying?
What's the deal with these damn Blizzaks?
Is it true that ANY snow tire (with the snowflake symbol) is FAR better than any all-season tire--(read: the stock RE92s)? What about a $60 snow tire from Sears?
How much does a set of Nokian Hakkapeliittas cost? Are they worth it? Everyone seems to like them, but they appear to be hard to find and expensive.
So, without further ado, lets kickoff the Winter '05 snow tire discussion!
Case in point? Bridgestone Blizzaks.
Since I heard about them a year ago I always thought they were the best. People seemed to like their performance in the snow, even if their useful life was short.
Last week I came across an annual snow-tire review in a Finnish magazine. Out of the dozen or so snow tires reviewed, the Blizzaks were DISQUALIFIED! --yes, the WS50 model. Their wet and dry performance was downright dangerously bad.
SOOOOOOOOOO..........
Someone set us straight. Sound off on your favorite snow tires and your experiences with them.
Who makes a great snow tire? Studded or studless?
Deep snow?
Snow rallying?
What's the deal with these damn Blizzaks?
Is it true that ANY snow tire (with the snowflake symbol) is FAR better than any all-season tire--(read: the stock RE92s)? What about a $60 snow tire from Sears?
How much does a set of Nokian Hakkapeliittas cost? Are they worth it? Everyone seems to like them, but they appear to be hard to find and expensive.
So, without further ado, lets kickoff the Winter '05 snow tire discussion!
10-09-2005, 10:37 AM
#2
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I'm running Dunlop Wintersport M2's. I've used them for 3 winters for weekend trips to tahoe. They've been excellent. Most of the tread is still there. They handle decently in dry conditions and they are H rated. I don't do anything stupid in them except the occasional parking lot drift when the lot is empty.
10-09-2005, 11:19 AM
#6
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Nokians all the way.. the WR is supposed to be a high mileage kick *** all season tire (wet and snow perforamnce being awesome, dry being about re-92ish) the RSI's well people use those for snodrift.. nuff said..
NOKIAN ALL THE WAY!
NOKIAN ALL THE WAY!
10-09-2005, 09:15 PM
#8
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https://www.i-club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=113862
mine cost around 630 shipped or so. all depends on the size that you get
those were for 225/45/17's
give dude a call up and see what he says.. make sure to tell him you are from n asioc
mine cost around 630 shipped or so. all depends on the size that you get
those were for 225/45/17'sgive dude a call up and see what he says.. make sure to tell him you are from n asioc
10-10-2005, 09:16 AM
#9
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Join Date: Jun 2004
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Originally Posted by dr3d1zzl3
https://www.i-club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=113862
mine cost around 630 shipped or so. all depends on the size that you get those were for 225/45/17's
give dude a call up and see what he says.. make sure to tell him you are from n asioc
mine cost around 630 shipped or so. all depends on the size that you get
those were for 225/45/17'sgive dude a call up and see what he says.. make sure to tell him you are from n asioc
Are these Blizzaks as bad as that Finnish magazine said? There seems to be alot of positive comments towards the Blizzaks, I can't imagine why there are two completely opposite views on the tires.
10-10-2005, 09:49 AM
#11
I'm just going to run my RE92's down this year, but if I was in the market, I'd look at the Dunlop Wintersport M3's or M2's or Hankook snow tires (W300, W401, W404).
I wouldn't get studded tires unless you actually lived in a place where there is constantly ice on the ground. Driving on studded tires on dry roads is dangerous, and not worth it IMO.
And yes, the snowflake symbol means that the tire exceedes the standard M+S rating by a fair margin, so anything with a snowflake symbol should be better then the RE92.
If you are interested in deep snow performance, well... you might have bought the wrong car :rotfl: But if you think you'll see a lot of deep powder, you'll want narrow tires, to cut through powder to the hard stuff below. But, if you are just making trips up to Tahoe and back for skiing/snowboarding, you will not see deep powder. CalTrans will shut down the road and plow before they let any passenger vehicles on the road (no matter how much you try to convince them you have a deep powder setup).
Speaking of which, snow isn't that bad to drive on. It is ice that'll get you. When comparing tires online, first look at the ice rating, then the snow rating.
Lastly, while picking decent tires is quite important, I strongly believe that driver education is more important then tire choice. You will break traction at some point, no matter how much money you spend on tires, and you will need to know how to recover.
I wouldn't get studded tires unless you actually lived in a place where there is constantly ice on the ground. Driving on studded tires on dry roads is dangerous, and not worth it IMO.
And yes, the snowflake symbol means that the tire exceedes the standard M+S rating by a fair margin, so anything with a snowflake symbol should be better then the RE92.
If you are interested in deep snow performance, well... you might have bought the wrong car :rotfl: But if you think you'll see a lot of deep powder, you'll want narrow tires, to cut through powder to the hard stuff below. But, if you are just making trips up to Tahoe and back for skiing/snowboarding, you will not see deep powder. CalTrans will shut down the road and plow before they let any passenger vehicles on the road (no matter how much you try to convince them you have a deep powder setup).
Speaking of which, snow isn't that bad to drive on. It is ice that'll get you. When comparing tires online, first look at the ice rating, then the snow rating.
Lastly, while picking decent tires is quite important, I strongly believe that driver education is more important then tire choice. You will break traction at some point, no matter how much money you spend on tires, and you will need to know how to recover.
10-10-2005, 12:22 PM
#12
I have Micheline Alpin snow tires. I bought them used on a set of stock wheels. I passed all the checkpoints to Tahoe in my WRX, they just waved me on (unless the roads were closed!). They are excellent IMO, I had no trouble ever in 1 - 2 foot deep snow and the traction was great on ice/slush, very difficult to break loose. But they are VERY noisy on the freeway. I cant compare with anything else, these are my first snowtires
Last edited by subie OCD; 10-10-2005 at 12:24 PM.
10-10-2005, 12:50 PM
#13
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the set that soren (mpj) has posted up in the bay area classifieds are supposedly great in the winter. Continental Extreme conti sports or something i believe.
I have a set of the exact same thing waiting to be mounted once it starts raining here(snowing up in tahoe)
I have a set of the exact same thing waiting to be mounted once it starts raining here(snowing up in tahoe)