Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see May lease deals!
Options
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
-mike
Subaru Guru and Track Instructor
Thanks for the detailed and timely answer! Looks like I will need to go another direction. I was hoping to get blizzaks used-but not going to happen.
Do I get another question?
Here's the scenario: Dad is 89 drives his camry cross town to get to shops and doctors-roughly 10 round trip miles, max speed 35. We live in Central Oregon, generally storms hit and streets are poor for two days, then clear off.
Current tires: Goodrich premier touring with 15K, the only "affordable" options are finding used winter tires, or buying new Goodrich Traction TA's in that size. Would the TA's be "that" much different than what he has as far as snow and ice capabilities?
And he is not ready to give up his independence and be chauffeured!
Thanks
I just found a NICE set of almost new studded snow tires for our son's Explorer.
He was asking 100.00 and I didn't argue with him especially when he told me he had five calls within the first hour he had them posted!
My driveway is uphill and when it snows/ice I can not get it up. (haha)
(stop the jokes)
My neighbors driveway is very similar and I can it up fine....makes no sense.
Will dedicated snow tires help me? Will anything help me?
Oh to make matters worse my fiancee has a Civic Coupe with all seasons and she cant get it up at all where I can sometimes.
2. is his gravel, and yours paved? Or Vice Versa?
3. Which wheels start spinning first on your driveway (rear? Front? random?).
So far the WRG2's (V series) on my Forester have handled 4-6" of icy snow with no trouble whatever, and that includes 20 degree icy hills other cars were sliding backwards on.
However, I have found that if there is a lot of icy slush on top of ice, the WRG2's can slip a fair bit. Cresting small icy hills can set the Forester to sliding until it's over the bump and weight is back on the tires.
If it's your front tires that are breaking loose, then Auto Socks might help. They have good traction on ice.
-mike
-mike
Subaru Guru and Track Instructor
Couldn't pass that one up!
You should have chains handy. Grants Pass and the Siskiyou mountains now require them (as of 12/22), and may again on the days you travel.
If you have large wheels and tires, you will need "S" chains as regular chains will be too big for the wheel wells.
The Nokian WRG2's, which up to now have worked very well, proved surprisingly inept at letting my AWD'er turn out of the ruts; the car would either just lurch back into the ruts, or try to swap ends the moment the tires cleared the ruts.
The WRG2's weakness show up on ice when the vehicle is turning. It could be the outer edges have less ice grip than the inner tread. Whatever it is, looks like it's chains-ville very soon if I am to keep driving around here.
I'm not convinced it's due to driver skills. However, many people assume that driving in winter and in winter conditions gives them the ability to drive as they normally do in 70+ temps, which typically is aggressive. One needs to go easy on the accelerator when driving in snow and icy conditions. Staying in first or second gear is a must if trying to go through those rough spots. I think it's more to do with the vehicles: tires new and/or aggressive tread, traction or slippage control on the vehicle, weight of vehicle, power, and even vehicle momentum.
I've seen one woman today drive her Jetta with all seasons and get going withOUT too much difficulty while I had considerable spin with my winter tires in the same spot. That ticked me off. I also had the wife get dropped off by her boss who drives a BMW 4 (AWD) wheel drive sedan with all seasons. He had no problem whatsoever today in the over foot deep snow where people had to abandon their vehicles and even transit buses couldn't get by, So, there are a lot of variables.
BTW. I am looking for some chains too....I have no idea how to install them or if I should go with chains or cables and if you can install them on existing winter tires or if they could damage your tires in any way. I know nothing about them. However, Ebay has some for less than $50.
Buses are sliding down hills evne with chains.
I cant help wonder if global warming is somehow responsible for these extreme conditions.
copied from tirerack.com
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Blizzak+W- S-50
Krzys
"Standard winter tire"? No.
"All-season tire"? More accurate.
IMO The Blizzak is worthless after half-tread. After two sets, each lasting just two seasons, on different vehicles, they were sloppy in snow, and no better than a brand-new all-season (still terrible IMO).
I've found Dunlops and Michelins to last much longer, while maintaining excellent snow traction well past half-treadlife.
Best regards,
Shipo
I just purchased a Rav4 4wd with 60k miles on it. The tires on it right now are Uniroyal Tigerpaws and are OEM. They actually have a significant amount of tread left. Even so, I would like to get a set of new winter tires for the cold season. I live a little ways north of Portland, OR / Vancouver, WA and I was stuck for 3 weeks last year in my own driveway because of snow and ice (not with this vehicle).
I do not drive a lot of miles (less than 5k per year). I am at a higher elevation (~1200 feet) and I get widely varied conditions. Some dry roads, some rainy wet roads . Okay, many, many months of rainy wet roads, snow/ice for a couple weeks per year and occasionally there will be heavy frost in the shady parts of the road. The frost was the thing that had me losing traction last year the most. Probably because I ventured out thinking the roads were clear and I stayed home like a sissy when I knew the roads were slimy/slushy. I drive about 1/3rd on the interstate, 1/3 town driving and 1/3 winding country roads.
Rav4 currently wears 215-70R 16 tires. I am looking for advice and suggestions for a new set of winter tires for my new sure-footed ride. Yes, I know it is summer. Now is the time to do research!
Thank you!
Available at the store under the big yellow sign, where the guys in the white shirts come running. I'm guessing you know who that is
I had Tigerpaws on a former rig of mine... nice riding tire. I liked them in the warmer weather, but no good for snow.
Cheers!
Paul
(Spokane)
I've lived in Eastern Washington all my life, and drive up them thar hills to ski a couple dozen times a year (pretty much regardless of the road conditions), and was a died-in-the-wool studded tire fan until I tried the Observes on a Subaru. The combination of all-wheel drive and these tires work very well.
I can't speak for the other flavors of studless snow tires, since I'm a pretty loyal customer of the white shirt guys, and that's all they sell here, but at this point I would have no reason to try anything else.
Cheers!
Paul
With all the siping on the tire, they're pretty good in the rain. Good news for Vancouver dwellers
Cheers!
Paul
Got any recommendations for studless snow tires?
I've talked to quite a few companies in the area. I've used the white shirted guys in the past, they are a little pricey. Anyone used Perfection Tire before?
Schwabs is great for me because they always seem to be where I'm going if I need them. Yes, they are a bit pricey, but their service after the sale is terrific, and they stand behind their products. I had both inside duals on my motorhome blow up in one day many years ago... they covered the service calls, upgraded the tires, and covered the repairs to the RV.
Where in Eastern WA, shanghai?
Cheers!
Paul
I am installing Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice; I have no idea what to expect, but the price was reasonable ($107 for R16s), reviews seem positive, and I have had very good luck with other Goodyear tires.
While they are spendy, I had a set of Assurance TripleTreds on my '96 Outback a few years ago and used them year-round. Those tires were flat-out amazing on ice and excellent in snow. By far the best all-season I had ever experienced. They also wore very well (had an 80,000 mile treadwear warranty) and were superb on dry and wet roads. For a dry, mild climate like yours, a tire like that may be a better investment than a studless snow tire since they wear so quickly on dry roads.
I live in Kennewick Wa and I commute to Toppenish WA for work everyday
Perfection Tire seems to have the best deals in town, they said around $450 for studded and $400 for studless
Schwab quoted me at around $500 for either studless or studded
Everyone else was $500 or more....
I also have TPMS sensors on my foucs tires, I'm not planning to have those on my snow tires, that just means that light will be on all the time...
That's right, and no big deal as long as you keep an eye on your tire pressure (which is a good idea anyway!). They were quoting you around $400 for just tires, or for a complete package (includes rims?). The TPMS sensors are in the valve stems on the rims, so that is not an issue at all if you are just swapping out tires. If the package includes rims, well, that really is a screamin' deal!
I would definitely recommend a studless tire for your area. As dry as the roads tend to be, your studs will be nubs in no time and do nothing to add to your traction when you really need it. Plus, you would have to deal with the major noise created by them on your long commute.
Now that I think about it, you might consider Green Diamond tires; they are quite effective on ice and they are not adversely affected by dry roads. Studless snow tires, due to their soft tread compounds, tend to wear quickly on dry roads. Some, like Blizzaks, also feel "squishy" on dry pavement and/or in warm weather. I am not sure about the Green Diamond availability in your area.
Yea these price quotes were for without rims.
Here are a few totals with wheels
Schwab Stud-less $708 with wheels Toyo tires
Steve's Tire Factory Kelly Snow Trackers Stud-less with wheels and mounting $677
Perfection Tire Winterforce Stud-less $681
Might be a better deal to use my old snow tires which fit the focus and track down some steelies, although if they only have one or two more seasons, I should either pay the $50 and get them mounted on my focus wheels or just pony up the money and get new snow tires
At these prices if I plan to buy new ones I might as well just buy everything from Tirerack.com. Anyone have an idea on a ballpark estimate, how much someone would charge to put the snow tires with wheels on?
Thanks again for all the help.
Sounds like you have some choices.
I need to get some steel wheels for my snows so I don't have to remount twice a year.
Cheers!
Paul
Tirerack doesn't seem to be any cheap with the Xi2's, they want 93 a tire plus $44 to ship it. I'll have to pay at least $40-$50 to get them installed somewhere
Thanks again for all of your help guys
Cheers!
Paul
I know that the tires have to be close in diameter and wear so the differentials don't freak out, and I think I have that covered if I get 1 new pair, but I don't want one end to have dramatically more traction than the other. Any thoughts?
But if those W404s are really in excellent shape, I don't see the problem with 2 W409s, as long as the tires are the same type and the tread difference isn't such that you would have problems with the differential.
I'd also put the tires with more tread at the rear of the vehicle, Remember it's always easier to control understeer than oversteer, even with AWD.
I shall find out in a couple weeks....
Oh, the irony continues! First I get my factory-ordered Forester in two weeks, then come the tires that I said would take another two weeks. Not an hour after I wrote that last message did I receive a call from the local vendor stating that my tires arrived. I am having them mounted on my spare rims right now, but my initial impression is favorable. They look to be a well-balanced tire, with a nice, deep, open block design that will surely excel in snow by allowing sufficient movement of the flakes through and out of the tire. The W-style siping is deep and the rubber is relatively soft, both of which should make for proficient traction on ice. I doubt they will perform as well as Blizzak WS-60 or the Xi2 on ice, but time will tell.
Weather is unseasonably warm here right now (daytime temps are hitting 40s!), but within a week or two I expect we will be well under freezing and not looking back, so it shouldn't take too long to measure them up.
Snow in the forecast here, although with the forecasted highs what they are, it's not going to stick... yet. :surprise:
Cheers!
Paul
The Blizzaks are a very good tire but like a broken record I repeatedly hear complaints about accelerated tire wear and how winter performance quickly drops off. Though the tread pattern is a bit better than the Xi2s, it's really not better by a whole lot.
I wouldn't be worried with your decision with the Ultra Grip Ice.
Still no snow here, which worries me! We really need some before it starts getting real cold (below 0F) or else the frost will start driving deep into the ground and that means broken pipes, root kill, etc. This is the first time (that I can remember) where we have dry roads this late into October. In '95, the first snow was on 10/15, and that was pretty late compared to most other years.
Temps are no longer venturing above freezing during the day, though, so winter is all but upon us.
So, long story short, the Goodyears are an effective tire: Very effective. :shades:
Now I just have to see how they perform in extreme cold (-50F) and how well the tread wears.
If I were in a more temperate climate, that benefit would be even more pronounced because I would not need to run the winter tires during periods of warmer weather (which can often be multiple weeks and/or months). It only takes me about 20 minutes to do the deed, so I think it is well worth the effort.
I considered the Dunlops, but decided to go with a more balanced snow/ice tire rather than a performance tire. Maybe if I had a WRX....
Please let us know how the Dunlop tires work out for you!
Any suggestions - especially specific suggestions.
Paul
As for snow tires, Michelin, Dunlop, and the new Continental ExtremeWinterContact would be a good bet. I've run Michelin in the past and trust them, both my current vehicles have Dunlop snow tires on now (SP WinterSport M3 for my Mazda 6, Graspic DS-2 on the Altima), and the new Contis have tested very well in Tireracks latest winter tests.
Bridgestone Blizzaks are good, but I've found that snow traction only holds up for the first 40% of treadlife, then falls greatly, worse than some all-seasons in the snow. I get another season or two easily out of the other brands compared to Blizzaks. Nokian also makes some very good winter tires, but are expensive compared to other brands, and I've found they don't last any longer.
Good luck.