I am a warm weather fitness rider, not a commuter, so I ain't riding in the Minnesota winter. Supposed to be 60-something by weekend so will a get a bonus ride in before true winter. Low 20's this morning felt like real winter!
Winter tires - General Thread
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I am a warm weather fitness rider, not a commuter, so I ain't riding in the Minnesota winter. Supposed to be 60-something by weekend so will a get a bonus ride in before true winter. Low 20's this morning felt like real winter!
I also run Blizzacks on my Honda Civic and love them. The car is very secure on snow and ice with them on.
I have Blizzaks on my Honda (they were previously on my Mazdaspeed6) and they are good.
My personal favorite when it comes to snow tires is the Michelin Xice when it comes to ride/sound.
Oh my goodness—Me too! It was the most fun. They were weird but it felt like a privilege to be there. I’ll never forget driving away after the West Virginia game on the nicest December day you can imagine and seeing Christmas lights sparkling. I have such great memories of all 4 games.
It didn’t hurt that parking and leaving games was so damn easy
I have some Nokian for my Prius, love them. A tire shop was trying to get rid of them a few years ago, I didn't even know of the brand but the price was right and I wanted to try some winter tires. Changed my life.
I don't even use snow tires, but I know they're generally better and easier to drive on FWD cars than changing out said car for an AWD with all-seasons is. They still catch and grip miles better than AS, that's what they're built to do.
Like are people taking their Priuses through snow drifts?
I've had problems on normal winter days in normal cars before...due to living near sharp hills. Need grip to get up and down those safely. Sharp corners can be the same.
Snow driving isn't about volume of snow, it's almost entirely about grip and preventing slippage. This can still happen at safe speeds with bad tires.
Used to do that with my Focus when I lived up near Mason City.
Since I travel quite a bit during the winter months around the Midwest, it's cheaper than insurance on a different vehicle.
But then you're in Florida. Seems like a bigger problem.
Mrs. Velo's cousin's husband runs a tire place and he is a big fan of the Blizzaks for what it is worth.
Boxster who posted this latest question lives in Minnesota so there is no getting away from winter and snow. That being said he drives Das Audi rather than his Boxster in the winter.
There are a lot of days and nights every Minnesota winter where there are a lot of FWD sedan owner who wish they had more traction on their car's boots.
If putting on winter tires makes you a better driver, than go for it. That said, if you have an AWD vehicle, I believe you can find AS that work very well. Last fall, I did a ton of comparison shopping for my Audi and ended up with Vredestein tires. German car, German tires I guess, but my point is don't just shop the popular tires that TiresPlus or your local Firestone place is pushing.
I only ever used all seasons so I didn't have to be switching and buying extra tires. Then again I didn't drive out of town on crappy roads.
I solved the issue by moving to AZ. I have two crap tires on right now that need replaced but, meh, in a few months.
I can speak to performance tires being an absolute nightmare in snow. Learned that lesson the hard way years ago. They didn't make low profile snow tires
I solved the issue by moving to AZ. I have two crap tires on right now that need replaced but, meh, in a few months.
I can speak to performance tires being an absolute nightmare in snow. Learned that lesson the hard way years ago. They didn't make low profile snow tires
After not having snow boots before, the biggest thing I noticed was the better grip in slippery conditions that didn't involve plowing through deep snow. Like getting caught having to drive from Ames to Bettendorf after an evening and morning of snow. Not deep stuff, the lighter interstate snarling slippery stuff. Car felt great on it and my previous all-season would have felt a little light on he grip in it. Question is whether it is worth it for the days like that or not and that's a personal decision. Since I have the extra rims I am going to do it again. It's sort of a luxury and not a "need" these days for me since I am driving less than half of what I used to. Also, generally, if it's really bad out I can just say **** it and not drive (another luxury of being retired).