snow tires

[RWebb]

gettin' to be that time of year agin'...

[924slover]

thinking about getting some cheap ones for my subbie but i just bought new allseason's

[Shaun @ Tru6]

I miss Jim.

[jyl]

I put some Nokian WRG2 on the wife's Prius. These are all-season tires with the mountain+snowflake symbol which is supposed to indicate a genuine snow-capable tire. Get good reports on various auto forums. Have her Bridgestone Blizzak snow tires in the garage ready to swap on but hoping the Nokians will eliminate the annual tire swap ritual.

Related - I wish we'd outlaw studded snow tires in OR. There seems to be more ongoing highway resurfacing work (and resultant traffic delays) in this state than any I've lived in, yet we still have lots of rutted road surfaces from the studs. Studless snow tires work very well and don't tear up the roads.

[RWebb]

thx

I have heard good things re Nokian, but Tire Rack does not carry them, so no direct comparisons.

John, Oregon has a huge backlog of maintenance due on the hwys - not sure how long you've been living or traveling here, but the state has been looking more & more like Mississippi every day for the last 10 years, maybe since the 1980s.

[jyl]

I've had Nokian CS (or CQ? can't recall) all-weathers on the Vanagon, they have been excellent in dry and wet, pretty good in snow (as good as a 2WD Vanagon w/ open diff can be), and no unusual treadwear. Have high hopes for the Nokian WRG2, they happen to be low-rolling-resistance too, so popular w/ the eco-crowd. Tire Factory stores carry Nokians.

I think OR road surfaces look awful. Worse than CA and that is saying something. A lot of OR roads seem to be worn down in ruts, which I attribute to studded snow tires. Why we allow studs here is beyond me - most of the state doesn't get that much snow, this isn't upstate NY or Eastern Canada. Lately I've been seeing a flurry of resurfacing around Portland, which is welcome, except when you're stuck in the resultant traffic backup.

[fingpilot]

I moved to an altitude of 2500 foot-ish. Shortest route to the best town for everything is over a 2-lane 3800 foot pass that is 4 miles up the road. 27 miles distant to town. Unplowed.

The other option is 31 miles, all downhill from here, 2-lane also unplowed. But all lower elevation than house.

We discussed 'gearing up' for snow driving (4WD truck; 2WD now, chains/studded tires for the Prius), but decided that if the hill was bad enough to need these, it was too dangerous to drive anyway. It is, switchbacks and no guard rail cliffs, wrong camber, and drunks needing beer at the top of the hill.

We also found out how bad the Prius is in snow anyway. The traction control stops any power delivery as soon as traction is lost anyway. Has actually got us into trouble more than not.

So we stock up, or go downhill to get anything in the snow. We get less than 14 inches at any time, and it lasts only a month or two.

[jyl]

What year Prius do you have? They changed the traction control (TC) in appx 2005-2006. 2004-2005 models were more aggressive in shutting off power if they detected slip. By 2007 (my year), the TC traction seems fine. I've gone on a big sheet of glare ice and floored the throttle from a dead stop, the car accelerates smoothly - this is with snow tires though, with the stock tires it would probably cut power. The new 2010 Prius has dialed back the traction control even more. The TC kicks in to protect the drivetrain from overspeeding, as well as to maintain vehicle stability. I surmise they built in some other drivetrain protection and thus could be less protective on the TC settings.

The upill road sounds like one I would avoid too. Sometimes you'll see see a 4WD truck slowly and inexorably slide off the crown of a icy road onto the shoulder, and you realize that some conditions simply aren't meant to be driven in.

[kach22i]

I just put "All Terrains" (A/T) on my S-10 4x4.

I thought the old tires were snow tires, but were NOT snow tires. They were just cheap A/T's (Winston). They did a heck of a good job, so I stuck with A/T's.

Goodyear Wrangler A/T's at Discount Tire on sale.

[fingpilot]

Originally Posted by jyl

What year Prius do you have? .

2004. One of my other pilots bought a early 2005 after driving mine. His is just like mine. I think I remember the Geeks saying they fixed it in later years.

Mine will lurch to a stop (or not move at all) as soon as the drive wheels slip.

[BRPORSCHE]

Originally Posted by shaun 84 targa

i miss jim.

what happened to jim!?!?!

[Joeaksa]

Whats snow?

[924slover]

Originally Posted by Joeaksa

Whats snow?

it's that fluffy white stuff that every time we're supposed to get some here in ny everyone goes into a mass panic and raids the supermarket shelves as if it's something new.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Originally Posted by Joeaksa

Whats snow?

in anything over 8 inches cover, it creates a magic playland for my 4Runner.

[Big Ed]

Originally Posted by 924slover

it's that fluffy white stuff that every time we're supposed to get some here in ny everyone goes into a mass panic and raids the supermarket shelves as if it's something new.

Well put. God forbid a storm comes on a day when I need groceries -- the place is a madhouse. I wonder what these morons think is going to happen?

And how is it that every damn storm in the Northeast "may be" a repeat of the Blizzard of '78?

[RWebb]

Originally Posted by Joeaksa

Whats snow?

Snow is the Highest Form of water.

It allows you to exercise without getting too hot, to glide over the surface of the Earth like a super hero, to fall with minimal pain, to speed along on your own two legs, to camp without being bitten by insects, to slide a car with little damage, and to encourage cute women to cuddle tightly even if they aren't feeling that amorous.

It is to promote The Search for Snow that one buys snow tires.

[old man neri]

Originally Posted by RWebb

Snow is the Highest Form of water.

It allows you to exercise without getting too hot, to glide over the surface of the Earth like a super hero, to fall with minimal pain, to speed along on your own two legs, to camp without being bitten by insects, to slide a car with little damage, and to encourage cute women to cuddle tightly even if they aren't feeling that amorous.

Awesome. Very well put.


When it gets too cold to snow...that's when you know it starts to get miserable and you need winter tires even more.

[924slover]

Originally Posted by Big Ed

Well put. God forbid a storm comes on a day when I need groceries -- the place is a madhouse. I wonder what these morons think is going to happen?

And how is it that every damn storm in the Northeast "may be" a repeat of the Blizzard of '78?

i go out every snowstorm because it's fun and i love to watch all the crazies raiding shelves so they wont starve to death when they cant go to the store for a few hours

[Ducman]

Back to tires

The M5 is my daily driver and I get lots of snow in the winter. Been using the Blizzak LM-25, which they promote as a performance winter tire...but there are times it barely gets the job done. Any one here using something like the Blizzak WS-60 on a high powered sedan or sports car? WS-60 is supposedly a true winter tire or studless winter tire. What is the expected trade off?

Thanks,
Don

[Big Ed]

Originally Posted by Ducman

Back to tires

The M5 is my daily driver and I get lots of snow in the winter. Been using the Blizzak LM-25, which they promote as a performance winter tire...but there are times it barely gets the job done. Any one here using something like the Blizzak WS-60 on a high powered sedan or sports car? WS-60 is supposedly a true winter tire or studless winter tire. What is the expected trade off?

Thanks,
Don

Don,

I formerly had a Chrysler 300C SRT-8 (6.1L 425hp) and I faced the same quandry. I went with a full winter tire, Blizzak DM-Z3 which was categorized as a winter or truck tire. Very soft compound, so you will feel the difference in dry handling, but you will be MUCH better off in the snow when it comes. I am currently using the WS-60 on my Audi S4, and it's pretty much the same deal, though the tires aren't quite as aggressive (the Audi being AWD doesn't need as much help in snow as the RWD Chrysler did).

This reminds me, if anyone can use them, I am looking to sell these snows (Chrysler is sold) -- 235/60 QR18's , mounted on Borbet Type TS 18x8.5 wheels with TPMS sensors. Tires have about 9,000 miles on them and well over 50% tread remains. Wheel details are:


Offset: 15mm
Backspacing: 5.35"
Bolt Pattern: 5-115
Rec. Tire Size: 235/60-18
Weight: 26.0lbs.