Winter tire discussion for grown ups thread.

[StanleyR]

Originally Posted by Shorn

So, I know this goes against what the popular opinion in this thread is, but honestly this year I've ran all season Continental DWS 06s, and they're definitely very driveable this winter (all Lower Mainland). I had no problems whatsoever, uphills, unplowed. Also this tire DESTROYS wet/heavy rain conditions. However, on pure ice it definitely slides a bit more than I would like, and also this is a FWD car. Can't speak about treadwear yet but from what I've heard this tire also lasts for an exceptionally long time as well.

So in conclusion I would recommend this tire to anyone who wants to drive on one set of tires all year exclusively in the lower mainland in a FWD/AWD vehicle.. if RWD i would definitely get a dedicated set of winter tires (or if you're gonna go up mountains of course).

I;m running the predecessor to that tire the DWS's and they still have the S, but its starting to wear away. I know I'll need to replace them by next winter.

Overall they are ok, but I don't have the time and space to be swapping tires and wheels every fall.

[yray]

Decided to take my sottozeros onto a cul de sac thats on a slope thats unplowed and with 6-8" of snow. Car go stuck, tried to turn, ended up stuck sideways on a slope. had to straighten the car and back up the hill.

[AstulzerRZD]

Originally Posted by StanleyR

I;m running the predecessor to that tire the DWS's and they still have the S, but its starting to wear away. I know I'll need to replace them by next winter.

Overall they are ok, but I don't have the time and space to be swapping tires and wheels every fall.

Consider getting Nokian WRG3 from Kaltire - they're an all *weather* tire with the snowflake rating that you can run year round. It's got a 60k kms treadlife warranty.

[TopsyCrett]

Absolutely loving my Hankook Dynapro AT/M All-terrain tires. Have yet to get stuck on on any road. I have pulled out a few trucks such as a Ford Expedition (on Nitto All-terrains) and a BMW X5 on Bridgestone all seasons.

[inv4zn]

I've driven through all the snowstorms this winter on X-ICE3's and they've been pretty damn great.

Car is a FWD econobox so no special tires needed, but these have been outstanding. For a run-of-the-mill passenger car, would recommend in a heartbeat.

[roastpuff]

Originally Posted by TopsyCrett

Absolutely loving my Hankook Dynapro AT/M All-terrain tires. Have yet to get stuck on on any road. I have pulled out a few trucks such as a Ford Expedition (on Nitto All-terrains) and a BMW X5 on Bridgestone all seasons.

Are they winter-rated? I was looking at them vs BFG KO2 but went with KO2 due to winter rating.

Also, I eventually gave in and put on my Blizzaks - I drive the Sea to Sky almost weekly, and past Whistler the highway isn't as wide or well-maintained. Some icy sections got a little interesting on the KO2s, and the Blizzaks have that 15-20% edge on them especially on ice that I feel it is worth it for the amount of driving I do.

[swfk]

Originally Posted by StanleyR

I;m running the predecessor to that tire the DWS's and they still have the S, but its starting to wear away. I know I'll need to replace them by next winter.

Overall they are ok, but I don't have the time and space to be swapping tires and wheels every fall.

A simple and gimmicky way of telling is on the tread you see "D" "W" and "S". When the "S" is worn off then the tread is only good for dry and wet, not snow.

On a related note, I recently bought a set of DWS06 and it's been amazing in the snow. No slip at all when everyone is skating around. I have always been an advocate telling others to run winters but DWS06 really surprised me.

[320icar]

^^ top shelf all seasons have come a REALLY long way in recent years. Can hold their own in a gvrd winter (maybe not an okanogan winter) but you can also run them at super-stock autocross and put down a respectable time

[Arvi604]

Originally Posted by swfk

A simple and gimmicky way of telling is on the tread you see "D" "W" and "S". When the "S" is worn off then the tread is only good for dry and wet, not snow.

On a related note, I recently bought a set of DWS06 and it's been amazing in the snow. No slip at all when everyone is skating around. I have always been an advocate telling others to run winters but DWS06 really surprised me.

I cross shopped the DWS06 with Pilot Sport As 3+ and ended up getting the latter. Cost me a bit more in the end but I was surprised at how well they handle in some of the conditions we've had recently. These new gen AS's are pretty incredible. That being said, still noticed a difference when driving around the wife's CR-V with Xi 2's on. That thing was unstoppable lol.

[swfk]

^ You'd be unstoppable if you were on summers

The DWS06 compared to Extreme Winter Contact, having owned both, the DWS06 seems to understeer slightly more and that's it. Stops just as good in slush or fresh powder.

[EndLeSS8]

Originally Posted by Arvi604

I cross shopped the DWS06 with Pilot Sport As 3+ and ended up getting the latter. Cost me a bit more in the end but I was surprised at how well they handle in some of the conditions we've had recently. These new gen AS's are pretty incredible. That being said, still noticed a difference when driving around the wife's CR-V with Xi 2's on. That thing was unstoppable lol.

Do you drive a FWD car or RWD?

I'm asking because before putting on my snow tires, I had the AS3+ on my IS350. During the first snowfall time, they were BARELY okay on slush, but when the 2nd snow hit, I couldn't even get out of my alley ways. I switched over to Michelin X-Ice3 before this 3rd snow.

On my previous IS300, I had the original DWS, and it still seemed like they were better than the AS3+ in snow.
The AS3+ IMO are much better than the DWS in dry, but even in heavy rain, I find they can lose traction

[dared3vil0]

The AS3 is going to be far inferior in the winter to a DWS, and the latter is true in the summer.

[Presto]

Originally Posted by inv4zn

I've driven through all the snowstorms this winter on X-ICE3's and they've been pretty damn great.

Car is a FWD econobox so no special tires needed, but these have been outstanding. For a run-of-the-mill passenger car, would recommend in a heartbeat.

I'm on my 5th season with these X-ice3's, and they still make my car feel invincible in snow.

[roastpuff]

Originally Posted by Arvi604

I cross shopped the DWS06 with Pilot Sport As 3+ and ended up getting the latter. Cost me a bit more in the end but I was surprised at how well they handle in some of the conditions we've had recently. These new gen AS's are pretty incredible. That being said, still noticed a difference when driving around the wife's CR-V with Xi 2's on. That thing was unstoppable lol.

Originally Posted by swfk

^ You'd be unstoppable if you were on summers

On a serious note, the DWS06 compared to Extreme Winter Contact, having owned both, the DWS06 seems to understeer slightly more and that's it. Stops just as good in slush or fresh powder.

Originally Posted by EndLeSS8

Do you drive a FWD car or RWD?

I'm asking because before putting on my snow tires, I had the AS3+ on my IS350. During the first snowfall time, they were BARELY okay on slush, but when the 2nd snow hit, I couldn't even get out of my alley ways. I switched over to Michelin X-Ice3 before this 3rd snow.

On my previous IS300, I had the original DWS, and it still seemed like they were better than the AS3+ in snow.
The AS3+ IMO are much better than the DWS in dry, but even in heavy rain, I find they can lose traction

The issue with these A/S tires is that their snow performance falls off pretty quickly past the first season or two. Whereas with a snow tire the 4th season is good. My Dunlop Wintersport 3Ds lasted me 5 seasons, and they were down all the way to 5/32nds when I got rid of them. Could still get around fine.

[Skittlez160]

Originally Posted by Arvi604

That being said, still noticed a difference when driving around the wife's CR-V with Xi 2's on. That thing was unstoppable lol.

I completely agree. The only thing that could potentially stop it, is running into a snow bank and high-siding the vehicle completely. But I'm sure she knows better than that lol.

[Skittlez160]

Originally Posted by roastpuff

Also, I eventually gave in and put on my Blizzaks - I drive the Sea to Sky almost weekly, and past Whistler the highway isn't as wide or well-maintained. Some icy sections got a little interesting on the KO2s, and the Blizzaks have that 15-20% edge on them especially on ice that I feel it is worth it for the amount of driving I do.

Wow that bad eh? I know you mentioned before that it got pretty sketchy, but I didn't think it would come to switching out completely. But I know what you mean, I experienced something similar during our last snowfall with compacted ice chunks at hwy speeds. It was pretty discomforting trying to maintain flow of traffic and my SUV felt unstable.

[SkunkWorks]

Gotta say, I've been extremely impressed with the Blizzak WS80's on le gf's wagon. On the way back from the Coquihalla they were extremely stable at 120 on the skating rink of a left lane.

And for the most recent snowfall they've been amazing on both hard packed ice and snow. Was able to comfortably take all the alleys and side roads over the past few days to avoid the gongshow on the main arterials. I can't even make handbrake turns because they have so much grip

Since the X-ice 3 is the same, can't go wrong with either on a family car.

[roastpuff]

Originally Posted by Skittlez160

Wow that bad eh? I know you mentioned before that it got pretty sketchy, but I didn't think it would come to switching out completely. But I know what you mean, I experienced something similar during our last snowfall with compacted ice chunks at hwy speeds. It was pretty discomforting trying to maintain flow of traffic and my SUV felt unstable.

I already had the Blizzaks before I got the KO2 anyways, the stock Goodyear Wranglers that came with the Ram were not great and not winter rated so I needed winter tires. I just got the KO2 this summer and it has been a solid tire. Very good. It's actually better than the DM-V2 in deeper snow because of the more open tread, but the lack of siping (it has enough but nowhere near the Blizzak/X-Ice/etc) hurts the ice traction.

The KO2s are a great all-rounder tire, but I want something better in icy conditions due to the amount of highway travel that I do. The Whistler to Pemberton stretch is where the S2S narrows down and becomes more curvy, more like the old sections used to be. There's less plowing and sanding around that area too, so the road conditions can be more sketchy.

[Arvi604]

Originally Posted by EndLeSS8

Do you drive a FWD car or RWD?

I'm asking because before putting on my snow tires, I had the AS3+ on my IS350. During the first snowfall time, they were BARELY okay on slush, but when the 2nd snow hit, I couldn't even get out of my alley ways. I switched over to Michelin X-Ice3 before this 3rd snow.

On my previous IS300, I had the original DWS, and it still seemed like they were better than the AS3+ in snow.
The AS3+ IMO are much better than the DWS in dry, but even in heavy rain, I find they can lose traction

I had Xdrive, so I guess that's cheating a bit. Regardless, the grip seemed to be good enough. I never had issues with any Hills or anything. Just had to brake early.

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by SkunkWorks

Gotta say, I've been extremely impressed with the Blizzak WS80's on le gf's wagon. On the way back from the Coquihalla they were extremely stable at 120 on the skating rink of a left lane.

And for the most recent snowfall they've been amazing on both hard packed ice and snow. Was able to comfortably take all the alleys and side roads over the past few days to avoid the gongshow on the main arterials. I can't even make handbrake turns because they have so much grip

Since the X-ice 3 is the same, can't go wrong with either on a family car.

I've had the WS80s on my TSX for 2 seasons and they have been champs all winter. Even able to drive up ice rink side streets at a decent clip.

I dream of driving something like a Grand Cherokee with QuadraDrive with a set of X-Ices or Blizzaks. I'd be the Donald Trump of snow drivers in that nothing could stop me.

[Timpo]

[underscore]

Originally Posted by supafamous

I dream of driving something like a Grand Cherokee with QuadraDrive with a set of X-Ices or Blizzaks. I'd be the Donald Trump of snow drivers in that nothing could stop me.

I've got an 07 Grand Cherokee with QuadraDrive II and it's fantastic, even with my ~1/2 tread General Grabbers. My friend has the same vehicle but with Hankook RW11's and it's masterful in the snow.

[godwin]

All NEW all seasons tires do well in the snow for the first season, then the performance drops off rather quickly.

If you don't have the space / time to swap tires consider getting your tires from Canadian Tire.. they offer an option to store the tires for you. My condo dwelling friends relies on them. It is pretty reasonable.

I had Xdrive, so I guess that's cheating a bit. Regardless, the grip seemed to be good enough. I never had issues with any Hills or anything. Just had to brake early.

The thing is you are talking about 2 different aspects.. grip and drive has more to do with the drive train.. brake has to do more with the tires. All winter tires unless they are new and the latest compounds will need to brake early.

[mos_skeeto]

All NEW all seasons tires do well in the snow for the first season, then the performance drops off rather quickly.

Disagree. Not all tires are equal.

I have 5000 km on my Bridgestone Potenza's and they're awful in the snow. I would not recomend it for anyone if snow exceeds an inch. M+S rated too.

Tire Rack:
Winter/Snow Performance 3.1 - Poor
4.0 Light Snow Traction
2.8 Deep Snow Traction
2.5 Ice Traction

grip and drive has more to do with the drive train

I'd take better tires on 2 wheel drive versus poor tires with 4wd/awd. When I was up in Prince George at -30 I was driving a Wrangler around in RWD 95% of the time and felt perfectly safe. Studded tires ftw.

[fliptuner]

PSA - 25% off Duratracs at CT this week