Altimax Arctics on the Thunderbird...

[Craig in Canada]

Originally Posted By: 97tbird


The Altimax Arctics and the Tbird made it through some real ice this morning, around 5-6 am, especially on bridges and sides of the roads - It really was impressive - the car never slipped even once,


Not to pick on you specifically (I think you triggered a pet peeve) but what exactly do you mean by this?

The car did not spontaneously fly off the road without warning while driving straight? Or that when working the controls it felt like dry pavement?

I've read so many posts from people reviewing snow tires claiming "no slip". Either these folks are driving Miss Daisy every moment of the day or they mean something different than I mean. With any kind of even half-competent winter traction (including most all seasons) you should not expect to spontaneously lose control when driving straight and nothing is going on. Anyone who routinely experiences total loss of control throughout the winter should really consider getting some proper tires for their conditions and not just "tough it out". (or stay off the road)

On the other hand, no matter how hard-core a snow tire I've put on any kind of car it has NEVER been "no slip" or indistinguishable from a no-snow condition. There's lots of slip and disconnect from the pavement underneath but with winter tires you have something to work with and you can get through it. Great winter tires will make a snowy road feel maybe like a gravel road at best - you're never totally connected and you can't drive like dry (or even wet) pavement, but you get where you're going.

When I'm driving in bad winter weather I make a point of safely probing the limits of traction to understand what's available to me if I encounter unexpected situations. If I merely hover my foot over the brake pedal and the ABS goes bonkers then I know we're dealing with something really serious.

Enough of all that - I followed your thread from the beginning. It sounds like you're happy with your choice and I'm glad you like them. I think the Altimax are excellently placed in the value lineup and are encouraging people who previously did not run full winter tires to do so, which is a great thing! From one of the "other drivers" on the road, thanks for running winter tires...

 

[sciphi]

The Altimax Arctics on the Buick were slipping all over the place this morning in the slushy, salty junk on the roads. The difference is the slip was minimal, easily controlled, and well-communicated. I knew what the tires were doing, whether they were gripping, and where the car was going.

Even my very good all-seasons would have been sitting ducks in this junk.

 

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted By: Craig in Canada
We'll see how my current Hakkapeliitta RSis do.


I'm VERY interested to see how the RSis do (sipe wear wise), as I'm planning on getting Hakka Rs next winter.

My almost eight year old Alpin PA2s are actually doing a lot better than I ever expected this snowier than usual season we're having.
But I'm certain they will be useless next year.

 

[Craig in Canada]

Originally Posted By: dailydriver
Originally Posted By: Craig in Canada
We'll see how my current Hakkapeliitta RSis do.


I'm VERY interested to see how the RSis do (sipe wear wise), as I'm planning on getting Hakka Rs next winter.

My almost eight year old Alpin PA2s are actually doing a lot better than I ever expected this snowier than usual season we're having.
But I'm certain they will be useless next year.


"Unfortunately" we had almost no snow last winter, the first on my RSis, so I barely got to try them in winter weather. We've had snow so far this winter and they've done well, but I never got to experience them fresh "out of the box" for comparison. So far the sipes feel OK by hand. The catch with the Dunlops was that the tread depth was still huge, but the sipes had no grab.

I will point out that the RSis are probably meant for winters harsher than mine. They don't do well in milder weather. When I first put them on last year it was still usually above freezing and they made these ripping velcro-like noises whenever you apply control input (any control). They also have disturbingly low wet traction as the weather warms. One day earlier this season it was about 11C and raining for one stormy day then back below freezing. My traction control was blinking all the time and when braking it felt like I had run through some oil or something. By contrast, when it's anything below -10C out they really start to firm up and stick. By close to -20C they are downright sporty in the dry and I can really "push".

This leads me to believe that they would be stellar in harsher winters than Toronto gets on average. I know that the Rs were changed to improve braking and some other things. I think I even saw marketing statements for the Rs talking about being "ready for all conditions" and talking about rain, slush etc.... so maybe they've fixed the compound issues. In NJ, and coming from PA2s you might not be happy. I went from sport snows to Hakkas because I was upset at sub-par (even scary) winter performance and now I have two kids in the car but perhaps I went too far if they can't make them work well in warmer conditions.

They also get EXCELLENT fuel economy. Better than my summers and especially better than any previous winter tire. Very low rolling resistance - as advertised.