Dedicated snow tire questions?

[otis24]

I have never run a dedicated snow tire. For the past fifteen years, I have lived close to work (within 1-3 miles). Any long distance trips, I could afford to take my time. Therefore, I have never run a dedicated snow tire.

Currently, I drive 75 miles one way to work. Two miles of in-town driving to get to the interstate. From there, all interstate driving.

My daily commuter car is a 2005 Impala. It is my understanding that snow tires grip better due to softer compounds, but do not last as long. How long can I expect a set of tires to last me? I plan to go back to all-season tires after the winter is over. Looks to be a pretty bad winter. Can I get three seasons of wear from these tires?

 

[eljefino]

20-25k miles or more if you don't mind when they turn into all seasons... tougher rubber often lurks halfway down.

 

[Jaykim81]

My experience with dedicated snow tires is that they do not last too long if you drive on dry roads a lot. If you drive conservatively on dry roads, the tires should last you at least three seasons. Also, when the tires wear down a little, the deep snow traction suffers noticeably.

But, they are worth every penny when you have to make an emergency stop or have to go up a steep hill.

 

[Craig in Canada]

There are still decisions to be made in your selection process. If you find that you're usually driving on a dry/wet interstate but you want something with improved traction in the cold you could use a "high performance" snow tire like Primacy Alpins or Hakkapeliitta WRG2s (used as all seasons by many people, but they're much better in the cold). These tires have less siping, stiffer construction and firmer tread compounds using silca (instead of multicell) compound rubber to retain more dry/wet performance. They're still way better than all seasons in winter weather but are tougher than really soft snows like Blizzak WS series.

My parents are snow birds and head down to FL for a couple of months of the winter. They need to drive in winter conditions before leaving, on the way, and when they get back. My dad has used Michelin Pilot Alpins for years and even in two months of warm, dry driving in FL they wear great. It even surprises me how long they last. He's also got plenty of workable grip in snow and ice.

All snow tires can't be lumped into one category when making your choice.

 

[97tbird]

As for regular (not high performance) dedicated snow tires, General Altimax Arctics and Hankook Ipikes seem to offer a lot of bang for the buck. I am extremely happy with how my Altimax Arctics ($80 a piece), performed on snow and slick, semi-icy roads on a 3,395-lb rear wheel drive car, without any weight in the trunk.
(there's a thread on these tires in this section somewhere)

 

[dparm]

In my experience, the passenger snow tires go 30-40k, depending on how you drive. Michelin's X-Ice Xi2 (very highly rated and personally recommended by me) has a 40k warranty, actually.

 

[sciphi]

Larger old design GM cars like the W-body (your Impala) are inherently good in the snow due to being heavy and usually having tall, skinny tires.

I'd still look at a set of snows. Driving all highway in cold weather, 3-4 seasons out of them is a reasonable expectation.

We have General Altimax Arctics on the Buick, and Blizzak LM-25's on the Fit. The Generals are a "true" snow tire, the Blizzaks are "performance snow" tires. The Generals let you know they're meant for cold weather with very soft sidewalls, mushier handling, and lots of snow grip. The Blizzaks ride and handle just like sportier all-seasons when the roads are dry. On packed snow, there's no difference between the two tires. In shallow slush, the Blizzaks are worse due to a less aggressive tread design. In deep slush, the Generals are a handful, but make it through. The Blizzaks spin much more before letting the car go forward. This isn't so much an issue on the interstate, but is on back roads around here.

That's my $0.02 on both types of snow tires. Pick the type that best fits the winter driving you do most often. We're very happy with both snow tires, and would buy both sets again.

 

[otis24]

I'm leaning towards a performance snow. I would expect that while I will drive in some snowy/icy conditions, there will be a huge amount of time that the roads will be dry. I drive conservatively anyway. Most mornings, I do not exceed 60-65 MPH because I am looking for the best possible fuel economy. When road conditions are spotty, I drive even slower;

 

[Astro14]

If you drive conservatively, then you don't really need the performance bias, do you? Granted, they'll handle better than the pure snow tire, but in your case, you need the best snow traction...

The whole point here is to optimise the rubber to the intended use. You get blizzards and heavy snow in the winter, so I would choose a dedicated set of good snows (regular blizzaks or the Nokian Hakapelliitas for example, and there are others, but I have had great experiences with those 2 types).

Performance snows simply don't have the traction in heavy snow that regular snow tires do...

 

[rjundi]

Winter tires wear fine if they are driven at temps below 45F. They do wear quicker on the warm days or with lax removal at the end of season.

Nokian tires do last a lot longer in my experience vs others.

 

[Craig in Canada]

Originally Posted By: Astro14
If you drive conservatively, then you don't really need the performance bias, do you? Granted, they'll handle better than the pure snow tire, but in your case, you need the best snow traction...


The performance suggestion in my post is about durability, not performance driving.

A "performance" snow tire is still a really [censored] performance tire - more like a mediocre all season. I don't want to mislead readers without personal exposure thinking that "performance" snow tires are serious racing equipment. They're simply H rated (V in some sizes), have less siping (each block is larger) and they are never constructed with multi-cell compounds (high silica only). I've also found that performance snows generally give FAR superior braking performance in wet/dry than full snows - you don't need to drive a Ferrari to appreciate that.

He's stated that most of his miles are on wet/dry Interstate. I'm not sure that he needs the "best" snow traction at all times, and he's worried about wear when it's dry.

Quote:

Performance snows simply don't have the traction in heavy snow that regular snow tires do...


This is true, but either choice is better than even the best all season tire (Hakka WRG2s excepted). I should take the time to thank each and every person sharing the road with me who decides to buy winter tires.

As someone mentioned, I have heard that there is technology in the Michelin X-Ice XI2 and the Conti Extreme Winter Contact (the one that's T rated) which is basically a new compound which hardens as it warms (or so I've been told). These tires advertise better dry handling and much longer service life because of this trait. I would have got the Xi2s instead of Hakka RSis last year if they had been imported into Canada in my size. If the product lives up to the marketing, I'd put those on my short list if you're concerned about service life on clear roads.

 

[Colt45ws]

My WS60s are probably going to be too toast to be usable next season. After 2 seasons. They are really too hardcore a snow tire for the couple inches we get once or twice a season and wear like garbage in the dry/wet. Im thinking seriously about the Contis next.

 

[Astro14]

I think we're all in agreement on how various tires perform...the question comes down to the OP's need.

Personally, Chamberlain, SD is in the middle of nowhere, half way between Sioux Falls and Rapid City...no offense, I used to live in Winnipeg, 500 miles north of Chamberlain...even more remote....with some unbelievable blizzards in the time I lived there...

If I were in the OPs situation: driving 75 miles on the highway (which takes you past very few towns) with the potential for the severe winter weather of the midwest prairie, I would go hard core on the snow tires...put 'em on about Halloween, take 'em off for Easter.

I happen to have the Nokian WR G2s on two of my cars (a 1992 MB 300E and a 2002 Volvo V70XC)...absolutely love them. Quiet ride, smooth, excellent traction on snow and ice, but not quite as good as the Nokian Hakkapeliittas. Where I live now, we might see a few flakes once or twice a year and the WR G2s are perfect, I can leave them on year 'round, take the car up to the mountains skiing and handle the weather here. They would be a great all season compromise for the OP.

But if it were me, and I were driving long distance on a lonely highway with chances of severe winter? I personally would go for a set of Hakka's and swap back to regular tires in the summer...

So, Larry, to answer your question, you'll probably get about 2-3 winters out of a set of dedicated snow tires, depends on the miles, took my hakka's about 25K to get down to 6/32". Once they're down to 6/32" tread, they're worn out for snow, then just leave them on for summer and wear off the rest of the tread.

 

[otis24]

I've limited my search to tires that are available at Sam's Club/Wal-Mart due to warranty. Looking at Michelin Primacy Alpine PA3 or Michelin Xi2's. I am very interested in the ability to stop. Any preference of one of these over the other?

 

[eljefino]

What sort of warranty? You won't get treadlife warranty, nor would you want to run down to 2/32 to cash in.

That leaves road hazard, with which I had a great experience with at Sam's once.

 

[Craig in Canada]

Originally Posted By: otis24
I've limited my search to tires that are available at Sam's Club/Wal-Mart due to warranty. Looking at Michelin Primacy Alpine PA3 or Michelin Xi2's. I am very interested in the ability to stop. Any preference of one of these over the other?


PA3s are sporty, Xi2s are not. PA3s will handle dry/wet cleared roads MUCH better than Xi2s. In wet/dry, PA3s will brake much better than Xi2s. Xi2s will have more winter traction in snow/ice/slush than the PA3s, but the PA3s are still snow tires.

What kind of car? Style of driving? Typical road conditions?

 

[otis24]

2005 Chevrolet Impala, FWD, 3400 V6. Typically clear to snow packed roads, drifting roads. Just about miffed it last night on a snow packed back road (fish tailed 4-5 times before regaining control). Typically, I will not be on back roads, 90% highway driving, 75 miles one way, 75 miles back. I have insurance on my vehicle, but not looking to wreck it. Good vehicles at a good price are hard to find. Got a great deal on mine and am looking to avoid an accident at all costs. Biggest problem I have experienced thus far is stopping the vehicle. Currently wearing Goodyear Integrity all around, tread is good.

 

[Craig in Canada]

Originally Posted By: otis24
2005 Chevrolet Impala, FWD, 3400 V6. Typically clear to snow packed roads, drifting roads. Just about miffed it last night on a snow packed back road (fish tailed 4-5 times before regaining control). Typically, I will not be on back roads, 90% highway driving, 75 miles one way, 75 miles back. I have insurance on my vehicle, but not looking to wreck it. Good vehicles at a good price are hard to find. Got a great deal on mine and am looking to avoid an accident at all costs. Biggest problem I have experienced thus far is stopping the vehicle. Currently wearing Goodyear Integrity all around, tread is good.


Trouble stopping because you don't have enough traction on ice and snow, or trouble stopping because of tread slip and squirm on wet/dry roads?

The first thing I notice when switching to my snows from my summers is loss of braking even in the dry - so I need to ask what you mean.

If you need to maximize winter traction at all costs then the Xi2 is more suited to nasty weather. They may have longer stopping distances on clear roads than the PA3, however, but I'm not sure if dry/wet is your major concern.

 

[otis24]

Looking for better traction/braking on snow. Dry braking is not as much of a concern because there is little to no traffic congestion. Just want to be able to stop and avoid a wreck as much as possible on snow packed roads and ensure good traction when road conditions are uncertain.

 

[Rand]

the michelin xice xi2's are susposed to be long wearing.

for the price I'd get the higher rated continential extreme winter contacts.

They are about the cheapest around handle like a normal passenger tire.. ie not as mushy as the blizzack ws-50s and you get decent wear out of them.

I'd expect 30k useable winter miles and 1 summer after they get halfway wore and you dont want to use them in winter anymore (like most snow tires you replace at 4-5/32 of tread)