New snow tires!

[michaelluscher]

Well, forecast says 7-14" of snow for the NYC metro area mid week
My 3 winter old WinterContact SI set was toast, it was time for a new set
So I went with their successor, Continentals new VikingContact7
I run a separate set of winter wheels and tires, 205/65/16
My logic is narrower = better in snow?
And a taller sidewall is a slightly better ride and slightly more pothole resistant
Dropped it off at about 11am, they called me at 1:30 saying it was ready
I like my tire shop (especially on Sunday's)
They ran me about $118 each, but after Roadforce mount and balance ($25 each), alignment ($99), NYS inspection ($37) and other stems and disposal surcharges it was $750~ OTD
And I'm getting $70 back from Continental in a rebate
I took them for a blast up and down the expressway, they seem fairly smooth and quiet, a big improvement over the old V tread design (always a loud tread design IMO)
A little loose and mushy feeling, but it takes about 500 miles for them to finish curing right?
Hope I can get 3 or 4 winters out of this set

 

[#18FAN]

Awesome you got me looking now for the kids car for winter.

 

[Bighorn2500]

Generous amount of sipes, those should do very well on snow & ice.

 

[Danno]

How many miles per winter do you do?

 

[Hogwash]

Nice. I run a slightly taller than OEM for the same reasons on my snow tires.

 

[michaelluscher]

How many miles per winter do you do?

Good question
In the ~5 years I've had this car, I'm averaging 23,000 a year
How much of that's in Winter, half is probably a little generous?
Although I didn't run separate wheels with snow tires (no one in the city really does) until fall of '17 when I got a job that 'being snowed in" isn't an excuse
I do enjoy cruising around at a reasonable pace when every soft roader cute ute with it's worn factory tires is crashing on every other corner

 

[krzyss]

It is second winter for our Viking 7s for Volvo S60 and Miata.
They are very good on Volvo but winter performance would have been better on Mazda :-(

Krzys

 

[Jmlo96]

I love my VikingContacts on my Regal TourX. I can't get over how quiet and smooth they are. Most other people drive on these other brands of winter tire I hear roaring down the road. I had the WinterContactSI and I was also impressed with those on a previous car.

 

[weebl]

Amazing tires. I just bought a set this winter for the winter beater/son's future car that we got in October, a 2004 Impala. I went with 215/65R16 instead of the stock 225/60R16. These seem to stick like glue, even in conditions I know would be a challenge for other tires to have any traction, whether it is ice or snow. One of the first tests of the tire we did on our first deep snow fall, and the car was like a snow plow. Easily the best set of winter tires I've had to date. I plan on getting another set of these for the Tiguan next year, as the set on there now are in their last winter.

 

[edyvw]

I have them on BMW (well did not install them yet for this season as ski slopes are kind of thin).
They will always be mushy and bit loose. Do not expect to perform as Michelin or even Si for that matter in dry. But for that kind of tire they are exceptionally well behaved in dry. In wet they are really good for hard core winter tire, and in ice and snow they are absolute blast. I found that my BMW easily overwhelms them in dry, but I also run narrowest size, 205/55 R16.
Currently I do not think that there is a winter tire on market that is absolute monster in snow and ice, but does everything else really good too. I would say in snow and ice they are on par with Nokian Hakka R2 I have on Tiguan, but they are absolute garbage in dry and especially wet.

 

[Rand]

Have a set on the 2020 elantra, FULLY SATISFIED..

New design last year and they hit a homerun.

 

[TheLawnRanger]

I don't use snow tires but I do like the Continental tires on my Encore. Your new tires look great.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I bought new snow tires too , and fixed my snowblower.

There's a reason that winter storm isn't hitting up here.

 

[Jetronic]

I bought snowshovels, even a mini one for the then small daughter, and heaps of salt. They all sit in the basement unused as it refuses to get properly wintery ever since. But the day I get rid....

 

[iahawk]

it's typical to go to a minus 1 when doing winter tires..down an inch in wheel diameter, narrower width and up in aspect ratio to give you the same circumference. Did this on my Subaru but my Caravan wouldn't allow a smaller diameter wheel due to the larger caliper and disc.

Side benefit to a Winter tire -1 is a very cushy ride!

 

[krzyss]

"Side benefit to a Winter tire -1 is a very cushy ride!"

It depends on what you want to get from your tires.

Krzyś

 

[JoelB]

I just ordered a set of these for my Mirage. Easily the best snow tire available in my 175/55/15 size. I'm glad to hear so many people are happy with them.

 

[Jim K]

I put these on my car they are doing very good.

 

[michaelluscher]

So far I'm liking them
They've done well in warmer (50°+) rain
And they're fairing quite well on the fresh unsalted expressways, they track excellent at highway speed
Much quieter than the WinterContactSi
They no longer sound trucky, but these new ones sure do ride like a Jeep, but it's still comfortable
I upped the pressures a bit to 34F/36R, so when it gets to the teens they'll still be right
They're saying a foot overnight, and highs in the low teens, and I've gotta be at work tomorrow
I also live down a tertiary dead end that's often plowed lousily, last
Wish me luck

 

[michaelluscher]

These really make unplowed streets fun