Not snow tire time yet...

[sciphi]

Here on the US East Coast, it's pretty far from snow tire time. There hasn't been a lick of snow yet this December. Blame temperatures that have been mostly in the 40's and 50's during the daytime. Things aren't looking like they'll change in time for the holidays, either. It may well be January before it's cold enough to consider swapping out the all-seasons. My impact gun trigger finger has been getting the itch, but scratching it at the moment would be pointless.

Oh well, I'm sure we'll make up for this nice weather later in the winter.

 

[bullwinkle]

Same here-put the studs on the GMC (being 2WD & open diff it's useless without them in any snow); my mom's, wife's xB, & son's XJ snows are all sitting in a big pile in the basement-good news is, that's miles & rubber not getting burned off them. If this keeps up, I may not have to put them on at all!

 

[bbhero]

Last December it was fairly warm east of the Mississippi river. In early January it got a fair amount colder and pretty much stayed that way the rest of the month. Then in February it got very very cold and snowy here in eastern Va. 4th coldest February on record. Average high temps for the month were almost 16°F below average for the month.
If it was that cold down here in January and February I can guruantee it was a good amount colder where you are. We had high temperatures barely above 20° in the last week of February ! ! That's brutally cold in late December or January. Plus it is nearly 30° below normal for a daytime high temperature in this area for late February. So up your way it was likely around 0°F or low single digits for high temps at that time. Who knows... Pattern can shift quite quickly. Just like last year

 

[earlyre]

and yet i keep seeing folks around with them on... mostly college kids with New England Plates...
want to yell at them, that they won't need them..at all really, but not until mid January do we really get enough snow to worry about.

 

[A_Harman]

We had 8" of snow before Thanksgiving, and I scrambled to put on the snows. It hasn't snowed a flake since then. It was 60F today, but is supposed to cool through the week, and have a chance of snow on the weekend. I don't fret about lack of snow until January.

 

[dan_erickson]

I took the nice wheels and tires off the car and put the stock wheels and tired back on because there are huge pot holes already in the road.

 

[Rolla07]

Put mine on last week..but its the law here by dec 15th unfortunately...

 

[69GTX]

Didn't get really any snow in Dec-Jan in Connecticut last year. Seems to be the pattern for 2 out of the last 3 years as I recall. But February and half of March were insanely brutal. Took advantage of $1.48/gall fuel oil today and topped off my heating oil tank. A nice change from $3.60 the first half of 2014.

 

[edyvw]

EL Nino guys.
Do not expect too much this year on East Coast.

CA on other hand is finally getting out of drought.

 

[bvance554]

I'm enjoying it. Wore shorts and ate on the rooftop of a restaurant over the weekend. Low heating bill so far. Haven't replaced the snow shovel i broke last year and don't feel any urgency to buy a new one. It did make shopping for a tree a little less enjoyable. Its like Christmas in Orlando all over the East coast. I would like some snow, but I'd rather see CA have some rain:

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted By: bvance554
I'm enjoying it. Wore shorts and ate on the rooftop of a restaurant over the weekend. Low heating bill so far. Haven't replaced the snow shovel i broke last year and don't feel any urgency to buy a new one. It did make shopping for a tree a little less enjoyable. Its like Christmas in Orlando all over the East coast. I would like some snow, but I'd rather see CA have some rain:

For CA snow in Sierra's is the most important. I think last week they got 4ft, this storm they should get 2+ ft.
That snow when it melts goes to reservoirs. So, it does not have to rain in LA or San Diego, but as long as Sierra's are getting pounded by snow, they are good.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: edyvw
EL Nino guys.
Do not expect too much this year on East Coast.

CA on other hand is finally getting out of drought.

Originally Posted By: bvance554
I'm enjoying it. Wore shorts and ate on the rooftop of a restaurant over the weekend. Low heating bill so far. Haven't replaced the snow shovel i broke last year and don't feel any urgency to buy a new one. It did make shopping for a tree a little less enjoyable. Its like Christmas in Orlando all over the East coast. I would like some snow, but I'd rather see CA have some rain:

Originally Posted By: edyvw
For CA snow in Sierra's is the most important. I think last week they got 4ft, this storm they should get 2+ ft.
That snow when it melts goes to reservoirs. So, it does not have to rain in LA or San Diego, but as long as Sierra's are getting pounded by snow, they are good.

Yeah, we had 2 showers last 4 days, they predict we will have 2-3 showers the next 8-10 days.

Rain in So Cal is mostly drain to the Pacific ocean, snow in Sierra and in Colorado is what we need.

 

[Johnny2Bad]

Originally Posted By: bullwinkle
Same here-put the studs on the GMC (being 2WD & open diff it's useless without them in any snow) ...


Have always driven 2WD ½ ton and ¾ ton trucks, most with open differentials. Never had any major problems navigating in snow with decent tires, no studs.

I do know people who run studs but find they are a poor option compared to a good LT-rated, Load Range C or better, winter ice radial or Mountainflake Snow Tire.

Studs destroy handling, and braking performance on dry pavement is ... I'm not sure I have the words. Double the stopping distance vs no studs would be considered "good" performance.

They are a much less expensive option, though. Sometimes you have to do what you have to do.

 

[dlayman]

In central PA, its been abnormally warm too, with a lot of days getting into 50's and 60's. I do have my snows on and was glad I did, as we had five straight mornings of freezing fog in the valleys and roads were coated in black ice. Saw plenty of flipped and wrecked cars, including two Subarus. Nitto studless tires on my Civic did great. Fortunately that is my beater car and I can drive my newer one on the warm non-hazardous days. Accuweather is predicting Christmas Day high of 66 degrees. January looks colder and snowier, for as much as the long-range forecast can be trusted. We had a brutal winter last year, one of the worst ever, but December wasn't bad then either, but we paid for it clear through the beginning of April.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

We hit 65 yesterday!

I stopped driving the Focus last week. These warm temperatures will chew up the snow tires quickly.

On a side note, no salt plus $1.94/gal gas makes driving the Jeep quite appealing.

 

[rslifkin]

I've still got the summers on the Jeep. At this point, it's become a weekly ritual to think about putting the snows on, look at the weather and say "maybe next week". I'm debating whether I should even throw them on for my Christmas travels, or if I should just toss them and the tools in the back in case the weather turns before my return trip.

 

[Quattro Pete]

I put winter wheels on both our cars nearly a month ago and am just not thinking about it anymore.

If it scares off Old Man Winter, I'm fine with that.

 

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
I put winter wheels on both our cars nearly a month ago and am just not thinking about it anymore.

If it scares off Old Man Winter, I'm fine with that.


+1
There has been a couple moderately icy days that I saw some cars in the ditch, and while it was no big deal with my snows, my 3 season tires would've been useless...
On a side note I think my iG52C's are on track to go 40k miles (8/32 now with ~20k) so I don't think the extra miles are hurting them too much

 

[bvance554]

Originally Posted By: edyvw
Originally Posted By: bvance554
I'm enjoying it. Wore shorts and ate on the rooftop of a restaurant over the weekend. Low heating bill so far. Haven't replaced the snow shovel i broke last year and don't feel any urgency to buy a new one. It did make shopping for a tree a little less enjoyable. Its like Christmas in Orlando all over the East coast. I would like some snow, but I'd rather see CA have some rain:

For CA snow in Sierra's is the most important. I think last week they got 4ft, this storm they should get 2+ ft.
That snow when it melts goes to reservoirs. So, it does not have to rain in LA or San Diego, but as long as Sierra's are getting pounded by snow, they are good.


Yes thank you. I should have said I am happy to see CA get some precipitation... So all of their TWELVE resevoirs can soak it up. Most of it runs onto the Pacific, which is why CA has water issues.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted By: bvance554
Originally Posted By: edyvw
Originally Posted By: bvance554
I'm enjoying it. Wore shorts and ate on the rooftop of a restaurant over the weekend. Low heating bill so far. Haven't replaced the snow shovel i broke last year and don't feel any urgency to buy a new one. It did make shopping for a tree a little less enjoyable. Its like Christmas in Orlando all over the East coast. I would like some snow, but I'd rather see CA have some rain:

For CA snow in Sierra's is the most important. I think last week they got 4ft, this storm they should get 2+ ft.
That snow when it melts goes to reservoirs. So, it does not have to rain in LA or San Diego, but as long as Sierra's are getting pounded by snow, they are good.


Yes thank you. I should have said I am happy to see CA get some precipitation... So all of their TWELVE resevoirs can soak it up. Most of it runs onto the Pacific, which is why CA has water issues.

Well CO is very important, especially southwest CO for CA. So far CO is getting also good amount of snow. November was really good, then first 10 days of December were warm, I was devastated since I ski twice a week.
But boy were these last 5 days a bomb! Last night Wolf Creek (SW CO) got 26 inches, they got total in 3 days 48 inches. Other got in last 5 days anywhere from 18 to 35 inches.
So I think next year drought might have less impact on CA.