dedicated snows vs all seasons

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I had Uniroyal Tiger Paws on my 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe 2.7l AWD and that sucker was amazing in the winter. It's hit/miss which all-seasons will work well for your specific vehicle in your specific conditions. AWD with snow tires is the ultimate combo. I had Firestone winterforce snows on my 2012 Subaru Legacy. Really good.
 
You could look for a used set of snows on rims that fit your Sante Fe already. Or a used set of snows unmounted(you have to get them quite cheap to be worth it though).
Or try running a new set of snows year round if you don't do a lot of miles. I found a set of new 2008 X-ice's at a dealership and they installed them for $200 all in. I ran them all summer and they seem to be wearing normally and drove quite well.
 
Originally Posted By: Char Baby


She's now using for the winter ONLY:
General AltiMAX Arctic and they seemed to work well on this light FWD sedan, in last years winter(2013-14).


Hmm, so you've got the same all seasons as my wife, and I have the same snows as your daughter. I guess great minds think alike?

I have nothing but high praise for the General snows. I had them last year and we had some awful storms here in Buffalo. I never got stuck, never had traction problems, and never had problems braking. The only thing that kept me off the road last year was a white out we had.

I've had a couple of pairs of Blizzaks and some Firestone snows. So far the Generals are the best winter tire I've driven on.

And as to the OP's question - I would definitely get snows, especially if you live in a hilly area. For climbing up hills and being able to stop going down them snows will do much better than all seasons. If you live in an area that gets bad snow, I wouldn't be without them.
 
Nokian WRG3, Hankook Optimo 4S and Vredestein QUATRAC 5 are all similar to performance winter tires.
It is hard to imagine why tire designed to be all season with winter twist is not similar to V (or even H) rated performance winter tire.

Krzys
 
Originally Posted By: chado_skins
been batting this around past few days...maybe you guys can help me decide one way or another. vehicle is a 2004 santa fe 4wd. current all seasons are goodyear fortera, with about 5/32 left. i've read they are decent in the snow. location is NEPA, so winters can be harsh. i only drive 10 miles one way to work, but it's up and down a mountain. tirerack has a combo set i was considering. bfgoodrich KS1 winter slalom, 77 each, and basic rims at 94 each. totals out at 800 and i have a set of rims for easy changing. or stick with the all seasons and replace when needed (i'm not replacing them at 5/32). last winter i drove a RWD ford ranger (with bad shocks at the time) up and down this mountain on all seasons, and while i never got into an accident, it was pretty nerve racking. part of me thinks considering i can drive a [censored] rwd, the 4wd and all seasons should be enough and i can save myself the 800$ investment and just buy new all seasons at some point next year... part of wants to err on the side of being prepared to drive through anything...i also went with just liability ins coverage to save some duckets, so the dedicated snows could be considered self insurance...

looking for viewpoints i guess. seems every other day i "decide" lol


Seems like a smokin deal on the tires... question is why...? TireRack only carries the one size , and it's on sale...?

Seems weird...
 
Another vote for winter tires. Once you try them, it's unlikely you'll want anything else.
 
How much is your deductible? Nerve Racking value?

For me, my DD gets dedicated winters. At least I know once I have mounted them up I have given myself the best chance at avoiding an incident equipment wise.

Have you priced out General Altimax Artics? Lots of people feel they are very good value. They can often be had for less than the deductible for sure.
 
I'm going to sound like a fanboy but winter tires are great.

Once you use them.. and have the whole reduction in stress during winter driving.. you dont go back.

With winter tires I just worry about people around me.. not my car ever.

That being said some are much better than others, and nearly the same price.

4wd doesnt help turning or braking, what vehicle are you talking about.
 
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I must be the exception to winter tires....

I have used and found them wonderful in the conditions too. However find they only get used about 1-2 weeks of driving days max a year in my locale. I go with great in snow all-seasons and avoid the worst points of storm.
 
Chado, how does that 4wd operate? Does it actually lock in the 4wd or AWD, or does it pick the time to engage and disengage? (Are you sure?) Going downhill on worn all-season tires, the car has switched itself to front wheel drive, and hitting a well polished slick spot bring out the stress mentioned above, and maybe the crash mentioned above.

Here's another vote for 4 real winter tires. Not only is your driving safer, but you ability to dodge some fool sliding toward you is much greater.

The newer Kias, and probably Hyundais, have a sticker on the car that says AWD, but the car is not.* It is FWD except when the fronts slip, then it engages the rears. It has some way to know when to disengage the rears. Even the 4wd button only is active below 19 mph, above that speed the rears disengage even with the button depressed. Find out exactly what your car's drive train does. Down hill or curves with just FWD and worn tires may not be close to safe.

(*There is no center differential or other slip device. It is a solid connection between front & rear when engaged, thus not what I'd call AWD.)
 
Originally Posted By: demarpaint


We had a house in Milford for about 14 years, which we sold several years ago, and I'm still kicking myself. Anyway all we owned at the time was RWD vehicles and a FWD car briefly. I can tell you dedicated snow tires on those windy hilly roads were worth their weight in gold. If you can afford them now, buy them now.



nice!
 
Originally Posted By: Rand
I'm going to sound like a fanboy but winter tires are great.

Once you use them.. and have the whole reduction in stress during winter driving.. you dont go back.

With winter tires I just worry about people around me.. not my car ever.

That being said some are much better than others, and nearly the same price.

4wd doesnt help turning or braking, what vehicle are you talking about.


That's not fanboy-ism, that's logical thinking. Fanboy-ism would be "I have subaru symmetrical AWD so I can run bald tires in the snow and be safe"

Logical thinking:
"I run proper tires that are designed for use in cold, snow and ice conditions and I drive defensively, I feel safe"
 
People miss the whole point of winter tires, they are not good just in snow but anytime the temperature is below 45F. They don't harden like normal tires in low temperatures because of the Silica in the tire, so you get better traction even on dry roads with a winter tire when its cold out. Plus they are much safer when there is snow or ice on the road.
 
Originally Posted By: Ken2
Chado, how does that 4wd operate? Does it actually lock in the 4wd or AWD, or does it pick the time to engage and disengage? (Are you sure?) Going downhill on worn all-season tires, the car has switched itself to front wheel drive, and hitting a well polished slick spot bring out the stress mentioned above, and maybe the crash mentioned above.

Here's another vote for 4 real winter tires. Not only is your driving safer, but you ability to dodge some fool sliding toward you is much greater.

The newer Kias, and probably Hyundais, have a sticker on the car that says AWD, but the car is not.* It is FWD except when the fronts slip, then it engages the rears. It has some way to know when to disengage the rears. Even the 4wd button only is active below 19 mph, above that speed the rears disengage even with the button depressed. Find out exactly what your car's drive train does. Down hill or curves with just FWD and worn tires may not be close to safe.

(*There is no center differential or other slip device. It is a solid connection between front & rear when engaged, thus not what I'd call AWD.)



to my knowledge, it is not locking. there is no button or gear to lock anything either. it seems it is a FWD, with sensors, that upon slippage, divert power to the rear. it's a bit mileading, because the badge on my personal car is "4WD". that's hardly 4WD!!

info from here: http://www.awdwiki.com/en/hyundai/

seems the smaller engines were equipped with FULL TIME AWD 60/40 splits. i have the 3.5l
 
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Originally Posted By: geeman789


Seems like a smokin deal on the tires... question is why...? TireRack only carries the one size , and it's on sale...?

Seems weird...




why ask why! they are name brand and happen to the size i need. i agree it seems a smokin deal.
 
Originally Posted By: geeman789
Originally Posted By: Picky1
How about something like the Nokian's WRG3 an all-weather tire...I am considering getting a set for my Subie, just torn about running them year round?

The following is the link to the SUV version of these tires:

http://www.nokiantires.com/winter-tires/nokian-wrg3-suv/


These won't be $ 77 bucks a pop.... ! They are around $ 177 ...! EACH...


No doubt they are pricy, but you are getting basically two tires in one. So no need to purchase & store snow tires and a 2nd set of rims...as well as switch tires out twice a year.
 
decided to see if any shops offer the free remount and balance if tires purchased there, as someone suggested... there is one! kost tire qouted me 504 (installed) for hankook RWII-IPIKE tires. with free remount and balnace of my other tires when spring comes (and at any point in the future for life of tires). this seems about the best deal, to utilize all of my tread, get dedicated snows, and save a few duckets!

these tires get overall good reviews...except one aspect seems to be packed snow, which is lacks grip for. rather confusing for a SNOW tire...most of the time you're on packed snow of some sort!
 
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