Originally Posted By: lyle
My personal choice would be the Firestone Winterforce. It all depends on your overall conditions, but the Michelins are not as good as the Firestones in slush or snow. They wear faster because of their softer rubber, don't handle as well, and with a 100 mile commute every day, you have to take that into consideration.
I put a set of Xi2's on the wifes car at the beginning of this winter, and after a couple of storms, she complained that I wasted our money because they were not what she expected. I then drove her car for a couple of weeks through a couple of snowfalls and pretty much confirmed what she said, and what I've known for 3+ decades. They are pretty good on packed snow and ice/snow, but marginal in slush and snow.
We replaced them with a set of Winterforce because I had a set on a previous car, and she's been in heaven. The past couple months we've had nearly 30" of snow and she hasn't complained once.
Where we live, a good open-tread studdable snow tire works better than the studless designs overall. I've had them all, both studdable and studless, Michelin, Bridgestone, Nokian, General, Cooper, Firestone, BFG. Like I said, this has worked for me for over 30 years and I don't see anything in the studless variety which will change my mind soon.
A lot of that also depends where and how you drive and the type of snows in the area. Bigger snow falls with wet snow then definitely something with more open blocks to throw it clear is warranted. The semi cleared roads and lots of drive time (100+ miles daily) then you want the better road characteristics that also work good in snow. We had a couple good snows this year and my Sonata did great as always. It also sees a daily commute of 50 miles at highway speeds most being dry or wet. Un-common sense (since it's no common anymore) factors in huge but if your out and need to get home you need something. This year we were shut down with a 30 inch snowfall where people abandoned their cars on the roads. I was able to drive out my block in the Sequoia with the Generals and go to firehouse for calls. I also had to pull 2 people off the road so I could get back home as they saw me leave and figured they could make it also. One in a FWD Civic, the other in an Outback with almost bald tires (but hey it's AWD).
I use the Sequoia for ski trips and if large snowfalls are forecasted just for ground clearance and ramps that get plowed over by the plows. Sonata doesn't have the clearance but it can do 10" of fresh stuff with the EWC's. The Sequoia was in shop with leaking fuel injector O-rings. But for winter I do carry a shovel and other stuff in case I get stuck in both vehicles.
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Sometimes you need a little more clearance and 4 turning tires
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My personal choice would be the Firestone Winterforce. It all depends on your overall conditions, but the Michelins are not as good as the Firestones in slush or snow. They wear faster because of their softer rubber, don't handle as well, and with a 100 mile commute every day, you have to take that into consideration.
I put a set of Xi2's on the wifes car at the beginning of this winter, and after a couple of storms, she complained that I wasted our money because they were not what she expected. I then drove her car for a couple of weeks through a couple of snowfalls and pretty much confirmed what she said, and what I've known for 3+ decades. They are pretty good on packed snow and ice/snow, but marginal in slush and snow.
We replaced them with a set of Winterforce because I had a set on a previous car, and she's been in heaven. The past couple months we've had nearly 30" of snow and she hasn't complained once.
Where we live, a good open-tread studdable snow tire works better than the studless designs overall. I've had them all, both studdable and studless, Michelin, Bridgestone, Nokian, General, Cooper, Firestone, BFG. Like I said, this has worked for me for over 30 years and I don't see anything in the studless variety which will change my mind soon.
A lot of that also depends where and how you drive and the type of snows in the area. Bigger snow falls with wet snow then definitely something with more open blocks to throw it clear is warranted. The semi cleared roads and lots of drive time (100+ miles daily) then you want the better road characteristics that also work good in snow. We had a couple good snows this year and my Sonata did great as always. It also sees a daily commute of 50 miles at highway speeds most being dry or wet. Un-common sense (since it's no common anymore) factors in huge but if your out and need to get home you need something. This year we were shut down with a 30 inch snowfall where people abandoned their cars on the roads. I was able to drive out my block in the Sequoia with the Generals and go to firehouse for calls. I also had to pull 2 people off the road so I could get back home as they saw me leave and figured they could make it also. One in a FWD Civic, the other in an Outback with almost bald tires (but hey it's AWD).
I use the Sequoia for ski trips and if large snowfalls are forecasted just for ground clearance and ramps that get plowed over by the plows. Sonata doesn't have the clearance but it can do 10" of fresh stuff with the EWC's. The Sequoia was in shop with leaking fuel injector O-rings. But for winter I do carry a shovel and other stuff in case I get stuck in both vehicles.
Sometimes you need a little more clearance and 4 turning tires
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