allseason or winter tires for me..

[bowlofturtle]

This is for my Infiniti g35 AWD sedan. Car makes a little more than 300hp/300torque at the CRANK.

Current setup..
Winter = 215/55/17 Firestone FR710 or something
Summer = 235/45/18/ Kumho LE SPORT (love these)

Car is daily driven in the city. Average plowing in the winter but city parking can get tricky pulling into spots. Never owned winter tires. My car is on the road every weekday for 20-100miles. Mixed city and highway, i've been getting by with random allseason tires.

My 17's are wearing down now, almost to a point on dry pavement if I floor it mid turn i can chirp tires. I'm going to finish off this winter and throw my summer tires on and start shopping for new 17's. I'm at a cross road on what to get, some decent All-season like a Kumha 4x ($100), firestone winterforce (100), WS80 blizzaack are $130. Many say the DWS are best blend of both, then i hear people say they are useless for snow after 15k on a 40-60k tire.

I'm also a little price senstive, i dont mind shelling out money for summer tires but winter/fall tires.... i can careless. I drive aggressive in the summertime and very missdaisy like in the winter/rain/cold.

Not sure if it matters but car is set to -1.7 camber with a little toe in.

 

[901Memphis]

I got some Cooper CS5's recently and they are very impressive in the wet and snow. They make an Ultra touring for your type of vehicle. I have the lower grand touring model.

 

[Oro_O]

It sounds like you'd be disappointed w/all season in the summer given your driving style. I'd get some new snows.

I used to run dedicated summer Z/winters on an AWD audi when I lived east. When I moved west and went w/all season, I really notice the lack of aggressive performance.

The best snow tires I ever had were from Yokohama (better than Blizzaks, others). They were usually very economical. Maybe see what they offer these days.

 

[99Saturn]

I'll just offer my experience since I'm a fairly recent snow tire convert I suppose. This year is the first year we had snows on all our cars, and the second year that they were on any. Between the fleet, Xi3s, General Arctics and WS60s or WS70s.

If nothing else, it was satisfying (from my/our own personal safety) driving home one night this week with an inch or two of we slush on the road without having any trouble in a Saturn SL2 with snows - my only concern was maneuvering past the person in front of me if they got stuck, as I watched them skid and fishtail sideways at one point while I followed them up a hill.

Granted in the past I didn't feel doomed driving on all seasons during the winter either. Also, FWIW, the snow reviews of the FR710s on Tire Rack are subpar at best so a well praised all season will likely be a big improvement too.

 

[HTSS_TR]

I have no idea how Kumho 4X performs on snow cover streets, but I know it is much better DWS on wet surface.

DWS was lousy on highway speed(no more than 70 MPH) with moderate to heavy rain even with only 2-3k miles on it, Kumho 4X is very sure foot on wet highway even at 75-80 MPH with less than 5/32" tread remaining.

Of all tires I had on my cars(more than 10 different brands and models) DWS is the worse tire, up to the point that I would not have it on any car I own even for free.

 

[eljefino]

Do you stay home during snowstorms? Do you drive a lot on the interstate in good weather? If both, all seasons.

I run snow tires because they behave themselves... I can toss the car into a skid and then pull out of it. All seasons would start spinning out-- they never regrip after they lose it.

 

[stephen9666]

FR710 are bad in the winter. I used to have a set.

 

[EdwardC]

Since you have two sets already, I personally would slap some snow tires on the 17s. I can't think of a reason to run all-seasons. Even in cold good weather, they'll offer a lot more grip (and better ride) than an all season.

 

[CharBaby]

I agree with getting a set of 4 snow/ice tires since you'll need new tires for next winter. Or at least a really good all season tire that does very well in the winter...size dependent!

But, wait til next Autumn just in case you decide to get rid of your car for any reason...or, God forbid, something happens to it!

 

[fdcg27]

If you're willing to buy two sets of tires on two sets of wheeels, then winters for winter make sense.
They're also going on closeout now, so you should be able to pick up a set on the cheap over the next month or two.
There are cetainly better summer tires than anything form Kumho, but I don't know how much you really want to spend.
All seasons?
A good all season really would give the best of both worlds, although would not be as good in either as two sets of dedicated tires.
What do you want to spend and how seasonally dedicated do you want your tires to be?
I've had winters and they really are all that.
I usually stick with all seasons.
Good ones are very good in summer and are pretty good in winter.
You also do have the winter advantages of AWD.

 

[BISCUT]

For a 1 set dealio, hard to beat Conti Pure Contact. I have them on my X drive 3 series and have been amazed this wintery season. Today I put them on the Maxima in my sig.

 

[spk2000]

Snow tires make a big difference in snow. Not so great when there is no snow. In Chicago AWD with all seasons would do fine in all but the worst snow. Ice is always different. Tires made for ice will make a difference but again around Chicago you get more snow not as much ice normally.

 

[sciphi]

I'd look for snow/ice tires. Michelin XI-3's or Nokian Hakka R2's. Both of those are known for good road manners in the dry/wet, and good snow/ice grip. They're also fairly long-lived if rotated regularly.

 

[UG_Passat]

Originally Posted By: bowlofturtle
This is for my Infiniti g35 AWD sedan. Car makes a little more than 300hp/300torque at the CRANK.

Current setup..
Winter = 215/55/17 Firestone FR710 or something
Summer = 235/45/18/ Kumho LE SPORT (love these)

Car is daily driven in the city. Average plowing in the winter but city parking can get tricky pulling into spots. Never owned winter tires. My car is on the road every weekday for 20-100miles. Mixed city and highway, i've been getting by with random allseason tires.

My 17's are wearing down now, almost to a point on dry pavement if I floor it mid turn i can chirp tires. I'm going to finish off this winter and throw my summer tires on and start shopping for new 17's. I'm at a cross road on what to get, some decent All-season like a Kumha 4x ($100), firestone winterforce (100), WS80 blizzaack are $130. Many say the DWS are best blend of both, then i hear people say they are useless for snow after 15k on a 40-60k tire.

I'm also a little price senstive, i dont mind shelling out money for summer tires but winter/fall tires.... i can careless. I drive aggressive in the summertime and very missdaisy like in the winter/rain/cold.

Not sure if it matters but car is set to -1.7 camber with a little toe in.



http://www.vulcantire.com/cgi-bin/tiresearch.cgi?stock=10182&f=winguardsp_s.cst

The Nexen Winguard Sport is a decent winter tire for what it is for not too much money. Does it have white-stuff grip of a Blizzak WS-80, Xice Xi3, or Hakkapelliita? Of course not. But, it's gotten me through several blizaards, and when it's not snowing, provides decent handling on the dry.

If you don't mind spending extra money... Nokian WR G3 and you'll get improved white-stuff performance (not at the level of the Hakkas), but a tad squisher in the dry road handling.

 

[fdcg27]

I put a set of Pures on the Forester.
They are pretty good overall, although the OEM Geolanders were also pretty decent.
It's hard to judge the winter characteristics of any tire mounted on a Subaru, though, since the AWD makes even deep snow a piece of cake.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted By: bowlofturtle
This is for my Infiniti g35 AWD sedan. Car makes a little more than 300hp/300torque at the CRANK.

Current setup..
Winter = 215/55/17 Firestone FR710 or something
Summer = 235/45/18/ Kumho LE SPORT (love these)

Car is daily driven in the city. Average plowing in the winter but city parking can get tricky pulling into spots. Never owned winter tires. My car is on the road every weekday for 20-100miles. Mixed city and highway, i've been getting by with random allseason tires.

My 17's are wearing down now, almost to a point on dry pavement if I floor it mid turn i can chirp tires. I'm going to finish off this winter and throw my summer tires on and start shopping for new 17's. I'm at a cross road on what to get, some decent All-season like a Kumha 4x ($100), firestone winterforce (100), WS80 blizzaack are $130. Many say the DWS are best blend of both, then i hear people say they are useless for snow after 15k on a 40-60k tire.

I'm also a little price senstive, i dont mind shelling out money for summer tires but winter/fall tires.... i can careless. I drive aggressive in the summertime and very missdaisy like in the winter/rain/cold.

Not sure if it matters but car is set to -1.7 camber with a little toe in.

For me tires never been expensive. I would buy used cars with 20K or 30K and dealer would install new Kumho or Hankook. For me those are the MOST expensive tires, since after 10-15K you can throw them away.
I had Kumho Ecsta on VW CC when I bought car with 28K. Dealer installed, since only way I would buy Kumho would be to point gun to my head. They were AMAZING in hydroplaning. However, handling in wet was really funny, since you could slide car anytime you wanted. What was NOT funny was braking in wet. After 12K, they lost balance, and could not be balanced anymore.
I drive both winter (Blizzak LM-60) and summer (Michelin PSS). This is what I would do if I owned that car and lived there (and I know Chicago very well):
1. Get Michelin Pilot Super Sport. You can actually find them in Costco for more then a decent price. For my car, 235/45 R17 they are $122. I can guarantee you that you will never look at Kumho or similar tires after those. Granted, they last 20-25K, but that is price you pay for performance.
2. Get PERFORMANCE winter tire. If you buy Blizzak WS-80, your car would chew them in no time. See how much is Dunlop Winter Sport 4D, Bridgestone Blizzak LM-60 (NOT WS-60). Next year Continental will start selling Continental WInter Contact SI, that will have high speed rating. Also, Mihelin Xi3 is not bad, but deep snow and slush performance is questionable. On ice, packed snow and dry they are superb.

 

[bowlofturtle]

My kuhmo summer tires are newer. So i'll only be buying a set for the 17's. Only reason why i have the Firestone FR710 was cause they cost $100 installed for 7/32 life. They are now about 3-4/32. I never liked them. But i used the money saved for more car parts.

Also i forgot to mention on thing thats been on my mind. Ive heard the winter tires burn up when its 40* and higher. Chicago has very STUPID weather. Today its 45 degrees and there is still snow in my alley and side streets from the last snow fall.

I daily drive the car, so i dont stay home if the snowstorm falls on a weekday. Work never shutsdown so i have to go in. But i dont like to wait last minute to install take off my summer tires. My summer tires are on Easter day and go to about Columbus day. I use those days to do swap them.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted By: bowlofturtle
My kuhmo summer tires are newer. So i'll only be buying a set for the 17's. Only reason why i have the Firestone FR710 was cause they cost $100 installed for 7/32 life. They are now about 3-4/32. I never liked them. But i used the money saved for more car parts.

Also i forgot to mention on thing thats been on my mind. Ive heard the winter tires burn up when its 40* and higher. Chicago has very STUPID weather. Today its 45 degrees and there is still snow in my alley and side streets from the last snow fall.

I daily drive the car, so i dont stay home if the snowstorm falls on a weekday. Work never shutsdown so i have to go in. But i dont like to wait last minute to install take off my summer tires. My summer tires are on Easter day and go to about Columbus day. I use those days to do swap them.

Look, Colorado has more sunny days then California. You can have 3ft of snow, and next day is 70. This year we had -29 in November/December, 76 in February, then 0 in March with 3 weeks of snow.
Winter tires CANNOT last long. However, if you are trying to hit some long lasting dedicated winter tires, then go with Michelin Xi3. Like I said, they are not the best in deep snow, especially in slush. Gap between tread blocks is just too small. However, in the end of the day, THEY ARE DEDICATED WINTER TIRES, which means, they will do their job in brutal Chicago winter much better then best all-season tire in those conditions. Xi3 have 40K Michelin guarantee.

 

[CrawfishTails]

Agreed, nothing better available in a dedicated winter tire than Michelin Xice3. They are even speed rated highly, so they hold up nicely, plenty of margin, in high summer heat. And they do last a long time, about as long as most all-season tires out there. "Icing" on top: They are also low rolling resistance tires!

 

[99Saturn]

Originally Posted By: edyvw
...However, if you are trying to hit some long lasting dedicated winter tires, then go with Michelin Xi3. Like I said, they are not the best in deep snow, especially in slush. Gap between tread blocks is just too small. However, in the end of the day, THEY ARE DEDICATED WINTER TIRES, which means, they will do their job in brutal Chicago winter much better then best all-season tire in those conditions. Xi3 have 40K Michelin guarantee.

I'd agree with this. We have the Xi3s on our Cruze. We're at the end of year two now, probably ~10,000 miles on them, they are at 9/32nds. Been good all around in most storms, but I was told there was a little slipping in the last storm we had, which left an inch or two of wet slush on the roads. FWIW, I believe the 40K guarantee is if the tires are work to 2/32nds.