Gettin' Ready 4 Winter

[ridgerunner]

Hope this will cut down on me driving her to work when the snow starts to fly. Her Grand Am has fairly new Cooper CS4's and they really, really sucked in the snow last winter. These were rated 2nd only to the Blizzaks on Tire Rack. They didn't have Blizzaks in her size so I got these.

 

[Astro14]

Good choice! She will be amazed at how much better these are...so will you!

 

[sciphi]

Those will be so much better than all-seasons in the snow you'll poo yourself. Rather, you won't poo yourself when the car stops on a snowy day instead of sliding into that busy intersection at the bottom of the hill.

 

[Rand]

Tire rack actually rates those. Above. Blizzacks

In there tests. I had a set. Very good tires

Not obnoxious in the dry either

 

[kkreit01]

I thought the CS4s were supposed to be excellent in the snow -- according to CR? Maybe it depends on which flavor (speed rating, touring, etc.)?

 

[demarpaint]

With that Siping they look like they'll work OK in rain too.

 

[ridgerunner]

Originally Posted By: kkreit01
I thought the CS4s were supposed to be excellent in the snow -- according to CR? Maybe it depends on which flavor (speed rating, touring, etc.)?


My experience with them in the snow.. THEY SUCK! Rain or dry they are good but snow they are like ice skates.

 

[eljefino]

Sipe-y goodness.

 

[Boomer]

My wife has Cooper CS4 tires on her Saturn and here in central PA, they did a GREAT job last winter in the snows we had. Never slid or slipped and felt like the car was always in control. Iwas very pleased with the Coopers.

 

[ridgerunner]

Originally Posted By: Boomer
My wife has Cooper CS4 tires on her Saturn and here in central PA, they did a GREAT job last winter in the snows we had. Never slid or slipped and felt like the car was always in control. Iwas very pleased with the Coopers.


I'm glad U've had good luck with them (CS4). My bad luck might be due to the wider width...IDK. These tires would probly make that Saturn climb trees lol.

 

[zerosoma]

I'm pretty much going with these when I get tires. I'm about 70% sure.

Here's a cool video on their performance from Continental :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ef-HsQUxLdI

 

[ridgerunner]

Just put these tires on the other day. Took off the CS4's and they were worn out in about a yr. and 10,000 miles. WOW, talk about tread squirm!!! They are pretty scary to drive on dry pavement! They are all over the road. I even put the max tire pressure (44psi) in them, didn't help. I'm hoping they will break in and settle down some real soon. Can't say I'm happy with them yet.

 

[Bror Jace]

Too bad the Tire Rack didn't include Nokians (studded and studless) in their winter tire tests. Nokians are arguably the best snow tires in the world ... have been for decades.

RidgeRunner, snow tires will almost always give you more squirm than all-season or summer tires. The deeper grooves and often softer compound equals more space and less rubber contacting the road. Plus, you are comparing them to an all-season tire at the end of its life when the tread blocks are mere millimeters tall ... very firm with a lot of rubber in the contact patch.

DO NOT push your snow tires while cornering. You will burn them off quickly for no reason and ruin them for their intended purpose. They have plenty of grip for normal driving. If you want to play Formula One driver, wait for warmer weather when the car is shod with appropriate rubber for performance driving.

 

[sciphi]

Snow tires also need cooler temperatures to firm up. Right now it's about 50-60*F in much of the Northeast. Snow tires don't work well in those temperatures. They need temperatures under 45*F to be firmer, and firm up nicely right around the freezing point.

 

[MI_Roger]

Originally Posted By: ridgerunner
........... Took off the CS4's and they were worn out in about a yr. and 10,000 miles. .......


This makes no sense to me. I've had CS4s in the P225/50VR16 size for over two years and over 40,000 miles of use as three season tires. I think I can get one more season, or an additional 20,000 miles, of use from them.

What are you doing to wear out tires in only 10,000 miles?

I also don't understand any Police Dept which would place Touring tires on Police Cruisers. Good for smooth ride and high speeds, but are not really a precise handling tire, Cooper sells a Zeon RS3-A model for that usage.

 

[ridgerunner]

We drive pretty slow for the most part. Our roads are NOT smooth at all, very bumpy and full of potholes (these are the paved roads). Dirt roads are actually better and smoother. Tires wear out fast around here. Yes, the CS4's might have another 5-7,000 miles in them at best. They wore even but not much tread left. As stated, these new winter tread are SCARY AS HECK on the dry roads right now. They wander all over the place. I will have to buy another set of all seasons this week to prevent an accident with the grand-am. Yes, believe me or not, it's that bad!!!

 

[CapriRacer]

Originally Posted By: MI_Roger
Originally Posted By: ridgerunner
........... Took off the CS4's and they were worn out in about a yr. and 10,000 miles. .......
This makes no sense to me. I've had CS4s in the P225/50VR16 size for over two years and over 40,000 miles of use as three season tires........


Just an FYI.

Ridgerunner probably has 2 things going against good tire wear: Curvy roads, coarse pavement.

I don't know where in Pennsylvania Ridgerunner lives, but it is well known in the tire industry that Pittsburgh is not easy on tires. They wear incredibly quick. This is due to the fact that the roads have to curve around the hills, and the pavement is made from the hard rock that is mined in the area.

Another place where tire wear is notoriously short is Southern Florda. They don't have the problem of hills, but their pavement is newly depositied limestone with the sharp edges of the seas-shells.

So if you are trying to compare your tire waer with what others report, please take this into consideration. There's a lot of variables in tire wear rate and some of them are beyond control.

 

[Rand]

Originally Posted By: ridgerunner
We drive pretty slow for the most part. Our roads are NOT smooth at all, very bumpy and full of potholes (these are the paved roads). Dirt roads are actually better and smoother. Tires wear out fast around here. Yes, the CS4's might have another 5-7,000 miles in them at best. They wore even but not much tread left. As stated, these new winter tread are SCARY AS HECK on the dry roads right now. They wander all over the place. I will have to buy another set of all seasons this week to prevent an accident with the grand-am. Yes, believe me or not, it's that bad!!!


inflate them +5psi I had the XL load size and I ran them +4 to +6 psi and they wore fine.

 

[SubLGT]

Originally Posted By: ridgerunner
........As stated, these new winter tread are SCARY AS HECK on the dry roads right now. They wander all over the place. ..........


There is a break in period for winter tires. Continetal says:
"New tires have to be driven a few hundred kilometers on dry roads to rid the tread of parting agents and antioxidants applied during production. Not until the tread has been slightly roughened will the tire be able to make its true gripping power felt."

 

[ridgerunner]

The max pressure on the tire is 44psi. I've tried 45psi, didn't help. They are at 57psi now and it has helped a little. I'm sure they grip like a mother in the snow but they handle like chit now.