Snow tire question.
 

This will be my first winter driving something other than a Scout.
I've been looking at different brands of snow tires for my 92' Ebony.
A few people have mentioned running 205/55/16's instead of the stock 225/50/16's. Is there an advantage to this change?
I have noticed that there seem to be more brand choices for the 205/55/16's.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

205 55 16 is the size for my new hyundai. :cool:

I ain't sure if I would go from 225 50 16 to 205 55 16, but maybe
the 215 55 16.

The advantage is probably more traction in snow due to the
more narrow tires, and cheaper in the price.

Let's see what others say. I would like to get snow
tires for my SVX too. Awd + snow tires = the best you
can do to your car in the winter. :D

Subscribe.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

205/55 and 215/55 will both work as will the original size. Narrower is better because the pressure applied to the snow is greater so it will cut into it and have a better chance of hitting pavement. But you give up dry and wet traction as a result.

As for brands, I have tried a few including the Gislaved and Michelin Ice and nothing compares to Blizzaks unless you want to move all the way to studded tires.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

i get a cheap set of wheels and mount snow tires to them so i can swap them out at home.

if you go this route, get something narrower than stock - thinner tires "cut" through the snow, as opposed to "gliding" over it. look at the WRC car's snow tires:

http://www.performancecar.co.nz/wp-c...eden-2007.jpeg



i had some inexpensive Weatherhandlers on the SVX, and they worked great - i have Blizzaks on my LGT now, and i can't really say they are any better.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

Narrower is better for snow, which I'm sure you get lots of in Washington.

Cooper has a new tire out this year which is getting rave reviews.
http://www.coopertire.com/html/produ...her_master_wsc

I have used Nokian Hakapolita 3 and 5 on both my cars for decades.
http://www.nokiantires.com/tyre?id=1...kapeliitta%20R

Re: Snow tire question.
 

I recommend the 205/55/16 size, as well. (I had 205s for winter, 225s for street, and 245s for track!)

A buddy and I got into a knife fight over whether the Hakkas were better than Blizzaks. Turns out, we both had some good snow tires and no knives. Everyone's a winner!

Being me, though, I've had 5 sets of Blizzaks over various cars, and although I can't fairly compare them to anything else, they issued appropriate confidence and plenty more traction than these things folks call "all season tires". The missus digs 'em, too. :D

Re: Snow tire question.
 

I tried the Nokian Hakkas too and I can say that the Blizzaks are much better and especially on packed snow and ice. Based on my personal experiences with several snow tire brands and all of the reputable road tests I have read, Blizzaks are still the best.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

I just want to mention, DON'T GET STUDDED TIRES.

FFS, I hate the retards around WA/OR that get studded tires cause it **might** ice storm this year. Yes lady, you really do need studded tires to get to starbucks in downtown portland in your 4wd escape during the typica light rain.

nevermind my POSVX with siped pepboys quality tires zipped around the last few icestorms with 0 issues. No chains. No studs. Not even real snow tires. Just really low rent allseasons someone in the past threw on. Ok so "zipped" is relative the the usual 70s domestic truck with old style chains that comprised 80% of the traffic I usualy saw in the bad parts of the storm.

Anyhoo, modern snow tires are eleventy billion times better than the best allseason and don't require studs to be safe. So keep the studs for ice racing and areas that don't see dry pavement till spring.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

I work at a tire shop and I can get any tire I set my mind to for a reasonable price.

That said, I just kept the 225/50r16 for my snow tires. Going to a narrower tire will make the car feel a bit more "wallow-ey." That's not a bad thing or anything, but it will change the handling of the car, so just be prepared for that. Going to a snow tire in itself will change the handling of the car anyway, so that's not like it would be a big difference. But it really comes to preference. If you live in an area with HEAVY snow, it's not a bad idea because as previously mentioned, it decreases the tire contact patch and thus increases the tire pressure on the road giving you more "grip."

Here in the midwest we don't really get a lot of snow at once (usually) so that's a reason I decided to keep the stock size. I figured that a heavy car with a GREAT awd system didn't need too much help putting the power down.

And Blizzaks are great, but I've had 3 different set of Firestone Winterforce on different cars, and I recommend them to lots of people. I've put lots of sets on many cars and have heard very good things about them. They're also cheaper than the blizzaks. I know others are not in the same boat as me, but I have really been impressed with them, espescially for the price.

I look forward to putting on some of the new coopers though, as we are a cooper dealer, and I've run coopers before as well. The snowies they had before were pretty good, so I'm curious how the new line is.

My $.02.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

I agree with nevin.
remember a 225/50 is still a narrow tire many put on 245 or some times bigger If you live in Colorado, or other places where your looking at 3 or more feet of snow at one time going narrow will help but if your looking at less then 6 inches on the roadway I dont think it will be a problem.
I also agree the Winterforce tires are not bad for the price. I do however think blizzaks are a much better tire I have had both. Though it is important to note there are many variants of the blizzak, I use the ws-60 which is the truely impressive on slippery surfaces variant. They have other ones that are more for the occasional ice road but its intended to drive on dry pavement. The softer tire compound of the ws-60 will wear faster depending on your surface. When I lived in rural North Dakota our roads generally had packed snow and Ice build up, especially in town the pavement was never cleared off. I could accellerate from a dead stop to 40 in very similar times as on dry pavement.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

Beware of the Goodyear Assurance Tripletred snow tires. I have some on my '94 2wd and they're very noisy. They'll make you swear you have bearings going out.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

Tripletred aren't snow tires. They are all-season tires. However, of the all-seasons, they have about the best performance in the snow. They are also good in rain. But they are noisy, as you say, and this car transmits road noise into the cabin.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

How do these cars go in the snow? I used to have a xt turbo and it was awesome. Do i need to get snow tires or can i use all season? We get a lot of snow and it will be my daily driver. Thanks.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

With AWD and a limited slip rear differential plus a low center of gravity and a pretty hefty weight, it should go quite well in the snow. However, it will go better on snow tires. Really, it isn't going that is my reason for Blizzaks. It is turning and stopping and, for that, AWD is not a big help. How much does a set of Blizzaks cost and what would it cost if you hit a patch of black ice in an intersection and smack into the rear of the car in front of you? Plus, I don't view it as extra cost. If you run Blizzaks for 4-6 months, your other tires aren't being worn down at that time. So you really aren't spending more on tires because you should end up buying tires about half as often.

Re: Snow tire question.
 

thanks husky