Do I need to get winter/snow tires ?

[DukeCanBuildit]

I live two hours West of the OP, who lives in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Read harder.

Too funny - crossed Ajbaxter's post where he quoted you, with his location - I'll be sure to read harder next time.

Sponsored

 

[Deleted member 1634]

I don’t think we’ve ever gotten more than two winters of use from any real snow tire, so I can’t comment on the rubber hardening over time.

Yeah exactly my experience, especially with the softer crazy good ice tires like Blizzaks. Not planning to put a lot of miles on the truck, but I think the issue is simply losing tread depth and the sipes just don't have enough depth anymore.

Really? You guys are only getting 2 seasons out of your snow tires? That's crazy! I've had snow tires on both my previous vehicles and never bought a new set for either. Got a hand-me-down Ford Focus and put 5 winters on those snow tires. Then got a new Subaru Crosstrek and put 4 winters on those snows. They do deteriorate over time for sure, and that 4th winter was going to be the last one for the Subaru tires, but even at the end they were still better than the set of all-seasons I had on the rest of the year. Maybe it's because we're colder for longer here (literally a third of the year is spent below freezing), or because of my driving style, or what. But I'm happy with what I get out of snow tires.

 

[TechnicallyReal]

I've gotten probably 4+ seasons out of my winter tires on at least my 2 previous vehicles (one a car and the other a SUV). They were Michelin Latitude X-Ice both times.

 

[slowmachine]

If you drive enough miles, on poor enough roads, you can easily go through a set of tires in two winters. Wife has been driving 18000 miles/year for the past ten years, and I do 15000. We go through some tires.

 

[BCRanger]

Really? You guys are only getting 2 seasons out of your snow tires? That's crazy!

This was probably an exaggeration come to think of it. I should have said that I lose that total confidence after a couple of seasons. They still work but they don't have that same lock on the ice that they do in the first two.

 

[Dr.Me]

I'd say get the tires for peace of mind, don't think about it too hard, the only thing it could hurt is your wallet a little.

 

[Deleted member 1634]

If you drive enough miles, on poor enough roads, you can easily go through a set of tires in two winters. Wife has been driving 18000 miles/year for the past ten years, and I do 15000. We go through some tires.

I mean, I average 22000-24000 miles/year and live/lived in Northern Minnesota and the UP of Michigan, the coldest and snowiest (outside the mountains) places in the lower 48, respectively. So I'd say I tick all those boxes. And as I said, I regularly get 4-5 seasons (November to May) from my snow tires. I still stand behind my theories of colder average temps (definitely way colder here than in NH) and more relaxed driving style. Especially given your comments about a warm January last season, that's definitely not a thing here. haha Or maybe we each just have a different level of what we are comfortable continuing to use as snow tires, which is fine. You're fine replacing yours every couple seasons. I'm just happy I don't feel I have to.

This was probably an exaggeration come to think of it. I should have said that I lose that total confidence after a couple of seasons. They still work but they don't have that same lock on the ice that they do in the first two.

I can pretty much get behind that then. Definitely deteriorates after the first couple seasons. But I'd say it's not until the 4th or 5th season until I personally feel they are not worth it anymore.

 

[BCRanger]

I'd say get the tires for peace of mind, don't think about it too hard, the only thing it could hurt is your wallet a little.

The issue isn't $$ so much, after all you are really just sharing the wear across two sets. It's the fact that winters just don't do great from what I can tell off-road. Except the very special Cooper AW/S which it looks like they don't make anymore.

 

[Dr.Me]

The issue isn't $$ so much, after all you are really just sharing the wear across two sets. It's the fact that winters just don't do great from what I can tell off-road. Except the very special Cooper AW/S which it looks like they don't make anymore.

They are made for roads with snow/ice, off reoding would be a whole new ball game

 

[BCRanger]

These are the tires I was referring to. AT/W s. I think they must have discontinued them, but I saw some on clearance at Canadian Tire so maybe worth a look.
https://www.outsideonline.com/2365296/outdoor-enthusiasts-these-are-your-winter-tires

 

[SPEEDBUILT]

These are the tires I was referring to. AT/W s. I think they must have discontinued them, but I saw some on clearance at Canadian Tire so maybe worth a look.
https://www.outsideonline.com/2365296/outdoor-enthusiasts-these-are-your-winter-tires

Still a few places in the states that sell those AT/Ws. Have you looked at Blizzak LTWs?

 

[Fastfitzy]

In my experience you only see really awful wear on "real" snows when it is really hot, i.e. around 30 C. Where I live you could end up with conditions where you need for snows from early November through early April, so almost half the year. In fact usually when I buy winters for car I really think about it like getting a "summer" tire and then a tire for the rest of the year. That's awesome for a car because you can get a really grippy summer high performance tire without "all season" compromises. But for a truck the logic is reversed, if that makes sense.

During shoulder season we will be using the truck in really mixed conditions, lots of dry roads but also muddy and rocky trails in addition to winter conditions. We have a FWD EV car that ironically we will be using to get up to the ski hill most of the time and it has high end dedicated snows.

My concern comes into play more around road trips and so on. I don't worry about getting stuck in the snow. That's a pain in the ass but generally isn't unsafe -- and I can't think of the last time its happened to me where I couldn't get out with a little creativity and finesse. My concern is purely about how tires deal with unexpected encounters with black ice or those days when we have freezing rain on packed snow and the street in our hilly town become a skating rink. All seasons are generally worthless in those kinds of conditions, but it looks like newer tires like the AT3 4S have been able to crack that nut to some extent.

By the way in my experience it's almost as important how a tire responds to ice than absolute traction. I'd prefer a tire that didn't have ultimate grip but lost grip predictably than a tire that seems to have decent traction but then breaks away suddenly. A car that is already drifting is much more controllable than one that wasn't and suddenly is!

My current strategy is to try the Coopers and then be ready to abort and grab dedicated winters if they end up feeling the least bit sketchy. This video suggests that they won't be completely worthless.

I’ve never had coopers, but my coworker has the cooper discoverer at3 on his F150 and they are at the wear bars at 30k, totally even on the wear pattern, rotated religiously, but half-life from the 60k that they’re promised for

 

[BCRanger]

I’ve never had coopers, but my coworker has the cooper discoverer at3 on his F150 and they are at the wear bars at 30k, totally even on the wear pattern, rotated religiously, but half-life from the 60k that they’re promised for

The way I figure It, all things being equal, the stickier tires are gonna wear quicker. There is no free lunch. So I'm ok with a tire that wears more quickly if it works well.

Still a few places in the states that sell those AT/Ws. Have you looked at Blizzak LTWs?

Nope, seems like those are medium / heavy duty?

 

[HenryMac]

The Hanooks are crap tires and if you stay on this board, buy the end of the week you'll be shopping for a leveling kit and asking if 285/70/17s fit without removint the crash bars anyway.

How much snow do you get there in the Virgin Islands?

Hankook ATM's are great in the snow. I had them on my 2002 Tacoma and they handled the snow here in Central Colorado just fine.

The Hankook ATM's on our Ranger also did fine last winter and we drove through some pretty nasty snow and ice.

 

[Whiskeybilt]

How much snow do you get there in the Virgin Islands?

Hankook ATM's are great in the snow. I had them on my 2002 Tacoma and they handled the snow here in Central Colorado just fine.

The Hankook ATM's on our Ranger also did fine last winter and we drove through some pretty nasty snow and ice.

Any tire that can't handle potholes, routinely gets holes from rocks and has to be replaced at 15,000 miles sucks. I don't care about how it does in snow, sand or mud. It can't handle dry pavement.

Sponsored