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Snow tires

Fubisin

Fubisin

New member
Guys,

I am looking for help from all the guys that have to deal with the white, cold, flaky crap that god loves to give us every year.:th_thumb-down:

I have gone back and forth, this tire and that tire in hopes to find a perfect suited tire for winter.
I originally looked at the Firestone winterforce, but then was recommended the Bridgestone Blissak. Just today I went to see one of my boss's friends in town and explained to him that 3 out of the 4 weekends a month I travel a average of 400KM or 200ish Miles to go to my fiance's house in the county.
He explained with the softer tread and the high speed and long distance I would burn through my tread VERY quickly.
He suggested something with a harder tread- Cooper Arctic Claw, might not be the best but for what I need it is cost effiecient and will last longer.
I live in southwestern Ontario, London actually. We see snow, not like up north but we still see our fair share of snow. I go into the county to see my fiance which keeping in mind they dont plow the roads very often.
What do I do? I am not on a budget on these tires but I WILL not spend and ass load of cash for snows! I was quoted a great deal on these Coopers and a good deal on the Blissak, but if the Coopers are going to last longer, then it seems like a smart choice.
The facts are, if I am going to slide, Ill slide with or without snows on, the only benefit is getting through this crap.

What would you do?

Thanks
Mike
 


My friend lives by the blissaks, he bought his second set last month as he got two winters out of the other set and he still had some thread left but he's anal about that stuff...

he drives a 487 whp subaru wrx

don't know too much about the coopers to give an opinion.
 
honestly if you drive well in the snow you dont need snow tires with your grand prix. it will still understeer heavily if youre going too fast, but i had no problem running all seasons through several winters.
 
^ same here i run my all season goodyear regatta 2s in the snow no prob. as long as u dont drive like an a$$ you will just just fine with an all season tire. Mine have been put to the test by myself so i speak from experience.
 
speedemongtp said:
^ same here i run my all season goodyear regatta 2s in the snow no prob. as long as u dont drive like an a$$ you will just just fine with an all season tire. Mine have been put to the test by myself so i speak from experience.
Click to expand...

x2

Just not in a GP ... yet. :p
 
Well, I have had to deal with long snowy winters my whole life, and the past 7 in a GP. I have never had an issue in snow with the any of the “All-season” tires. I would say most any “All-season” tire with plenty of tread in the stock width with serve you well. And as far as saving some coin, I’d say go with what ever the "on sale" tire of the day is.:th_thumbsup-wink:
 


Tires considered
* Pricing highest to lowest*
Michelin Xi2-$800
Yokahoma iceguard20- $600+
Bridgestone Blissak- $650
BF goodrich- WinterslalomKSI- $600
Cooper arctic claw- $500
Firestone winterforce- $475

You can obviously see the price differences. From what I have seen on the internet tests and blogs, the Michelin are supposed to last up to 75% longer, react better and handle better in ****tier conditions.
I spoke to ALL kinds of different people, they suggest all types of different types of tires. Some say the softer the fast they wear, some say the harder the tire the less traction you get. Some say tires are tires
My BIGGEST things is the tread wear and highway safety, not money. If I want to buy the tires I want them around for atleast 3-4 seasons, not 1-2.

When you compare the numbers and the price, is it worth spending the extra cash and geting more seasons out of the tires or going with something that is cost effiect but cuts 1-2 seasons out of the tires?

The reason behind getting them is that my All seaons are wearing pretty low and would either have to get a set of All seasons or get snows and for me, from seeing the online video tests and the stats, snows are the way to go.
Thought I would get the opinion of Grand Prix drivers more than some salesman trying to clear out his stock
Thanks
 
Michelin prides themselves on lasting quite a long time while providing decent traction. They also carry a larger brand hence a larger price.

Another tire to consider would be the General Altimax Arctic's. Seem to be at least comparable to the X-ice's in terms of performance. Also can be studded if you so desire.
 
id go with blissak but those prices are high. wait a bit an see if tirerack comes up with a winter deal like last year. they had a deal with 4 blissaks with steelies for 500 somethin
 
Last fall I picked up some cheap snow tires from Sam's Club ($70 a tire). They are called SNOWTRACKERS. I put on 300-350 mile a week. Check Sam's to see what they have. They are holding up great so far and are amazing in the snow, and very good in wet and dry conditions. They look like mud tires though.

SnowTires.jpg
 


I've run the Arctic Claws the last two winters, they are a great tire for the money.
I also used to say you don't need winters if you know how to drive until I tried them. Braking, steering and handling are greatly improved, you will notice a difference.
 
03GTX said:
I've run the Arctic Claws the last two winters, they are a great tire for the money.
I also used to say you don't need winters if you know how to drive until I tried them. Braking, steering and handling are greatly improved, you will notice a difference.
Click to expand...

You don't need them but they sure make life a lot easier.
 
i run continentnal conti extreme contacts... got em for like 80 bucks a piece shipped.. all season tires and they do great in snow.. run em on a 98 park avenue. i drive 200 interstate miles round trip to go to work from spearfish, sd to gillette, wy and deal with this crap we call snow all the time. heard about em in consumer reports.. i absolutely love em. my grand prix has blizzak 50 series or something that came with the car. and i was not impressed at all with em this first snow fall. will definately be buyin continentals for it when they are done. just my opinion. good luck :th_thumb-up:
 
depends on what you want, the firestones you have to stud to be a snow/ice tire. the blizzack is hands down the best for the money snow/ice tire. best of all, no studs. i work in park city which is around 9000 foot elevation, we get some snow. and the shops cant keep blizzacks in stock past october. because you have to have snow tires to drive up there in winter (by law) and thats what the whole city swears by pretty much. the mich imo is overpriced and doesnt out perform the bridgestone hardley at all. i run blizzacks and will continue to do so, the things on rails even on ice with those tires.
 


boostedcompg said:
depends on what you want, the firestones you have to stud to be a snow/ice tire. the blizzack is hands down the best for the money snow/ice tire. the mich imo is overpriced and doesnt out perform the bridgestone hardley at all. i run blizzacks and will continue to do so, the things on rails even on ice with those tires.
Click to expand...

When you say that the Firestones, come close in performance of the Michelins Xi2- Is this just preference or is it compared to something or someone?
I am putting my deposit on the Michelin Xi2's on friday and just waiting for the snow until I put them on.
Reading as much as I have and seeing as many video's as I have, hands down the Michelins are the best. PLUS you get a $50 mail in rebate.
When the **** hits the fan, I paid $170 a tire, free this and that and if it claims to last 75% longer, Ill get a extra couple wintrers out of them compared to the others. A few extra dollars but in the long run, worth it.

Mike
 
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Fubisin said:
When you say that the Firestones, come close in performance of the Michelins Xi2- Is this just preference or is it compared to something or someone?
I am putting my deposit on the Michelin Xi2's on friday and just waiting for the snow until I put them on.
Reading as much as I have and seeing as many video's as I have, hands down the Michelins are the best. PLUS you get a $50 mail in rebate.
When the **** hits the fan, I paid $170 a tire, free this and that and if it claims to last 75% longer, Ill get a extra couple wintrers out of them compared to the others. A few extra dollars but in the long run, worth it.

Mike
Click to expand...
the firestone in no way compares to the mich. but the blizzack and mich are about the same. i just know more people that perfer the blizzack.
 
Run the Blizzaks, they are phenomenal. I ran them on my modded Jetta and they were worth their weight in gold. I also regularly drove on the interstate for hours at a time and suffered no serious tire wear. As long as the temperature is within the recommended range you should be ok. As the temp drops the rubber will naturally firm up. I believe the minimum for the Blizzaks is 40*F IIRC
 
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