"JEM" (jem)
09/12/2013 at 12:00 • Filed to: None
2
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"JEM" (jem)
09/12/2013 at 12:00 • Filed to: None | 2
| 17 |
It's getting to be that time of year up in the Northeast where it's almost 100 deg. in September but snow is only 7 weeks away... must be fall, and time to start thinking about winter tires.
Thinking about replacing the beat up stock rims on my '96 Jeep Cherokee with a set of better wheels and wondering about going with all terrain (AT) tires vs snow tires. I don't really do any off-roading in the XJ but might want to in the future. I do a lot of highway driving. I live on top of a insane hill in Worcester, MA that makes Subarus slide sideways (no lie). We regularly get 8" of snow in Jan/Feb. I've always had decent luck with standard winter tires like the Firestone Winterforce but was wondering how much snow/ice traction I'd sacrifice going with an AT tire?
I feel like one of those goddamn stupid tirerack commericals right now. You know, dude climbs a mountain to ask a buddhist monk about tires, etc..
vdub_nut: scooter snob
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 12:06 |
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I live in south central.... Pa, and I always WANTED snow tires, but never had a real use for them. I learned to drive in the snow pretty well in Flint, MI, and could get around pretty damn well in the less-snowy environment down here, despite hills. Then, a friend of mine traded in his car (same as mine), and they didn't want his snow tires, so I got some fo' free.
They. Are. Awesome.
If you have the dosh.
lonestranger
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 12:11 |
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I can'd personally directly compare A/T's and snows on the same vehicle, but I can say that the A/T's I've ran for the last few years have done very well in winter. I've got a 2WD reg-cab longbox V8 GMC Sierra in the Canadian Rockies with BFGoodrich All Terrain T/As.
Some A/T's (mine included) do have the " snowflake on a mountain " symbol, meaning they've actually been tested to perform well in snow. If I were to get dedicated winter tires like Nokians or Blizzaks or something, I'd expect them to do better than the A/Ts . But, I would need to change them out in summer. For me, running A/Ts year-round is perfect.
HammerheadFistpunch
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 12:12 |
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Im in the same boat with my cruiser. It depends on your snow climate type . if your snow is maritime snow (wet and cold) and you get ice alot, then I would say winter tires. If ifs more intermountain (dry, intermittent, lots of it) then a good set of AT's will be fine, if its continental (variable, cold, wet, heavy) then its a mixed bag.
I Live in Utah and we get intermountain snow and Im going to buy some AT's with the snowflake symbol. If you get AT's try and get something with a high silica compound and preferable the snowflake symbol. I've heard these are the tire right now. Long lasting, good off road tread and snow flaked with high silica compound
deekster_caddy
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 12:14 |
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Winter tires are never a bad investment. Besides the winter traction improvement (which you need), your other tires will last 4 months longer each year!
Let me know if you want mounting and balancing! I have tire machines in my home garage. (but just north of Boston, not overly close to worcester) You can even have TireRack drop ship to my house. If you are interested I'll leave my email address.
Party-vi
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 12:17 |
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Firestone Destination A/Ts or Toyo Open Country A/Ts. They work well in the snow and are quite civilized on highways/streets. My (now deceased) Cherokee on 225/75R16 Toyos:
BJ
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 12:38 |
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If you have the money, get real winter tires. You've got experience with them, you know they work well, you know they're worth the investment. Keep the beater rims for these tires, and get yourself a nice new set to mount your summer/off-road tires.
You live on the top of a hill on Worcester? Please don't tell me that this your house:
Meatcoma
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 12:42 |
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All Terrains should be fine. like lonestranger get the bfgoodrich all terrain t/a's those things last forever and cut through whatever you point your vehicle at. Every truck I've owned has got a set of those on it, they last forever even with daily driving, even though they are kinda loud on the road.
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JEM
> BJ
09/12/2013 at 12:45 |
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Haha, noo.. though I am familiar with that place. I live on top of College Hill (Holy Cross). I have really nice summer rims. The stock rims are just getting awful/rusty though. I hate looking at them.
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JEM
> HammerheadFistpunch
09/12/2013 at 12:47 |
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Yeah that's the thing, it's New England so it could be anything from 2" of ice to 30" of dry snow to 6" of slush, all possibly within 48 hours with the next day being 70 degrees out.
The snowflake symbol and silica content are really good points, thanks. That's exactly the info I need if I go with ATs.
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JEM
> deekster_caddy
09/12/2013 at 12:49 |
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Wow thanks! Probably cost me more in gas though than getting 'em mounted locally. There's actually a local shop literally down the hill from me that is super reasonable.
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JEM
> vdub_nut: scooter snob
09/12/2013 at 12:58 |
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Yeah the first new car I had ('98 Tiburon) I got a set of winter tires for and holy hell.... can't believe how that transformed things. I think it was '99 NYE weekend a bunch of us were holed up in friend's family's getaway house in the Poconos and mine was the only vehicle that could make the all important booze run after the blizzard.
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deekster_caddy
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 13:30 |
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I just got a set of Winterforces for my Volt - bought them in April on some end of season closeouts from TireRack. Let us know how you like them.
You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much
> JEM
09/12/2013 at 15:24 |
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I have had good success with Bridgestone Dueler AT REVO's on a 2002 GMC Sierra. These are the updated version, but would probably be just as good as the originals. They don't have a ridiculous amount of road noise and good traction on snow and off road.
After putting these on I was amazed at how much more I was able to drive in 2x4 compared to the old tires. They also last assuming you rotate them.
I would strongly suggest avoiding the BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO. I had a set of these on the same truck and they were horrible. There was no snow traction, they wore quickly, cupped funny and they were very noisy. If it looked like it was going to snow I had to put the truck in 4x4. To make up for all their shortcomings they were expensive. I was not disappointed when I put a 3" cut in a sidewall by brushing them against a dead tree while off road. It meant I had an excuse to replace the miserable POS's.
doodon2whls
> You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much
09/13/2013 at 12:02 |
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The BFG All-TErrain T/A KO is largely known by ppl in the know as a poor off-road or snow tire. The tread block design looks cool (thanks marketing guys), but it doesn't self clean very well - dirt or snow. As a result, the spaces between the tread blocks get packed up with material and preclude the tire from getting any meaningful work done.
I have had great results in the dirt and snow with the Michelin LTX A/T2 tire. It's a quiet tread, with great performance. That is a tire designer's tire right there. Function over form, but the form isn't bad if you ask me.
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doodon2whls
> JEM
09/13/2013 at 12:16 |
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As others have said - if you can afford a second set of wheels/tires for winter, then that is the best way to go. Winter tires' constructions/tread compounds are specifically developed for snow/ice duty, and there is nothing better. You don't have to break the bank on anything super expensive either. A middle of the road winter tire will be much better than most (if not all) all-season tire options in that size. I don't have a specific recommendation (since I don't have an SUV with snow tires), and you have to take these TireRack survey results with a grain of salt because the mileages are so low. FWIW, I run a Hankook IceBear W300 snow tire on my SRT-4 in the winter becasue it's one of the only snow tires I can get in a size and load rating appropriate for my car. It's a great winter tire.
If you do need to settle on one all-season on/off-road tire, I highly recommend the Michelin LTX A/T2. The tread pattern is quiet and self cleaning, and the tire construction is suited for SUV's & Jeeps. I have 60K miles on a set installed on a 2nd gen Durango and they are wearing well. I probably can get one more winter and summer out of them and still have tread left. It's the second highest rated tire in the TireRack surveys , right behind the Firestone Destination A/T which I do not care for. I drive 80%-90% hwy in the Durango, but those handful of times I have been offroad or in some DEEP snow, these tires didn't let me down one bit.
I ran the Michelin LTX M/S tire on my '99 XJ (sniff sniff), and they were a great all season tire (This was before the LTX A/T2 tire existed). The LTX M/S tire is a great highway tire, but has a less off-road/snow oriented tread pattern. It's still a great tire, but I think the LTX A/T2 is the way to go now.
SWITAWI
> JEM
11/27/2013 at 09:47 |
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There are a few all-terrain tires that have achieved a winter rating. These can be identified by the same industry-wide mountain/snowflake symbol on the sidewall.
You should definitely consider a tire with this certification over any non winter-rated all-terrain tires if you're going to have serious winter driving issues. There are many deep-treaded tires out there that may keep you from getting stuck in snow, but they may not have a good enough rubber compound to help you find any grip sat all in really icy conditions... And which of those conditions is likely to be the most dangerous, right?
I know that the Goodyear's Wrangler Duratrac, Silent Armor, and new All-Terrain Adventure each have this rating, as does the BFG All-Terrain T/A KO. I'm sure there are others as well.
All that being said, a dedicated winter tire is likely going to run circles around any of those winter-rated all-season tires once the going gets tough and truly cold.
There's some good info concerning winter tires on Tire Rack - http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/te…
Coty
> JEM
11/15/2014 at 13:04 |
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I drove all last winter on ATs in my Ranger. Just put new A/Ts on so I don't know how good these will be but I know they have less grip in the dry...