I am still running my high performance summer tires....in the Michigan winter. Instead of going to a winter only tire, I am considering going to an "all season" tire. I am not trying to fool myself into thinking that the all seasons are going to able to hang with Blizzaks in real snow.

I guess I am looking for a satisfaction survey from people who run all seasons in a snowy area to see how happy you are (or are not) with them.

Please let me know.

Thanks in advance.

 

Our area (mountains of VA) is probably a piece of cake compared to Michigan winters, but we have A/S tires on three vehicles (which do fine in light snow, plowed, or slushy conditions), and summer tires on the other (the last to get out after a snow). The Extreme Performance summer tires on that car are grip challenged even when it's just very cold. The MINI does fine on it's High Performance A/Ss, and is the second car to get out (after the SUV). At some point in winter severity, I would seriously consider winter/snow tires for at least a couple of our cars.

If you decide to go A/S, however, you might consider Conti's Extreme Contact DWS, which Tire Rack considered king of the snow in a recent comparison test among Ultra High Performance A/S tires. If you need something even better than that to go in deeper snow, it would probably need to be a winter/snow tire.

 

Hey Vic....

Hope Lem is feeling better!! Seriously here in New England we get some snow but not a ton. I ran my 195/55/16 All Seasons and had no issues whatsoever. I think if you're not running through the white stuff EVERY day that the All seasons will be good to go.......Of course the dedicated snow tire will always be the ultimate setup.......

 

If your current tires are shot anyways - and that means 6/32" min tread depth for snow use per Tire Rack - then get some all seasons sure. See my sig for some good ones.

Front wheel drives do great in the snow, and I assume you know how to drive in it since you are in cold winter country.

If you decide to go dedicated winter wheels and tires like mentioned in your thread from last month - Blizzaks hands down baby - run them from Halloween to April Fool's day...... That's what I do with my 4x4 diesel truck - great in the wet to boot with all the sipes Blizzaks have......

 

Lem is dead........ it turned out that my other partner killed him with a grenade. that partner is now dead also. I am now assigned to a desk and I hate very minute of it.

Thanks for the replies !

 

We don't get enough snow here in Kansas to warrant runnning dedicated snow tires, so I run All Seasons, Kumho ASX and in what snow we do get - which can be pretty deep at times - they do just fine. You have to slow down and use winter tactics at all times, but they will get you thru.

I think you get a lot more white stuff up there in Michigan, so I'd probably be inclined to go the safe route and run real snow tires once winter hits.

 

I am trying to avoid the 60 bucks each time to swap the tires out at the beginning and end of winter. I could always get another set of wheels...but there is more coin gone........I have flip-flopped over this about 30 times now and I probably will some more.

Thanks for all the replies.

 

We just changed out the runflat AS tires for just summer normal tires.
Believe it or not they are much better in the snow. I think it has to do with the softer sidewalls.

The car drives quieter, smoother, & seams to feel better. We also saved $800 over the OEM tires.

Truth be told here in the PNW, we are lucky to get 3in of snow a year.

 

With dedicated wheels, most tire stores will do the twice yearly wheel swap free. No way would I have tires switched out on the same wheels every time... Do the math - free is better - no chance of tire or wheel damage during changing. Got to be more that $60 for a change out, unless you are only talking 2 tires - and you should not run only 2 winter tires. It was $125.93 with balancing and all to switch in the 4 new chrome wheels last Fall.

All-season vs Snow tires.

 

Very happy with my new Conti Extreme Contact DWS's. Drove 60mph on snowpack and ice with no sliding whatsoever. I was passing everyone. Just have to take it easy when starting out in 1st gear.

 

Just remember you have to STOP too..... that kinda of driving gets many a 4x4 in trouble trying to stop......

 

That's because most 4x4 drivers are tailgating aholes. I spent over 20 years driving in North Dakota winters. Just keep a safe distance between vehicals. Quite frankly....if you can't control a car at 30-40 mph on snow and ice.....stay home. Nothing pisses me off more than timid drivers doing 15-20mph on a snow covered road

 

And most MINI drivers never drive at 60mph on compact snow and ice, or drive aggressively or tailgate…….

 

I am running Michelin Pilot Plus A/S for two seasons now. They have pretty good summer handling and good grip in the snow we get here in Cincinnati. PPlus a 45,000 life span. A little pricey though.

 

Replaced run flats with Yokohama Avids and thy did fine in recent six inches and unplowed roads. I have snow tires for wife's Miata, but hate the way it drives with them, so won't touch that car in winter.

 

I've used the stock Conti a/s runflats since I got my car in November of 2008 and I'm very happy with their performance in the snow. I live in Boulder, Colorado, and with the exception of this winter, we've gotten loads of snow for some grand driving fun.

 

Completely agree with this! Today was the first day I've taken my '11 cooper out in the snow, and granted, I did not have a far distance to travel (less than 1 mile), but the roads were not completely plowed. The stock all-seasons I felt did their job in adequately gripping the road and keeping traction, I never spun out or lost control. I kinda got plowed in at my parking lot, and the mini pulled right through. I always try to stress this to people who swear on snow tires. I don't disagree that snow tires can provide a considerable difference for winter driving, HOWEVER, it is still YOU who is responsible for controlling the car!! So that means keeping your speed at a minimum (especially on local roads) and ALWAYS keeping a further stopping distance in bad weather! I feel like sometimes people can rely too heavily on their snow tires, when ultimately they are the ones who need to drive more cautiously. And plus, it doesn't matter what you drive or how you drive it, if you hit a patch of black ice, snow tires ain't gonna save you. It's up to the driver to be educated and know what to do

 

My tire place charges 60 bucks. I did it a few times on my BMW before I got rid of it. I am not sure if I am getting a killer deal or you are getting ripped off.

 

The Conti DWS does great in the snow when new (or as long as the 'S' is still showing in the tread). With those, my MINI handled the packed snow, some icy areas where a lot of cars & trucks were sliding off the road, and some large plowed piles really well. They do spin and slide a bit, but with proper driving they will pull you through.

However, this year I went with Michelin snows since I am driving up to Philly and New Jersey about every other week. On the way back home last night I ran through some snow-packed areas on I-81. I tested the braking from about 50 mph, then 60 mph, then 70 mph... the stopping power was great. MUCH better than the all-seasons. The all-seasons would have handled it, just not as well.

 

When I was looking at buying new tires recently, I found that Consumer Reports had a lot of good information. They are not in the business of selling you tires, so they have an advantage over most other websites that provide advice-recommendations. You can get an online subscription fairly cheaply, so you might check them out.

For what it is worth, I have had good luck with my Goodyear Viva all season tires this year in Missouri-Iowa.

 

I live in a lake effect snow area and my MA suggested that the all seasons would do all right. I did that for 1 winter and went to Nokia Hak's. Yes, if you are driving around in relatively flat terrain, you can get by with the all seasons, but I have a steep driveway, plus there are also some hilly areas around here and when the snow flies hard, there's just no substitute for the snows. Several times in that first winter I had to try to achieve ramming speed to just to make it up my driveway and some days there was no reaching the garage without parking at the neighbors and clearing the driveway. I also almost got stuck like the other unprepared fools on hills. Since I've had the snow tires, I have had no issues.

Anyhow, it's all dependent on where you live, where you drive and how much risk you wish to take. Plenty of people get away with all seasons around here, but then again these are the same people I see that are driving so slow that they are a nuisance. Also, they usually have some sort of damage to their vehicle.

 

I live in WI and put a set of the Conti Extreme Contact DWS on the R53 I bought a few months ago. I also had them on an Evo and my sister had them on her Z4. Ultimately they are not as good as a full-on winter tire in snow and ice, but they are MUCH closer than any other all season. I am very happy with the choice.

 

Anyone comment on the 15" continental all season oem tires for a justa? I live in the deep south, expecting 8" tomorrow.

 

That's how I decided on the tires in my sig, top rated in Consumer Reports mag. I find the Tire Rack has too much info - and too many reviews - there will always be people all over the board on any tire out there......

 

That's more of a comment on global warming - 8" of snow in the deep south!