Pirelli Wintersport 240 in 205/45-17 on Exel Vega in 17x7 ET 42



Yes, that's snow on the ground.
No, that's not snow on my car
Yes, that is salt on my car, yuk!
Yes the car plows snow, but
Yes the tires work well

 

I drive a snowplow, and have driven many types of vehicle in all kinds of snow conditions, so here's what I think... If you will be driving in snow that is <6" then snow tires will be fine, but you might need cables/chains also. BUT there may be insufficient room for them between the tire and fender well- especially for cables, which fit looser. I would recommend a pair of light chains, put them on the front, and tighten them well after the first hundred yards. Put chains on all 4 if the snow is realy bad, in heavy traffic or if you have a long way to go. Stay well back from plows, don't pass them on the right (or at all, if you can help it) keep your speed down, keep your distance and try not to use the brakes. You should be able to handle deeper snow as long as it's not too heavy. If you buy snow tires get narrow ones, as wider tires try to 'climb up' onto the snow. If you drive on ice, get studded snow tires (please excuse my lack of knowledge concerning your state's laws and suchlike- I'm in Oregon) I would be most afraid of: a) getting high-centered/sliding off the road and then stuck and b) being struck by an SUV. I drove a '96 Land Rover Discovery last winter with studded, siped snow tires and it NEVER let me down, despit -30 degrees, freezing rain, 8" of snow and an interstate full of idiots. Before that I ran Subarus and they do pretty well but are a tad light in slush. Now I have a Range Rover- we'll see... If you can, get another rig for snow days. A late 80's Subaru is cheap to buy and insure, and you won't cry if it gets totalled by an "I had it in 4 wheel drive" idiot in a big SUV.

Good luck!

Paul.

 

I am guessing a MINI in thew snow would be cold.....

wouldn't know though since I parked mine cuz of the salt......

 

To avoid further new posts about how the MINI handles winter weather driving and to provide an easy answer for new NAM members this question can be put into an FAQ. Until that time I can offer to sticky this thread in either MINI talk or in Tire, Wheel and Brake forum to allow it to be easily seen and referred to.

If someone would like to search older threads, cull through them for a few of the best discussions on which snow tire to consider and about the value of DSC for those that have all season tires then that would also be of great help to have in this thread.

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I agree that the short answer is for those with snow of 2" to 6" in urban and suburban areas either get snow tires (with or without DSC) or get DSC as an option along with all season tires and drive appropriately for the weather conditions.

Hey, I endured 5 winters in Chicago with 3 of them down to -80 degrees with windchill in a 1978 Chevy Chevette with no DSC and generic radial tires. Now I wake up and it's +80 degrees in the morning in Hawaii. That's 160 degrees difference in the winter! The only thing I shovel now is sand at the beach for my kids.

 

Good Suggestion! From the Forum sponsor here is what they list as Winter Tires for the Mini:

15" Dunlop Winter Sport
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....inter+Sport+M2

16: Continental TS 790 195/55HR16 No Description $95

17" Pirelli Winter 240 SportSport $165
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....+240+SnowSport

I'm interested in knowing if the
Nokian http://www.nokiantires.com/newsite/t...fm?cid=1&sid=1
or Toyo Snowprox http://www.toyocanada.com/products/SnowProxS950.html
can be fit to 16" or 15" Wheels

 

DSC (and I think ASC) is bad in the snow because if the wheels start to slip, it kills the power to the engine and not only do you not go anywhere but your engine almost dies to the point where you aren't going anywhere. Sometimes that little bit of traction you have is enough.

I highly recommend Blizzaks as they helped me get through a Vermont winter including one of the worst storms they've seen in a while. The biggest problem I had was ice forming on the windsield wipers. Then when I would pull over to peel the ice off, the car didn't like plowing into the snow because the snow goes up over the windshield and you can't see anything. But then again, we're talking a few feet here.

Anything more than a few inches, get yourself a set of 15" Blizzaks and you'll be able to handle anything that the winter throws at you as long as you can get out of your house.