snow tires

Curious as to the thoughts of everyone here regarding show tires. I'm moving next week and bringing my Subaru with its stock shitty OEM all season tires. I'll be living and working in Bromfield with weekly trips to DIA to fly back to DC to visit family. I've heard some differing opinions on if I snow tires.......what say you....

A friend of mine said last week, "$800 of snow tires can save $6000 in body work", which is a pretty wise statement, in my estimation. I like to try to find a set of cheap rims from a salvage yard and mount a set of snow tires on them. This way I can swap them on in the fall and off in the spring pretty easily, and get more mileage out of them since they usually seem to cost more. I am sure you know this, but with a subaru all four tires are supposed to match so you don't strain the AWD system.

$7000 in body work, on my 5 year old car that's only worth $8500. The back end came loose and I did not counter steer enough or quickly enough, who would've known what I was suppose to do and eventually slid into the guard rail head on. A lot of people think they have AWD/4WD that they're invincible, well everybody has 4 wheel brakes and 4 wheels on the ground. Your grip is only as good as the tires you have, they're the only thing that connects you to the road, I would say get them. You can even swap them on couple days before it snows if you have time.

If you never leave the metro area and have good all season tires on the scooby you'll be fine.

But, let me tell you, put 4 good studless snow tires on an all wheel drive car and snowy roads suddenly become a playground. It makes a world of difference. Just see all the people getting stuck on I-70 when it snows a little and clogging up traffic. Its worth it just to not be "that guy". Get wheels too so you can do a pit stop in spring. You'll pay for the wheels after a couple winters of mounting fees and be able to sell them with the car one day.


Studded tires have way too many drawbacks. I didn't even run those in Fairbanks.

which subaru?

2011 outback 3.6. Bought it since it had the more advanced awd then the 2.5. Thanks for the info looks like a set of blizzaks is in order

for the metro area, you should be fine with A/S tires. of course, careful and cautious never hurt anyone, and if you feel more comfortable on snows, then do it. of course, you should look at the X-Ice2 instead of the blizzaks.

i have MXV4's on my 05 XT, and in the winter, X-Ice on the Legacy GT

The camps seem to be divided between the xice and blizzaks. Why did you decide on the xice? Curious more than anything. Ill probably get a set of snows,dont want to screw around coming home from the airport at midnight.

higher ratings on consumer reports and tirerack.

with AWD/4WD I'd just get whatever looks good

Did fine with pirelli winters on a RWD Mercedes I had

True, but if I'm going to throw down cash money then I want the best I can buy.

Michelin X Ice 2's are more a little more expensive than the Blizzaks but will last longer (and have a 40K warranty).

Consumer Reports ratings for the Blizzaks will be off, as the newer Blizzak (the WS70 which has been out for a year or two) was not around when they did their last review.

Tire Rack has some reviews here: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=135

I personally run the X Ice 2's on my car. My father in law likes the Blizzaks, but he also doesn't care about spending the money to replace them. He is a very slow and cautious driver and his Blizzaks always wear in the middle (without overinflation), which tells me that it is the design of the tire. I dropped the inflation pressure down last winter and they still did the same thing.

My last set of snow tires (Michelin Pilot Alpin 2) lasted five winters, but I didn't do much mountain driving and I wore them bald. I would also wait until the very last minute to put them on and take them off promptly, which helped a lot because the rubber in winter tires is so soft that they wear very quickly in warm weather.

i have been a mechanic for 7 years and i can not recommend the a better snow tire than the blizzak line. to be honest any tire that is classed as a snow tire will be a better decision than stock tires. but i still think the blizzak tire have a bit of an edge on the competition. the one thing to note though is you absolutely have to have a extra set or regular highway tire for the summer because the soft rubber of a snow tire will be ruined in a season or two of use during summer months. if you have anymore question feel free to ask i hope this helps.

I have some of the cheaper snowtires off of tire rack and love them. They have saved me a few times. I think they are the Altimax or something like that. Since getting snow tires a few years ago I will not go without them in the future. You might not think you need them or whatever, but once the snow sticks then melts then freezes you will wish you had them. Also, are tremendous when we get a big storm usually at the end of winter. Now with that being said, I did fine for quite awhile with all-seasons on 2wd and 4wd cars and can say that I didn't have any major mishaps, but there were some close ones. You have to think that snow tires aren't for starting from a stop, but rather being able to stop, no 4wd car or truck will help you stop, only tires.

I did notice that the X-Ice was ranked #1 and the Blizzaks were #2 based on Tire Rack's latest rankings. The 40K tread wear warranty is pretty sweet too.

I know the best thing to do is run the winter tires on a set of steel wheels but for the sake of my budget (moving is expensive) is there any issue to just mounting them to the stock rims and then mounting the all seasons back on in spring? As soon as my family moves here next year I'm going to get a dedicated set of rims for the winter tires so this will be a one time mount and un mount.

Not really, provided you go with a competent and reputable shop to do it. You risk having the wheels scratched, that's really about it short term.

I think I read somewhere that constant mounting and un mounting can damage the tire's beads, but hopefully I can get by this once. Most people run their snows until when....late April early May?

It can, if you've got a total dumbass doing the work who either doesn't lubricate the tire and wheel properly or doesn't have the common sense or muscle strength to prevent the tire from being torn when it goes on or comes off. You really shouldn't have a problem with a Subaru.

That's why I don't let anyone I know go to Sears in Lakewood for tires. Idiots tore 3 of the beads on my father in laws snow tires, and then claimed they were perfectly fine and safe since the tires weren't leaking. When I started pressing the issue, they claimed that they didn't damage them and instead it was the shop that dismounted them (once)...which was not possible; I was standing right next to the employee in the shop when they changed the tires.

Yeah tell me about it. One of the issues I'm having in moving is trying to find a decent mechanic, tire shop, place to get my hair cut, etc.

Although I will be pissed if I need a mechanic for my 2011 Subaru... :p

Others have stated get the Blizzak series tires They kick ass

if you're going to have service work at a dealer, go to Flatirons Subaru in Boulder. There are a few subaru specific garages here.

Consumer Reports reaffirmed the XIce 2 at the best rated snow tire in the most recent issue.

Another -1 for Sears.

Buy them. Night and day difference. All I've tried is Hankooks but they work VERY well and I wouldn't do a trip of any distance without them. Bought a new car this summer and just got a new set of wheels and Hankook snow tires. All I've ever used was studded. Made a big difference in my wife's comfort level, having never driven in snow before we moved here.

I ended up going with a set of alum wheels (no steels to be found in my size) and the X-ICE's

You do relize that if you live in the flat land there is snow on the roads about a dozen or so days a year. Hell I ride my motorcyle almost every day year round out here. I am from a part of the country where the roads stay snow/ice covered for about 4 months of the year, just learn to drive in it and stay out of the mountains when it's dumping unless you like being stuck on I70 due to idiot drivers.

I say this: http://www.tirerack.com/snow/WinterPackageMain.jsp?autoMake=Subaru&autoModel=Outback+Wagon+2.5I&autoYear=2005&autoModClar=Base+Model shipped to your door. Wheels and tires for 700 plus shipping.

Sadly 1) I already bought tires and 2) the deal doesnt work for me, I have the 3.6 which has a larger wheel (17 vs 16) over the 2.5. What's funny is all the tire shops assumed I had the 2.5....which appears to be what everyone in CO has. I haven't seen another 3.6R Outback since I've been here.

I would not buy the x-ice. They do well on ice for a studless, but we rarely have ice. There are much better tires for what we have here: hardpack, fresh snow, and slush.

Nokian Hakka R SUV
Blizzak DM-V1

Narrowing helps immensely, especially when driving on cut snow where you might have to cross deep slush between the lanes and don't want to lose traction floating or get spun by asymmetric drag.

Your 3.6 means you can't narrow to 215/70/16 so you have to do the 225/60/17 Hakka R SUV... that's still a super setup.

I run 245/70/17 Blizzak DMV1s on my 4Runner (versus the 265/70/17 Wrangler SA for the summer). I will kick any Subies ass in the snow unless they are running the 215 DMV1 or the Hakka R.

My girlfriend has DMV1 215s on her 2.5 Outback. Rocking!

Of course, if you don't leave Denver much for the mountains, then buy Nokian Hakka WRG2 SUV all seasons, best snow oriented all season tire out there. If you want a snow capable all terrain drives like an all season, get the Wrangles Silent Armor all terrain (mud and snow rated), otherwise the Nokian Vattiva.

Hi. I live up in the mtns. I never really give too much consideration to brand when buying snow tires. I stud them, so I'm not too concerned with having the best, so long as they're good. I also don't do too much highway driving; I might buy something better if I did. That said, any snow tire will work well if you stud them. I've had top of the line, and cheaper off the rack tires, and either has worked equally well when the roads are at their worst. But I don't drive "sporty" - I save that for the hill .

-JC

Studs help mostly in ice and maybe a little in hard packed snow. Otherwise they do nothing for slush or deep snow. They do make noise and worsen handling on dry pavement.

All true. As long as they're decent snow tires studs don't harm deep snow/slush handling though. But I do feel that they help tremendously on packed snow - which is the bulk of my winter driving. The difference in packed snow handling is the biggest reason I add the studs. The narrower tires absolutely are better for deep / slushy conditions as said. The noise of studs on dry roads is a minor irritation to me(YMMV) and the dry road handling does worsen, as does mileage. I really enjoy the extra bite of the studs when conditions are slickest.
It may be worth noting that I drive a bit of a beater and have a max speed of 50mph in my normal daily driving. The cost of good tires is nearly worth the value of my car . And that I live up high and drive a largely shady, steep road for my commute. But sliding off the road complicates anyone's travels regardless of vehicle value - and getting to and from reliably is worth the cost and handling sacrifices for me. If I lived in the front range or western slope I would probably make a different choice.

Cheers! Think snow everyone !! Have a good Thanksgiving.

-JC

Fair enough! :)

Pray for snow!!!

One of the primary reasons I went with the X Ice is due to the Tirerack.com shoot out btween it and the Blizzaks. Also the high mileage life of the tire was a huge plus for me. Truth be told I just wanted something better than the stock all seasons on the Outback. If I have probems driving in the snow with snow tires and a Subaru with the added benefit of the VTD (the Outback 2.5 doesn't have this) then I have more serious issues to deal with.

Another satisfied Blizzak owner, on a 2007 VW Rabbit.

I downsized the tire and upped the aspect ratio to compensate for the reduced circumference, all to be able to buy a dedicated set of 15" rims which wasn't that big of a cost delta compared to buying 16" Blizzaks and paying for mounting/balancing twice a year.

If living up in mountains, where packed snow is a season-long reality, studded may be the way to go. But if living in a lower elevation metro area, a snow/ice tire like Blizzaks or X-Ice seems to be the better option.

As others have said, these wear, so wait until the hairy end to mount them, and around early Apr, get them off.

If locating to Colo Springs, I can recommend Rex Tire on West Colorado as a good, independent shop. They are family ownded, and on they're 3rd generation of ownership/management IIRC. Good people.

I suppose it depends which Blizzaks you compare to... compared to a DMV1 the X Ice loses. As far as "high mileage" there isn't that much difference, especially if you drive em above 50degF. It certainly is a huge improvement over stock though.

I'm a little hazy, but my understanding is that as of 2010, the 2.5s (at least the premium and ltd) have VTD. Having VTD is nice, but in snow the problem is rarely with the going, where VTD helps. It is with the stopping and turning. That is what snow tires help with, as well as the going.

I hear mixed things about if the 2.5 has the VTD, I saw somwhere where there was a test between the 2.5 and 3.6 where the car was placed on a steep angle and 3 wheels had no traction, the 3.6 applied power and was able to get moving with only 1 wheel having traction whereas the 2.5 was unable to get moving. In the end it's a Subaru and if its so bad out that Subie's are getting stuck nothing short of a snow plow is going to help.

I wanted snow tires for the stopping and handling ability if and when someone slides across the lane and i have to hit the brakes and stop in a straight line, or steer around.

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