Is it worth doing 4 performance winter tires for 5 months out of the year and ultra high performance summer tires for 7 months out of the year, or just simply ultra high performance all-seasons?

The way I look at it, is that yes you are spending double than if you were just buying the all-seasons, but each set of tires will last you double as long. So in the long run, you are really spending the same amount of money - rather than replacing the tires 2 years down the road, you have to replace them 4 years down the road b/c you have been alternating. The other benefit is that you are always driving on a tire that is more suitable to the current state of weather. In the summer, you drive on summer tires (which are perfect for then) rather than all season (that do the job), and in the winter, you drive on winter tires (which are perfect for then) rather than all-seasons (that will hardly do the job).

What do you all think? Is my rationale way off?

 

I don't know how it is there, but Louisiana weather is rediculous! It was 80 & 90 degrees last week and 30 & 40 degrees this week. Not to mention the crazy rain earlier this week. I would have to change tires everyday! lol

 

Not really, but I like the idea of having 2 sets of rims, the split spoke with summers, and the others for winter. Donno, performance would be better if you get the two seasons, and it will last the same. I would go with 2 sets.

 

Eh.. depends, theres some all season tires out there that are just as good, if not better than some summer tires.

I myself am riding back on my stocks for winter and then putting my 19s back on in spring with UHP summer tires (which have a M+S brand on them ironically)

 

It is true that there are some all-season tires that are comprable to the summer tires performance-wise, but I would still have to swap them off for the winter tires, so what's the point in looking for an all-seaon thats close? Id just go with the summer that is the real deal. Unless you're saying that the all-seasons could be good enough for the winter?

 

I was implying all-seasons could be good enough.

Where do you live that you require winter tires?

 

What is a good all-season tire?

 

Personally I believe that it all depends on where you live and what winter driving you can expect to endure..

If you live in the lower half of the US[rarely snows or freezes] then I would say that an all season would be fine,, however if you live in a norther tier state.
IE: snow snow and more constant snow and ice then I would go for the "full meal deal" on winter/snow tires, and a set of tire cables/chains as a backup..and a small folding shovel,bag of kitty litter,and the rest of the "oh SH*T" gear.

[the kitty litter is used like sand under your tires to get moving, just not as messy to carry around]

just my 1.5 cents worth
A 3.5+million miler [certified] and still a damn rookie!

 

I've had my tC since April 2005, and I have not changed the stock tires yet. I live in NH, and granted, last winter was totally weak for snow, but I never had a problem driving all winter.

 

It really depends on how 'seasonal' your weather is. For much of the US, having two sets of tires, each optimized for the major seasonal weather conditions, makes a whole lot of sense.

Some parts of the country do not have the obvious need for "snow tires," and for the folks there the answer is obviously no.

When I was a working stiff, I always had seasonal sets of tires for my cars that needed them (my Land Crushers had aggressive off road tires year round).

Now that I don't have a need to get places "no matter what" I don't really bother. Our Pacific Northwest winters are typically wet and dreary, with usually less than six inches of snow for the entire season, and that snow is usually on the roads for less than a week, total, and usually only for hours at a time. This is despite being about 300 miles north of Toronto, Canada (really, look at a map).

I can hold out until the roads are OK, so I don't really need serious snow tires - I run "all season" touring tires that have very good wet performance - that is my primary need.

For most of you, having seasonal tires definately make sense, and costs little more than not having them. The increase in safety is well worth the minor cost.

Tomas

 

I'm in Norwalk CT and I drive back and forth from the island potentially several times every week - snow or not...

 

if you drive in the snow with all season tires then go get a set of performance winter tires you'll notice a HUGE difference... Quite literally with my blizzaks it was A LOT of work to pull off a doughnut in the parking lot... And I mean a lot of work. Put that in a practical standpoint thats what would happen when you slam on your breaks to avoid hitting that car that just spun out. I had a great set of all season tires before I bought my 18's and i had two blow out on me due to a bottle under the snow so I just went and bout for new blizzaks and a huge difference.

Sorry but safety has not cost

I vote get two sets... put one set on Early December through March and ride with a peace of mind. Odds are you'll never need the added benefit of snow tires but hey: ya never know. I never had a "problem" persay with my all season tires but the difference was huge when I put on the snow tires

 

I switched from Nitto Ultra Perf tires on my lastcar to Falken All seasons. The all seasons worked ok in the snow but sucked in the summer. Night and day difference between perf extreme and all seasons. Worth the price to me right there. I'm going to try the stock tires this winter (at first anyway) and get good tires in the spring (and new wheels of coarse) then winter tires next year. But then again I'm broke...I just got it.

 

I have the stock Bridgestone Potenza tires. Dry weather handling is fine, but they are scary when it's wet. I just purchased some Nokian WR's on a recommendation from a friend. I haven't mounted them or tried them out yet, but I will let you know. They are supposed to be better than Blizzak's.
I didn't have the money to buy another set of rims, so I got the Nokian's in the stock size. We get enough snow and snowy days here in Michigan where I thought this was a good move. Also, I have a frantic busy expressway commute to work everyday. I need to be confident in my cars traction.

 

To me, it really depends on how much performance you're going with, and the region you live in. Since you're in CT, you can get some pretty heavy snowfall. I got by last year with ultra-high performance all-seasons, but I wasn't very performance-minded. If you're looking for performance/handling, go with snows and summer tires. If you're just Daily Driving it around and don't really go all out on performance, stick with Ultra High performance all seasons (avon tech m550s!)

 

after hearing all the horror stories about the torennas, a week after getting my tC i ordered a 15" snow pkg from tire rack . I have run blizzaks on other trucks/cars, and they are a great winter tire. living in Maine, with a 30 mile 1 way commute.... snow tires are a must for me.
I'll run the stock crap in the summer till they wear out, then get a high performance summer tread, and have the best of both worlds.

 

I have two sets of wheels/tires. The extra $500 I spend on snows is about what my insurance deductible is. Snows last me two-three seasons, and is extra insurance in my opinion.

An all-season tire is a compromise between good snow and good summer tires. With two sets, you get the traction and braking you need when you need it, which may save you from having to pay your insurance deductible.

Paul G.

 

Any good summer tread tire will outperform even the best all season tire in the dry AND in the wet. They do terrible in the cold, snow, and ice so you have to have a set to change over to if you live where snow and ice can be a problem.

You can get fairly inexpensive snow tires mounted on 14" or 15" steel wheels from TireRack and keep your good or OEM rims and tires for the rest of the year. Now, the OEM tires may hurl but you might try to sell them or wear them about before getting something better. You could also get snows for the OEM rims and go with aftermarket rims and summer tires.

I have found the Dunlop Graspic snow tire to offer tons of snow/ice grip for the money. The Blizzacks (sp?) are nice but they only have ice grip for 1/2 the tread depth. I had some Yoko ice grip tires on an SVT and on a 330i and they were pretty well - but you "high performance" snows with low profile to go over large rotots - and were expensive.

Dennis

 

I have a GTI (should have my tC soon) and have been going with separate wheels & tires for summer & winter. In summer, I have lightweight wheels with falken azenis, in the winter I use the stock (and more durable) wheels with blizzaks.

I live in the northeast, and winters can be bad. All season tires really are NOT cut out for decent driving in the snow (no matter what they claim). They are designed to be a compromise between okay summer driving and bearable winter driving. In other words, they suck in the summer AND the winter - but are good enough for the average joe who doesn't want to swap the tires.

I went a few years with all seasons, and hated it. No grip in the summer, and horrible grip in the winter. If you're buying a new set of wheels to spiff up the car, save the old wheels - throw snow tires on them, and use them in the winter. You'll be happy in the summer when you can hit the corners hard, and you'll be happy in the winter when all the clowns driving around in all-season tires are stuck.

Think of it this way. A spork is a spoon and a fork combination. In other words, a crappy spoon, and a crappy fork. All-season tires are the spork of the tire world.

Another problem with all season tires is that the compound is usually very hard and focused on milage instead of grip, which further reduces their value for any hard driving (in any season). Go with the snow/winter combination if you can afford the wheels. One bad situation in the winter on all-seasons, and you'll be happy you did.

 

Update...the Nokian WR's kick butt in the rain. Way, way better than the stock Potenzas. Haven't had any snow yet.