Winter tyres

[jmurray01]

Will any of you be fitting them this year?

I don't normally but the summer tyres fitted at the moment are mis-matched and one leaks whilst another has cracking in the sidewall - so they need replaced. As it is coming up for winter, I thought it best to go for 4 winter tyres.

Having looked on Gumtree, I found a set of Yokohamas (only used for one winter) for £130 ($200) which I'll pick up tomorrow and have fitted and balanced on Friday.

Knowing my luck the year that I fit winter tyres will be the year Scotland gets absolutely no snow, but likewise if I were not to fit them I know we would get an avalanche, so better safe than sorry eh?

 

[countryguy]

I always put on winter tires. Since I just got a new car in the summer and the winter tires from my previous car are not the correct size, I had to order new rims and tires. They are being installed on Fri. They are also studded.

Gary

 

[jmurray01]

That's the best way. Especially in Ontario!!

 

[suckolux]

Just had my all season balanced and rotated. California, nuff said?

 

[jmurray01]

Ha ha, good point! What is the coldest that you get in winter, out of interest?

 

[suckolux]

It's northern Cali, north central Valley actually so, it can get colder? Got snow a couple times in my life? But 20s will happen, as will 110 in the summer, still 70s and 80s now

 

[charleskirby66]

Winter tires?!

Wow... I can't imagine having to change my tires with the season. That would suck! Out here in the SF Bay Area, it gets down to the 40's Fahrenheit, sometimes 30's but that's relatively rare. Given that we're supposed to have an El Niño weather pattern this winter, it should stay above the 30's for sure.

 

[jmurray01]

"!Wow... I can't imagine having to change my tires with the season. That would suck!"


 


To me it is no problem at all, but I guess it is just what we are used to.  I couldn't imagine going through a winter without having to dig the car out and defrost the windows etc... 

 

[suckolux]

Its true, what is our norm to us seems fine!

 

[countryguy]

I would love to not have to put on winter tires, shovel snow, etc. I hate hate hate winter LOL

 

[jmurray01]

Yeah, I'm not a big fan of it either Gary, but I have to admit there is a certain pleasure from stepping outside and breathing in a lung-full of cold, crisp air. 


 


Makes you feel "alive"...


 


And then your fingers go numb and you start cursing it!!!

 

[human]

Here in the sunny South, all-season radials are all you need. When I lived in the Appalachian mountains, I knew some people who ran studded tires in the winter but I never did. Most kept them mounted on a second set of rims for easy bolt-on, bolt-off swaps and most only put them on the rear of the car if rear-wheel drive or the front if front-wheel drive.

 

[countryguy]

Jamie, if I want a breath of fresh, cold air I could just open the freezer and breathe in....and I wouldn't have to do any shovelling! LOL

 

[jmurray01]

Good point!

 

[jmurray01]

Well it turns out that getting the winter tyres fitted was a blessing because having taken the summer tyres off, it turns out all four were worn worse than I thought - one dangerously. 


 


Now it is running on 4x Yokohama W.Drive V905 winter tyres with the M&S (mud and snow) stamp on the sidewalls.  Second to fitting off-road tyres, that's as good as you are going to get, so winter can do all it wants now - I'm prepared!

 

[dustin]

Never had them, don't want them. I live in Michigan and we get plenty of snow and cold weather. If I can't get where I need to go with front wheel drive and all season tires, I don't need to go! Worst I've ever done was gone in the ditch once about 5 years ago. At the time I had a tiny car that was awful in snow so it was expected.

 

[countryguy]

I got my studded winter tires installed today so I'm all set as well. All season tires are OK if you don't do much winter driving or just drive around in the city. If you drive alot on the highways, in severe snow storms, on hilly roads, in freezing snow and rain...then winter tires are a must....and make a HUGE difference in both driving and stopping capability. I've driven many winters with all seasons and with FWD.....the difference with winter tires is like night and day. Also I have a very steep, long driveway. When I come home from work and there is a foot of snow there is no way that FWD with all seasons is going to make it up my driveway...even when I had FWD with winter tires, there were times I could not get the car all the way up the driveway. I now have AWD and winter tires and there has only been one time when I could not get the car up the driveway and that was because the snow was slushy and wet and immediately turned to ice when the tires lost traction and started to spin. And don't even suggest that I don't know how to drive...I've been driving for 40 years in these conditions.

Gary

 

[kirbylux77]

I may not drive a car, but I do ride my mountain bike in the winter & put studded tires on it. It's pretty easy to ride a bike in the winter, as long as the roads are recently plowed.

Jamie - You be nice on your comments about Ontario & our winters now! Yes, we may get a lot of snow here, but trust me, this ain't Greenland for cryin' out loud. And if you think it's bad here, Saskatchewan & Quebec are even worse for snowfall. We manage to survive, LOL. Now if I could just find a handsome man like Gary to snuggle up to on those cold winter nights & keep me warm ;-)

Rob

 

[electroluxxxx]

I live in upstate New York and As far as winter tires go we have some rough winters here as I live in what we call the north eastern snow belt. In the last 3 years I have been trying to find a decent set of all seasons for my Chevrolet blazer and finally found a good set. I have 4 Goodyear wranglers on my truck, excellent traction on rough road, mud and snow!