Winter tires choice

~MRVIBE2006~ · Post by **~MRVIBE2006~** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 9:52 am

Yes, I know it's only mid July but I was thinking about getting the winter tires here soon before they prices go up with the season change. I was looking at 2 different tires in 215/55/16.Should I get:Winterforce tiresOrDunlop winter sportAny other suggestions? Thanks in advance!

WaveAction · Post by **WaveAction** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 10:14 am

out of the 2 i'd go with the dunlops...but the michilens are really nice..the blizzaks or whatevr they're called

vibe-04 · Post by **vibe-04** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 10:32 am

My personal like is the Michilens..but the Dunlops would probably be the best price. Anythinh is better than all season in tough snow.However, I was reading recently about tires and compounds and some consideration should be given to the age of the tire. So if you are buying leftover stock, check the side wall and intrepret the code to see if they were manufactured recently, not four years ago.Maybe others on the board can eloborate in more detail but I read about the compund losing elasticity over time. So you save $$ but lose performance.Good luck

zionzr2 · Post by **zionzr2** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 11:08 am

these have been mentioned before Green Diamond Tires!!

Raven · Post by **Raven** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 11:17 am

Why 215's? 205 is the right size and narrow is better for snow. The Dunlops are are far superior and on sale at Tirerack.com $72.00.http://www.tirerack.com/tires/...ace=6Or if you want VR rated, these are #1.http://www.tirerack.com/tires/...ace=5

Sublimewind · Post by **Sublimewind** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 11:42 am

The choise would depend on what you are going to do with them, If you plan on having a lot of deep snow, go with the winterforce (i have them for my Subaru currently and they are "studable" BTW, if your state allows it) If you have little snow, but, sometimes get a lot, but mostly dry'ish pavement, get the Dunlops...You can see by the tread lug design that the winterforce is for deeper snow, it's a deeper tire and does really well in the deep.... You would be much better off going with steel wheels and "negative" sizing, or, going with a 195/60-15 which will cut the snow better and give you the ability to just change them in the driveway at season beginning/end..

~MRVIBE2006~ · Post by **~MRVIBE2006~** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 12:34 pm

1. About the size. I was just thinking about a little bigger tire but I can always change my mind and listen to reason, 205 it is!2. I do live in central Indiana and even though we have gotten 15"+ of snow at times, that was a fluke and then NOBODY was moving. I think the Dunlops would be the better choice, plus better looking.3. I understand about the "negative sizing." Its just that I don't want to buy another set of rims where I have a perfectly good alloy stock rims here at the house to slap the Dunlops on.Thanks for the advice and in advance for any future advice!

Sublimewind · Post by **Sublimewind** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 10:43 pm

Well, wider tires plow snow more than cutting it... If you have ever seen a rally car on a winter corse, you would crap at how skinny the tires used are... like 160 witdths or skinner.. Yeah, if you have the alloies just sitting around, do it, for sure.. and yes the Dunlops should offer better handling than the others in that fitment, i would still consider the 195 over the 205, i know it's not much but everything helps... all in all, i'm VERY happy to see that you have interest in winter tires. I lived in Buffalo NY for 15yrs and it was a nessisity for my, i also spent much time going snowboarding, so it was me, my Subaru and my snow tires and believe me we went through some SERIOUS stuff... Like the blizzard of 2000' where we got 25" in under 5hrs..!! Yeah, i drove in that... went to get my girlfriend from work, cause her car was burried in it's parking spot...It was a 40min round trip under normal conditions, took me 5hrs !!! to get back home, but i made it, unlike THOUSANDS of others that ended up stranded over night... 3500 school children stayed in local business that night, but i made it home... !!! I credit most all of this on my snow tires and AWD..Cheers,Aaron

~MRVIBE2006~ · Post by **~MRVIBE2006~** » Mon Jul 23, 2007 9:54 am

Probably going to go with the Dunlops. Been reading a lot of good things about them versus the Winterforce. Is there any other tire that I should be considering?Thanks in advance

Raven · Post by **Raven** » Mon Jul 23, 2007 11:36 am

Nokian are awesome snow tires but very pricey. I don't think you get enough deep snow to justify them.

~MRVIBE2006~ · Post by **~MRVIBE2006~** » Mon Jul 23, 2007 12:01 pm

Yes very pricey. Like $760 pricey here in the states. That's a little much for winter tires for me. I think the Dunlops would be just fine for me.

Sublimewind · Post by **Sublimewind** » Mon Jul 23, 2007 9:58 pm

Quote, originally posted by ~MRVIBE2006~ Â»Probably going to go with the Dunlops. Been reading a lot of good things about them versus the Winterforce. Is there any other tire that I should be considering?Thanks in advanceAgain, much depends on the driving you do. Are you going to be on dry pavement most of the time? are you going to see lots of slush? Are you going to see a lot of ice? How much deep snow? All of these factors should go into your decision. You may want to give both DTD and Tire Rack a call and ask them about thier recomendations, although they ARE trying to sell tires.

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 1:43 am

not to hijack, but I need some winter tires too for this up coming winter season. I drive for work (like 400 miles a week) so I need some recommendations on tires as i have never purchased or used "winter only" tires. I live in North Minnesota aka minnesnowta. So it seems the blizzaks may be good? since I drive a lot and dont want to get stuck :s I was thinking of getting just 2 for the front end...or do i need all 4 ? Oh edit I have a FWD car aswell

Sublimewind · Post by **Sublimewind** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 5:54 am

Quote, originally posted by northvibe Â»not to hijack, but I need some winter tires too for this up coming winter season. I drive for work (like 400 miles a week) so I need some recommendations on tires as i have never purchased or used "winter only" tires. I live in North Minnesota aka minnesnowta. So it seems the blizzaks may be good? since I drive a lot and dont want to get stuck :s I was thinking of getting just 2 for the front end...or do i need all 4 ? Oh edit I have a FWD car aswellWell, man, as we have been discussing, what kind of conditions do you see "normaly" If it is a lot of dry pavement driving, i wouldn't go with the Blizzaks, they don't last on pavement... You "should" get 4, you would be a lot safer this way... read my reasioning for NOT having ABS in the winter http://forums.genvibe.com/zero...age=2, it's very closly related to having good grip on all 4 corners...

kevera · Post by **kevera** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 6:04 am

Hey North,I would get 4 winter tires.I would also take Sublimewind's advice on the type of tire to use.I have a set of Blizzack's and a set of michelin x-ice's.I love both of them.The Blizzack's are awesome in deep snow and the xice's are great on pavement and icy roads,so I have both bases covered.Once you have a set of winters,you will never drive without them.

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 11:00 am

well I live in Duluth MN, and for work drive to Ely (2 hours north), Mora( 1.5 hours south), cloquet, hastings...all over MN. Mostly on highway... But of course those towns are small so their roads might not be plowed as well...so I would assume get 4 on steelies that are better for the pavement/ice ?? blizzaks might wear out to fast for me....

Sublimewind · Post by **Sublimewind** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 10:21 pm

Quote, originally posted by northvibe Â»well I live in Duluth MN, and for work drive to Ely (2 hours north), Mora( 1.5 hours south), cloquet, hastings...all over MN. Mostly on highway... But of course those towns are small so their roads might not be plowed as well...so I would assume get 4 on steelies that are better for the pavement/ice ?? blizzaks might wear out to fast for me....I would go for something like the Winterforce, for the drive you are talking about... they don't have and special tread compound, besides a winter compound that stays soft at cold temps... Are you able to "stud" tires in MN?? If so DO IT... there ARE other choices out there than the 2 mentioned though, many more options... Hit Discount Tire Direct and/or TireRack and start doing some research... There are many factors involved in choosing a proper tire... But don't be looking for huge tread wear ratings, Winter tires are SUPER soft by design, that's why having a set of take off wheels to go with the tires is so important..... That and over all it's cheaper than having the tires swapped onto different wheels every season change.

~MRVIBE2006~ · Post by **~MRVIBE2006~** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 11:26 pm

Discount Tire and Tire Rack were the first places that I went when researching winter tires. The only reason that I am leery about getting tires from Tire Rack is that who knows how long they have had them? Are they old enough to be on the verge of cracking? I have never got anything from Tire Rack so I don't have any personal experience of them. Is this concern valid? Or should I just go to the nearest Discount Tire (Indy is the closest) and go from there?

Sublimewind · Post by **Sublimewind** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 4:46 am

Meh, tires have to spend a LONG time out in the sun to start cracking.... in a wearhouse, thay could be there for a long time before you should get concerned... they both do a LOT of business, i doubt the stock sticks around for long... either will do, DTD has free shipping if you don't want to make the drive... Are you planning on getting take-offs?

northvibe · Post by **northvibe** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 4:53 am

I was going to get winter tires on steelies with the pontiac (oem or loook a like) hub caps. Then I could just take them off and on as needed, in my heated garage!

. but I will go check out discount tire and tire rack. I hear tire rack will balance them if you get them with rims before they are sent...that would be nice

Sublimewind · Post by **Sublimewind** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 6:18 am

Both will, they should come ready to put on the car, you'll prolly get a set of lugs to..!!

b train · Post by **b train** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 7:28 am

if u can use studs in ur state I have a set only used for one winter... now that I live in Houston I will need to sell em

Winter tires choice

Winter tires choice

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