GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Hi All!I'm Anna and very new to this community and to Vibes. I just traded in a 2005 Subaru Legacy m/t, for a 2010 Vibe(FWD). I pick it up on Tuesday.I am very eager to hear about snow tire suggestions. My subaru plowed through ice and snow with relative ease. I want to set myself up for success, knowing that my Vibe experience will be difference (if only based on the fact that i'll be changing from AWD to FWD). I'm open to any advice for tires and winter driving tips.Thanks!-Anna

Vibolista will be all over this (Maine resident and big believer in useful tire/rim combos in your neck of the woods). If you don't hear from him, send him an Instant Message. You can do so by looking him up in the "Member List" directory (top right of this page), clicking on his name and it'll give you the option to IM him in a link.Welcome and good luck!

I run Fully studded Firestone winterforce. Plow through anything, terrific on the freeway. It's been said that I'm a speed demon, slightly reckless at times.... (there's a couple of video's in the 'winter freeway driving' thread in this subforum)Just be sure to learn the limitations of the car (and yourself)!!!Here's my garage thread http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=39346

Buy a set of aluminum rims / snow tires from http://tirerack.com I like using 205/55/16 snows. Ive tired firestone and also general, both very cheap. You can save money with steel rims but they will rust and look like crap. One thing i love about 5 spoke rims is that you can stick your hands inside the wheel and remove the ice/snow build up. Cause they will be out of balance and shake your car driven with stuff caked in the wheels. I think the firestone has a louder tread driving on pavement, the General is much quieter. In the snow I really cant tell the difference. Both very good. Both seems to wear evenly. Ice, I carry a pair of SCC tire chains, not the cables with little washers on them but actual chains. They are easy to put on and when the road is nothing but ICE, its a must have. tires/wheels probably 800ish, chains about 60. Ive climbed Colorado mountains with my FWD vibe when other cars where getting stuck. with our FWD, just dont stop in the middle of the hill.. You will get stuck. I try to keep momentum, if need be, give it gas, let the tire spin but you will make it up the hill. Parents live at 9000ft in Colorado, roads are steep but Ive always made it. I dont like studded, cause of the noise and in 90% of driving I dont think they are necessary.. FWD vibes do better than WRX with summer tires from my own experience. but obviously cant touch a subaru with snow tires . The combination of their AWD and turbo.. they are a beast in Colorado.

Welcome to the site!I was in Freeport and Portland back in October... Beautiful area

Yes... they are loud.... You should hear them in a shiny concrete parkade!!!

SD.. Nobody said you were a demon, just based on what I KNOW about how a Vibe handles at speed in the snow, just a bit reckless is all, if it had been a nice flat clear road, without all the hard packed, snow chatter bumps everywhere, it wouldn't have ever been a thought... orwhatuwill,Your biggest winter driving mistake was offing your Leggy and buying a FWD vibe.. Not saying the Vibe isn't capable, just saying you just rocketed yourself back into the stone ages by going FWD...lol.. If you can stud snow tires, run studded... if you can't... Bridgestone Blizzak, or Nokian HAkka, hands down the best snows on the market..

Quote, originally posted by Sublimewind »SD.. Nobody said you were a demon... I did... and I am... it's a work in progress but when you've driven the road a million times, yadda yadda...Quote, originally posted by Sublimewind »If you can stud snow tires, run studded... if you can't... Bridgestone Blizzak, or Nokian HAkka, hands down the best snows on the market..

I'll chip in a vote for BF Goodrich Winter Slaloms - best winter tire I've ever driven on - I prefer them to the Blizzaks, and they'll last longer. Nokkians will be the next ones I buy, as they seem to get a lot of love on a few forums. I would avoid Uniroyal Tiger Paw (worst tires I've owned).

You really haven't gone quite back to the stone age with FWD. That said, you're going to have to face the fact that you won't be able to get that extra 100 feet farther into the deep snow before you get stuck, like you did when you drove that AWD Subie! On the other hand, what you will love, is the fact that you can get 30+ miles per gallon from the very expensive gasoline we now buy. I can squeeze 36 mpg from my Vibe in Winter and 38 to near 40 mpg in Summer. Gas was selling for 3.55 to 3.60 today. Rediculous!There's definitely a bit of an advantage to having AWD on slippery surfaces compared to FWD. Starting up on icy pavement is better with AWD. But you can equalize quite a bit of that advantage by choosing a good set of grippy snow tires. Once you are in motion on snow, physics is going to treat you about the same, whether you drive AWD or a FWD vehicle. There are a lot of good snow tires out there to choose from, some are quiet, some noisy, and some that don't even look like they could be a snow tire and yet will do a great job on snow or ice. Much of the grip can come from the way the rubber compounds are formulated. This time of year your choices would be a little limited, since most tire stores have usually sold their allotted stock. If you take your snows off as soon as the weather turns nicer and the snow melts, they should easily last 4 to 6 Winters, especially if you drive kindly on them. After that, when over half their tread is worn away, they'll perform about the same as an all season tire, only noisier. If you drive a snow tire to the point where tread depth is close to the wear indicator bars in Winter, it will be as dangerous as driving a Summer only tire in snow. Not a great idea. The good thing is, Winter in southern Maine is just about done in March most years. We still get the occasional wicked dump of Spring snow, but that stuff melts away pretty quickly. Don't know if you've noticed, but that sunshine, even during the last couple of cold days we just had, is definitely feeling stronger.