Winter Tires

[ecmilley]

http://www.rubberassociation.ca/rubberroom/Winter_Driving.html

and craig your only semi correct about winter and snow tires, as long as it has the mountain snowflake it deemed a winter tire.

even many high mileage all seasons contain silica in the compounding it's not the only compound that makes it flexible at low temps.

the biggest thing when shopping for winter rubber is do you need it more for snow or ice? the ice tires are still good in the snow but have very soft tread with lots of siping i.e x-ice or dunlop graspic ds3 science behind it is more sipes = more traction edges and picks up water off the ice, ice not real slippery until there water on top, so removing the water increases traction (at least that somewhat how a engineer explained it to me at tire testing)

Do I think winters should be mandatory? no they do help and can save lives but I think driving with common sense in the winter time would save even more people.

for the record I alway use snows on my cars and right now on 3 rd year of michelin xi2 zippo foe wear and it makes the wife's accent a tank

On the truck I use goodyear wrangler silent armour all terrain tire it goes through anything no problems and it's only lacking in the ice gripping department works great in snow

[lew]

they do help and can save lives but I think driving with common sense in the winter time would save even more people.

 

 

Your right Ernie, but sadly too many folks will never aquire common sense and will continue to kill innocent folks on winter roads.

 

And I don't care what anybody says, winter tires in good condition are FAR better in snow than non-winter tires...no matter how good you think you are behind the wheel.

[Fish Farmer]

Just slow down in the winter, use your head. Winter tires will give some, a false scents of security, some will think they can drive like it was summer. Winter tires only make people take more chances. It's like the guy that owns a 4X4, they think they will never get stuck

[ecmilley]

Just slow down in the winter, use your head. Winter tires will give some, a false scents of security, some will think they can drive like it was summer. Winter tires only make people take more chances. It's like the guy that owns a 4X4, they think they will never get stuck

i never get stuck in my 4x4

with the cold ice and snow coming in it'll be followed by people walking in the door telling me: they only need an alignment after bouncing off the curb and there steering wheel is near upside down

[Skipper D]

Where did the simple common sence go like they had two hundred years ago . Even back then it was a consern as every fall you went into the Black Smith shop and got your horse jacked up and changed its four shoe's from the summer smoothy's to the winter ice clet one's ...WHY ? .... because if you did'nt you risk the chance of your horse slipping on the snow and ice breaking a leg and smashing the sleigh , no different then you would today driving with summer tires in winter and slipping and smashing the car into a tree , we all know what you do to a horse with a broken leg right ........... lol . Its much easyer to gain common sence from your family freinds and neigbours and put it to use on your own then have a law put in place that would make you ......... lol .

Edited December 12, 2012 by Skipper " D "

[davey buoy]

As said earlier,common sense is what you need . No more" dictatorship",offer the people who have snow tires a rebate. Would not take long for people to jump on board I would think. Snows are great.Just don't think your invincible. No more you have to do this,do that. JMO.

[Billy Bob]

As said earlier,common sense is what you need . No more" dictatorship",offer the people who have snow tires a rebate. Would not take long for people to jump on board I would think. Snows are great.Just don't think your invincible. No more you have to do this,do that. JMO.

 

YEP....I LOVE MY COUNTRY.....it's my government I'm afraid of....

[BillM]

YEP....I LOVE MY COUNTRY.....it's my government I'm afraid of....

 

You voted Republican didn't you :)

[ch312]

a big problem with many people is they think because they haven't got into an accident yet that the all season tires they use in the winter are perfectly fine. the same people often fishtail around corners, slide to stops, or spin their tires to get going with their "perfectly fine" tires and then go on and on about how snow tires are a waste of money and they're too good of drivers to need them.

 

while i'm against big brother imposing new rules, i'd rather see mandatory snow tires instead of seat belts. i could care less if you want to drive around without a seat belt and kill yourself as it doesn't really effect me or others. but, using snow tires or not can literally be the difference between sliding through a busy intersection into cars or stopping safely and it's because of this i believe everyone should be using them. the fact is many (majority?) drivers are oblivious to winter hazards and those are the "bad apples" that make me want to see snow tires on all vehicles.

 

that said...

 

 

the number of times I have nearly caused an accident due to improper tires? ZERO

the number of times I have nearly been hit due to someone else having poor/improper tires? DOZENS

[SirCranksalot]

Mandatory?? I'm a big believer in snow tires but we have 2 vehicles but just put them on 1. We are both retired and if the conds warrant it we will just use the vehicle with winter tires on it. When the mess has been cleared we go back to being a '2 car family'. Why should I be forced to buy extra tires for the second vehicle?

[Billy Bob]

You voted Republican didn't you :)

 

But they didn't get in....and that's why we are afraid....

[lew]

How does an interesting post about winter tires turn into American politics ??

[BillM]

How does an interesting post about winter tires turn into American politics ??

 

You can blame me for that, just a little jab at our buddy BB

[kemper]

All four winters on my cars always. I spend a lot of time in the car in winter, and they have paid for themselves again and again without a doubt.

[funfishing]

Are these worth putting on or should I keep looking?

 

If they're worth putting on, how much would you pay for the set (4)? Bearing in mind $70 overall installation and $30 gas to pick them up.

 

I'm looking for a set that will last at least one winter. Will be my first time with winter tires, I am a very experienced driver, I have never been in any accidents and have driven a lot through ice and snow with worn all seasons in the past. Having said that, I obviously don't want to go through the trouble and cost of installing a set if they're garbage to begin with. I would ask my mechanic but I can't drive over there now, I've been bugging him all day with photos and just found these now.

 

They are two seasons old according to the owner.

 

 

Edited December 17, 2012 by funfishing

[ecmilley]

Are these worth putting on or should I keep looking?

 

If they're worth putting on, how much would you pay for the set (4)? Bearing in mind $70 overall installation and $30 gas to pick them up.

 

I'm looking for a set that will last at least one winter. Will be my first time with winter tires, I am a very experienced driver, I have never been in any accidents and have driven a lot through ice and snow with worn all seasons in the past. Having said that, I obviously don't want to go through the trouble and cost of installing a set if they're garbage to begin with. I would ask my mechanic but I can't drive over there now, I've been bugging him all day with photos and just found these now.

 

They are two seasons old according to the owner.

 

 

thats not a winter tire looks like a oem continental for gm minivans like montana or uplander

[dickie]

The difference between winters and all seasons is huge. The costs are mitigated a bit by extending the life of tires by not having them on your vehicle for 3-4 months a year. In the end what is your and your families safety really worth? Eight hundred to twelve hundred over 4-5 winters is cheap peace of mind.

 

I'll take a front wheel drive car with winter tires over an all wheel drive with all seasons.

I couldn't have said it any better myself.

[funfishing]

I was told these are Michelin X Ice Snow tires, are you sure they're not winter? How could the seller mix them up?

[lew]

If their winter tires you'll see a snowflake symbol on the side of the tire.

 

http://tires.tirerack.com/thumb.php?f=http://www.tirerack.com/images/winter/photos/tech/severe_snowflake.gif&s=100

Edited December 17, 2012 by lew

[ssminnow]

thats not a winter tire looks like a oem continental for gm minivans like montana or uplander

 

I agree. That does not look like the tread pattern for the Michelin x-ice. Just google Michelin x-ice images and compare. The type of tire will be on the sidewall so you just have to look before buying.

[ecmilley]

I was told these are Michelin X Ice Snow tires, are you sure they're not winter? How could the seller mix them up?

16 years working for a michelin dealer.

see that number that starts with TPC- tire performance criteria is a number on all general motors factory installed rubber

[adempsey]

I never bothered with winter tires when I lived in Toronto, but when I moved to London I purchased a set. As mentioned already, I only see this as a positive move.

[craigdritchie]

http://www.rubberassociation.ca/rubberroom/Winter_Driving.html

and craig your only semi correct about winter and snow tires, as long as it has the mountain snowflake it deemed a winter tire.

even many high mileage all seasons contain silica in the compounding it's not the only compound that makes it flexible at low temps.

the biggest thing when shopping for winter rubber is do you need it more for snow or ice? the ice tires are still good in the snow but have very soft tread with lots of siping i.e x-ice or dunlop graspic ds3 science behind it is more sipes = more traction edges and picks up water off the ice, ice not real slippery until there water on top, so removing the water increases traction (at least that somewhat how a engineer explained it to me at tire testing)

Do I think winters should be mandatory? no they do help and can save lives but I think driving with common sense in the winter time would save even more people.

for the record I alway use snows on my cars and right now on 3 rd year of michelin xi2 zippo foe wear and it makes the wife's accent a tank

On the truck I use goodyear wrangler silent armour all terrain tire it goes through anything no problems and it's only lacking in the ice gripping department works great in snow

My info on winter versus snow tires comes from a trip to Hankook's tire factory in Korea two years ago. Since they make 60 percent of the winter tires in the world (including many models sold under other brand names, as well as tires used on big rigs, aircraft, and busses) I assume they know a thing or two about this.

 

I was told all tires contain silica. It is the proportion of silica to rubber that makes a difference when driving in the cold. The more silica, the more the tire will remain flexible in sub-zero temperatures, providing better grip and iproved stopping distance. That applies equally whether the tire is driven on snow, on ice, or on dry pavement.

 

Do I think winter tires should be mandatory? No, I don't. But there is no doubt they do save lives. Quebec apparently believes that it is far easier to simply make them mandatory than it is to get people to use their common sense. They may be right on that.

Edited December 19, 2012 by Craig_Ritchie

[jedimaster]

I think there should be a law against excessive speeding, tail gating, aggressive driving, racing, using a cellphone while driving and perhaps even driving without a seatbelt. Having those laws will prevent people from doing stupid things on the road.

 

I don't think we need more laws. I think we need more enforcement of the current laws.

[Fisherman]

I don't think we need more laws. I think we need more enforcement of the current laws.

 

Only one problem, we don't have a law on disregarding common sense which leads to driving like an idiot in all sorts of conditions.