New Tires, Winter Tire Set or just new M+S?

[Daves not here]

I am in a similar boat. Need new tires for my full size GMC. I usually run Cooper AT3’s year round and they pe rom just fin going to Schweitzer Mountain all season. I am thinking of getting new rims and putting the Coppr M+S tires on for winter. And run my others for summer.

 

[TexasStout]

So, there is a spot on I-70 westbound between Silverthorne and Frisco which is uphill and gets slick as snot during winter storms. Often, there will be a traffic jam there as cars are sliding around trying to get traction and others have slowed because of it.

Last year, i encountered these conditions in a rental SUV which had AWD with AT tires and slid around while some other nuts would fly by going up the hill. I figured this year I'd have our own AWD SUV and put quality snow tires on it.

However, a guy on another forum, claimed he had this same lack of traction problem at this same spot on Friday, even though he has Michelin X-Ice Xi3 and AWD on his vehicle!

Are studded tires the only good option for slick uphill conditions or is there a better studless winter tire than the X-ice X3?

 

[Tom K.]

So, there is a spot on I-70 westbound between Silverthorne and Frisco which is uphill and gets slick as snot during winter storms. Often, there will be a traffic jam there as cars are sliding around trying to get traction and others have slowed because of it.

Last year, i encountered these conditions in a rental SUV which had AWD with AT tires and slid around while some other nuts would fly by going up the hill. I figured this year I'd have our own AWD SUV and put quality snow tires on it.

However, a guy on another forum, claimed he had this same lack of traction problem at this same spot on Friday, even though he has Michelin X-Ice Xi3 and AWD on his vehicle!

Are studded tires the only way to go for slick uphill conditions or is there a better studless winter tire than the X-ice X3?

When it comes to real ice, studs have no equal. Where I live the plusses don't outweigh the minuses, but the conditions you describe seem to argue in favor.

 

[coskigirl]

I've got to give a thumbs down to the Firestone Winterforce. They came in 11th out of 12 winter/snow truck tires tested by Consumer Reports this year.

I had studded Winterforce's on my truck for four or five seasons before my studded Hakka's. The Hakka's are so much better there is no comparison.

A closer comparison is with the X-ice 2's we have on our SUV. Even without studs, I think the X-ices are better than the Winterforce's in every condition except for the deepest snow. Forget the winter performance, the worst part of the Winterforce's was their horrendous dry road handling. It's amazing how far tire technology has come since the Winterforce was designed, probably sometime in the last century.

Here's a better option. The General Grabber Arctic really stands out in Consumer Reports ratings for an inexpensive winter tire. It came in 4th without studs, and it can be studded.

I had Winterforce on my Rogue and maybe my Subie. They were fine when I was tighter on cash but now I can afford to step up a bit. After Friday’s adventure I ordered Blizzak DMV2 yesterday but got a call from Discount Tire this morning saying they are on nationwide backorder (at least in my size) which explains why Costco showed out of stock. Anyhow, he offered to split the difference with me on a set of Hakka R3s so those are now on order.

 

[tball]

^^^ Glad to hear you got some winter tires!

And a good reminder it's the time of year they start running out of winter tires if anyone wants them. Once they are sold out many are gone for the season.

 

[kayco53]

Well I bit the bullet this year and got dedicated winter tires . Had KO2 tires on 3/4 ton 4x4 PU for years and thought they were ok. This year got the Nokia LT2 hakkas with studs and put them on another set of rims . What a difference. Might have saved ditching it last year.

 

[Pequenita]

^^^ Glad to hear you got some winter tires!

And a good reminder it's the time of year they start running out of winter tires if anyone wants them. Once they are sold out many are gone for the season.

Truth. I am freaking out right now trying to find the tires I want. It turns out the line has been discontinued and although the new line has begun manufacturing, my size isn't available yet.

 

[luliski]

Truth. I am freaking out right now trying to find the tires I want. It turns out the line has been discontinued and although the new line has begun manufacturing, my size isn't available yet.

Yep. I hesitated, not knowing whether to get all-seasons or a winter tire. When I finally called America's Tire today, they were out of the Michelin X Ice I wanted, and had to order it. The lucky thing is that I-80 clears off pretty quickly after a storm. The one thing that makes me uncomfortable is driving in the snow after sunset. I probably would have stuck with all-seasons again if I hadn't had some sketchy drives last season in my Impreza.

 

[Pequenita]

Yep. I hesitated, not knowing whether to get all-seasons or a winter tire. When I finally called America's Tire today, they were out of the Michelin X Ice I wanted, and had to order it. The lucky thing is that I-80 clears off pretty quickly after a storm. The one thing that makes me uncomfortable is driving in the snow after sunset. I probably would have stuck with all-seasons again if I hadn't had some sketchy drives last season in my Impreza.

Only 1 tire of what I want is left nationwide in America's Tire's stock. I've gone rogue and am having a set shipped through an internet dealer. I'll be thrilled if they're less than 2 years old...