recommended tires for canadian winter

I have a 2010 Legacy 2.5i CVT. Any suggestions for reasonably priced, good winter tires for city and highway driving in eastern Canada and where to get them?

you tried TireRack.com??

 

or: [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTDNLUzjkpg]YouTube- KEN BLOCK'S TRAX STI CAR[/ame]

Just remember if you do a fair bit of highway driving in the winter, don't get a tire that's too soft (S rated or slower) because it will feel too squirmy on dry roads and will wear a lot faster. Personally, I think that with AWD an H rated tire is the best for mixed highway/city driving. Also consider going down a size from stock (not sure what you're running stock on those '10's...) Michelins Pilot Alpin, Pirelli Sottozero (I use them), and Bridgestone Blizzak LM series, are the best IMO. Nokian WR (from KalTire) might be a cheaper alternative and still a good tire.

@c-lo Tire rack seems to have some issues when it comes to selling in Canada. anyone know of a reliable Canadian equivalent? http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/goodyear-eagle-gt-problems-125913.html?t=125913&highlight=tirerack+canada

1010tires.com are Canadian.

 

I used to buy my tires at tiretrends.com but it looks like they went tits up.

 

tire rack should have no issues shipping to Canada though. It's even better (cheaper) if you have your order shipped to a border-based 3rd party warehouse and then drive down and pick them up.

Vancouver people do this all the time in Point Roberts, USA.

 

If I had to buy winter tires, I'd likely look at Blizzaks, or something well rated and inexpensive. I like to save money wherever possible.

I have a 2010 Legacy 2.5i CVT. Any suggestions for reasonably priced, good winter tires for city and highway driving in eastern Canada and where to get them?

 

You'll have to be more specific:

 

Please define "reasonably priced" with an actual dollar (please specify Canadian or US) value.

 

Please be more detailed about your driving habits as well as preferences and needs. "City and highway" is so broad as to be completely unspecific, and that won't help your decision-making process, at all.

 

The answer could range anywhere from "Performance Winters" to all-out studded tires: but exactly what you need will depend heavily on your *SPECIFIC* driving needs.

 

Given the wide disparity in the handling characteristics of these varying types of "winter tires" - not to even mention their absolute performance capabilities as well as cost - you'll want to be as specific as possible, in order for us to be able to truly help you at all.

Please tell us where you live too.

 

 

There's a big difference between Richmond BC and Great Bear Lake.

 

 

Edit- you say eastern Canada. I'm assuming Maritimes where it snows a ton?

^ Very good point - the precise type of wintertime precip. seen will make a huge difference in what's a better-fit tire.

 

 

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isitsuby, please don't be intimidated by mine/others' follow-up questions. Please know that they truly are made with the best intentions in-mind.

 

Look at me/our family, for example.

 

I've got a set of "Performance Winters" on my LGT, but my end-goals were very different from what I wanted for my wife, who has a set of "Studless Ice & Snows" on her '09 FXT. And guess what? - this season, I'm looking to put a set of premium studded tires into my rotation on the LGT (as my current winters are coming to the winter-wear platform) just for the fun of it, for only between mid/late-December through early/mid February (our laws allow for studded winter tires between November 1st and April 15th).

 

The type of conditions you see, how you expect to drive, and what your boundaries are in terms of NVH all make great impact on any advice we may give you.

 

Help us help you get where you want to go, by giving us more details, please.

Nokian WR (from KalTire) might be a cheaper alternative and still a good tire.

 

In the USA 'cheaper' and 'Nokian' do not exist in the same sentence.

 

Krzys

No problem about the questions.

 

The point about city and highway is that I do not do any offroad or country road or unpaved road driving. Driving habits are fairly low key and cautious in this car- my wife shares it.

 

I am near Ottawa Canada. I am guessing annual snowfall of about 100 inches

 

Point about price was that I want something nearer the median as opposed to the 75 percentile. I have not bought winter tires for a legacy before, but if I had to I would guess < US$120.

Do you intend to drive on unplowed roads?

What about ice? Is ice big concern?

 

Krzys

^ Those are critical questions. Very good follow-up!

 

 

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But for the time-being, given what isitsuby said, I'm starting to lean towards the "Studless Ice & Snow" sub-genre.

 

Further questions:

 

isitsuby, how much highway driving do you do, and at what typical speeds? Are the highways well-cleared during your winters?

I'm going with General Altimax Arctic for this winter.

From what I understand, General Altimax Arctic are relabeled Gislaved Nord Frost 3 and are very good tires. I think they're geared more towards snow and packed snow traction than ice traction, but are still quite good overall.

 

Also, they are available at Canadian Tire, often with a buy 3, get 1 free promotion, once the season starts.

From what I understand, General Altimax Arctic are relabeled Gislaved Nord Frost 3 and are very good tires.

 

^ With one additional disclaimer:

 

"for the price/availability."

 

 

The Nord Frost 5 typically come in mid-pack, in terms of performance, in recognized overseas tests of winter tires, so to say that the Nord Frost 3 is a top contender isn't quite painting a complete picture.

 

Nevertheless, for the price, and for what's more readily available here in North America, yes, the statement that the General/Gislaved is a good winter tire is true.

Do you intend to drive on unplowed roads?

What about ice? Is ice big concern?

 

Krzys

 

30% unploughed. Ice 5%

I'm in Sudbury and drive in somewhat similar winter conditions with possibly a bit more ice than you'd see in Ottawa.

 

Wife has been running Nokian Hakka R on her SUV for the last 2 winters. Been extremely impressed with the results.

 

Will run them on the LGT once my current winters need to be replaced.

Percentage of ice is interesting.

If you plan to drive on ice at all (5% of my 50 minute one way commute would mean 2.5 minutes on ice, not fun on my TS810) then please check studded tire laws in your province or stick to studless ice and snow tires like Blizzak WS60 (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/types/snows.jsp). Stay away from high performance winter tires.

Remember that it means that 65% of time (100% - (30% unplowed + 5% ice)) your tires will be not that good.

One more thing. The fancy compound on studless ice/winter tires is almost never full tread depth. It usually wears quite fast on dry and even faster on warm pavement.

 

Krzys

Percentage of ice is interesting.

If you plan to drive on ice at all ............. Stay away from high performance winter tires...........

Krzys

 

Very, very true. In an emergency situation on ice, high performance winter tires will be essentially worthless.

^ I cannot agree more, with both krzyss and outahere's advice. Those are words to live by, isitsuby, and you'd be wise to take note of them.

 

Even the best of the "Performance Winters" sub-genre, on ice, is all but a hopeless situation, and I'd give more credit to prayer than to either tire capability or driver skill, for survival.

 

The Dunlop SP WinterSport 3D, while having long been displaced from its class-leading status in that particular sub-genre, still, even as of last season's ADAC reviews, earn high marks for their performance on icy surfaces. With that in-mind, feel free, isitsuby, to ask any of us who have actually used the 3D - myself included - as to how scary they can be, on icy roadways.

 

So, this brings us to the first potential problem with your planned purchase isitsuby.

 

You've got to decide just how important highway comfort/performance will be, to you.

 

Undeniably, the V-rated "Performance Winters" are among the longest wearing and also "perform" (to encompass actual quantifiable measures of tire performance as well as quantifiable measures of NVH) most like "all-season" tires. They are also, undeniably, the best traveling companions, when it comes to extended highway jaunts - regardless of vehicle speed - when one speaks of modern "winter tires."

 

Nevertheless, you'll need to balance that against both your anticipated ice scenario, as well as unploughed roadway scenario.

 

If by that "5%" you are estimating the odds that you may be caught-out, in the rare event, in an ice storm or with other icy precip. coming down, then that paints a very different picture from your actively choosing to commute on roadways covered icy precip.

 

The former, if you're careful enough and skilled and lucky enough, is a scenario where if you absolutely *must* arrive at your destination or if you were unknowingly caught-out, you should be OK. But the latter would be a case where your choice in "Performance Winters" would be setting yourself up for, at-best, frustration, and at-worst, failure.

 

So, what if it's the latter scenario?

 

Then it's time to at least move on to the "Studless Ice & Snow" sub-genre.

 

This will give you, in most cases, an acceptable - and, sometimes, even comfortable - safety-margin in icy situations. At the same time, careful decision making in the purchase process could help you with achieving the highway/touring "performance" side of the equation, too.

 

For example, while the Michelin X-ICE Xi2 was the top-ranked "Studless Ice & Snow" in virtually all recognized independent winter tire testing, domestic and abroad, and dominated when it came to ice, it is also noted to be inferior to the Continental Conti Viking Contact 5 (which currently *appears* to be at least similar to the North-American market uniti ContiExtremeWinterContact), when it comes to clear-road performance, with the Conti, in-turn, trading-off ice performance.

 

Answering, for yourself, truthfully and without vanity, where your needs fall along this spectrum of performance/compromise will help you make the right choice.

 

Nevertheless, at the same time, you *really* need to heed our warnings about ice, on which all but studded tires still leave something to be desired.

 

And while, with modern premium studded winter tires, you no longer have to worry about compromising safety, when it comes to the tire's performance in the clear (either wet or dry) - sure, you *can* make that case against them, but in doing so, you'll also be making a case against every modern "Studless Ice & Snow" as well, including the premium offerings of that sub-genre - the NVH compromise is both undeniable and unavoidable.

 

As we've said many times before, krzyss's statement here cuts to the core of the issue:

 

Remember that it means that 65% of time (100% - (30% unplowed + 5% ice)) your tires will be not that good.

 

That is a fundamental, highlighted again and again in all of our past postings:

 

This highlights a fundamental choice winter tire buyers need to make. Do you want a tire that will meet the challenges of the worst winter conditions you will encounter (e.g. deep snow or ice) or do you want a tire that will meet the "challenges" of the best winter conditions you will encounter (e.g cold dry pavement).

 

One bit that's been lost here is mweiner2's combination of daily commutes (into Denver, it appears by the mileage) and weekend trips to a job at a ski area (Eldora? Loveland?). There's really no reason for performance tires on the commute, and there are lots of severe winter conditions he's encountering on the trips up the hill.

 

I lived north of town in Boulder County (great view of Haystack to the south of our house) for several years, and commuted into CU and spent almost each weekend skiing, using an Audi A4 with studded Gislavads. The tires were wasted on the commute, but I always -- always -- was happy to have them on the weekend trips.

 

So it goes back to outahere's comment about what conditions you're preparing for: the worst, or the most common. If it's the latter, winter on the Front Range calls for all-seasons about 75% of the time. But that other 25% can be dicey.

 

So, what are you preparing for - the worst, or the most common? And are you willing to make the sacrifices and compromises that comes with that decision, or do you need to re-evaluate?

 

There's no right or wrong answer in an absolute sense. But the decision can be right or wrong, relative to your specific end-goals/needs.

 

I'll use myself as an example.

 

My LGT is shod with the 3Ds. I went with V-rated "Performance Winters" because while I wanted to enlarge my winter-weather safety envelope, I did not want to compromise, too, too much, when it came to clear-weather fun-factor/performance. Since my local roadways are typically cleared decently and quickly and my typical commute does not entail travel during off-plow hours or into unploughed areas, this was a good compromise for me.

 

For my wife, I chose the Xi2 "Studless Ice & Snows" because I wanted her to have a greater margin of safety in wintry conditions: an increased ability to "self extricate" as well as a further enlarged safety-margin when icy conditions present. And since her driving rarely finds her on the freeway - furthermore, in that she's also not a "spirited" driver - the trade-off in performance, in that respect, was more than acceptable for this purchase's goals.

 

This winter, as my 3Ds wear down to their "winter wear platform," I'm looking to rotate in a set of studded tires. They're legal here in Ohio from November 1st through April 15th, but I intend to use them only from about mid/late-December through mid/late February, if that much. They'll be my "deep winter" set, allowing me to combat not only the dreaded black-ice that tends to build quickly at the intersections of our secondary streets (a concern which, during my time with my 3Ds, drove me to the purchase of the Xi2s for my wife), but which will also thus allow me to extend the life of the wearing 3Ds, by rotating them out of harm's way of the larger snowfall that's typically reserved for those "deep winter" months, in our area. Since I care not for NVH with this vehicle - my 4-year-old Anna's a "car gal," through-and-through, liking all the mechanical sounds underhood and elsewhere; true family outings, including my wife, who is decidedly not a fan of loud vehicles, typically occurs in her FXT - and in that I will drive less "spiritedly" during such times of inclement weather, the choice in studded tires then becomes viable, and almost logical (if, admittedly, overkill ).

 

So, isitsuby, it's all about what's a good compromise, for you.

 

 

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While ice was the main focus above, unploughed snow can present a challenge to "Performance Winter" tires as well, as their tread-pattern as well as tread-depth - two of the most important factors when it comes to snow-related quantitative performance - are both not optimized for such situations.

 

Given that your mobility will become further compromised as the tires wear, the additional fact that, typically, "Performance Winter" tires already start with less tread depth than other winter tires again negatively impacts this sub-genre.

Hankook W409 iPikes.

 

Best tire for the money.

Ive got X-Ice, got them from costco 2 years ago, ended up being $1400 for the set, right when quebec took all winter tires from north america. Then costco wouldnt install them because they wernt "within 1 speed grade" from my factory summer re050's.

 

GTFO!

 

anyway, love the tire, if i had to do it again id go NOKIAN HAKAPELETTA!

^ The Hakka R was among the top choices in the NAF testing as well as the Swedish test last year, coming in at a close second to the Xi2.

 

If you see more unplowed roadways, the Hakka R, based on last year's testing, would be the better choice over the Xi2 - but the Xi2s maintain better clear-road manners and performance.

Hankook W409 iPikes.

 

+100

 

Best tire for the money.

These are what I have. Southern Alberta winters are pretty rough and we drive a lot. It takes an hour drive to get to town in nice weather. It took almost 2 1/2 hours in a storm in my pickup on all seasons. Lots of blowing snow, high winds and icy roads. Occasionaly there is realy deep snow for days because of the drifting. I realy like these tires and they are studdable(which I will have done this year I think).

 

I bought Open Country G02 studless ice tires for my pickup. world of difference.

Nokian WR G2.......we run them on the LGT and Impreza......end of story:wub::wub: