This might be the first time I get winter tires

Now, I love the Forte. It makes great noises, it super reliable, runs great. But the first snow fall of the season has me wondering whiskey tango foxtrot is wrong with this thing.I know the alignment is right. I'm sitting at 1/16" of toe in. Tires are all-season 205/50/17 (factory size is 215/45) with 6 and 7/32's tread. They're two years old.

But with 1.5" of fresh snow on the road, I'm getting 5th gear wheel spin at 30mph. That's 1200-1300rpms. There are two engines that make any power there: every diesel ever made and an L98 TPI. Down shifts to slow the car result in the front end breaking loose. Just utterly undrivable. I'd rather have the C4 back on summer tires to drive than this thing right now.

So... I guess I'm looking for snow tires now. crap. The bigger question is: will they make enough of a difference to help?

They'll make a bigger difference than you'd ever expect them to. Provided you don't want to run studs, stay away from the studdable tires and get something that's meant to be studless.

On snow they're a world changer, on ice they'll make a difference, but nothing without studs makes a vast difference when it comes time to stop.

In reply to rslifkin:

And go skinny, so it cuts through the snow and gets to the asphalt below.

Yeah, I'm just utterly surprised by just how atrocious this thing is. IT was bad before. First winter with these wasn't bad. Better than the 225/45's i had on before. Last year wasn't as bad. This year? turrible.

lrrs wrote: In reply to rslifkin: And go skinny, so it cuts through the snow and gets to the asphalt below.

That's dependent on what the common conditions are. Skinny works better in fresh snow and slush, as it'll cut through. Wide works better on hardpack and ice (and the dry pavement on non-snowy days), as those surfaces gain grip from more surface area to bite with.

Bobzilla wrote: Yeah, I'm just utterly surprised by just how atrocious this thing is. IT was bad before. First winter with these wasn't bad. Better than the 225/45's i had on before. Last year wasn't as bad. This year? turrible.

All seasons always seem to be far, far worse by winter 2 or 3 than they are their first winter.

Bobzilla wrote: The bigger question is: will they make enough of a difference to help?

Even bad snow tires are like hoosiers for the snow.

They make a huge difference, our Odyssey went from undriveable in snow/ice on all-seasons to very decent with snow tires.

red_stapler wrote: Even bad snow tires are like Hoosiers for the snow.

That's a quote for the magazine! Hint! Hint!

Where we are, an ICE tire makes a whole more difference than a snow tire.

Recent winter tire thread:

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/thank-you-general-tire/124469/page1/

So... I found a set of 215/45 on wheels locally for $350. Also found a set of 225/45 tires by themselves for $150. the 215's are on motegi 17x7.5 with Yokohama W drive, the 225's are unmounted cooper master snows. Which would you go with?

man up and buy snow tires.

In reply to Bobzilla:

If you have another set of wheels the the Coopers will fit I would get those, otherwise get the tire and wheel package. Have snows on dedicated wheels makes swapping them super easy.

Get the Yokos on wheels. The Coopers are studdable, so if they're not already studded, I'd pass on them (studdable tires without studs suck on ice).

I've got the Kosei's that are currently for sale just sitting in the garage. THat would definitely be the cheaper route to go. But then I have to get them to the tire shop and swap off the RE71's.

Bobzilla wrote: So... I found a set of 215/45 on wheels locally for $350. Also found a set of 225/45 tires by themselves for $150. the 215's are on motegi 17x7.5 with Yokohama W drive, the 225's are unmounted cooper master snows. Which would you go with?

Personally - I would get the 215's.

I always like to go minus 1 sizing on winter tires. My Golf normally rides on 205/55R16's. My winter's are 195/65R15.

Winter Tire Advice (BTW - I hope you noticed, I didn't call them snow tires!!):

• Take a hard look at the conditions where you live. Do you get more ice or snow conditions?
• If you get more snow - going minus 1 can help. It gets the tire through the snow and down to the road. Pick a tire that has more voids to deal with the snow.
• If you deal more with ice - you need contact patch and going minus 1 is reducing this, so it may not be the best option. Pick a tire that has less voids and more siping.
• The tire you pick will be a compromise in the other condition (snow or ice). There are a few tires that can do both well but in most cases there is a clear bias in the design of the tire.

In reply to Bobzilla:

Yes Bob, they're truly amazing. Go cheap & get the General Altimax Arctic, or the Michelin X-ice if you're more concerned with ice traction vs. snow. You absolutely will not regret it.

We run Michelin X-ice's on one car (Accord) and Blizzak WS70's on the other (GTI). From first hand experience, both are awesomely wonderful !!

It's so wierd. I've lived in this state my entire life (41 years). Same general area (central). I've never had winter tires. Never had a need. I mean, I drove 1wd pickups and cop cars in this crap and never had an issue. THis car is just truly terrible in snow.

The main reason I haven't had them is we don't really get a lot of winter here. I mean, the occasional snow fall, the occasional ice storm. Nothing crazy. When it does get crazy, it's a stay at home event and we don't care.

@ the OP:

6-7/32 left??? on all seasons???? That made me laugh. You might as well be running summer tires. What did you expect? My take on all season tires is they suck in all seasons.

also, both sets that I was lookihg at are gone

dean1484 wrote: @ the OP: 6-7/32 left??? on all seasons???? That made me laugh. You might as well be running summer tires. What did you expect? My take on all season tires is they suck in all seasons.

These tires started at 9/32. This isn't a truck tire that starts at 12.I've used all seasons in all seasons for 25 years without an issue. This car is just terrible.

Tires, summer, winter and no season have changed in 41 years. Do research on winter tires, read the threads from here and drink the Kool Aid. Your car/cars will go from scary/unsafe to better traction/safer with winter tires. Tire Rack has comparison charts to assist your decision making.

Bobzilla wrote: It's so wierd. I've lived in this state my entire life (41 years). Same general area (central). I've never had winter tires. Never had a need. I mean, I drove 1wd pickups and cop cars in this crap and never had an issue. THis car is just truly terrible in snow. The main reason I haven't had them is we don't really get a lot of winter here. I mean, the occasional snow fall, the occasional ice storm. Nothing crazy. When it does get crazy, it's a stay at home event and we don't care.

Some cars just don't do well in the snow without winter tires. My former employer had a number of Mercury Mystiques and they were just awful without winter tires.