All Season Tires

[theshredder]

why not break out the tire irons and save some money on rims while we're at it?

Honestly its pretty dry where I live. That's why winter tires are not the law here yet. Get winter tires if you need them. Obey the law. Drive for conditions.

edit: and I've changed plenty of flats. I just dont have a spare set of wheels lying around.

[stuckathuntermtn]

I run all-seasons on my Subaru. Works great. Just make sure the tire you get has lots of little ridges. Some tires are still mud and snow rated and are a bunch of hard smooth knobs that will slip on snow and such.

[rideit]

Next burning question in tire land...
Light truck, might tow, mostly not...10 ply All season AT, or is 8 enough?

[AKPogue]

I have a set of these green diamond tires that a bunch of my friends have raved about. Since I am currently in TX, they are just sitting in the garage. I would like to sell them at a good deal. They have approximately 10,000 miles on them and have plenty of tread left. They are P245/70r16
http://www.greendiamondtire.com/

[XXX-er]

Next burning question in tire land...
Light truck, might tow, mostly not...10 ply All season AT, or is 8 enough?

on shit gravel roads, 10ply

[rideit]

odd question, but does anyone know if 10 ply affects mileage (due to additional weight, perhaps?)

[XXX-er]

they affect your pocket book ...when you buy them

[rideit]

got a quote for some hankook AT's, $60 more per tire for 10 ply. still ~ $280 per tire. Trying to decide if it's worth it. I do some 'mild' off roading, (accessing trail building sites, etc) but not anything gnarly.

[Hugh Conway]

Use 4 sheets instead of 5 next time to wipe

[rideit]

I use baby seal fur

[Hugh Conway]

is that what you call your chin stubble?

[rideit]

I'm not Finnish!

[char]

I went for a lower ply on my hankooks due to a shitty ride in the tacoma on ten ply's for the last tire. Depends on the truck you are driving. Going down to 6 or 8 ply (can't remember) made a big difference in how the truck rides for daily driving/towing.

I haven't had any issues off road so far, but I'm not driving high speed gravel roads that are getting graded regularly. Low speed grinding on rocky e. oregon moonscape they have held up fine.

I also traded in what was on the truck for $100, I think I paid four hundred something for the set at Americas tire. (These are P rated, not LT tires.)

[FrankZappa]

Check discounttiredirect

I got screamin deals on a couple sets of Nokian hakka R's = sub $100 - but now you can't get Nokian there

[El Chupacabra]

FWIW, those "6/8/10 ply" descriptions are just ratings -- no radial tire has that many plies in the carcass. They're just supposed to give you some indication of the sturdiness of the sidewall.

Load rating is more useful as a way to think about tires, IMHO -- P-rated is what you find on passenger car, SUV, and 1/2-ton (and lighter) pickup trucks. "C" is suitable for 1/2-ton, SUV, Jeep, and similar usage, but (again IMHO) only gives you a bit sturdier carcass vs. a P-rated tire, and only really useful if you're going offroad regularly.

"D" is heavier, and a good choice for 1/2-ton pickups used on rough roads regularly -- e.g. service trucks. Rides rougher than "C" if vehicle is light.

"E" is heavier still, and good choice for 3/4 trucks, and necessary for 1-ton. Stiff sidewalls. Can hold a lot of weight. Not a great choice for SUVs, Jeeps, or any lighter vehicles -- the carcass just doesn't flex much.

Watch the weights of the tires when you are shopping. Heavier generally means sturdier construction, but that's also unsprung weight that you have to deal with: rougher ride, worse MPG, worse handling & braking, and increased cost.

I used to use "C" tires on Jeeps that I took offroad more regularly, since the sidewalls seem to hold up better in rocks than P-rated. Now that my offroad driving is basically dirt road, with the toughest trails being nothing more than rough 2-track, I'm fine with P-metric tires (cheaper, lighter, ride smoother). The 3/4-ton truck w/ camper on it has E-rated tires, out of necessity.

[MMP]

i was just on the phone with a golf buddy of mine, he lives across the street and I've known him a long time. His family owns a dozen or so tire stores around here. He says I need an H rated tire because of the way I drive.. I drive kind of fast (highway 80mph +/-) and have a car that corners well and has good brakes, and I do drive it, but not recklessly so.

I assume the rating has to do with durability, not safety? It's 100 miles to the mountain, and 200 to my kid's college, which are the main winter destinations, both mostly highway. H rated tires are $290 and up. mounted/balanced. I have run flats and haven't used run flat snows before. Worst case scenario, roadside assist in VT is a mere 6 hours away.

edit: he also suggested a Blizzak DMV1 which is R rated and said i would wear it out faster. I've run Blizzaks and been happy.

[grrrr]

Performance cars usually specify performance tires. If you're going to drive the car like it was made for, put a tire on it that was also made for it.

I'm debating between Michelin X-ice xi3 and the Michelin Primacy Alpin PA3. Mostly because I got a pro-form sorta deal on Michelin.

[rideit]

Ha...can you even get an h rated tire in a 275 R 18?

[Mazderati]

I assume the rating has to do with durability, not safety?

Maximum sustained speed rating.

[guroo270]

Performance cars usually specify performance tires. If you're going to drive the car like it was made for, put a tire on it that was also made for it.

I'm debating between Michelin X-ice xi3 and the Michelin Primacy Alpin PA3. Mostly because I got a pro-form sorta deal on Michelin.

DOOOOOO NOOOOOOOOOT GEEEEET THE PRIMACY ALPIN PA3. Just don't. Coming from a Michelin man. The snow/ice performance between those two is so incredibly vast you just wouldn't even believe it.

[grrrr]

Good to know. Was leaning toward the X-ice anyway.

[Obstruction]

DOOOOOO NOOOOOOOOOT GEEEEET THE PRIMACY ALPIN PA3. Just don't. Coming from a Michelin man. The snow/ice performance between those two is so incredibly vast you just wouldn't even believe it.

I have the Alpin 3 and I have to agree. I don't hate them for ordinary winter driving in NE but on glare ice or accumulating snow they make driving a RWD car more of an exhilarating experience than it ought to be.

Best snow tires I ever had were a set of vredestein wintracs those things rocked snow, ice and dry -- farghing magical they were!

For run of the mill snow tires I have to give the nod to the altimax. Have a set for the wife's outback and it gets around in all kinds of weather.

I'm a big fan of having two sets of tires mounted on separate sets of rims. Less wear and tear and less $$$ mounting and remounting. And miles are miles. Your going to put them on two separate sets or two successive sets.

[pfluffenmeister]

Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric is treating me right.
Pretty sticky and you can drive in heavy rain almost as if it's not there.
No time on the snow.

[east or bust]

I run all-seasons on my Subaru. Works great. Just make sure the tire you get has lots of little ridges. Some tires are still mud and snow rated and are a bunch of hard smooth knobs that will slip on snow and such.

That's what siping is for.

My vote, BFG A/T's in size 38

[rideit]

What about Xice XI 2's? Much different than the XI 3?
Leaning towards two sets now....