"All weather" tires in place of winter tires

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Originally Posted by burrito

Any mags with experience with the CrossClimate2s? I’m inclined to go that route given the amount of time I spend in the mountains relative to on the coast…but…ya know…big ole A/T tires are awesome. Thoughts?

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I'm planning to do that in a couple months. My OEM tires have a sufficiently reasonable size to work year-round (245/45R20, so 109mm sidewall height should be good enough for pothole protection), and I'm confident that the CC2 traction will be good enough in winter overall given the combination of my vehicle's different AWD modes plus how even on a powder day in New England the highways are mainly wet, slushy, slick plowed snow (as opposed to deep unplowed snow), and entirely clear.
In my prior vehicle, I used the Vredestein Wintrac Pro in winter, but only because the OEM tire size (245/40R19) seemed too vulnerable to potholes.

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Originally Posted by burrito

I bought a Volvo Cross Country wagon in January, and it had a set of 20” wheels on it. Unsurprisingly, the low-profile “sport” tires sucked hard in some late season snow and slush. Gotta upgrade for safety’s sake.

I live In coastal California, so I’m always driving multiple hours and hundreds of highway miles to get to the snow - meaning swapping out for true winter/snow tires doesn’t really make sense. I’ve always had A/Ts on my other vehicles, but there aren’t any out there that will fit the 20” wheels without some wheel well interference.

If I stick with the current wheels and tire profile my only option with any chance of better snow performance is a set of Michelins CrossClimate2s. Alternatively, I could get some 18” wheels and squeeze on a set of true A/T tires (and spend approx. $1000 more than going with just the CrossClimate2s.)

Any mags with experience with the CrossClimate2s? I’m inclined to go that route given the amount of time I spend in the mountains relative to on the coast…but…ya know…big ole A/T tires are awesome. Thoughts?

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I have had the CC2's on my Cayenne for about 5k miles now and would highly recommend. On my Volvo V70R I have some VREDESTEIN tires bought from Tire Rack that I have also been very happy with. I drive from San Diego to Mammoth about 6-8 times a season and both tires have worked very well in the snow.

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Originally Posted by liv2ski

I have had the CC2's on my Cayenne for about 5k miles now and would highly recommend. On my Volvo V70R I have some VREDESTEIN tires bought from Tire Rack that I have also been very happy with. I drive from San Diego to Mammoth about 6-8 times a season and both tires have worked very well in the snow.

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+1 for Vredestein Quatrac Pro. I have them on an Audi allroad and I've driven all through Alberta, BC, Montana, WY, etc through ice storms and over multiple passes in blizzard like weather and never had an issue with grip.

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Originally Posted by liv2ski

I have had the CC2's on my Cayenne for about 5k miles now and would highly recommend. On my Volvo V70R I have some VREDESTEIN tires bought from Tire Rack that I have also been very happy with. I drive from San Diego to Mammoth about 6-8 times a season and both tires have worked very well in the snow.

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That was the drive in my past (and hopefully future) life. These days I'm doing Santa Cruz to Mammoth and Tahoe. Thanks for the recommendation. Seems like the CC2s will do me well.

My pleasure burrito. The CC2s are really nice tires. I was a Continental guy for years, but after 2 freeway blow outs (no idea what I hit) I grew leery of the brand and I really like the Michelin's.

West side cascades truck tire recs? ATs vs snows?

Ski alpental, drive old gen 1 tundra

I drove a Falken At3w on 18yr old 4runner last year, and found it to be the best non-snow, tire in the snow/ice ive ever experienced. Only had them since last fall so i cant comment on durability.

It actually was so good i became complacent and ended up doing a 180 in I90 when the plows did that fun thing where they stop plowing the left lane suddenly and you end up hitting 12" of slush at 60mph. subbie ahead of me went sideways and because its clearance was low, and it was broadside pushing snow, was stopping quicker than i could so i had to throw it sideways over the last 30 ft so i didnt tap him. Was weirdly in complete control the whole time. But yeah, really, really good snow manners.

BFG KO2s are pretty good in the snow, and they are snow rated. But if you have a separate set of wheels and can get snows in the right size / load rating for your truck I think traditional snow tires still do a little better.

Continental DWS we’re pretty good. But I would like to try the nokian since I run winters. How is all season SUV?


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I rotate between KO2s and Nokians on my Tacoma. Could probably just rock KO2s year round, and probably will when the truck gets older.

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Originally Posted by Pinned

BFG KO2s are pretty good in the snow, and they are snow rated. But if you have a separate set of wheels and can get snows in the right size / load rating for your truck I think traditional snow tires still do a little better.

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Yeah I’ve got ko2 on my tundra and swap them for blizzak in the winter. The snows perform drastically better in terms of stopping and turning, particularly on steep snow covered hills, which is my daily situation.

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Originally Posted by dangerdad

West side cascades truck tire recs? ATs vs snows?

Ski alpental, drive old gen 1 tundra

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Most AT tires are 3PMS rated. Still not as good as a dedicated winter tire. Should check on Tirerack to see what the pricing looks like on a winter tire. Blizzak's are a good choice.

I’m a year into Falken Wildpeak AT3’s on my Tundra. I really like the way they drive and especially in the snow. Spent a hard snowy and beyond cold week in Bozeman last February and I was impressed.

Also run Falken Wildpeaks on my Toyota for same puget sound lowland to cascade ski commute. Great in snow and rain

I have Wild Peak AT3s on my Tundra. After one winter season I went back to studs. The AT3s actually did pretty good in comparison but the winter tire still out performs it where you would think it would.

I just picked up a set of Bridgestone WeatherPeaks for my Impreza to try out and I will update after the snow and ice happens for a bit. They are Three Peak rated. The siped touring tires I had on last year actually did pretty good on this thing so it will be an interesting comparison.

The Cooper Discoverer AT3 4s seems to be an ideal "quiver of one" tire for summer, winter, and everything in between. I'm on my fourth set between our two vehicles over the last 10 years. We get up and down and over Snoqualmie and Blewett in the worst conditions with them. They are quiet and smooth riding on the highway too. 3PMS rated.

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That’s ^^ interesting! It seems most of y’all have been using the 3pms rated AT tires for a single season. I ran copper atw’s on a land cruiser. Good in snow, ice slush for winter 1 but noticeably not as good for winter 2. At winter 2, there was still a lot of tread and deep siping, so the tires weren’t worn too much. Curious to hear back from others after 2+ winters on your at tires, especially in comparison to winter #1.

^^^ I have noticed the same thing in the past. On the tires I had, I suspect it's because the sharp edges of the tread blocks got rounded down so less bite.

I have all weathers on my current vehicle again but I also have winters.... I leave the all weathers on into the shoulder season because they can handle occasional snow but switch to winters later for the meat of the season.

Last year I found the all weathers quite good in inclement weather before I switched out. The edges of these tires look to be in ok shape and will try to remember to report back as to their performance in early season snow etc.

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Attachment 429879
Follow The Govy 500 for “all weather fun” on mountain passes.

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Originally Posted by Hood26

Attachment 429879
Follow The Govy 500 for “all weather fun” on mountain passes.

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I've driven a bunch in the sierra and WA cascades for skiing, which means ive intentionally driven into the teeth of bad weather as often as possible and i have rarely encountered such shitty driving as i have in Oregon. My two worst roads were Hwy 97 from Klamath Falls to Bend were it was an undivided highway, that was grooved shiny ice for 100miles with mostly truck traffic going 50-60mph and carnage every on the median/shoulder every 10 miles, and the other was Hwy26 from Sandy to Meadows multiple times... alternating deep slush, and ice. just horrible for what seemed like eternity... cars sliding sideways off the road from fully stopped kinda thing. If i was a Hood skier i would put snows on my car. full stop. As it stands, being a WA skier mostly at Snoqualmie Pass, i find ATW tires pretty sufficient combined with common sense winter driving tactics. The drive to xstal gets bad, but not as consistently IME.

I've always wondered how fast people are wearing out their dedicated snows living on the west side of the Cascades, since the majority of the drive is way above freezing. I've been using WRG3-4s on my Subaru for the last ~6 years. I get about 2 winters and 3 summers on them, and it works well. Never put dedicated snows on the car, so maybe I don't know what I'm missing.

On the other hand, I put different Nokian "All Weather" tires (Rotiiva AT) on my FWD van and slush/deep snow traction is decidedly not great and I've found myself chaining up in parking lots and the like. Probably would see more of a benefit from true studded snows on that car, but it also sees a lot of above freezing highway miles in the winter.

Re: Govy500 - no matter what tires you have, someone is going to slide into you in that last right-hand bend right before the Meadows exit. It's just a matter of time.

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Originally Posted by Eluder

I have Wild Peak AT3s on my Tundra. After one winter season I went back to studs. The AT3s actually did pretty good in comparison but the winter tire still out performs it where you would think it would.

I just picked up a set of Bridgestone WeatherPeaks for my Impreza to try out and I will update after the snow and ice happens for a bit. They are Three Peak rated. The siped touring tires I had on last year actually did pretty good on this thing so it will be an interesting comparison.

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Just for clarity, My AT3's were definitely sufficient but just not as good as a studded winter tire which isn't surprising.

I got 5 seasons out of my last set of performance snows living in Seattle. On in late December off in march, most of my miles are too the pass so it’s only like 3000 per season. Worth it to get to the lot with no drama on a pow day. New vehicle has pure snows which are worse in the rain but better in the ice. Might go back to performance ones for the next set.

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Originally Posted by Backward_Banana

I've always wondered how fast people are wearing out their dedicated snows living on the west side of the Cascades, since the majority of the drive is way above freezing. I've been using WRG3-4s on my Subaru for the last ~6 years. I get about 2 winters and 3 summers on them, and it works well. Never put dedicated snows on the car, so maybe I don't know what I'm missing.

On the other hand, I put different Nokian "All Weather" tires (Rotiiva AT) on my FWD van and slush/deep snow traction is decidedly not great and I've found myself chaining up in parking lots and the like. Probably would see more of a benefit from true studded snows on that car, but it also sees a lot of above freezing highway miles in the winter.

Re: Govy500 - no matter what tires you have, someone is going to slide into you in that last right-hand bend right before the Meadows exit. It's just a matter of time.

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Three seasons on each set of Nokian studs. 40% west OR, 40% Cascades, 20% Central and Eastern.

Still were 40% and sold them for 25% of new.

Dedicated snows are a must for the Govy 500 and when you do get hit, you won’t go sliding off the road or into ongoing traffic.

Last year, me being a smart ass to someone who had just hit someone, “looks like you need snow tires.” Guy, “these were new all-seasons”

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Originally Posted by bodywhomper

That’s ^^ interesting! It seems most of y’all have been using the 3pms rated AT tires for a single season. I ran copper atw’s on a land cruiser. Good in snow, ice slush for winter 1 but noticeably not as good for winter 2. At winter 2, there was still a lot of tread and deep siping, so the tires weren’t worn too much. Curious to hear back from others after 2+ winters on your at tires, especially in comparison to winter #1.

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Once that first 2/32" wares off, the rubber isn't as "sticky" for those winter roads. They also don't have that soft/sticky rubber compound mix that works better as the temperature falls. Thus stopping distances increase, handling decreases with 3PMS designated tire in winter conditions.

FWIW, I do the same. Run a brand new AT 3PMS tire the first season, and then go to a dedicated winter tire.