| Author |
Message |
Mike Klein
Guest
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 Posted:
Wed Nov 30, 2005 9:57 pm Post subject:
need advice on snow tires |
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My wife just got an '02 525 wagon. I assume she'll need snow tires
for the ~5 times that we get enough snow to make side streets slippery.
My
question is, does she need 4 snow tires, or would 2 on the rear wheels
be
sufficient?
Also, any recommendation for a brand of tires for occaisonal snow,
but mostly dry-road conditions?
Tia,
Mike
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Pete
Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Nov 30, 2005 10:15 pm Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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"Mike Klein" wrote
| Quote: | My wife just got an '02 525 wagon. I assume she'll need snow tires
for the ~5 times that we get enough snow to make side streets slippery.
My
question is, does she need 4 snow tires, or would 2 on the rear wheels
be
sufficient?
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The car's handling will be more predictable having all 4 tires the same. As
it is, winter driving can be tricky. Do you really want the additional
'excitement' of having the front of the car behave much differently from the
back?
| Quote: | Also, any recommendation for a brand of tires for occaisonal snow,
but mostly dry-road conditions?
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Nokian WR. Dunlop M3.
Cheers,
Pete |
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Tom K.
Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Nov 30, 2005 10:27 pm Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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"Pete" <escape2music@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:dmkj79$8bo$1@inews.gazeta.pl...
| Quote: |
"Mike Klein" wrote
My wife just got an '02 525 wagon. I assume she'll need snow tires
for the ~5 times that we get enough snow to make side streets slippery.
My
question is, does she need 4 snow tires, or would 2 on the rear wheels
be
sufficient?
The car's handling will be more predictable having all 4 tires the same.
As it is, winter driving can be tricky. Do you really want the additional
'excitement' of having the front of the car behave much differently from
the back?
|
Plus your wife will need the front traction to both steer and stop!
Definitely get 4 winter tires, preferably mounted on cheaper wheels to both
save your good wheels and to make the twice a year changeover that much
easier.
| Quote: | Also, any recommendation for a brand of tires for occaisonal snow,
but mostly dry-road conditions?
Nokian WR. Dunlop M3.
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I just mounted the Dunlop M3 (V rated) tires on my 328i - very good handling
in both dry and wet conditions (no snow yet!), although they are a bit noisy
above 50 mph on certain road surfaces. You might check out www.tirerack.com
for a great deal of helpful info.
Tom
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John Burns
Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Nov 30, 2005 11:18 pm Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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| Quote: | My wife just got an '02 525 wagon. I assume she'll need snow tires
for the ~5 times that we get enough snow to make side streets slippery.
My question is, does she need 4 snow tires, or would 2 on the rear wheels
be sufficient?
|
You need four. It's nice to be able to stop as well as start :-)
| Quote: | Also, any recommendation for a brand of tires for occaisonal snow,
but mostly dry-road conditions?
|
Goodyear ultragrip if you don't see heavy snow all the time. They're
also great in heavy rain and don't screw up the dry road handling too
much. I've tried a few brands and like these the most.
For really heavy duty snow use I'm told Bridgestone Blizzaks are best,
but I'm also told they handle badly in normal conditions.
--
Who needs a life when you've got Unix? :-)
Email: john@unixnerd.demon.co.uk, John G.Burns B.Eng, Bonny Scotland
Web : http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk - The Ultimate BMW Homepage!
Need Sun or HP Unix kit? http://www.unixnerd.demon.co.uk/unix.html
www.Strathspey.co.uk - Quality Binoculars at a Sensible price |
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Malt_Hound
Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Nov 30, 2005 11:33 pm Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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John Burns wrote:
| Quote: | My wife just got an '02 525 wagon. I assume she'll need snow tires
for the ~5 times that we get enough snow to make side streets slippery.
My question is, does she need 4 snow tires, or would 2 on the rear wheels
be sufficient?
You need four. It's nice to be able to stop as well as start :-)
Also, any recommendation for a brand of tires for occaisonal snow,
but mostly dry-road conditions?
Goodyear ultragrip if you don't see heavy snow all the time. They're
also great in heavy rain and don't screw up the dry road handling too
much. I've tried a few brands and like these the most.
For really heavy duty snow use I'm told Bridgestone Blizzaks are best,
but I'm also told they handle badly in normal conditions.
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I have Blizzaks on a FWD car (SAAB) and they do not seem too bad in the
dry. I have Michelin Arctic Alpins on my 325i and those work well in
the slop and handle well in the dry too, but would be overkill for only
4-5 times snowfall a year. I also just put Michelin X-Ice on a
different SAAB and those seem as good as the Alpins.
--
-Fred W |
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admin
Guest
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| Posted:
Wed Nov 30, 2005 11:58 pm Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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Mike Klein wrote:
| Quote: | My wife just got an '02 525 wagon. I assume she'll need snow tires
for the ~5 times that we get enough snow to make side streets slippery.
My
question is, does she need 4 snow tires, or would 2 on the rear wheels
be
sufficient?
Also, any recommendation for a brand of tires for occaisonal snow,
but mostly dry-road conditions?
Tia,
Mike
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All 4 - and it's good if they are on dedicated wheels.. I'm running 17"
stock wheels in the summer with 245/40/17's on them (Dunlops) and 15"
wheels and snows in the winter (forget the exact size, but probably
225/60/15's) - the narrower higher tire is better in the snow - less of
a wedge is created in front of it in loose snow.
If you go to someplace like www.tirerack.com - you'll get some
recommendations. My 525i with 4 snows will outperform SUV's with
"all-season" tires in most any condition.
I have had good luck in the past with Pirelli P210 "SportSnow" and
am currently running Yokohama's. |
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Corey Shuman
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 5:42 am Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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admin-- seriously... dont make claims that are total bs. sorry but
your 525 with 4 snow tires is not going to outperform any suv except
maybe an escalade with dubs and slicks.
Even if you claimed an IX you would be hard pressed to outperform much.
rwd is never going to be anywhere close to parttime 4wd, let alone full
time (like Land Rover and Cruisers). Sorry but that was the biggest
load of crap Ive heard in a while.
As to tires, most any winter tire will perform about the same, just get
them siped and if your snow is bad you may want to consider studs.
Also, adding a few bags of salt or pea gravel to the back of the car
wont hurt.
Best bet is just to assume that the bimmer is the sled that it is and
dont drive it when there is snow on the roads. Its usually only a
matter of a few hours before the side streets are cleared.
(at least here in Utah) |
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Floyd Rogers
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 6:01 am Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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"Corey Shuman" <cshuman@gmail.com> wrote
| Quote: | admin-- seriously... dont make claims that are total bs. sorry but
your 525 with 4 snow tires is not going to outperform any suv except
maybe an escalade with dubs and slicks.
|
Corey, there's a lot of bs in your posting, too. Let me just enumerate.
| Quote: | Even if you claimed an IX you would be hard pressed to outperform much.
rwd is never going to be anywhere close to parttime 4wd, let alone full
time (like Land Rover and Cruisers). Sorry but that was the biggest
load of crap Ive heard in a while.
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1st, any car with snowtires will CORNER and BRAKE better than anything
with all-seasons. Since a RWD with snows will accelerate about as well
as an awd/4wd car with all-seasons, it's quite obvious that his assertion
is correct, which means that your paragraph above is bs.
| Quote: | As to tires, most any winter tire will perform about the same, just get
them siped and if your snow is bad you may want to consider studs.
Also, adding a few bags of salt or pea gravel to the back of the car
wont hurt.
|
2nd bs paragraph. Any "good" snow tire will already have sipes. If
it doesn't, it's arguably not a snow tire. Snow tires constructed with
cold-weather compounds perform better than those with normal compounds.
Tires such as Blizzaks perform as well as studded snow tires - if
you don't believe me look at
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/winter/studtire/Studded_Tire_Report_Final_Nov_2002.pdf.
| Quote: | Best bet is just to assume that the bimmer is the sled that it is and
dont drive it when there is snow on the roads. Its usually only a
matter of a few hours before the side streets are cleared.
(at least here in Utah)
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Only non-bs paragraph. |
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GRL
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 6:10 am Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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Now you are slicing the baloney.
A good set of snow tires on a rwd car with traction control, near 50/50
balance and decent ground clearance for the amount of snow on the ground
will do very well on snow. My wife has been driving an LS400 through twelve
mid-Michigan winters on all-seasons and she has only had trouble when the
snow got above the car's ground clearance. same thing will happen with an
SUV, except the SUB will have more ground clearance. I put snow tires on the
car last winter and it became even better than a fresh set of all-seasons
(naturally).
Buy good snow tires that are no wider than they need to be and you will not
have trouble with your 5-series with traction control through moderate snow
falls.
- nopcbs
"Corey Shuman" <cshuman@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1133394165.353955.217410@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
| Quote: | admin-- seriously... dont make claims that are total bs. sorry but
your 525 with 4 snow tires is not going to outperform any suv except
maybe an escalade with dubs and slicks.
Even if you claimed an IX you would be hard pressed to outperform much.
rwd is never going to be anywhere close to parttime 4wd, let alone full
time (like Land Rover and Cruisers). Sorry but that was the biggest
load of crap Ive heard in a while.
As to tires, most any winter tire will perform about the same, just get
them siped and if your snow is bad you may want to consider studs.
Also, adding a few bags of salt or pea gravel to the back of the car
wont hurt.
Best bet is just to assume that the bimmer is the sled that it is and
dont drive it when there is snow on the roads. Its usually only a
matter of a few hours before the side streets are cleared.
(at least here in Utah)
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Corey Shuman
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 7:40 am Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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Floyd, floyd,
Listen to yourself, we are talking about driving in snow, a rwd will
not outperform awd or 4wd, even if it has spikes on the tires!! There
is no pull, only push. think about this!! regardless of how well the
tire bites, it still is only capable of pushing the car, not grabbing
up front to turn the vehicle. Its really pretty simple.
Second.. If you want to believe the studded tire report, thats fine,
but its "BS" a you put it, anything less than studs on ice (which is
what packed snow will become) will slip all over, I dont care if it has
a Jesus Juice anti slip compound sprayed on it.
GRL-- you are high as well, see my comments above, your 50/50 balance
may be a good arguement if you were talking about 4wd, but the closest
bmw has come to 50/50 is the MCoupe which is not 4wd so the 50/50
doesnt matter in the snow.
And ground clearance shouldnt have a thing to do with it, if your Lexus
has trouble when the snow is above the ground clearance level than you
must have a pretty poor SUV.
I can blast through snow that goes over tire height in my rovers. (but
if I stop Im screwed.)
Not trying to start a flame war here.. I love my bimmers as much as the
next guy but comparing BMW handling to any decent SUV in snow is just
ludicrous...
Dont pretend the bimmer is something it isnt, thats what has spawn all
of these 2wd "SUVs" that are "speedy". An SUV isnt a sports car and
vice versa... you may get by in the snow but you wont out perform any
real (AWD or 4WD) suv. Its called reality. |
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Floyd Rogers
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 9:13 am Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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"Corey Shuman" <cshuman@gmail.com> wrote
| Quote: | Floyd, floyd,
Listen to yourself, we are talking about driving in snow, a rwd will
not outperform awd or 4wd, even if it has spikes on the tires!!
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You are wrong. Any vehicle - rwd, fwd, awd - that has snow tires (real
snow tires like Blizzaks, or studded, etc.) will out-perform any
vehicle with only all-season tires. It may not climb hills or accelerate
as well, but in every other category of vehicle performance, it will
beat the all-season-shod vehicle.
FloydR |
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Ric
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 9:13 am Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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"Corey Shuman" <cshuman@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1133394165.353955.217410@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
| Quote: | admin-- seriously... dont make claims that are total bs. sorry but
your 525 with 4 snow tires is not going to outperform any suv except
maybe an escalade with dubs and slicks.
|
admin is quite right. I'd far rather drive a decent handling two wheel car
fitted with snow tyres than a SUV in most winter conditions except very deep
snow. On icy roads, or ploughed snowed roads, or even lightly snowed roads,
the better handling and brakes of a car on snow tyres are far more
advantageous than a lumbering, rolling, heavy SUV. I live in the French alps
and drive a Mercedes C-Class on Michelin snow tyres and it is far more
wieldy than SUVs. With the traction control, I have never got stuck once and
have very rarely had to use chains. On the other hand, I have passed any
number of SUVs in the ditch fitted with either no snow tyres (usually Dutch
or UK plated) or "all season tyres", because they have fallen off the corner
because of the weight and high centre of gravity of their vehicle.
A SUV fitted with winter tyres does have better ultimate traction in deep
snow than a car - but that is the only time four wheel drive is an
advantage. For me, that is greatly outweighed by all the disadvantages of a
SUV in other conditions. In any case, most SUV drivers seem to get lulled
into a false sense of security and don't fit winter tyres... |
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Ric
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 9:13 am Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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"Corey Shuman" <cshuman@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1133401233.364102.155550@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
You mistakenly imagine that only traction matters when driving on snow. How
about cornering and stopping?
Modern cars with traction control and snow tyres have amazing traction in
snow, more than adequate for all conditions except when snow is deeper than
groundclearance. There small disadvantage in these conditions is vastly
outweighed by their greatly superior cornering and handling in most snow and
ice conditions. |
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admin
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 8:55 pm Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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Corey Shuman wrote:
| Quote: | admin-- seriously... dont make claims that are total bs.
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Corey - might I offer that you do the same? I *have* gone up hills
passing SUV's with all-season tires. I have stopped my 5-touring when
SUV's were sliding around on their roofs.
BTDT - and if you can't out-drive a FWD in ANY weahter with a good RWD
you just don't know how to drive. I learned how to drive on RWD about 40
years ago, haven't driven anything else except a few rare brain-farts
when I got a FWD (never lasted long - the first time they did a 360 on
me in snow was the last time..)
I'll repeat it - a good RWD (a BMW with ASC for instance) with good SNOW
tires - will outhandle an SUV with all-seasons in snow. Also on ice and
in the rain. |
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Corey Shuman
Guest
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| Posted:
Thu Dec 01, 2005 11:03 pm Post subject:
Re: need advice on snow tires |
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okay, whatever, just dont try and flag me down to pull you out of a
snow bank when you slide off the road with you GOOD snow tires.. its
just a ridiculous arguement. All this thread is showing is who has
actually driven a 4wd and who hasnt.. note-- I never said anything
about front wheel drive. I mentioned ALL WHEEL DRIVE (AWD) and FOUR
WHEEL DRIVE (4wd) both of which will out perform your snow tires every
day, Like I said at the top, unless you are driving a escalade on
"dubs" with slicks on them.
Im not sure that you guys have a whole lot of experience driving in
snow or you would concede what Im talking about, you going up hill is
about momentum or condition, your stopping is about condition as well,
you have to have a surface that will provide friction to stop, any
compound of tires and ice will not produce a stop.
-as a side note, Im curious as to how you get a fwd to spin a 360
without serious effort-- the physics are totally against it, maybe you
were mistakenly driving a rwd, which will easily spin a 360 because it
is "pushing" instead of "pulling" (like I state above)
Im not trying to trash on the bimmers ability here, I love brand and if
the roads are wet or dry I would rather drive them. But if you are on
ice and snow they just dont compete with awd or 4wd, no matter how much
you waste on tires. |
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