Snow tires

Submitted by Sorry-Ad-7884 t3_zp0dtj in vermont

Hi Vermonters,

I’ve never had snow tires but I’m planning on visiting a lot this winter for skiing and want to have them to be safe. AWD Volvo sedan.

I’ve usually just had all season tires. Can i put the snow tires on soon and just leave them on until after the ski season? I also travel a lot in southern NE for work so using them mostly for situations where I wouldn’t even need them is my concern. Are snow tires fine and safe at highway speeds in non snow conditions?

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ARealVermontar t1_j0ptfli wrote

Snow tires are fine to use in non-snow conditions. Most people here leave them on the whole season.

You may get slightly lower fuel mileage, but you'll get better grip on the road thanks to their softer rubber (all-season rubber gets stiff at low temps). Using them in the summer isn't recommended because their softer rubber will wear down faster than an all-season tire, though.

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syphax t1_j0skhp1 wrote

For reasons I won’t bore y’all with, I ended up with snow tires on one of our cars for all of 2022. I wouldn’t recommend doing so, but they actually worked pretty well, even in the summer.

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wayfarout097 t1_j0u8c95 wrote

Came here to say, used my old snows for summers because I couldn't drip the cash for new summers yet. They were at the end of their life as snows but worked fine in the summer

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Hagardy t1_j0q9u2h wrote

snow tires are also great in just plain cold weather—they’re made from a softer rubber compound that is designed to perform when it’s cold, unlike normal tires which harden and often suffer performance decreases in the cold.

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bleahdeebleah t1_j0psxr3 wrote

Yes, they are just fine. I wouldn't put on studs for your application though.

You might also check out the Nokian WR, which sounds perfect for what you're doing

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led204 t1_j0qav5m wrote

Another nice thing about snow tires, is the peace of mind that comes from knowing you are doing one more thing to having a safe uneventful drive.

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MarkVII88 t1_j0ryyd8 wrote

2 reasons not to run snow tires in the winter in New England.

  1. Too poor to buy them and have them mounted and balanced.
  2. Too stupid to buy them and have them mounted and balanced
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PBJIsGood1 t1_j0qk0nm wrote

Studless Micheline X-Ice Snow, Blizzak, Viking Contacts are the way to go for ski trips. They're good on the highway, perform well in snow covered backroads especially with AWD. Like peanutbutter and jelly.

Studded snows are for people who live on back roads, live at high elevations with more packed snow, limited plowing in their area.

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Corey307 t1_j0q1248 wrote

Snow tires work all year round and they are a wise investment considering the number of Subarus I see in the ditch every year. It’s anecdotal but just yesterday I drove into town on route 2 and on my way back a Subaru wagon was deep in the ditch. Not sure how since I’ve been doing 55 mph down that same stretch just a few minutes prior and had zero problems. My best guess is they didn’t have snow tires because I do and it’s not like I was going slow. My point is all wheel drive vehicles are not a substitute for snow tires if anything the owners seem to drive faster than the conditions permit because they feel invincible and when things go wrong they are traveling at a higher rate of speed which leads to worse outcomes that someone like me in a rwd car with snow tires. I get a little warning before things go wrong and can usually sort the car out and since I’m traveling at a lower and generally legal rate of speed if something does go wrong it’s not going to be as bad.

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landodk t1_j0qzhmp wrote

They work in the summer but are not as durable and would be a waste

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hudsoncider t1_j0sjkrm wrote

They also wear a lot quicker since they are soft so summer is def not recommended

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jsled t1_j0r4qjv wrote

yes.

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MarkVII88 t1_j0rxvjk wrote

If you're unsure enough to ask, then you already have your answer. Unless you're "visiting" VT from Florida, then you're already in the Northeast. Just get the damn snow tires. I don't think you'll ever find yourself in a position where you'll think: "If only I didn't put snow tires on my vehicle...". Good Lord.

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rancenb t1_j0ubnbh wrote

so I have a few buddies that work in the auto industry and warned me that if I wanted snow tires to get them as soon as possible in the season because the vendors do run out. I got a set of Yokohama ice guards on my outback and just drove through 18" of snow like it was nothing this past week. AWD and snow tires feels very safe. I dont think studded is necessary in an AWD car but I'd probably consider it if my car was FWD

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df33702021 t1_j0uuhw7 wrote

Some people run them year round. You'll get less MPG and in summer your car won't handle as well due to the soft rubber and deeper tread. But people do run them year round. It's a trade off in cost/labor.

  1. You can buy summer and winter tires and use a single set of rims and have them swapped out twice a year. Most people don't have tools to do this. It's a pain in the ass to schedule these swaps. Also air pressure sensors often get damaged switching out tires. But you get your tires rebalanced with the swap out.

2)You can buy summer and winter tires and an additional set of rims for the winters and have them changed out twice a year. With this option, you can change them out yourself on your own schedule and avoid the PITA scheduling and bringing in your car to get it done. You don't get a rebalance via the swap process. This isn't critical, but nice to have. You can take them in to get it done, but that will be additional money. Lots of people buy tire/wheel packages from places like tirerack.com. This can be the cheaper option depending on the cost of the rims. I've done this option for years on multiple vehicles.

  1. Just run winters all year, but buy new tires more frequently. I do this on my truck now, but I don't drive it much.
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somedudevt t1_j0rcc2w wrote

I’ve run all seasons or AT tires now that I have a truck. Been doing it my whole life and have never had a weather related incident. AWD and being a good driver goes further than good tires and a bad driver will. The reality is that almost every instance of someone going off the road in bad weather is related to a decision that they made while driving. A good winter tire May let you drive through some slightly worse conditions without getting stuck, but if your a bad driver and overreact to tranction changes (braking on ice, or taking the wrong action when you break free of traction) the snow tires won’t help you.

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skivtjerry t1_j0rnpe8 wrote

Best quote I've heard regarding this: "Yes, they're all season if you live in Venezuela".

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somedudevt t1_j0ru411 wrote

I grew up on the top of a mountain in Vermont lived at 2300 feet my daily drive was 9 miles of dirt roads I never had any trouble with all season tires. I was on 89 in Milton last year when the 40 car pileup happened I had driven 70 miles at that point with a trailer behind me I watched a car go off the road ahead of me trying to avoid the vehicle stopped for the accident and I stop fine with all seasons. Not only that but they’re 10 ply all seasons so they are very hard rubber compound. Snow travel and ice travel has a lot more to do with understanding how your vehicle reacts and not making situations worse than it does your tires. no matter how good your tires are eventually you’ll find yourself sliding or spinning tires and that point it becomes the driver.

If your not comfortable driving in snow, go play in an empty parking lot. Learn what the car does when you push the limits. I also ALWAYS when it’s snowing or raining and cold check road slickness in a controlled manner where if I slide or skid it won’t result in going off the road. (Normally this is right as I leave my driveway just giving it a good heavy braking before accelerating to see if abs kicks in.

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[deleted] t1_j0pvj9e wrote

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VTMomof2 t1_j0qazyi wrote

Studded snow tires are overkill for this person.

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[deleted] t1_j0qecdg wrote

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VTMomof2 t1_j0qhenp wrote

Because you don’t need to. I’ve lived in Vermont for 26 years and never needed studded tires. Usually I get by with all seasons. (I live near Burlington and have a very short commute) I guess if you live at the top of an icy steep hill, or commute for 2 hours a day, sure. But it’s not a requirement for safe winter driving.

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[deleted] t1_j0qk18v wrote

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VTMomof2 t1_j0x17sb wrote

If you need studded tires to drive in VT in any winter conditions then perhaps you aren’t a great driver in the winter. I think I know 1 person who uses studded snow tires and he has a 1 hour commute both ways in the summer months so winter is even longer in bad weather. Most people don’t use studded tires.

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bleahdeebleah t1_j0r7tfr wrote

Because they are only the best tires in very specific conditions - hard packed snow and ice. Studded tires have less traction on dry and wet roads than normal snow tires - they will increase braking distances in those conditions. If the majority of your time is on those kinds of roads you probably shouldn't have studs.

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skivtjerry t1_j0rn6gs wrote

We are the classic studded tire customers, over 1500ft, 5 miles from pavement, 4 miles of steep and twisty roads from the valley. They are indeed great on ice and packed snow. The performance reduction on bare roads is very small relative to the reduction experienced when you get on ice and don't have studs. And if you drive a lot of bare roads in winter, studded tires will last a couple of seasons longer because the studs take a lot of the abuse. Yes, they wear out, but a lot slower than rubber. Regardless of stud status, real winter tires need to be on your car in winter. It is the law in Quebec and I wish it was here.

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mountainwocky t1_j0qepdp wrote

Studded snow tires are indeed great for ice, but they can actually reduce traction when the roads are clear because the studs reduce rubber contact with the road a little. Unless you are doing the majority of your driving on back roads that may stay snow/ice covered it’s hard to recommend studded snow tires when snow tires today, like Blizzak or X-Ice, give very good traction in snow/ice, but also great performance on cleared roads.

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bleahdeebleah t1_j0px73d wrote

I think this makes sense if you live up here, not so much for visiting.

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MarkVII88 t1_j0ryaas wrote

Unless OP is visiting from Florida, they likely already live in the Northeast, and should be smart enough to run snow tires in winter in the first place.

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