Summer tires/winter tires????

[spocheld]

Ok, I live in CA and I've seen a lot of people on here talking about switching to winter tires from summer tires? I have no idea what this means since we just use the same tires here year round. Or why not just get an all weather tire?

[janaka]

you don't know what it means?
it means we put a tire that is dedicated to SNOW performance on our cars... hence snow tires...

we do it so that we can be safer on the roads when they are snow covered, slushy, and icy.

All season tires are really no season tires.
They are mediocre at in all situations but not great in any. Hence snow tires, a tire that performs the best in the snow/ice. The cheapest snow tire will IMO outperform ANY all season tire no matter of cost.

Pretty common sense... fyi canadians dont like in igloo's incase you were wondering

[Izzy]

Since you're in CA, you really don't have to worry about it. It's if you see snow and harsh conditions for a good portion of the year. If you have the OEM summers, they actually rate better than the OEM all-seasons! It's just that the summer tires are not ready to be used in snow conditions.

Summer tires usually offer better performance and grip, as compared to all-seasons.

[ethlar]

i used to run all seasons on my car year round, this will be the first year that i have a set of dedicated snows for winter driving, i guess i should expect to see a bit of a difference?

[janaka]

Originally Posted by ethlar

i used to run all seasons on my car year round, this will be the first year that i have a set of dedicated snows for winter driving, i guess i should expect to see a bit of a difference?

ya there will be a difference for sure. that said defensive driving in snow is the best bet, snow tires are just another safety device at your disposal.

[ethlar]

Originally Posted by janaka

ya there will be a difference for sure. that said defensive driving in snow is the best bet, snow tires are just another safety device at your disposal.

i always drive overly defensively in snow, but it should be somewhat more forgiving in the snow i guess i should have specified

[sbigshot]

Originally Posted by spocheld

Ok, I live in CA and I've seen a lot of people on here talking about switching to winter tires from summer tires? I have no idea what this means since we just use the same tires here year round. Or why not just get an all weather tire?

Being from the south, I have asked this question too... my other question is why the steel wheels with no hubcaps for the snow tires? Why not buy a set of used alloys for the snow tires .... those steel wheels look awful.

[janaka]

Originally Posted by sbigshot

Being from the south, I have asked this question too... my other question is why the steel wheels with no hubcaps for the snow tires? Why not buy a set of used alloys for the snow tires .... those steel wheels look awful.

price.
they are cheap.
your car looks like ass covered in snow and salt as it is.. no need to ruin alloys or spend extra on them since they will look like crap and take a beating.
Not to mention if you slide and curb one you don't have to find another one and a replacement steelie is easy/cheap again

[ethlar]

you can also have fun with the winter wheels, im contemplating painting mine with the yellow and black like the crash test cars just as a joke

[Cookstar]

I can't relate to winter tires either. We may get a couple light snows during the winter and maybe an ice storm (much worse). I've got summer tires on my Si and don't plan to buy anything else. If the roads get bad, I plan to borrow another vehicle or hitch a ride because it just doesn't happen that often here.

[sbigshot]

Originally Posted by janaka

price.
they are cheap.
your car looks like ass covered in snow and salt as it is.. no need to ruin alloys or spend extra on them since they will look like crap and take a beating.
Not to mention if you slide and curb one you don't have to find another one and a replacement steelie is easy/cheap again

I think if I were in that situation I would just spend the extra money and get the alloys (so my car would look less like ass).

[dvader72]

Originally Posted by sbigshot

I think if I were in that situation I would just spend the extra money and get the alloys (so my car would look less like ass).

It wouldn't really matter how nice your alloys are when it's covered with a lot of salt! haha...anyway, another reason is that if you have alloys, or so I've heard (I don't know how true/valid this claim is) snow can get stuck in them and affect the driving...also with steelies, there's less chance that road salt can get stuck between the brakes and rotors...again, this is what I heard. I got my steelies for like $50CAD as opposed to like $200CAD.

[sbigshot]

Originally Posted by dvader72

It wouldn't really matter how nice your alloys are when it's covered with a lot of salt! haha...anyway, another reason is that if you have alloys, or so I've heard (I don't know how true/valid this claim is) snow can get stuck in them and affect the driving...also with steelies, there's less chance that road salt can get stuck between the brakes and rotors...again, this is what I heard. I got my steelies for like $50CAD as opposed to like $200CAD.

I'm just gonna stay down here where it's warm.... no salt, no snow, no ice, and no ass looking cars!!

[dvader72]

Originally Posted by sbigshot

I'm just gonna stay down here where it's warm.... no salt, no snow, no ice, and no ass looking cars!!

I'm with you! haha...I haven't a clue why I'm up here in the north...*sigh*...