Winter Tire Quandry

[Thirdgen89GTA]

So, I've tried to save for Winter tires for a few months now. But Veterinary bills killed me. Just about every month there's been an extra $250 or so which has killed my plan for saving anything. But it looks like work actually approved our WinShare bonus this year which will be paid out tomorrow. No idea how much its going to be. One year it was $600, another year it was $3000. I'm hoping for a decent payout.

That said, I have been rocking the stock Goodyear Eagle F1 Assymetric 2's which are a summer tire, and the OEM tire for the Focus ST. These have pretty epic traction in summer, but winter? Well, I've driven worse, but those were bald tires at the end of their lifespan. I'll say that I've been giving people LOTS of room so I can stop the car. So Looking at tires for the Focus ST.

OEM is a 235/40-R18 tire. But the manual says I can step down to a 16x6.5" rim. Tire Rack offers steelies that will fit and are the correct backspacing.

Since its cheaper and I can drop down to a 16x6.5" rim for winter, I've been looking at those. The 16" default size is a 225/55-R16 at 25.7" tall. I've been considering stepping down to a 205/60-R16 tire, which is the same tire height, but about $30 per tire cheaper. Spending about $120 less on tires is good cause I have to buy steelies as well. The cheapest ones that are known to fit are about $60 a rim.

These are winter tires so I don't necessarily care about the performance look. I care about stopping, and starting.

If cornering is not your concern can anyone see a reason not to step down from a 225/55 to a 205/60 tire? I get that the sidewall won't be anything like the stock 235/40-R18's. But in winter a taller sidewall is more forgiving.

Plus, if I step down, I can afford to step up to a better winter compound instead of going with the uber cheapies.

225/55
$112/ea - General Altimax
$127/ea - Blizzak WS60


205/60
$78/ea - General Altimax
$88/ea - Continental ExtremeWinterContact
$101/ea - Blizzak WS70


So you can see how fast the prices drop. I'm not focusing so much on the tire brand at this point. But 225/55 vs 205/60.

Thoughts?

Click to read more...

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

Narrower is better for snow. You're talking 20mm, I don't think you'll notice less than an inch on a snow tire. They're all wobbly feeling anyways

Get the 205/60 general altimax tires. They're worlds better than blizzaks and are a true winter tire thru and thru unlike blizzaks that are all seasons half way thru.

I've been running the same ones for 3 seasons now (this is the 4th) and they still have plenty of life left on them. I also put them on my wife's car.

 

[chris101]

Skinnier tires cut through snow better.. but wider will give you more contact patch for the fwd hp.. tough call in that respect.

Honestly I'd probably go for the 225 Altimax at $112 each myself. I've had altimax before and they kick ass in winter..

Given the hp you have up front, you probably want a decent contact patch that the 225s will give you.


That being said, we have 205s (normally 225s in summer) on our Jetta GLI w/200hp..


..except if I was going with 205s, I'd go for the blizzak's hands down no question (just the best you can get)


One thing about the Altimax.. as great as they are (and I've used 'em for 3 years), blizzaks are still better when new and the disappointment with Altimax is they dry rot crack faster than any other winter tire I have ever experienced (3 to 4 years old dry rot crack with same storage as blizzak or dunlop so yeah.. there is that)

 

[Thirdgen89GTA]

Skinnier tires cut through snow better.. but wider will give you more contact patch for the fwd hp.. tough call in that respect.

Honestly I'd probably go for the 225 Altimax at $112 each myself. I've had altimax before and they kick ass in winter..

Given the hp you have up front, you probably want a decent contact patch that the 225s will give you.


That being said, we have 205s (normally 225s in summer) on our Jetta GLI w/200hp..


..except if I was going with 205s, I'd go for the blizzak's hands down no question (just the best you can get)

There in lies the other argument.

Smaller, narrower contact patch with a much better tire.

Or the brute force method of a larger contact patch with a worse tire.

Based on prices alone I'd probably be going with the 205/60s. The sidewall is huge, but I shouldn't be driving it around like Michael Schumacher anyways. The goal is to get through winter, and keep these around for a good long time. Hopefully we'll be getting above 40's daily by March/April.

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

Seriously, get the generals. They're a Swedish tire design rebranded by general (and made by continental )

Check out reviews for the Gislaved Nordfrost 3s.


Fuck blizzaks

 

[chris101]

The blizzak will store better/last longer and even when you get to the all-season-like compound, and it is still way better than a worn out Altimax (ask me how i know)


BUT if you think 3 years max on the snows, then why not on the Altimax.. they will easily give you 3 winters of service I would think.

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

Mine still look new after 3 years of use (and I drove 60 miles a day for work). I'll have to measure them tomorrow. I also keep my tires in my basement which stays at a constant temp year-round.

 

[chris101]

My 2 year old Altimax still look new I must admit.. but my 4 year old dry rot cracked altimax i got rid of though (weren't as mushy soft any more either).. and we always store our snow tires in the basement the same way (blizzaks have just stored better/lasted longer/stayed mushier longer is the bottom line) ..my own personal experience of course and others may vary.

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

I just never liked my blizzaks (they were ws50's) on my civic. Always took some driving and heat in them to really work. My generals seem to work decent right off the bat (my driveway is uphill to get up onto the street. Yea my car is awd but my wife's civic has them too and they're just as good on fwd.

 

[chris101]

the Altimax is a harder winter compound so they will last longer in that respect ( better highway tire for longer dry distances vs the blizzak that will get torn up faster in dry conditions)

I had Altimax and Blizzak on my former R32 VW (also AWD)... Altimax was better on the heavier car for more highway driving but the blizzaks were simply superior in the snow and ice (just wore out and tore up quicker)

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

16's will fit on the st? I figured it would have some decently sized brakes on it......

 

[chris101]

16s is the smallest that fit on the GTI/GLI so it makes sense to me that 16s fit the ST as well

it is my 2012 Golf R that I'm stuck with 17s (in my case they happen to be altimax on my heavy AWD that I bought for intent of lots of dry highway miles when I had my work commute)

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

16s is the smallest that fit on the GTI/GLI so it makes sense to me that 16s fit the ST as well

That makes no sense to me....one is a vw and one is a ford. I don't know what size brakes either come with though but id think the top of the line focus would have something worth while.

 

[chris101]

regular vw/regular Ford focus can take 15s

the Focus ST competitor is the GTI (not the golf R)

I guess I have my logic, you have yours

 

[Thirdgen89GTA]

That makes no sense to me....one is a vw and one is a ford. I don't know what size brakes either come with though but id think the top of the line focus would have something worth while.

ST's have 12.6" x 1.0" rotors. 16's BARELY clear, and some you can't use internal balancing on because the wheel weights will hit the caliper. Tire rack guarantee's their 16x6.5 steelies to fit, so I shouldn't have an issue with them.

Since I'm buying steelies and having them externally balanced this isn't an issue for me.

Priced it out.

Altimax's were the cheap-end of the pricing range. And I was considering them because of that (they can't be any worse than the F1's I'm riding on right now!)

With steelies, mounting/balancing, and the 205/60 altimax arctics, its about $544 + shipping.

Which is $544 more than I want to spend, but even if I make it through winter, all the extra slipping and sliding will wear the F1's down fast and I'll end up buying new Summer Tires just as soon anyways. When these F1s wear out, its Nitto NT05 time. Love those on my TransAm.

The Altimax Arctics are $78/ea in the 205/60 size. And $112 in the 225/55 size. Thats $34/tire cheaper. And the 16" steelies are about $40/rim cheaper than a 17x7.

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

regular vw/regular Ford focus can take 15s

the Focus ST competitor is the GTI (not the golf R)

I guess I have my logic, you have yours

The jetta gli has 11.3" front rotors. The focus st has 12.6" front rotors.

That's why your logic makes no sense. Two completely different cars and car companies.

 

[Intel]

I just find whatevers cheapest on craigslist in my size. Spent 200 bucks total on each of last two sets of winter tires in those sizes. I run 195 for the last set as I liked the narrower footprint but they are out there if you look.

WINTER TIRES 205/60/16

Almost your size but super cheap.
4 winter wheels and like new blizzak tires

 

[Thirdgen89GTA]

Example of the 16" rim fit.

 

[Bob Kazamakis]

Don't worry, my 16" steelies/generals I got from tire rack came littered with bead clip on weights

No stick ons.

 

[Thirdgen89GTA]

Don't worry, my 16" steelies/generals I got from tire rack came littered with bead clip on weights

No stick ons.

Thats why I'm not worried. For a winter tire? External balancing is just fine for me.

 

[Dan00Hawk]

For winter tires, I've used Blizzaks, Hankooks, Generals, and Michelin. Compared to all seasons, they were all far superior in the snow. Compared to summer tires, they were all better in the dry as well when temps were below 40 degrees. You do have to get accustomed to the squirmy treadblocks and soft/tall sidewalls, which can feel a bit disconcerting at times. Going with a 17" vs 16" would help with that a bit, of course. Regardless if you go 225 or 205, you'll still be traction limited in 1st and 2nd gear. Just go with the thinner 205 to be better in the situations where it really matters (snow/slush).

I think the Generals are the best bang for the buck you can get. The fact that they don't wear out a "special compound" after two seasons is also noteworthy. Some minor weathering cracks aren't a big deal on any tires, aside from cosmetic reasons. If the tires were 10 years old and cracked, then maybe it might be a cause for concern. For a 3 or 4 year old tire, don't worry.

Save the money and get the skinny Generals on the steelies, and use the money you save on road hazard or tire mounting or a few cases of beer.

 

[syP]

<---- blizzak nutswinger here.. have had 6 sets on various cars... can outlaunch 4WD SUVs easily.


hahah

 

[Thirdgen89GTA]

The blizzak will store better/last longer and even when you get to the all-season-like compound, and it is still way better than a worn out Altimax (ask me how i know)


BUT if you think 3 years max on the snows, then why not on the Altimax.. they will easily give you 3 winters of service I would think.

Based on my mileage (12k annually) I would hope that I could get several years out of them if I'm only putting about 4k-5k miles a year on them. I would be happier with 4-5 years.

Sad part about buying tires over the internet means I can't verify how old the tire is, and how long its been on the rack.

Also, once I have a set of rims to put tires on, it won't be such a pain in the wallet to replace them. Can just buy the tires and have them balanced.

 

[RedBeard]

<---- blizzak nutswinger here.. have had 6 sets on various cars... can outlaunch 4WD SUVs easily.


hahah

I was pulling on 4wd SUVs with my WinterForce snows on my Camry today!

I really don't think there are many bad snow tires. It comes down to price/noise/longevity really and most tires trade off one for another.

 

[sickmint79]

yah skinnier better. don't go entry level snows. only once have i purchased snows used, iirc entry level blizzaks? was quite dissatisfied vs. others i had chosen before that were nicer, usually picked from tirerack tests except the nokians i had for the sti as TR does not sell them. still some of the priciest tires i've ever bought.