All season tires for 50% snow/ice 30% dry 20% mud

[m@x]

Hi everyone,

I am looking for good NOT all-season tires. [Edited. I decided to go with specialized dedicated tires. All terrain or winter? Pros / cons?]
I live in Alberta, Canada. We have long winters and the roads are not always clean and dry.
50% of the time it is going to be a winter driving on the snow and slippery terrain. The rest of the driving will be on the dry and/or muddy terrain.
I don't do any off-roading yet but wouldn't like to get stuck in the mud when looking for a remote picnic area.

To sum it up:
Snow(ice) / Dry / Mud = 50/30/20
Highway / City driving = 50/50

Priorities (descending):

1) Good grip in winter conditions
2) Long lasting.
3) Doesn't cause steering wheel vibrations/shakes
4) As quiet as possible considering items (1) and (5).
5) A bit of aggressive look (planning to put them on 17" rims sticking out by +1.25" vs stock setup)

I appreciate your help!

Max

 

[ebg18t]

Nokian WRG2. Awesome all weather compound with top notch winter control.


Nokian WRG2 SUV

 

[WXman]

You said all-season. But no all-season tire is going to be worth a damn in mud or heavy snow. So with that said, here is your tire:

Discoverer A/T3 Tire | All Terrain Tire | Cooper Tires

 

[radlynx]

Get this tire, http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...5HR7KL78&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

price is right and good for snow.

Hi everyone,

I am looking for good all-season tires.
I live in Alberta, Canada. We have long winters and the roads are not always clean and dry.
50% of the time it is going to be a winter driving on the snow and slippery terrain. The rest of the driving will be on the dry and/or muddy terrain.
I don't do any off-roading yet but wouldn't like to get stuck on the mud when looking for a remote picnic area.

To sum it up:
Snow(ice) / Dry / Mud = 50/30/20
Highway / City driving = 50/50

Priorities (descending):

1) Good grip in winter conditions
2) Long lasting.
3) Doesn't cause steering wheel vibrations/shakes
4) As quiet as possible considering items (1) and (5).
5) A bit of aggressive look (planning to put them on 17" rims sticking out by +1.25" vs stock setup)

I appreciate your help!

Max

 

[CXS]

I'm running these: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...R7WSAOWL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

I'm very pleased in all conditions I deal with in Colorado with my "Pro-Grade" GYSA's.

 

[Doozi]

I've been very impressed with my Silent Armors as well. I know a couple of other guys who would say the same thing, too.

 

[McDougall]

Highly recommend Toyo Mud Terrain. Great traction with minimal road noise, and a well tightly built casing = smooth ride. Might only come in a 6-8-10 ply tire, which might add a little weight.
Toyo also just came out with their All Terrain 2, this I know could come in a 4 ply, which would save you weight and save a little gas money in comparison to a MT, minimal difference though.
Also in comparison to other brands of ATs, the AT2 fairly aggressive.
Michelin and Toyo are my top pics.

 

[JB.]

Highly recommend Toyo Mud Terrain.

This thread was going pretty well, but now that we've entered the theater of the absurd, I'm recommending this tire.

 

[strathcona]

I'm in the Edmonton area too. I seriously recommend you get dedicated winter tires. We both know what a crappy job the city does WRT clearing the streets in the winter.

If you are set on all seasons, then I would go with the Nokians that ebg18t recommended.

 

[Nuke]

Sorry but there are no "good" all season tires. If you want traction, you need to bite the bullet and get either a good A/T or a dedicated winter tire.

 

[m@x]

Thanks everyone for taking time and posting your suggestions here.

I've never driven an SUV in the winter. If the all-season is such a bad idea for the climate conditions I live in, I will go for dedicated tires.

Can anyone explain if I need winter tires or AT tires? Can I use AT's in summer?
I tried to find an explanation from a reputable source, but came across similar forums with people asking the same question.

I guess I will need to alter the name of the thread. If I can find how..

Thanks everyone!

 

[m@x]

This thread was going pretty well, but now that we've entered the theater of the absurd, I'm recommending this tire.

lmao i'm afraid I'll need to do some trimming first =))

 

[m@x]

I'm in the Edmonton area too. I seriously recommend you get dedicated winter tires. We both know what a crappy job the city does WRT clearing the streets in the winter.

If you are set on all seasons, then I would go with the Nokians that ebg18t recommended.

Yes you are so right. Thx for pointing this out. Now that I'm set to buy dedicated tires, I need to find the answer to "winter or AT?" I can't afford to buy tires for each time of the season or event. If AT is close to winter performance but is more universal in applications, then... AT?
Can't find any good sources explaining that.... =(

What part of Edmonton are you from?

 

[JB.]

Can anyone explain if I need winter tires or AT tires? Can I use AT's in summer?
I tried to find an explanation from a reputable source, but came across similar forums with people asking the same question.

Yes, A/Ts are fine in the summer.

I just re-read your original post. The fact that you would even mention an aggressive look (nothing wrong with that) tells me that an A/T is probably what you want . There are many good ones and the Cooper AT3 and Kuhmo Road Venture KL78 already mentioned are two of my favorites

Here's a link to someone who can answer any tire question you can think up.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/general-discussions/110300-ask-tire-engineer.html

 

[cdthiker]

Think of an AT is good at a lot of things, does not really suck at any one thing, but is not great at any one things either..... there are several exceptions to this but for the most part having a solid set of AT tires and a solid set of studded or non studded snow tires is the way to go in heavy snow.......
if you have two sets of really good tires it is not hard to think of your truck getting over eight thousand miles out of those two sets before you have to replace them.....

I would highly siggest looking into the Hankook Danapro ATM tire it is a good AT tires that has nice road manners and is really good in almost all condations except super loose gravel and deep mud. the reason I went with these is that they are AMAZING in the snow. I live in way north idaho near the boarder of alberta, I live three miles of the closest paved road. to say that I get a lot of snow and need to depend on my tires is a understatement....
if money is not problem and you can stand to lose a few MPG and you dont mind getting a bit less miles out of a set of tires look into the duratrack..... these tires are great in nasty deep snow, I personaly do not like them on hard pack and ice, but lets face it the only thing that is going to preform well in that is a rubber compound that is menant to work for it such as a winter tire and something that has studs in it.... do not let any one tell you any diffenert. you want great winter driving you get a set of studded tires, you have a solid skill set as a driver and know when to stay home, looking into the hankook danapro ATM way cheaper then the cooper AT3 with what I feel is a better tread for the snow.
good luck and feel free to get in touch in you want more info.
cheers

 

[Nuke]

4WD with a decent AT tire should do very well in bad weather and is just fine on dry pavement. A dedicated winter tire will be a bit better in that same weather but, due to it's softer rubber, will typically wear faster (and may be noisier) than the AT.

I ran Firestone Destination AT's and Michelin M&S through many PA winters.

 

[strathcona]

Yes you are so right. Thx for pointing this out. Now that I'm set to buy dedicated tires, I need to find the answer to "winter or AT?" I can't afford to buy tires for each time of the season or event. If AT is close to winter performance but is more universal in applications, then... AT?
Can't find any good sources explaining that.... =(

What part of Edmonton are you from?

I'm in St Albert.

To add to what Nuke said. I went with a winter tire due to the softer compound that grips better on ice than an A\T. As long as you are not driving on them in temperatures above +7 c for a long time they will wear fine. Regular tires harden up below 7 c and are not as effective, and get less so the colder it gets.

I have the Hakkepelita 7 SUV tires and they are great, but they are pricy. My Father-in-law works for Nokian so he was able to get me a great family deal (free), and I ended up getting them studded.

 

[cdn87]

I live in Calgary and have been driving an SUV as my DD since fall 2004 (prior was a Honda Prelude). First I had a '97 Ford Explorer W/ Full time 4wd that came with Michelin LTX M/S tires on it which were OK during the winter and fine in the summer and average in the rain. In Fall 2007 I put a set of stock sized Bridgestone A/T Revo's (the Revo 2 hadn't been released yet) on it and it was night and day better in the winter (drove through anything I could just to test out the traction!), unbelievably better in the rain, and more comfortable on the highway. I never questioned if I would have traction or not, it just drove through anything, I even drove up to Sunshine Village in the winter when there was so much snow overnight they threatened to close the road up the hill, I drove up in 4hi no problem.

In 2010 I bought my 4Runner and it came with Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza's which are fine in the summer but are actually pretty aweful in the winter, much worse than the Michelins I had on the Explorer. After going through 3 winters on them (this past one was the worst so far) I decided to buy a set of 265/65R17 Nokian Hakka R Suv's for the upcoming winter (My dad has them on his Merc SUV and it is unstoppable in the winter). Now that I have these dedicated winters I can't wait for the snow to come! (likely will see it in the next 6 weeks haha!). I chose to get winter's this time as opposed to A/T's as my current tires still have a lot of tread left and are fine in the summer as 99% of the time is spent on road and usually 8 months of the year here it is atleast threatening to snow, if not, then it is actually snowing.

Having said that, if I needed new tires anyway I would have gone with an A/T for year round use. I feel like the most important factor for us here in Alberta is how well it handles ice. Even though I previously chose the Revo's I Recommend the GY Silent Armor's based on the reviews I have read and winter tesitmonies, I loved my Revo's though, best tire I have owned so far. Check out 1010tires.com they are Canadian and can help you choose based on price as well. I practically lived on Tirerack.com and 1010tires.com before I chose the Revo's, lots of info out there.

Edit: spelling

 

[MikeInNH]

A good AT tire is your best bet. Or dedicated snows..but you'd have to switch during the summer months. I prefer an AT tire. I've been running cooper AT3's. They are one of the quieter AT tires on the market..but they are NOT as quiet as a good HT tire. No matter what tire you get there's going to be a compromise. I found the AT's to be very good in snow...handles very nice on the highway..and good off roading....and one of the better tires in the rain.

 

[Sungod]

Multipurpose anything sucks at everything. Get what you need for what you drive on most and use the gas pedal to make up for any situation you get into outside that norm.