best snow tires for my 98?

[hugho]

I am a newbie to this forum which Timmy the Toolman has recommended. Hello folks. I am a good DIY mechanic with a well equipped garage/shop and I live in a high mountain valley in Wyoming. We still have 24" of snow on the ground. I recently bought and restored a 98 SR5 to near mint mechanical condition It is my first 4R. I am a big fan of Corollas and Camrys and 2nd gen 22re trucks. We have old 4wd cummins trucks on the farm and a 98 Tahoe and my wife's 96 Subaru. Those two have Bridgestone Blizzaks and are the cats pajamas on snowy roads. When I tried to drive the 4R with its stock all season 270 16" all seasons, it was AWFUL, sliding and spinning. I am blaming these overwide tires as my primary traction problem. The tahoe has 245x75 Blizzaks and does not slip or spin but it is also 1/2 a ton heavier than this 4R so I am hoping the narrower 225X75x16 Blizzaks might work. Has anybody out there tried going smaller and narrower for snow tires or AS tires? The engine will run faster and perhaps the mileage might suffer but right now this otherwise lovely little wagon is useless and unsafe in our winter conditions.

 

[19963.4lsr5]

On my 94 cummins I used cooper dedicated snows with studs on all 4 corners. 235/85-16.

I also am not happy with my toy in snow compared to my cummins and two 04 Grand Cherokees.

My toy is squirmy in lock in snow to the point I’ve put it back into 2wd. I’ll admit that two of my tires are worn a little more than the others.


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[3bears]

I run blizzaks ( alaska) and have not had to chain up in over 3 years. However I was told that they are only good for 3 seasons/years ( take off in summer).
There is a studless tire comparision on the internet and in one of them the Nokian did better than blizzaks. I used to be a govt employee and we ran nokians. I will be doing more research b4 next winter. but in the outback, unplowed areas, ( meaning more than 6 inches new snow)...neither have an aggresive enough tread but will still power through

you mention going narrow,,,,but people lower air pressure in tires to get a wider patch and more grip in sand figured wider was better for snow too.
year round I run 265/75/16

 

[brillo_76]

I say blizzaks is your best bet. I run, I think, shimto ice guards. I will need to verify this as I take mine off when not in winter use.

I'm not sure what a more narrow tire would do for you. Running lower pressure does increase traction. I would think a narrow tire would be worse for its footprint would be smaller..

Welcome to the forum...



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[MaineRunna]

235/85R16 General Altimax Artics rock

 

[hugho]

I say blizzaks is your best bet. I run, I think, shimto ice guards. I will need to verify this as I take mine off when not in winter use.

I'm not sure what a more narrow tire would do for you. Running lower pressure does increase traction. I would think a narrow tire would be worse for its footprint would be smaller..

Welcome to the forum...



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Thank you. My tire guy says the reason narrow tires work better is lbs/sq inch. The same weight on a smaller footprint means more traction. The same theory when people add weight in the trunk to increase traction on RWD cars.
Wide tires only have one major benefit and that is on soft surfaces like sand and in that case they give increased flotation. Narrow tires on sand will get you stuck.

 

[brillo_76]

Thank you. My tire guy says the reason narrow tires work better is lbs/sq inch. The same weight on a smaller footprint means more traction. The same theory when people add weight in the trunk to increase traction on RWD cars.

Wide tires only have one major benefit and that is on soft surfaces like sand and in that case they give increased flotation. Narrow tires on sand will get you stuck.

Ice is ice, though. Snow is never an issue unless it's super deep.

That's only if you're dealing with snow. If you're on solid ice. I don't care how narrow a tire. It's probably not going to matter much.


I get the theory on narrow tires more traction as the pressure per square inch is higher.


If this was really sound, though. I winter tires would be super narrow to begin with.

Mostly, I see snow mobiles and snow machines with tracks on them. I'm not exactly sure how sound that theory would be.

It could very well be your tire guy us correct.. I just not sold on the idea.


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[shadow247]

Ice is ice, though. Snow is never an issue unless it's super deep.

That's only if you're dealing with snow. If you're on solid ice. I don't care how narrow a tire. It's probably not going to matter much.


I get the theory on narrow tires more traction as the pressure per square inch is higher.


If this was really sound, though. I winter tires would be super narrow to begin with.

Mostly, I see snow mobiles and snow machines with tracks on them. I'm not exactly sure how sound that theory would be.

It could very well be your tire guy us correct.. I just not sold on the idea.


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The theory is that the Snow packs harder with the smaller footprint. There is obviously a point of diminishing returns, but you see a lot of Snow vehicles running normal width or narrower than stock snow tires up in Maine.

 

[19963.4lsr5]

The theory is that the Snow packs harder with the smaller footprint. There is obviously a point of diminishing returns, but you see a lot of Snow vehicles running normal width or narrower than stock snow tires up in Maine.

My cummins with the studded cooper snows were tall skinnies and it crawl up a tree in the snow. Of course with that 1000lbs engine up front anything more than 8” of snow I had a hard time turning in 4wd.


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[brillo_76]

Maybe it's area specific. I used to run studs, but I don't anymore due to the longer braking distance and the higher chance of hydroplaning when it rains.

So skinny tires good for better snow driving. Fair enough...

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[19963.4lsr5]

Maybe it's area specific. I used to run studs, but I don't anymore due to the longer braking distance and the higher chance of hydroplaning when it rains.

So skinny tires good for better snow driving. Fair enough...

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Been running studs since 95 and never experienced any of that. Err, all on the same truck…….


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[brillo_76]

Been running studs since 95 and never experienced any of that. Err, all on the same truck…….


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I ran them on cars... Yes major difference due to weight and mass.

My heaviest vehicles are my 4 runners and Tacoma.

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[phattyduck]

Skinny will be better if there is a known 'hard surface' below the snow, to 'cut' through it. If you are trying to float (aka snowmobile, deep snow wheeling, etc.) then wider is better.

Don't go to a smaller overall diameter - you'll lose ground clearance. If you do go narrower, make sure you bump up the aspect ratio to compensate.

-Charlie