Best dedicated winter tire?

phillybean · Sep 8, 2012

Finally a subject I'm an expert in. I'm a manager of a tire shop here in Canada.

As far as the best studded winter tire, the new Nokian Hakkapeliitta LT2 studded from the factory are the way to go. Nokian one of few tire companies that stud the tires when they are made. They use a carbide tipped stud that has a better biting edge and doesn't wear out the way a typical steel stud does. They have a similar tread depth to a Nitto Terra Grappler, but are very directional for the snow. At the end of the day, when in 4x4 in deep snow most tires with tread will get you where you need to go, but with the compound, sipping and studs in these, you can't beat them on ice.

Non-Studded, I think it's tough to beat the Yokohama Ice Guard G072. They don't make them in a 8 or 10 ply though. Last year I ran them in 1 31 1050r15 and was very happy with them.

An All Terrain that is decent in the winter, Duratracs are decent when studded. BFG A/T's are good as well, when sipped when perform very well.

phillybean · Sep 8, 2012

Thistledoo said:
Ok these Goodyear duratracs on dry pavement with studs on a scale of 1-10 ten being loudest what should I expect. I like quiet, my studded coopers were very quiet. Please chime in as I need new tires.

I'd give them about an 8

robertyoke · Sep 9, 2012

milehighassassin said:
This is a copy/paste from the other active tire thread but....

Anyone use General Tire Altimax Arctic?

They won tire rack's winter tire challenge. Available in truck and SUV sizes. 2400 lbs per tire.
Studable and a cost of $112 a tire for 245/75r16

Only available in up to a 17" wheel but looks like a solid tire especially for the price.

Tire rack's test:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=123

They offer another version that will hold I think up to 3400 lbs per tire, cost about $20 more per tire.

I have them on my 2010 ram srw 3500 mega for winter use. i run 19.5's in the summer and the stock wheel with 285/70 17 LRD
i doubt they will last 20k with a diesel pulling a heavy trailer but they will go places in 2wd that the stock tires struggled to go in 4wd
ill buy another set when these are toast. they are worth the $ and make driving much easier when the road gets nasty.

hilinerider · Sep 9, 2012

yokohama ats

richracer1 · Sep 23, 2012

I'm going to go pick up a set of studded LT265-70R17 Winter Force tires for winter use on my 3500HD SRW 4x4. The 265-75R16 Hankook AtM tires I have on it now did well last winter, but I want some studded tires for the icy roads.

The garbage OEM Bridgestone Duravis M700 were horrible. Many a time I'd start pulling a small grade, carefully give it a little bit of throttle and feel the rear start sliding out, even with 300lbs in the bed. The Hankooks were far superior to the OEM tires.

christopher · Sep 23, 2012

phillybean said:
Finally a subject I'm an expert in. I'm a manager of a tire shop here in Canada.

As far as the best studded winter tire, the new Nokian Hakkapeliitta LT2 studded from the factory are the way to go. Nokian one of few tire companies that stud the tires when they are made. They use a carbide tipped stud that has a better biting edge and doesn't wear out the way a typical steel stud does.

Problem down here is we will put the studs on for winter and go days or weeks at a time with no snow and the studs get eaten up on the dry roads between snowfalls.

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CO 2.0 · Sep 24, 2012

Any all terrain doesn't stack up in snow and especially ice compared to a dedicated winter tire. Tried all the best A/T's on the market before I went to a dedicated winter tire. Studs aren't the best option since there is never any snow on the Colorado plains during the week. Really, a non studded snow tire is the way to go for FCR112 since he lives on the Colorado plains.

In load range E, 10 ply, there are only a few options out there for a dedicated non studded winter tire that I'm seeing.

Bridgestone Blizzak W965 - 52lbs
Michelin LTX Winter - 45lbs
Firestone Winterforce - 49lbs
General Altimax Arctic LT - 53lbs
Goodyear Ultragrip Ice WRT LT - 50lbs

I personally will be choosing one of these for this season. Most likely the Michelin LTX winter again. Best warranty rating and lightest, but most expensive.

Dogmeat · Sep 24, 2012

CO 2.0 said:
Most likely the Michelin LTX winter again. Best warranty rating and lightest, but most expensive.

Good call on that. That's a damned good winter tire.

FCR112 · Sep 24, 2012

CO 2.0 said:
Really, a non studded snow tire is the way to go for FCR112 since he lives on the Colorado plains.
QUOTE]

This is complete misinformation.

Reference all of my previous posts.

While I appreciate the input, and agree the BEST dedicated winter tire depends on where you live:yo:\ You are NOT up to speed on where I live.

The specific load rating by pound between D and E can be nominal depending on the specific tire in question.
D=8ply, and E=10ply is a thing of the past...compare the load rating numbers if you are on the fence.

CO 2.0 · Sep 25, 2012

FCR112 said:
Reference all of my previous posts.

While I appreciate the input, and agree the BEST dedicated winter tire depends on where you live:yo:\ You are NOT up to speed on where I live.

Sorry I thought you lived in Denver. But seriously it's about the same thing in the CO mountains during the winter. Lots of dry roads out there that would eat studs up quick. They are not required with a good snow tire.

I own a cabin on the north side of the snowies. I take my Michelin LTX snow tires to the max with the crazy wind concrete snow drifts & ice. Much worse than Colorado conditions IMO. They work very well for me. I like not having to chain up anymore like I did with All Terrains.

FCR112 · Sep 25, 2012

8000' versus 5200' in Co are extremely different in the winter...If you live here you know that. The fact that there are many sunny days is about the only similarity in the winter. The wind is completely different as are the temps most of the time as are the grades, etc.
It snowed in the mtns today while it rained in the city... The last 5-6 miles of my drive in/out is shaded most of the day and holds snow and ice for weeks at a time... Then you get out onto I 70 and it's almost always bare and dry.

I just talked to a guy in a local parking lot who has been through 2 seasons on his duratracs with studs. He runs them year round, figured he had 30k miles on them and the studs were very effective. He swore by them studded for local conditions in the foothills and mtns.
I'm not sure where you are getting that the studs wear off so quickly? Or that I lived in the Plains??? Did you have a set that wore off prematurely?

I would love to find a tire that can hold onto a 15% icy grade without studs, but I have never seen anything remotely close to them. Once you get onto something steep and iced up the studs are better.
Those green diamond tires with the glass and walnut shells or whatever secret concoction they are infused with are very grippy, just not a whole lot of recent info on them (and they are retreads).
I'm glad to hear the michelins are good and working for you, and you aren't a fan of studded tires, got it.:face-icon-small-ton

milehighassassin · Sep 25, 2012

Last I heard about Green Diamond they were having financial troubles.

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CO 2.0 · Sep 26, 2012

FCR112 said:
8000' versus 5200' in Co are extremely different in the winter...If you live here you know that. The fact that there are many sunny days is about the only similarity in the winter. The wind is completely different as are the temps most of the time as are the grades, etc.
It snowed in the mtns today while it rained in the city... The last 5-6 miles of my drive in/out is shaded most of the day and holds snow and ice for weeks at a time... Then you get out onto I 70 and it's almost always bare and dry.

I just talked to a guy in a local parking lot who has been through 2 seasons on his duratracs with studs. He runs them year round, figured he had 30k miles on them and the studs were very effective. He swore by them studded for local conditions in the foothills and mtns.
I'm not sure where you are getting that the studs wear off so quickly? Or that I lived in the Plains??? Did you have a set that wore off prematurely?

I would love to find a tire that can hold onto a 15% icy grade without studs, but I have never seen anything remotely close to them. Once you get onto something steep and iced up the studs are better.
Those green diamond tires with the glass and walnut shells or whatever secret concoction they are infused with are very grippy, just not a whole lot of recent info on them (and they are retreads).
I'm glad to hear the michelins are good and working for you, and you aren't a fan of studded tires, got it.:face-icon-small-ton

I had a set of studded back in the day that wore off prematurely and were noisy as hell, but I wasn't running them on Duratracs. So I am a little put off by them. I took your elevation of 8000ft into consideration when I made my last post. I was actually comparing WY at 8000ft to CO at 8000ft. Backcountry WY gets nastier than crap sometimes with no road maintenance. I thought someone told me you lived on the front range (maybe Michelle@OTS). Maybe just confusion with another member on my part. Michelle talked about me driving out to OR last year to pick up a sled with you or some other member with a simlar forum name in CO. Since you are driving on 15% grades of ice then I agree studs would grip better.

FCR112 · Sep 26, 2012

CO 2.0 said:
Since you are driving on 15% grades of ice then I agree studs would grip better.

Ha... Yeah unfortunately for me that is the reality of my driveway for the better part of 3 months after dark (and there's a 25 foot drop off at the bottom to boot:face-icon-small-sho) I built steps this year just in case things get really silly with the dumpings, fingers crossed!

...but what's the point of buying any dedicated winter tire if you can't get to your house, right?

The most popular opinion has been the duratracs with studs. I haven't owned them and don't want to come off as argueing they are the best thing ever, just going off what's being repeatedly said.

I think the dude I talked to up here was the most persuasive so far as he has the same steep icy driveway situation going on. Ice is my major problem, wish I could afford to heat the driveway, that might be the best solution.

.

richracer1 · Sep 26, 2012

True, the DuraTracs seem to be popular on here, but they are $400 more than a set of WinterForce with studs.

I'll probably go get the WinterForce when I come back from elk hunting the end of October.

hivoltagesledhead · Sep 26, 2012

I ran Duratrac on my company truck last year. Do nothin but drive mountainous roads all winter.....all temps....all conditions.....CRAP !!! Would never buy them again. No traction.....bad breaking....not bad in fresh snow... otherwise crap. Loud and too soft....35000kms and need to be replaced.

Been running yoko geolanders on personal truck for years and work pretty good....but going to a good studded tall skinny tire this year...dony know which one yet.

My last designated winter tire was a studded Traction King, not sure who makes them as it was over 10 yrs ago when I bought them. They finally wore out and thats when I decided to try the geolanders for the winter.

IMO....a studded ,tall ,skinny winter designated tire is the best choice. It cuts through the snow much easier and isnt pushing as much as a fat tire. Fat tires look better, but think practicality. As mentioned before, if your gonna buy a tire for the winter, why you buy a mud tire? Also, where I live, it is illegal to run studs after April or May.

cbc24 · Oct 2, 2012

Id say duratracs bc alot of times when i go too the mtns its usually icy or snowy but when you come out its a muddy mess, I haven't ran my duratracs in the winter but had a good rip in the mud with them tonight an they did not bad.

Anyone try dick cepek FCII in the winter?

roughrider99 · Oct 2, 2012

Weird I loved my dura tracks, I hope to putted a set of studded duratracs on this year

hivoltagesledhead · Oct 3, 2012

Duratraks are also very loud.

Nytroty · Oct 3, 2012

hivoltagesledhead said:
I ran Duratrac on my company truck last year. Do nothin but drive mountainous roads all winter.....all temps....all conditions.....CRAP !!! Would never buy them again. No traction.....bad breaking....not bad in fresh snow... otherwise crap. Loud and too soft....35000kms and need to be replaced.

Been running yoko geolanders on personal truck for years and work pretty good....but going to a good studded tall skinny tire this year...dony know which one yet.

My last designated winter tire was a studded Traction King, not sure who makes them as it was over 10 yrs ago when I bought them. They finally wore out and thats when I decided to try the geolanders for the winter.

IMO....a studded ,tall ,skinny winter designated tire is the best choice. It cuts through the snow much easier and isnt pushing as much as a fat tire. Fat tires look better, but think practicality. As mentioned before, if your gonna buy a tire for the winter, why you buy a mud tire? Also, where I live, it is illegal to run studs after April or May.

Are you high? Yoko geolander's over duratrac's?!!!! Somehthing is backwards here... My duratrac's are for sure the best winter tires i have ever owned! My dad has yoko geolanders on his suburban and they are like ice skates in the winter... He can't wait to get rid of the yoko's! Just my experience...

Best dedicated winter tire?

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