Has anyone gone through winter on there All-Seasons?

[lupindub]

I know most people refer to there All-Seasons as a three season tire but has anyone gone thru a proper northern winter on there All-Seasons?

Yay? Nay?

[Cole]

Do. Not. Do. It.

I bought my car on 9 December, 2 days after that, I picked up my snow tires. The next day we got our first snowfall of the year as I was leaving my girlfriend's house. I decided as soon as I got home, I'd go to a shop and get them installed. It's a 25 minute drive from door to door, I didn't even last 5 minutes before I decided to stop at the very next tire shop I saw to get the snow tires put on. I was sliding all over the place, and became a huge hazard not only to myself, but to everyone else on the road.

[TM]

Yep. This was me going 15-30mphs straight on a highway.

[lupindub]

Originally Posted by Cole

Do. Not. Do. It.

I bought my car on 9 December, 2 days after that, I picked up my snow tires. The next day we got our first snowfall of the year as I was leaving my girlfriend's house. I decided as soon as I got home, I'd go to a shop and get them installed. It's a 25 minute drive from door to door, I didn't even last 5 minutes before I decided to stop at the very next tire shop I saw to get the snow tires put on. I was sliding all over the place, and became a huge hazard not only to myself, but to everyone else on the road.

Originally Posted by TM

Yep. This was me going 15-30mphs straight on a highway.

Just so there's no confusion, you guy's weren't using the stock summer tires the car comes with and using All-seasons?

[ZionsWrath]

In before a keyboard warrior says he been through 30 Arctic winter with nothing but racing slicks and recommends "you'll be fine if you are careful"

OP, if you can afford snows get them. All season may get yo by but your have to be very careful and choose when to drive and when to park. I tried new conti dws in 2 inches sof snow and I was sliding considerably. I decided not to drive my car in snow after that but I have a second car with snow tires.

You may also consider it an investment. I can't miss work because of snow. If I do I won't get paid and its considered absence. And I live 25 miles from work. I just bought replacements for my car only $700 for cheap wheels and tires. I say only because the last set went through 6 seasons. And it only needs to get me to work through two snow storms to be worth it. That's not to mention how much safer you will feel with them.

[DarkSunrise]

I'm using the OEM all-season tires (Bridgestone Turanza) in the winter. If there's anything more than ~2" of unplowed snow on the ground and an incline, you will have a hard time getting moving. The car will crab-walk with road camber and the rear end wants to snap around under acceleration even in a straight line. I leave the FR-S in the garage if there's more than a light dusting on the ground.

My other car is a 2011 GTI and it is MUCH better in unplowed snow, even on OEM all-seasons (Pirelli P Zero Nero AS). Don't expect the FR-S to perform close to a FWD econobox in the snow on all-season tires - it will not.

On plowed roads you should be fine. Just be cautious about ice buildup/black ice as you would in any car.

[drewbot]

Originally Posted by lupindub

I know most people refer to there All-Seasons as a three season tire but has anyone gone thru a proper northern winter on there All-Seasons?

Yay? Nay?

Really.....it snows in MI....don't be that guy

[mkivalex]

Buy snows /end

[mrk1]

With proper snows this car is pretty good in the snow for what it is, well worth the investment.

[Tcoat]

"All" season tires are the perfect study in compromise. They work OK in most conditions but do not work really great in any. So many people focus on tread pattern but totally ignore the real factor that needs to be considered which is stiffness. An all season tire is designed to hit the middle range but that means they are way too soft for hot weather and way to stiff for cold.
Frequently you will see written "if there is more than X inches of snow all seasons are no good". The fact of the matter is that the depth of snow really doesn't come into play as much as people think. It is the temperature that causes issues. Anything under about 40 degrees means the all season tires are starting to stiffen up to the point they no longer grip no matter how great the tread is. Get into sub zero temperatures and you may as well be trying to drive on solid plastic discs.
With proper winter tires (be they snow and/or ice rated) these cars are tanks that will walk through just about anything. There is nothing quite like to looks you get when you blast past all the AWDs and SUVs that are stuck in 3 inches of snow when it is minus 10 out.

[jawn]

*their.

[fatalelement]

I drove a camry in MI for 4 years in college on all weathers for the first year. Several large dents later from sub 10 mph slides into ice and rails, I got winter tires.

Disclaimer: I'm from cali, but even then I knew how to drive very well but many of these slides were unrecoverable due to the tires and conditions.

Get the tires yo.

Edit: as @Tcoat describes, I often felt like I was on plastic discs. On more than one occasion I was literally unable to proceed up a hill, along with other cars, because I would simply slide back down. MI is no joke.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G925A using Tapatalk

[Hoahao]

I ran Michelin A/S 3's last winter. They seemed to handle the cold alright, and I only drove once in about 1 1/2 to 2 inches of snow. Got caught at the Y when the forecast was snow after 10 pm and it started just after 9 pm with me planning on heading home at 9:30. They got me home, but I had to watch things carefully. I would not willingly want to drive them in the snow.

I'm retired so can watch the flakes come down. If you gotta be out in the snow for real, get steel wheels and snow tires and enjoy the experience.

[venturaII]

All-seasons do nothing well, and are a menace when people try to get by on them anywhere in the snow belt. It's amazing how people will spend $3K+ on huge wheels and tires for dry driving, but then moan about having to shell out 600 bucks for a real set of mounted snows on steels. Smarten up.