Conti DWS v Michelin Pilot A/S 3 v Goodyear F1 Asymmetric

[ZionsWrath]

Originally Posted by robwbright

Really? I was able to drive (albeit slowly and carefully) in 1-2 inches of snow on the new OEM tires (I bought the car in December 2013, so the tires had very little mileage in the winter).

And by slow I don't mean 25 mph in a 55 mph zone. More like 45 mph in a 55.

If the All Seasons aren't any better than that, then I might as well stay with the Primacys.

255 rear doesn't help but in second gear off the throttle down a hill in 1 or 2 inch snow it was trying to go sideways. I parked it and took another car.

Stock size is probably much better but still if you don't have to drive it in snow, why would you want to. Save the rust

[jvincent]

Ignore @ZionsWrath, this car is awesome to drive in the snow.

J/K ZW btw.

On a more serious note, if you are going to drive in the cold/snow, get snow tires. All season tires are really three season tires. They are better in the shoulder seasons (early spring/late fall) than summers, but will suck balls in snow or below freezing.

Since you don't get a lot of snow then a "performance" winter tire will be what you want. Performance winter is a bit of an oxymoron though since the tread/compound of a snow tire needs to be able to handle the snow. My guess is that the performance snows just have stiffer sidewalls.

If he weren't banned our friend Suberman could probably have educated us all on this topic.

[robwbright]

Originally Posted by ZionsWrath

255 rear doesn't help but in second gear off the throttle down a hill in 1 or 2 inch snow it was trying to go sideways. I parked it and took another car.

Stock size is probably much better but still if you don't have to drive it in snow, why would you want to. Save the rust

Typically, it becomes an issue a couple times a year when (1) there's a light snow; and (2) my wife needs to be in place "A" with one child and I need to be in place "B" with the other child... or something of that sort.

The other possibility relates to my wife being a pistol instructor and giving classes a couple Saturdays a month. I play soccer - often on Saturdays. Thus, if it snows on a Friday night/Saturday morning, then...

[jvincent]

Originally Posted by robwbright

The other possibility relates to my wife being a pistol instructor and giving classes a couple Saturdays a month.

New information has been provided.

Do whatever makes your wife happy.

[robwbright]

Originally Posted by jvincent

Ignore @ZionsWrath, this car is awesome to drive in the snow.

J/K ZW btw.

On a more serious note, if you are going to drive in the cold/snow, get snow tires. All season tires are really three season tires. They are better in the shoulder seasons (early spring/late fall) than summers, but will suck balls in snow or below freezing.

Since you don't get a lot of snow then a "performance" winter tire will be what you want. Performance winter is a bit of an oxymoron though since the tread/compound of a snow tire needs to be able to handle the snow. My guess is that the performance snows just have stiffer sidewalls.

If he weren't banned our friend Suberman could probably have educated us all on this topic.

I've read Suberman's comments in other threads and lots of other people's .02 worth. Thanks for the input, but again, I'm not buying winter tires.

My primary concern here is finding an A/S tire that has SOME competence in low temps and light snow - just enough to get me 15-30 minutes away and back - while having performance in warm/dry/wet that is at least as good as the OEM (and it isn't asking much to be as good as the OEM in warm/dry/wet). I'm not trying to drive thru the Rockies in February.

I tried iPikes already. The car was freaking unsafe on dry and wet roads (wandered all over the road and I couldn't take an exit ramp above 35 mph). Returned them for 90% refund from Hankook.

I realize that other snow tires apparently aren't as soft as the iPikes. Still, I don't want to compromise the OEM handling of the car for 2-3 days of maybe needing to drive it in light snow 30 miles. Doesn't make any sense to me to pay $400 to $1000 for separate rims and I don't want to mess with changing tires on and off twice a year.

[jvincent]

Originally Posted by robwbright

I realize that other snow tires apparently aren't as soft as the iPikes. Still, I don't want to compromise the OEM handling of the car for 2-3 days of maybe needing to drive it in light snow 30 miles. Doesn't make any sense to me to pay $400 to $1000 for separate rims and I don't want to mess with changing tires on and off twice a year.

Fair enough, but I'll turn that argument around.

You are going to be compromising the cars handling by using all-seasons instead of summers. The all seasons will typically be heavier and have less grip in the both the wet and dry than dedicated summers.

I don't have first hand experience with the iPikes, but I'm sure there are winter tires that are better. While I understand it's a hassle to get a second set of wheels/tires you will probably only need one set for the life of the car assuming you only need to use them for two or three months of the year. One set of wheels for sure.

We get a shit-ton of snow up here, so winter performance is secondary to staying on the road. My winters (Toyo) suck in the rain, but are great on snow/ice, which is what I really need them for. They are also amazingly quiet on dry pavement, which was a pleasant surprise.

[Cope52]

Get the Sottozero Serie II. Great handling and good in light snow. I wouldn't put Hankooks on my lawnmower.

[ZionsWrath]

DWS is the best reviewed all season in snow, that's why i bought them. They still weren't acceptable for me. That's why I say compromise less on the tire and just dont drive in snow. You have 2 kids that are in different places, well sorry for you then I guess you have to compromise your sport car to pick them up that 1 day a year. DWS it is.

[RedLeader]

No idea what kind of winter you get around your place, but I ran the Goodyear Eagle F1 A/S last year in West Texas over the winter and they were worthless on anything remotely slick. Wet pavement in the cold (<50) was like driving on sheet ice. If you get anything that looks like snow, even hardpack, find a different tire, the Goodyears were junk.

[robwbright]

Originally Posted by jvincent

You are going to be compromising the cars handling by using all-seasons instead of summers. The all seasons will typically be heavier and have less grip in the both the wet and dry than dedicated summers.

Come on, man. Did you read what I wrote? How am I going to be compromising my summer handling when all I'm looking for is a tire that is a good or better than the OEMs? Handling has been compromised in all seasons from the time I bought the car - I gather than most high performance tires - including all seasons - are likely to be better than the OEM tires as far as overall handling and grip. Are you telling me that a Pilot Sport A/S 3 is going to be worse than the OEM tires in summer?

And if I decide to go A/S 3, it's apparently better on track and in summer than many of the high performance summer tires - while sacrificing some of the winter capability. It seems the Goodyear will also be better than the OEM tires.

If I wanted handling as good as a high performance summer, then I'd definitely buy Pilot Super Sports and a set of winters. I don't need that level of handling. On the OEM tires in warm weather, the car will take any 40 mph recommended corner at 80 and a couple of 20-25 mph recommended speed corners around here can be taken at 3 times the recommended speed. Point being, the car is quite capable in warm temps on low grip tires. I don't want a reckless driving ticket, so I don't intend to be going a whole lot faster than I already am.

I'm dropping off the thread as it seems most are more interesting in telling me to do what I'm not going to do than actually attempting to make a recommendation out of the selections I've listed. As one fellow above recommended, I suppose I'll go with Tire Rack's recommendation.

[jvincent]

From your original post:

I'm always interested in a good value, but not at the risk of crashing a nice car... so price isn't a primary factor.

All season's are going to put you at risk of crashing your car in any kind of snow.

[frslee]

@robwbright I'm near Baltimore, MD and have been using Michelin A/S 3 since last summer. I can say these tires are obviously better on wet and dry by a large margin. However in snow... I honestly think OEM (Bridgestone Turanza) was better on light snow. I never drove on heavy snow. If you're concerned even about light snow, I'd go with DWS. DWS will provide better dry/wet traction during the hot seasons. Not sure how DWS performs on track, but the Michelin A/S performed very well for all season tire. So my suggestion would be...

DWS - more concerned about snow
A/S 3 - little compromise on snow, but it won't let you down on dry/wet.
GY F1 - No comment

[mwjcyber]

Originally Posted by frslee

@robwbright I'm near Baltimore, MD and have been using Michelin A/S 3 since last summer. I can say these tires are obviously better on wet and dry by a large margin. However in snow... I honestly think OEM (Bridgestone Turanza) was better on light snow. I never drove on heavy snow. If you're concerned even about light snow, I'd go with DWS. DWS will provide better dry/wet traction during the hot seasons. Not sure how DWS performs on track, but the Michelin A/S performed very well for all season tire. So my suggestion would be...

DWS - more concerned about snow
A/S 3 - little compromise on snow, but it won't let you down on dry/wet.
GY F1 - No comment

@robwbright I too have been running Michelin Pilot A/S 3's for the past year, and concur with what frslee says. From my research and experience what he says is true.

Michelin A/S 3's will give you 90% of Pilot Sport dry performance, with benefit of cold weather grip. As for snow, last winter I was able to drive up the steep road to my house at ~5900ft in 4 inches of snow. Tires were spinning but never out of control. I wouldn't want to do that everyday, nor in any deeper snow with these tires. On level roads in light snow the car didn't slide, tires gripped, and braking was predictable.

Like the OP, here in Abq. we get roughly 5 days a year of couple inches of snow. So running snow tires here through the winter is pointless. Primary reason I went AS is because we have 4 months of mornings below freezing, which the Michelin Pilot A/S 3's grip flawlessly.

[ZDan]

Originally Posted by robwbright

... I'm looking primarily at the Conti DWS, Michelin A/S 3 and Goodyear F1 Asymmetric. The Cooper RS3-A, General G-MAX AS-03 and Hankook Ventus S1 noble2 are also possibilities.

We got the General G-Max AS-03 for the wife's Mazda3 last year, and they have far exceeded expectations. Handling is very responsive while the ride is not harsh. Wet and dry traction are very good in warm and cold weather. And in the Atlanta snowstorm it was one of the few cars moving. ONly downside is some road noise.