Best DD tire for Pacific Northwest
 

Looking into tires and would like to run the same tire year round. Car is a commuter (65 miles hwy per day) with the occasional weekend spirited drive. No suspension or wheel mods in the near future. Leaning towards the Continental DW, not the DWS. Anyone willing to share experience running a summer tire in the rainy northwest? Or other suggestions, the MPSS just doesn't seem like the best tire for rough Seattle roads and rain, but looking for input.

Thanks

Toyo T1 Sport. I really enjoyed the handling characteristics of mine when I had them in 245/40/17. Super high grip limit. Also very good in the rain.

245? you are not stock wheel. Right?

I run Michelin Pilot Super Sports as my summer tire and a set of Blizzaks as my winters. I would not suggest trying to run just a set of all seasons during winter especially with the random snow and ice the Puget Sound area has been getting recently. MPSS are fine in the rain and would have more grip than most all seasons. Don't even think about running them if there's a potential for black ice though.

Nope, I was on 17x9 but I still think the T1 Sport is a good tire in any size, but others have disagreed with that assessment.

The DW doesnt help a ton with how rough the road feels but does have the sloppy turn in of a soft sidewall. They are supposed to have a new compound coming out in the next month or two that addresses that concern though. Seems like a decent one to try if you can wait a couple months.

It did handle the rain more than adequately the little time I was in it down here in CA. But I also haven't had issues with my RS3s in the downpours we have been having lately either.

I am using DWS and they were super noisy for the first few weeks, but calmed down very quickly and are great in the rain. I agree that the sidewalls are a bit flexible, but for under $100 a tire, mounted, I could not complain.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I can wait a few months or more. Interested to learn more about the new DW compound but also think maybe a set of winters and MPSS's would be good. Just trying to avoid that. Hard to have it both ways...

I didn't want to pay for two sets either but trust me it's way cheaper than trying to repair your car because you crashed trying to run all seasons in the snow or ice. I watched a ton of people with AWD cars in the ditches back during the huge snow storms in JAN/FEB because they were running all seasons and sliding everywhere. I drove by in my RWD BRZ with Blizzaks no problem.

I think the worst is over for us though so you have all year to start saving up for the winter set.

Reading on Tire rack about those tires.

Seems to me the DWS is more appropriate for Seattle weather as it can handle some slush and snow.


and here's a sentence relating to the DW: ExtremeContact DW is not intended to be driven in near-freezing temperatures, through snow or on ice.



And of course you're aware you ain't gonna do Snoqualmie in the winter in any summer or even rain tire.


Seattle is a tough nut to crack. For full time fun you'd need three sets of tires and wheels, and the ability to change them at a moment's notice where your car is garaged. Summer tires for those rare days of no rain. Rain tires for most of the year. Blizzaks or Michelin X-ice for the few days it snows...and going through the pass...plus chains in the trunk.

If it were me and I had little money to waste, I'd go with the best rain tires I could find and just not drive at all the few days it snows or ice conditions.

I concur with everything @zigzagz94 said. I run MPSS in the summer and Blizzaks in the winter. The MPSS handle driving in the wet fantastically - they have a high resistance to hydroplaning - and in the dry they have lived up to everything I have asked of them in the twisty backroads.

With this car, you NEED a winter tire if you will be driving at all in the snow. I have been out in my FRS every time there was snow when others chose to stay home and have yet to have any problem. Provides plenty of grip when you need it and still allows you to have fun when you find an empty road. By far, this is the way you should go if you can afford two sets of wheels, or even just tires and have them swapped when the seasons change.

I would only suggest an all-season if you have something else you can take out in the snow/freezing temps or if you are ok with staying home on those days.

Here in the northeast we tend to drive in pretty similar conditions as the PNW but with colder and snowier episodes more frequently. My three season rubber is Conti DWS with EWC's for winter. The only thing the DWS's haven't been in is snow but they have seen crazy cold pavement temps, they are really great in the rain, comfy and predictable on all sorts of road surfaces and handle the twisties just fine with a higher limit than the stock rubber had. I've been completely happy with both of these choices.

Luckily there aren't too many more snow events in store for us in Seattle this year, and my Primacys aren't done yet, so I have time to think this to death.

I do have other rigs I can use in the snow, '16 Rubicon and a '75 Land Cruiser, but I just worry about getting caught by surprise in the BRZ. It's mostly the below freezing temps and rain that worry my about the summer tires. I'm unlikely to drive the BRZ in any slush or snow. Maybe I should just go with summers and not drive it under 40 degrees.

Since you have other options this is what I would do if you don't want to have a set of summer wheels/tires and a set for winter. When I first moved to Seattle (pre-FRS) I tried running all-seasons year round and then switched to summer and winter sets. For the vast majority of the year the summer tires are much more fun and I wouldn't go back to all-seasons year round for a performance car. One year I got a flat in one of my winter tires late in the winter and the following year I just left the summer tires on my Legacy GT and drove my Jeep Comanche whenever it was going to be real cold. I never got caught out in the Legacy in weather where I wished I had all-seasons on it.


There are plenty of summer tire options that are great in the rain so don't fall into the trap of thinking you need all-seasons for rain.