Snow Tires Recommedations!

[ZionsWrath]

The generals are good but noisy and non snow performance suffers. They are super soft so it kind of kills the joy of even attempting spirited driving with them.

[Foobar]

Blizzak LM60's here on my stock wheels. I'm in NY metro where we tend not to have too much snow accumulated for prolonged periods of time, so it was more important for me to have a decent winter performance tire that didn't compromise dry handling too much. They're not as great in snow/ice as the WS series which use the multi-cell compound rubber, but they've worked fine for me for the last two winters now going into its third.

[bobaab]

I am one who cannot recommend the Michelin X Ice. They were fine in the snow, but dry pavement driving was not as good as I expected. They especially did not do well in single digit temperatures, where they lost all grip on me at one point, causing the rear to kick out extremely quickly. This was on a 06 Miata with no traction control, but I've never felt the car kick out like that. Meanwhile, cars with all-seasons are going faster than me and making the turn just fine. I don't trust those tires anymore.

[kevman_101]

I just bought Altimax Arctic as well and the snow performance is really good, but the dry is lacking a bit, but it's a snow tire, and I can cope with losing some agility on dry for a big gain in snow. And they are cheap.

[bluesman]

OK - reporting time, and here's the rest of the story:

I just drove home from work through about 2" of wet, slushy snow with more falling. Many of the roads and streets I take have significant slopes, and the greater Philadelphia area is littered with weather-related accidents right now (even though it's really not that bad out).

The General Altimaxs are excellent. I didn't use the "snow" setting, and I never saw a traction control or antilock light. I had absolutely no trouble even when those around me were fishtailing and spinning their wheels. When we go out for dinner, there should be another 2" or so and I'll have a chance to see how that affects things. But for the moment, I can report that an FR-S on 16" unstudded General Altimax Arctics is safe and secure in 2" of slippery slush without sandbags in the trunk, snow mode, or any other jury-rigged enhancement.

Yes, the sidewalls are softer and more flexible - these are 16" snow tires. Yes, that affects dry road handling, and I suppose my lap times would be much greater than with better shoes on the car. Oh well - it gives me something to look forward to in spring.