Comments on: Winter tires… a good idea?

By: Roy

Roy — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 10:31:18 +0000

Winter/snow tires are a no brainer, people who concern themselves with cost should think about cost of putting your life ( and all other road users) in danger ( and you do everytime you get into your car in those driving conditions) … The fact remains that even the best weatherman ( even 680 news) cant predict weather accurately (although I must admit the weather jackpot is pretty good right now ) especially this time of year. With my car (FWD), winter tires and ESC, i can outperfom most people in 4×4’s with ease..in accelerating and braking… people tend to forget that 4×4’s are good in getting going but unless you take care.. they are bad in stopping to the point where most of them end up in the ditch. A 4×4 with winter tires on .. is much better and stable as Stacy attests.

I am a proponent of winter tires … they give me the saftey factor and ability to control my car much better in adverse conditions.. when to take them off? in the next couple of weeks…

By: stacy

stacy — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:10:13 +0000

The first winter I had my SUV, driving was very stressful. With the regular, all season tires I was in constant fear of sliding into oncoming traffic or the vehicle in front of me. The distance I had to being declerating (no breaks), then breaking was unreasonable. The next year I had snow/ice tires on in November. They made a huge difference.
Last week, while driving through the snowy conditions, I was showing my young daughter the difference in the cars on the road. She was soon able to recognize the difference in the vehicle performance of those with snow tire and those without.
In my opinion, regardless of the variable weather, snow/ice tires are a must. I am doing my part to control my vehicle and keep my family as safe as is within my ability.

By: Cam

Cam — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 16:10:05 +0000

Living in Southeastern Ontario, we see extremely variable Winter weather conditions. Over the last three weeks, we’ve had two heavy snowfalls. Today, in Ottawa, it’s raining and the MOST HEAVILY TRAVELLED roads are covered with water. The snow and slush having been washed away.

Snow tires do perform better in deep snow than all-season tires. But the argument of their utility, works both ways. Tire technology is a scienece of COMPROMISE. The benefit of the rubber compounds in Winter tires becomes apparent at 7 degrees, but has anyone read how long Winter tires last under variable conditions? I’ve tried to find out, but you only read about tread depth and grip. I wonder why that is?

One snow storm last week. The main roads were covered with snow for two days, tops. Road surface crews had things cleaned up relatively quickly. Now we have black asphalt. Colder temperatures, but clear asphalt.

Also, how does the average person drive their vehicle? Aggressively? Conservatively? We never hear about performance figures AND driving styles. A person with a leadfoot will spin Winter tires on a snow covered road, regardless. Are these the people who we’re relying on for objective commentary?

By: Petra Munro

Petra Munro — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 17:19:21 +0000

I found that driving with winter tires made a huge difference in how my pick-up handled. Without the winter tires I was forever fishtailing around corners, even at low speed but with the winter tires the corners were a breeze! Also, going across the ridges of ice and snow that build up between lanes on the major highways became much less of a hazard with my winter tires. I am definitely sold on them!

By: John Enright

John Enright — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 05:12:41 +0000

Are you serious? Put winter tires on by the end of 0ctober? I don’t think so. The rubber compound on snows is softer than summer tires so on bare pavement they wear out quicker. The tire makers sell more tires, 680News sells more spots to the tire stores. And life goes on.
Seriously I was not aware of the difference in performance summer vs. winter tires. Thanks for the interesting story.