Why don't people buy snow tires?

J

J999w

Would they rather spend 2 hours in a ditch and money on a tow, than $200 on a
set of tires? They don't even have to be good ones ... just have some tread on
them!

I could drive circles around most people in the snow using a Subaru Justy, or
heck, a Yugo with snow tires. Hemi powered, 4wd, 20 inch rims with half bald
tires means 'ditch diving' in winter.

My other pet peve (today): With a few inches of snow on the ground, why can't
people figure out where to park in a parking lot. It's like a slolom course
with rows zig zagging all over the place.

Sigh.

:^]

jw
milwaukee
 
Would they rather spend 2 hours in a ditch and money on a tow, than
$200 on a set of tires? They don't even have to be good ones ... just
have some tread on them!

First winter with a Subaru with new Goodyear Allegra all-seasons and so far
it's better than any FWD _with_ snow tires I've ever driven!
 
J999w said:
I could drive circles around most people in the snow using a Subaru Justy, or
heck, a Yugo with snow tires. Hemi powered, 4wd, 20 inch rims with half bald
tires means 'ditch diving' in winter.


Well - in general, SUV's and big trucks seem to give the owners a sense of
invincibility - that they can go anywhere, anytime, as quickly as they see
fit... it's never pretty when reality comes crashing down (literally) on
them. (funny, but not pretty)
 
I live in a condo in a big northern city. There's nowhere for me to
store snow tires and rims in the summer. I suspect that's a common
problem.

As far as not knowing how to park in the winter, I can't defend that.

-LK
 
Dominic Richens said:
First winter with a Subaru with new Goodyear Allegra all-seasons and so far
it's better than any FWD _with_ snow tires I've ever driven!

Try snow tires on your sub and be even further amaized
I have 4 new snows on my 2004 Inpreza wagon.
It drives like a snowmobile compared to anything else on the road.
 
<< There's nowhere for me to
store snow tires and rims in the summer. I suspect that's a common problem.
For me the problem with snow tires is that in Colorado the snow season begins
in September and ends in May. That's a long time to drive on snows every
year.....9 out of 12 months.

Snow tires are, by their very nature, softer and squishier than all-weather
tires. On windey mountain roads (what other kind are there?) snow tires make my
Outback handle like a ford :) compared to high performance all-weather tires.
 
No said:
Try snow tires on your sub and be even further amaized
I have 4 new snows on my 2004 Inpreza wagon.
It drives like a snowmobile compared to anything else on the road.
Hi,
As long as the driver knows what s/he is doing.
Stupid/dumb drivers will ditch it even on snow tires.
Even a tank can go into ditch when road condition is real bad.
Tony
 
Unless you are driving a rear wheel drive in a snow belt area you simply
don't need them. But if you do get them, and your state allows them, get
them studded.
 
As long as the driver knows what s/he is doing.
Stupid/dumb drivers will ditch it even on snow tires.
Even a tank can go into ditch when road condition is real bad.

So there's a good topic: What do you do differently in an AWD car to stay
out of the ditch? So far all I've figured out is that that if a wheel
starts to slip while going round a gentle corner under power, you don't do
anything...the axel with traction will keep pulling/pushing you in the right
direction...just get ready to punch the clutch if all wheels start to slip!
 
Dominic Richens said:
So there's a good topic: What do you do differently in an AWD car to stay
out of the ditch? So far all I've figured out is that that if a wheel
starts to slip while going round a gentle corner under power, you don't do
anything...the axel with traction will keep pulling/pushing you in the right
direction...just get ready to punch the clutch if all wheels start to slip!

Doesn't matter what you are driving. Just don't make any abrupt changes
in direction or speed. Just concentrate on your driving, which is what
you're supposed to be doing anyway. Don't drink coffee or comb your hair
and you'll be OK. I've driven for miles on "black ice" in Montana and
never wound up in a ditch. Granted, there was virtually no trafffic and
I didn't have to avoid anyone.

Al
 
Unless you are driving a rear wheel drive in a snow belt area you simply
don't need them. But if you do get them, and your state allows them, get
them studded.

I guess that depends upon what's meant by not needing them. If people find
that they're crabbing down the road sideways, almost loosing it due to a gust
of wind, or getting stuck in their own driveway ... then I'd say they need
them.

What prompted me in starting the thread was that I was driving behind someone
in a newer Toyota Echo (or something), driving 30 mph down a straight road when
suddenly the rear end broke loose, and she almost lost it. Was it a gust of
wind, a snowball, or snow snake? I just went into the snowy lane and drove
around. No worries.

I've driven in the snow on performance summer tires ... it's no fun and I've
seen the light. If you have the means, I highly recommend them !

jw
milwaukee
 
tomcas said:
Unless you are driving a rear wheel drive in a snow belt area you simply
don't need them.

you mean unless you are driving a front wheel drive.....
rear drive is much better than front drive
all wheel drive is the best
subaru are the best of all wheel drive vehicles
A subaru with 4 snow tires is the best of the best
:)))))))
 
Fun Travel Club said:
you mean unless you are driving a front wheel drive.....
rear drive is much better than front drive

Gotta be a troll!!

Give me front wheel anyday.

The toyota pu 4x4 sits in the garage on nasty icy road days unless the wife
leaves hers in the garage(age thing) then she takes the scoobie and I get
the toyota. Front wheel has much better traction than rear, plus won't
break away on you in a gust of wind, etc.

BTW: live in ND so icy roads are an everyday occurance, love watching the
non natives in their 4x4's who think going is all there is to bad road
driving. Fun to watch the "rodeo" when they attempt to stop. ;)

Four boxes protect our freedom: the soap box, the
ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box.
 
I live in a condo in a big northern city. There's nowhere for me to
store snow tires and rims in the summer. I suspect that's a common
problem.

Most tire shops in my region (Montreal, Canada) offer to store your
tires (winter tires in the summer, and all-season in winter) for a
small price. Also, my Subaru dealer said that they store tires for
clients for free (if you buy tires from them I suppose).
 
Re: Why don't people buy snow tires?
Would they rather spend 2 hours in a ditch and money on a tow, than $200 on a
set of tires? They don't even have to be good ones ... just have some tread on
them!

I've driven Subarus for four winters in Nebraska, one winter in Idaho,
and seven or more winters in Illinois and Michigan, and have never
encountered a situation in which I needed snow tires, but I spend
closer to $600 on a set of all-weather tires and replace them when
tread wear dictates. In fact, front wheel drive would have sufficed
for almost all conditions I've encountered in these winters, but AWD
is better yet, for reasons you all know.
I could drive circles around most people in the snow using a Subaru Justy, or
heck, a Yugo with snow tires. Hemi powered, 4wd, 20 inch rims with half bald
tires means 'ditch diving' in winter.

People pass me in Ford Explorers and such on icy roads - they think
they're BAD. It's not unusual to see them in the ditch further down
the road. No tire or drive system is a substitute for keeping your
head out of your ass. As for the parking lot, I park away from
everybody else. Then the lines don't matter and I get some exercise.
 
J999w said:
Would they rather spend 2 hours in a ditch and money on a tow, than $200 on a
set of tires? They don't even have to be good ones ... just have some tread on
them!

I could drive circles around most people in the snow using a Subaru Justy, or
heck, a Yugo with snow tires. Hemi powered, 4wd, 20 inch rims with half bald
tires means 'ditch diving' in winter.

My other pet peve (today): With a few inches of snow on the ground, why can't
people figure out where to park in a parking lot. It's like a slolom course
with rows zig zagging all over the place.

Sigh.

:^]

jw

A lot of people have made some good points that I agree with.

First, I too live in a condominium tower in Toronto and have no place to
store snow tires for my '03 Legacy GT sedan.

Second, unlike many of the other yahoos on the road, I adjust my driving
style to the current weather conditions: I do not drive the same in the
winter as I do the summer. I suspect that people who complain that their
car handles like crap without snow tires aren't adjusting their driving
accordingly.

Third, we are under a winter storm right now and most of the cowboys driving
around as though they were invincible are all in Escalades, Navigators and
Jeeps. Not surprisingly, these are the people I always see in the ditch
first.....because they didn't adjust for the driving conditions!!!!!

Finally, if I didn't own an AWD car I would only ever consider driving a FWD
car. I agree that they are prone to understeer.....which can be corrected
by not goosing the car while cornering in the snow. With a bit of practice
(in emergency situations of course) the use of the hand parking brake can
correct the understeer quite handily.

Again, I think that people should just accept the fact that the roads are
not always dry and bare and DRIVE ACCORDINGLY!!!
 
pheasant said:
Gotta be a troll!!

Give me front wheel anyday.
See you in the ditch.....
Front wheel drive understeers terrible.
a bit of over steer in a rear wheel will get you around ramps and curves
Understeer sends you to the ditch every time.
Every snow storm in Ontario you see ditches full of front drive cars.
That is the truth meter.
They always have the slowest rally times in performance rally .......
where traction is the ultimate decision maker against a stop watch.
Front wheel slowest times, rear next best times, 4 wheel fastest times.
Front wheel drive = 70% of your breaking, all of your steering and all of
your drive motion on 2 front wheels.......it just does not work good.
I have 43 years of driving experience, no crashes, no accidents.
Have driven professional rally.
Crewed for 10 years consecutive north american pro production rally champion
too. (Nial Leslie)1979 to 1989
My rear wheel drives where always better.
my neon and saturn front wheelers were terrible in the snow.
I left them home many times and drove my rear wheel drive safari van.

The toyota pu 4x4 sits in the garage on nasty icy road days unless the wife
leaves hers in the garage(age thing) then she takes the scoobie and I get
the toyota. Front wheel has much better traction than rear, plus won't
break away on you in a gust of wind, etc.
ya the front ends of front drive cars wiggle side to side trying to get up
hills.
It looks really funny


and the cartridge box.passive Canadian here
no guns thanks.
"in defence of the country to bear arms" , not shoot your neighbour.
 
Snow tire are not "needed" but they are nice to have... just as AWD is
nice to have. I agree with those who warn about failure to respect
winter road conditions, regardless of drivetrain type.

CW
 
: Re: Why don't people buy snow tires?
From: "Dominic Richens" (e-mail address removed)
Date: 1/23/2004 9:35 PM Eastern Standard Time
Message-id: <butqmm$5an$(e-mail address removed)>
Cost...



First winter with a Subaru with new Goodyear Allegra all-seasons and so far
it's better than any FWD _with_ snow tires I've ever driven!

I agree; The first winter in my GT wgn with the new RE92s was better than my
Mazda Protege had been with four new snows, and fun in different ways, too.
After less than one year of use (April 1st-->Thanksgiving), the RE92s were worn
enough @ ~ 16000 miles :-( that I'd rather have had the Protege with four good
snows. This lack of traction "forced me to order" four WRX take-off rims with
Blizzak LM22's from TireRack. They are now in their second winter, and I expect
them to last 2 more. Next year, I will get a set of 4 snows for my wife's
Special Edition L sedan, and I will likely go with the LM22s again. I used 4
Blizzak WS-50s on my Protege, my wife's Civic, and both our Mazda 323's before
that (damn I've bought a lot of those critters!), and they are a bit too soft
on dry roads for other than commuting usage. In fact, the LM22s are better in
rain than the '92's are now...
IMHO, awd is a huge bonus vs fwd, or rwd; at least if all else is equal. As
I've experienced it, a fwd with good rubber meeting the road is better than awd
with inadequate rubber. And of course we won't talk about a light weight, rwd
truck or wgn. TG it has been a while, but I won't *ever* have one of those
again!
Terry - '02 Regatta-Red GT wagon 5spd - 25,000 miles
'03 Silver Legacy SE auto-sedan - 2450 miles
Yakima / TandeMover / Rockymount rack
To reply, get rid of the "nonsense"
 
Good luck to those around these parts without 'em. 6 more inches of snow in
the last 24 hours.

Woooo Hoooo !!

jw
milwaukee
(off to ski again !)
 

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