Studed vs Studless Snow Tires - Toyota Yaris Forums

RacerFreakXXX · 10-23-2009, 01:21 PM

What's better for the New Egland winter, studed snow tires or studless snow/ice tires? Where I live they don't plow till it's done snowing so I will get a foot of snow sometimes I have to drive through and then sometimes I'm on cleared highway roads. I want a tire that will last me 2-3 winters/years.

schleppy · 10-23-2009, 01:37 PM

I've lived in New England my whole life and I have never been in a situation where I would NEED studded tires. I've always run regular snow tires.

Studs are really only necessary if you're driving on completely unplowed or snow-packed/icy roads.

thebarber · 10-23-2009, 01:42 PM

i had studless the entire time i lived out east (*think northeast of maine*) and never had a problem w/ the aveo or the yaris getting stuck in or out of town

RacerFreakXXX · 10-23-2009, 02:54 PM

now my next question is what do you guys think about Dunlop Graspic DS? I am trying to spend $80 or less per tire shipped.

thebarber · 10-23-2009, 03:15 PM

what size are you looking?

honestly, go for cheap....anything you buy is going to be 100x better than all seasons

firestone winterforce look good in just about any size on tirerack

RacerFreakXXX · 10-23-2009, 03:33 PM

I'm actually looking at GeneralAltimax Arctic ... I can get them $66.50 w/o studs, I figured that's a great deal.

WolfWings · 10-27-2009, 03:20 AM

Modern Studless tire compounds outperform studded tires in all driving circumstances on modern vehicles.

And also, Studded tires will likely lose most of their studs in a season of driving on actual asphalt. Modern studless tire compounds actually stick to ice, and are almost as soft as some racing tires when warm, so they're still reasonably soft even when extra-frozen-cold in winter use.

The ONLY time studded tires are better is when your wheels are locked up from panic-braking without ABS, or in a similair 'sliding across the ice' situation. Don't waste your time with studded tires, get studless tires.

And as long as you do as mentioned, buy your winter tires on seperate wheels, and change back to normal three/all-season/summer tires when it gets dry and warm again promptly, your winter tires will easilly last 3 seasons before wearing through the ice-sticky compound.

I went with Blizzak WS60 XL tires myself, since I don't mind the ultra-stiff ride of the heavy-duty eXtra-Load tires personally. Reminds me the car is not driving on normal tires if nothing else.

I'll throw in a vote of 'spend the most you can afford to' for one simple reason: You'll out-spend that by an order of magnitude just on gas for your car. Thousands of dollars in gas during the time you're worrying about $350 versus $400 for your set of tires. Spend the $400 to get the best you can. Ditto brakes and oil.

Don't be penny wise but pound foolish.

MUSKOKA800 · 10-27-2009, 07:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RacerFreakXXX

What's better for the New Egland winter, studed snow tires or studless snow/ice tires? Where I live they don't plow till it's done snowing so I will get a foot of snow sometimes I have to drive through and then sometimes I'm on cleared highway roads. I want a tire that will last me 2-3 winters/years.

Check your local regulations.
Not all areas allow studded tires as they do damage pavement.

toad · 10-27-2009, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RacerFreakXXX

now my next question is what do you guys think about Dunlop Graspic DS? I am trying to spend $80 or less per tire shipped.

i read where the dunlop graspic ds-3 got 'best budget studless' online(i can't remember the website). the michelin x-ice x2 got 'all around best'(price not an issue). pirelli just released a new snowcontrol series 2 that is specifically made for smaller cars. it's listed at $66 each on tirerack.com, but there's no reviews yet because it just came out.

thebarber · 10-27-2009, 01:13 PM

goodyear nordics = win

$79.99CAD for 175-70-14 right now

rhino5 · 10-28-2009, 08:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RacerFreakXXX

now my next question is what do you guys think about Dunlop Graspic DS? I am trying to spend $80 or less per tire shipped.

I ran them on my bimmer for 2 seasons. I was pleased. I'm running them on the rears of my Yaris with Green Diamond Icelanders on the front this season.

ROCKLAND TOYOTA · 10-28-2009, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RacerFreakXXX

now my next question is what do you guys think about Dunlop Graspic DS? I am trying to spend $80 or less per tire shipped.

decent tire as i have them for my celica. i running continental TS 790's for this season at 59 bucks each on the yaris.....

MUSKOKA800 · 10-28-2009, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thebarber

goodyear nordics = win

$79.99CAD for 175-70-14 right now

Yes, very tempting.
I'm shopping stateside for Michelin X-Ice. Tires are sooooooooooo much cheaper south of the 49th. Michelin and Goodyear warranties are NA wide.

Bridgestone's isn't.

thebarber · 10-28-2009, 03:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MUSKOKA800

Yes, very tempting.
I'm shopping stateside for Michelin X-Ice. Tires are sooooooooooo much cheaper south of the 49th. Michelin and Goodyear warranties are NA wide.

Bridgestone's isn't.

true.

im ok for winters right now, but im going to need summers on the aveo next year....going to make a trip to visit the sister-in-law in MI as well as discount tire direct, lol

but id like to bump it up to 15's on the aveo for next year....something funky like red w/ a deep dish

firemachine69 · 10-28-2009, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thebarber

goodyear nordics = win

$79.99CAD for 175-70-14 right now

That's an odd size... Stock tire size is 175-65-14 for a fourteen inch'er.

And the Dunlop Graspic DS are GREAT tires. Love mine!

bwong2 · 10-29-2009, 04:36 AM

there's a $70 mail-in rebate on a set of michelin x-ice at tirerack going on right now if anyone's interested.

http://www.tirerack.com/specialoffer...p?promoID=M937

thebarber · 10-29-2009, 06:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by firemachine69

That's an odd size... Stock tire size is 175-65-14 for a fourteen inch'er.

And the Dunlop Graspic DS are GREAT tires. Love mine!

odd size, sure....but cheaper than 175-65-14

and personally, i find my speedo less fubar'd at the closer-to-185-60-15 rolling diameter....

minicorolla · 10-29-2009, 08:47 PM

I put 4 GeneralAltimax Arctic with studs on last winter. Drove through 12" of snow with snow plowing over my hood, had trouble seeing but the car kept on going. No problems driving in ice storms and black ice while looking at about 30+ cars and trucks piled up along the interstate. I like the studs, never tried the other studless ice tires yet. Downside bad gas mileage. Went from 43 to 38 in the winter some must be from the winter gas. I drive through the snow belt south of Lake Erie with about 120" of snow a year. Putting them back on soon. My 2 cents.

10-23-2009, 01:21 PM	#1
RacerFreakXXX JDM Fred View User's Garage Drives: 06 Mazda Miata Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Somers NY Posts: 787	Studed vs Studless Snow Tires What's better for the New Egland winter, studed snow tires or studless snow/ice tires? Where I live they don't plow till it's done snowing so I will get a foot of snow sometimes I have to drive through and then sometimes I'm on cleared highway roads. I want a tire that will last me 2-3 winters/years.

10-23-2009, 01:42 PM	#3
thebarber daily driver View User's Garage Drives: the #wrecho Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 5,877	i had studless the entire time i lived out east (think northeast of maine) and never had a problem w/ the aveo or the yaris getting stuck in or out of town __________________

10-23-2009, 03:15 PM	#5
thebarber daily driver View User's Garage Drives: the #wrecho Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 5,877	what size are you looking? honestly, go for cheap....anything you buy is going to be 100x better than all seasons firestone winterforce look good in just about any size on tirerack __________________

10-27-2009, 03:20 AM	#7
WolfWings View User's Garage Drives: Silver 2007 3Dr - Gryph Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Kansas City, MO, USA Posts: 310	Modern Studless tire compounds outperform studded tires in all driving circumstances on modern vehicles. And also, Studded tires will likely lose most of their studs in a season of driving on actual asphalt. Modern studless tire compounds actually stick to ice, and are almost as soft as some racing tires when warm, so they're still reasonably soft even when extra-frozen-cold in winter use. The ONLY time studded tires are better is when your wheels are locked up from panic-braking without ABS, or in a similair 'sliding across the ice' situation. Don't waste your time with studded tires, get studless tires. And as long as you do as mentioned, buy your winter tires on seperate wheels, and change back to normal three/all-season/summer tires when it gets dry and warm again promptly, your winter tires will easilly last 3 seasons before wearing through the ice-sticky compound. I went with Blizzak WS60 XL tires myself, since I don't mind the ultra-stiff ride of the heavy-duty eXtra-Load tires personally. Reminds me the car is not driving on normal tires if nothing else. I'll throw in a vote of 'spend the most you can afford to' for one simple reason: You'll out-spend that by an order of magnitude just on gas for your car. Thousands of dollars in gas during the time you're worrying about $350 versus $400 for your set of tires. Spend the $400 to get the best you can. Ditto brakes and oil. Don't be penny wise but pound foolish. __________________

10-27-2009, 01:13 PM	#10
thebarber daily driver View User's Garage Drives: the #wrecho Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 5,877	goodyear nordics = win $79.99CAD for 175-70-14 right now __________________

10-23-2009, 01:37 PM	#2
schleppy I love momentum. View User's Garage Drives: 2009 Yaris LB, Red Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 587	I've lived in New England my whole life and I have never been in a situation where I would NEED studded tires. I've always run regular snow tires. Studs are really only necessary if you're driving on completely unplowed or snow-packed/icy roads.

10-23-2009, 02:54 PM	#4
RacerFreakXXX JDM Fred View User's Garage Drives: 06 Mazda Miata Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Somers NY Posts: 787	now my next question is what do you guys think about Dunlop Graspic DS? I am trying to spend $80 or less per tire shipped.

10-23-2009, 03:33 PM	#6
RacerFreakXXX JDM Fred View User's Garage Drives: 06 Mazda Miata Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Somers NY Posts: 787	I'm actually looking at GeneralAltimax Arctic ... I can get them $66.50 w/o studs, I figured that's a great deal.

10-29-2009, 04:36 AM	#16
bwong2 View User's Garage Drives: 2009 Yaris Liftback S Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Champaign, IL Posts: 17	there's a $70 mail-in rebate on a set of michelin x-ice at tirerack going on right now if anyone's interested. http://www.tirerack.com/specialoffer...p?promoID=M937

10-29-2009, 08:47 PM	#18
minicorolla Drives: 2008 Sedan White Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Ohio Posts: 54	I put 4 GeneralAltimax Arctic with studs on last winter. Drove through 12" of snow with snow plowing over my hood, had trouble seeing but the car kept on going. No problems driving in ice storms and black ice while looking at about 30+ cars and trucks piled up along the interstate. I like the studs, never tried the other studless ice tires yet. Downside bad gas mileage. Went from 43 to 38 in the winter some must be from the winter gas. I drive through the snow belt south of Lake Erie with about 120" of snow a year. Putting them back on soon. My 2 cents.

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