sundance-communications.com Forums Member Forums Phone Booth Tires

How many of you, especially those in the northern states, have a different set of snow tires for your vehicles? I bought an '06 Durango last November and the tires were not very good in the snow. I was able to limp through the winter with a few hundred pounds of sandbags in the back. They worked just fine this summer but are getting really worn now and need to be replaced. I'm contemplating either getting a new set of "all-season" now and riding them till they give out or waiting a month or two and getting a set of snow tires, but then in the spring Ill have to get another set of "summer" tires. For safety reasons I'd love to have the two sets of tires, but I'd also like to have an extra $800+ in the bank too. Opinions?

I run different tires on the van for winter driving I use studded snow tires and summer treads the rest of the year. It cost extra up front but don't have to buy new tires as often and I don't get stuck. My 4x4 I use mud and snow year round.

We used to always have two sets of tires. No we run all season and they are just fine. I do know people who change tires to their winter sets. I'm just glad we don't need "chains" on our tires anymore. At least, not in the city.

Up here where I am in Canada I just use the all seasons on my 4x4 Dodge Dakota and don't seem to have a problem in winter. We deal with more snow than ice or sleet so that may make a difference to tire choice.

Down east in the Provence of Quebec they had legislation come out about two years ago that all vehicles have snow tires for the winter.

Maybe Moore tel (Dave) can jump in and let us know if the roads are any safer with everybody on snow tires.

One other thing for winter there is something called shurtrax that you can put in your p/u box to give weight and it won't shift like sandbags or concrete blocks. Fill it with water in the fall and drain it in the spring and roll it back up.

Something else that has started here in the last year or so for storage of tires, is some auto dealers and other repair shops offering "tire hotel" service.

For a fee they will take your summer tires off, put your winter ones on and store the set they took off.

In the summer they do the reverse.

I have two concerns:
a) I get MY tires next season and not some other set that happens to be my size
b) what happens to the tires if the shop goes bankrupt. How hard will it be to get them back from the landlord or receiver.

Not all vehicles need snow tires in Quebec. "LT" (Light Truck) tires, like I have on my van are still legal due to the tread design.

Traction? Depends on whether it's on ice or in snow. I carry a box of "Kitty Litter" which works great if you get stuck on ice and "Traction Aids". Between the two, I usually get out. If not it's CAA to the rescue.

Safer? I doubt it. Problems are more driver related.

here in the montreal area snow tires arent a huge necesscity, but we have to have em by law. I have on my ranger some good LT tires for the summer (the dealer threw in nice snow tires on rims so im not complaining) my grand prix i dont normally drive in winter but i store it on chinese snow tires. 50$ a tire and they are on rims. so i dont worry about flat spots and destroying them but if i need to get the car out in an emergency its legal. on my wifes car i bought store brand tires (canadian tire) with full road hazard, nothing like puncturing a sidewall on a 50% worn tire and getting a new one for 12$

I will say, ice tires are handy after freezing rain. As for safety, call me an old man (im only 33) i find ABS brakes on ice more a danger than anything else.

Same thing goes for wet roads! Always hated them and always will. May be great down down, but dangerous up here. I think they were designed for idiots that never learned how to drive in the 1st place IMHO.

well i have a friend who said when i bought my truck "rear wheel drive, thats so dangerous, they shouldnt be on the road" im sorry if more people in quebec learned to drive a rear drive we would have less winter accidents. this is the same guy that wont drive his car if the traction control isnt working. he said to me "my traction control wasnt working and i nearly ended up in the ditch" i learned to drive in a 1989 ford aerostar with shot rear brakes no abs, no traction control and let me tell you never had an accident (only accident with a claim i ever had was because my foot slipped off the brake ahd hit the gas at a stoplight when a bee flew int he car, yes im stupid)

we are comming to rely on all these "toys" in our cars and not focusing on the driving. cars that park themselves? oh noes when this breaks what will we do, auto on headlights... learn to drive.

i have little patience for these things, that being said, im not a technophobe, i love OBD2 being able to scan my car, get the real time gas mileage, intake air temp and all sorts of things on my scanner. OBD2 doesnt make us lazy drivers.

Thanks for your opinions. I think for now I'm just gonna get a good set of all seasons, then come winter when there is snow on the ground, if I feel that they aren't cutting it, will spring for a set of snow tires. My truck now is rear wheel drive, same with the truck before that, and the truck before that so I am familiar with that aspect. I have only been in one accident with me behind the wheel. Its not my driving that I'm worried about.