Winter Tires

DanHoug · Post by **DanHoug** » Mon Sep 27, 2010 7:43 pm

snow is approaching in the hinterland... time to start talkin' tires.

my previous favorite INEXPENSIVE snow tire was the Winterforce.. put a total of 10 of them on various vehicles. they have an aggressive tread that works great when new in snow. but alas, they wear down fairly quickly, seem to cup easily, and aren't that great on ice as they don't have a hydrophillic compound tread nor siping to speak of.

i have a new INEXPENSIVE favorite... General Altimax Arctic. have 6 of these in service right now and just bought 8 more today. these have a very siped tread that while less aggressive than the Winterforce, has much better ice traction. they also are made of a softer, hydrophillic compound than the Winterforce. wear patterns are better than the Winterforce and are quieter.

4 185/65-14 for $307 total incl tax, disposal, mount balance, valve stems, etc. i keep my snow tires on all year round... lots of summertime mud, marginal roads, and back roading that merit grippy tires all year round.

-dan

Post by **Fatmobile** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 12:18 am

I have a pair of winterforce that I used on the front of my Rabbit last winter.
Haven't put enough miles on them to notice any cupping.
Great snow traction.

duffer · Post by **duffer** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 8:55 am

Fatmobile wrote:I have a pair of winterforce that I used on the front of my Rabbit last winter.
Haven't put enough miles on them to notice any cupping.
Great snow traction.

Yeah, but, like most other sensible people

, you probably aren't driving on snow tires "all year round" like Dan Houg.

As if diesels don't have enough noisy vibration, snow tires on tarmac is just masochistic.

DanHoug · Post by **DanHoug** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 9:06 am

hey, if i WASN'T masochistic, i wouldn't be driving a 52hp diesel with 330k miles on old fryer grease in arctic temperatures!

guilty as charged!! i'm a wacko. me thinks i not be alone.

-dan

UB3RATL4Sf00 · Post by **UB3RATL4Sf00** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 9:10 am

DanHoug wrote:hey, if i WASN'T masochistic, i wouldn't be driving a 52hp diesel with 330k miles on old fryer grease in arctic temperatures!

guilty as charged!! i'm a wacko. me thinks i not be alone.

-dan

Its okay, we're all mad here

82vdub · Post by **82vdub** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 9:32 am

UB3RATL4Sf00 wrote:Its okay, we're all mad here

Some are even mad as hell

VWCaddy · Post by **VWCaddy** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 10:22 am

I used to run a set of Kleber snow tires on my old Rabbit and diesel pickup. They had the hydrophilic rubber and they were a 145-80R13 size. They were awesome on icy roads. Recall one time my passenger commented the roads looked slick but we didn't seem to be sliding around at all. Some time later we pulled over for some reason and when I stepped out I almost fell, you could barely stand it was so slippery.

Had to finally retire those when the rubber cracked and the belts started separating under the tread.

bscutt · Post by **bscutt** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 11:41 am

I put the General Altimax all season tires on the 82 Rabbit last fall and after the 2-foot snowfall this February I found I could get around in the 6 inch deep snow (after they "plowed") amazingly well. They also handle well and aren't noisy. I liked them so much I put a set on the 06 Jetta after 50K on the continentals made them borderline. Also great on the TDI Jetta, quieter than the Continentals, but they do seem to have a little more rolling resistance. Not too concerned about that I still get 42mpg at 75 mph with the A/C on. Anyway so far they are great in snow, dry pavement, and rain

DanHoug · Post by **DanHoug** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 11:48 am

hi Bob-
do you remember which Altimax you put on? the Arctic, RT, HP etc.

-dan

bscutt · Post by **bscutt** » Tue Sep 28, 2010 5:03 pm

Altimax RT (had to go look)

DanHoug · Post by **DanHoug** » Wed Sep 29, 2010 8:45 pm

just a note on sizes for a 91 Jetta... i had 185/70R14 Winterforce on the car and they would rub the fender well on sharp turns. speedo ran about 3mph fast at 60. the fenderwells would also pack tightly with snow under certain conditions so that the tire rubbed.

put 185/65R14 Arctics on and no fender rubbing. speedo dead on according to GPS.

standard OEM size for the Jetta is 185/60R14 or 185/70R13.

-dan

vwtyp133 · Post by **vwtyp133** » Sun Oct 03, 2010 7:42 pm

Used Dunlop Graspics/VW Scirocco rims on my '79 VW Dasher diesel for 3 winters of driving in SoCal mountains and PNW snow & icy stuff for skiing, winter camping trips, etc. Always carried chains too, but never used them & never got stuck. Easy tire to live with when it's dry also. Dunlop is now into "Graspic 3"; can't imagine it wouldn't be at least as good. Price still seems reasonable.

J.R.
SoCal