Best snow tires? (Seward: shop, company, market)

[starlite9]

Originally Posted by gandalfthewite

It seems to me the topic kinda wandered there.
I really want to get some new winter tires, but I'm not wanting to jump onto the blizzak bandwagon. For one, the price, and for another, because I work for my friend on Moose Mt (outside Fairbanks), I'm guessing the gravel road would chew up those soft tires in one winter flat!

So I headed down to Walmart and saw the Pacemark Snowtracker for sale. They seem minimally sipped. I saw some reviews online which were favorable, but I have the sneaking suspicion that this is the kind of tire that turns into a solid lump of hard plastic at -20 so that you can't even drive up a 2% grade on packed snow. My current winter tires do precisely this and I am sick of having absolutely no traction on my boss's driveway.

So can anyone alleviate/confirm these suspicions?

Also I want to get another set of rims for these tires and I'm wondering if a more narrow tire p175 would be better in the snow than a p185. Generally this is the advice, but since we almost never have slushy snow, I'm not sure that this holds true for our dry snows.

I haven't checked yet what else is available in town, but I seem to find positive feedback online for the CT Goodyear Nordics and Nokian Hakkapeliitas....but once again these are for considerably warmer climates.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

I have the Blizzak's on my wife's car and she puts a lot of miles on them and the gravel doesn't seem to bother them at all, the high mileage is what is killing them and about three winters of use... But they are a very good tire and you won't be disapointed in them at all.

I put Toyo's on my truck for the first time this year, they are siped and have "Walnut" shells in the rubber makeup for cold weather traction (so I am told), this is the first year I haven't used studs so I will see how they do.

[DannyL]

has anyone here ever tried ***'s on their boots? when your car's snowed in , they work fine.
Been there, had to do that....

[starlite9]

Originally Posted by DannyL

has anyone here ever tried ***'s on their boots? when your car's snowed in , they work fine.
Been there, had to do that....

No, had to use "Trapper" Snow Shoes now and then... Just not lately, been too cold to snow much this last few years....

[stanman13]

Here in MI the Bridgestone A/T's are very popular. They seem to do quite well in snow. They are extensively siped. I've used Maxxis Buckshot Mudders which I had siped, with good results. Unfortunately, chains and studs are illegal here, which makes the siping that much more important.

As has been said, driving technique is more important than specific tires.

Also, having tires siped at the dealer may void the factory warranty. Which may explain some dealer's reluctance to do it.

[siobhandem]

I don't have any experience driving in snow. I am considering moving up there soon. What should I look out for as a new driver in snowy weather?

[JavaPhil]

Other crazy drivers. Seriously. Drive slowly and no quick moves (as in turns or braking)

[Marty Van Diest]

Originally Posted by siobhandem

I don't have any experience driving in snow. I am considering moving up there soon. What should I look out for as a new driver in snowy weather?

Slides
You have to be able to recover from a slide. That is when you go around a corner too fast and the rear, or both the rear and the front tires start to slide. Most inexperience drivers just hit the brakes at that point and end up either in the ditch or smashed into another vehicle.

What you should do is NOT hit the brakes but turn the front tires toward the direction of the slide until your recover. By that time hopefully you haven't yet gone into the ditch or hit someone and have slowed enought to continue to make the turn.

Of course its much better to not have slid in the first place, you keep from sliding by driving slower. But almost everyone will eventually slide.

Spinning Tires
Every winter I see people stuck and just spinning their tires trying to get out. Most new snow drivers seem to think that if they spin their tires faster they will have a better chance to get unstuck.

Just the opposite...when you are stuck, you want to try to keep a grip on the surface and not spin. So you completely let off of the gas until your tires stop spinning. Sometimes it is so slick that the tires will spin without your foot on the gas at all in which case you have to put your foot on the brakes to stop spinning.

Then very, very slowly let your foot off the brake, or apply power. You want to move the tires so slowly that you don't break the traction. Every winter I help people get unstuck not by pushing their car out but by asking to get into their drivers seat. Then I just drive it right out from the spot they have been spinning in forever.

Those are just two lessons. There is a lot more to learn about winter driving.

The biggest lesson is to DRIVE SLOWER.

[stanman13]

When the roads are slick, do everything slow and easy. No sudden anything. Ease on the throttle, ease on the brake, ease into turns. This generally means leaving yourself more room than you would for summer driving.

If you're starting to slide you want to keep the throttle neutral, that is, not on power and not creating throttle braking. I don't recommend shifting an auto trans into neutral, but if you drive a stick, push in the clutch. This helps the tires to regain traction, as Marty Van Diest described.

I am also amazed at the number of supposedly seasoned winter drivers who seem to forget how it works for the first several weeks each winter.

[Glitch]

Originally Posted by siobhandem

I don't have any experience driving in snow. I am considering moving up there soon. What should I look out for as a new driver in snowy weather?

Don't pay any attention to those trying to spoil your winter fun by telling you to drive slowly. You should definitely accelerate as quickly as you can in order to melt the ice at intersections, and tail-gate the vehicle in front of you in order to cut down on wind drag and improve your gas mileage. Also, waiting until the last second before slamming on the brakes helps keep the roads ice-free and adds a little excitement to the lives of those in the vehicle in front of you.

When your windshield freezes up with frozen rain, don't reduce your speed, just flip on your bright lights and honk your horn every 3 seconds. Alaskan drivers are very good at getting out of the way, and you can use your horn as an echo-location system in conjunction with the washboard-pavement on either side of the road shoulder in order to determine where the road is located. I call this the "Braille Driving Method".

Text messaging is also encouraged while driving 70mph on the Glenn Highway during the winter. Let people know what kind of conditions you're experience as you drive, send them a helpful text message.











Or, you could just sign up for a Winter Driving course at one of the following:

AA Driver's Ed - Winter Driving Course (http://www.aadriversed.com/Winter%20Driving%20Course.htm - broken link)
Anchorage Driver Training - Driver Training Courses, Driver Education (http://www.training-drivers.com/homepage1/ - broken link)
Alaska Defensive Driving (http://www.alaska-defensivedriving.com/ppc/?COUPON=EDGOAKDD - broken link)

[siobhandem]

Thanks all for your responses. I read them carefully. Glitch, I might take a Winter Driving course, but I won't do the first part of your response.