Do I need to get all weather tires? (Milwaukee, Winter: live in, move)

[northnut]

Originally Posted by SamirD

I know what you mean! I kinda feel better now hearing how a veteran of the area slid too in that mess. So it wasn't just me.

I didn't see plows until in the evening. At 9pm, our main street which I can see from my window was still not plowed, and then around 10pm it magically was. This morning, everything was plowed.

I noticed a lot of people shoveling their sidewalks almost immediately after the snow fell. And forgive me for my ignorance, but what makes walking so difficult in the winter besides the ice and danger of slipping and falling? I thought maybe walking would be a nice alternative to driving when it gets really bad, but maybe not.

I hardly ever drive even though I have a car. I live close to where I work downtown so I just walk or bus it every day. Walking in the winter sucks because there are a lot of people who don't shovel their walks so it just compacts into ice that is staying there until spring. I don't know, my body is constantly tense while walking in the winter because of the probability of slipping or falling what with the ever present snow/ice.

[HyperionGap]

My girlfriend's mom slipped on the ice this weekend (in Dallas) broke her dominant arm & dislocated her shoulder. Be careful.

Got my new tires (Continental Contact DWS) on Saturday. They are way better than the stock ones.

[SamirD]

Originally Posted by northnut

Walking in the winter sucks because there are a lot of people who don't shovel their walks so it just compacts into ice that is staying there until spring. I don't know, my body is constantly tense while walking in the winter because of the probability of slipping or falling what with the ever present snow/ice.

Ah yes, that would be horrible. And what's interesting is that suddenly I got flashbacks to having to deal with that when I was younger and growing up in Michigan. People's footprints that iced over really make it hard to get proper traction.

Originally Posted by HyperionGap

My girlfriend's mom slipped on the ice this weekend (in Dallas) broke her dominant arm & dislocated her shoulder. Be careful.

Got my new tires (Continental Contact DWS) on Saturday. They are way better than the stock ones.

Ouch!

I still have yet to get tires. I just now found out how to swap tires without dealing with a trip to the dealer for the tpms system.

[SamirD]

Get your snow tires ready for another fun weekend sliding around almost hitting cars. I'm staying in until I have proper tires mounted.

[sholomar]

Good year eagle GT all seasons work great in the snow for me. Around here people are generally too careful with driving though where they get off guard are the people in the 4WD trucks thinking they are invincible and finding out they are not, which happens most on the interstates where it's predominantly 4WD trucks you see that slid off the interstate into the median (center area) usually while trying to pass slower drivers in a passing lane that is covered in snow. BUT drivers can be stupidly slow, going 30mph on the interstates out here, so I can understand their need to pass.

[SamirD]

I've seen all sorts of nonsense in just regular cars, especially rwd ones. The parking lot at my wife's work had all sorts of freshly damaged cars from the first snow, and even the most recent one.

I'm actually more worried about being hit by someone else than getting myself in trouble. In fact, the only thing I'm worried about is getting hit by someone else because I can't get out of the way. The snow setup should solve that.

[SamirD]

A really highly rated and quite inexpensive snow tire is the General Altimax Arctic. It's so good that the local ice-racers use them.

The only drawback to them is their speed rating, so you can't use them all year round or go 100mph. But if you've got the ability to speed like that, you don't need them.

[mizzou65201]

I used good all-seasons until last winter, when I got a set of Michelin X-Ice XI3 winter tires.

I'm never going back to using "regular" tires between December and March. Huge difference in handling and maneuverability. If I had a short commute I could see not spending the money, but anything involving cross-town driving or driving between multiple locations...no way.

[SamirD]

Originally Posted by mizzou65201

I used good all-seasons until last winter, when I got a set of Michelin X-Ice XI3 winter tires.

I'm never going back to using "regular" tires between December and March. Huge difference in handling and maneuverability. If I had a short commute I could see not spending the money, but anything involving cross-town driving or driving between multiple locations...no way.

I just mounted our snow set to the car this weekend and it's a HUGE difference. I went from being scared to drive in snow to actually enjoying it.

It's foolish not to invest in a set of winter tires, even for a short commute. If your deductible is $500 or $1000, the first time you save yourself from an accident they just paid for themselves. I can't believe how many people just expose themselves to this liability. I saw two parked cars smashed on my short morning commute--I bet the drivers weren't on snow tires.

It's amazing how many hit and runs happen in this city. If I was parking on the street, I'd be investing in a dashcam like the Russians do to get the license plates for prosecution.

[HyperionGap]

I think I saw a dozen cars on the side of the road on the way to work this morning. It was pretty wild.