Is there a noticeable difference between the H rated and V rated 3D's? I wasn't really planning on exceeding 130MPH on my snows.

I thought the noticeable difference was that there are no sizes available in one of the speed ratings?

Also, keep in mind when comparing the Contis and the Wintersports. The Contis are *not* "performance winter tires". You can't compare their TireRack ratings to each other directly. It'd be like saying the 1st rated all-season tires handles better than the 2nd best competition tire at autocross. Best in class != best overall. IMO, the Wintersports should be *tons* better in the dry than the Continentals, as they're a whole class up from the "studless ice & snow" class.

Then again, I've never run on the Contis... maybe they're not classed properly.

H and V are both available in 205/55/16.

I hear ya with the two different classes. I just think it might be more awesome to have more awesome ice and snow grip. But mostly it's the significant cost difference.

Are you an Ice Road Trucker? Just get the cheaper ones and quit being such a pansy.

I am an ice road trucker. Are you a Rest Stop Hooker?

Sleeper sluts FTW !

No wonder you have to sell the STi.

:liljon:

What size are you looking at these in for $254?

205/55/16 are $388-$50=$338

Apparently I was looking at 205/60/15. :picard:

Looks like you have the pricing right. Damn, I was pretty set on them for $254. :unamused:

So, who's going to TireRack today to pick up some tires for me?

During the Summer, Mr. Hubcap told me that they can get tires delivered from Tirerack for free and only charge $50 for mounting etc. I think they said you can still get the mail in rebates, etc. Seems like an amazing deal. Tell them you know Alex.

I'd rather spend $60 at KSpeed for mounting and support my local Subaru shop.

Hey Matt, you need to get TireRack to deliver to the shop!

Me too! Hook it up, Matt! :)

Left Footed Whooten gave a very good review of the General Altimax Arctic (maybe the same tire you indicated above?) for his use in Truckee. He said they wear very well and do great, even without studs, which is what the Tire Rack test and surveys indicated as well. Additionally, no other tire has such a high "would buy again" result on the Winter Tire survey results. And they're one of the least expensive, currently 344-25=$319 in my size.

I know they'll be overkill for this area, but I do have 3 sets of rims and 3 sets of tires...makes sense for my winter set to be fairly hardcore...

They do. They hire this kewl lil ma-n-pa company called UPS to deliver them.

So, um... how does that get tires on my car by end of day today so I can take the Outback down to Sacramento tomorrow? :(

Yah Matt, make a run. You can grab two sets of tires (for my and Amanda's cars too)...and install them next week.

Update on my ContiExtremeContacts: the dry traction is not very good. I got cut off getting on the freeway and couldn't stop. Luckily, the shoulder was empty, so I didn't get in an accident. Somehow, my headlights, blaring horn, and squealing tires weren't enough of an indicator that someone was in that lane, so she (of course it was a she :rolleyes:) just kept on going. Needed to vent, sorry.

FWIW, these winter Contis are the first ones I've EVER heard good reviews for. :lol:

I hate to read that, but I think I'm still going to have to go for them for Amanda's car. She needs good Winter traction in an all season tire and they are rated the absolute best AS for that, and they're still rated really well for dry traction.

For example, see "dry braking with ABS" here: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=124

And they actually have "Superior" "dry traction" as per the survey results, here: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/survey...jsp?type=UHPAS

And they have "very good" dry braking and dry handling in the CR test results.

But I'm sure the good snow traction is going to trade off some of the dry traction for sure. They're probably like the 3D in that they're really a hybrid between a true Winter tire and an AS tire...you can't get away from trade offs, but you can choose the best tire for the job.

I think Rob was referring to a different Continental tire.

So Carrie demonstrated the dry traction of the Conti EC DWS yesterday :lol:

She was handling on ramps and corners like we were on StarSpecs...While they make a little noise when pushed, they grip like no other All Season I've driven on. You definitely know when you're approaching the limit, and I'd say the limit is well beyond anywhere you'd want to be on a public street. I have to support the tire rack review, I think they're quite good in the dry.

Sweet. :cool:

I know my navigator loves his All season contis for dry grip , and they just rule for rallyX other than their soft sidewall + his habit of going full sideways into big ruts = debeads... but he could debead a rally tire set to 50 psi ... he's gifted...

and ya i misspelled the studded tires i was on. General Altimax Arctic perfect for ice road truckers who can't afford to give up any traction so they can get to the rest stop with all the sleepless hookers first. :) you don't want sloppy ice road trucker 2nds... :P haha

^ :lol:

I stopped at a rest stop with my GF and our dog yesterday, and didn't remember this thread until I saw a sign that said, "No soliciting." I couldn't stop giggling but thought better of it before explaining the "joke" to Amanda. Anyone else always regret it when you start explaining something "funny" from an internet forum to your SO? Maybe it's just me.

Haven't yet, but eventually I'm sure that I'll make that same mistake.

Lisa: "something something, reminding me of an internet joke"
Me: "heheh"
Lisa: "what's so funny?"
Me: "internet joke"
Lisa: :rolleyes:

^ Haha, I'll take that as a yes. :lol:

Been there too. :lol:

MattR was being nice - he could have gone OG trucker and dropped the "Lot Lizard" bomb.

I just picked up some of the Pirelli Sotozero 210 Serie II. No rating yet on TireRack (but the original Sotozero 210 had high marks), and it was actually the cheapest of all of the "Performance" winter tires in my size (215/45/17).

I thought about the Arctic Climax (or whatever) too, but I've never owned a set of Pirelli's before.

I considered those. This is a quote of me from the Nasioc thread Kevin W. linked on page 2:

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...0#post32049504

Yup, and CR is probably a bit more professional, versus the 'anything goes' TireRack survey.

Regardless, Italian tires are far more sexy. And in the end, isn't that what matters most?

You're not wrong.

And anything on the performance list really isn't that bad. The top score is 76, the lowest is 70. The Pirelli's are definitely in the lower half at 72, but the spread of points isn't that terrible. And still, it seems they are weak in braking and noise, but otherwise on par with the other tires.

When the tires were compared against the non-"performance" tires well, the X-Ice high score seemed a bit skewed, especially if they thought the dry-braking, wet-braking, handling and hydroplaning were sub-par. The Michelin PA3 looks the "best" all around tire (as in, average or above average in everything, no real weaknesses), but despite the CR price listing, the Pirelli's were nearly $100 cheaper for 4 in 215/45/17 at TireRack.

Also, I could have saved $75 bucks by going with the Maxi Archeopteryx, but the Pirelli's were eligible for a $50 rebate card this weekend (doesn't seem like they are eligible anymore) and the General tires were only a $25 rebate card IIRC. Still, would have been cheaper for the General tires, but not that much, and I have heard good things about the longevity of the Pirelli's.

Yah, I'm sure they'll be perfectly fine. On the 10th, all of the American Express gift card offers expired. I'm hoping something else pops up before the first snow.

oh the General Artic maxes er what ever... (studded) are AMAZING on dirt. not that its why you are buying them.. but holy cow they probably rival the grip of most rally tires. course they would pop or get cut on the harsher roads but maybe i should get a set of them for rally Idaho ..

boot yarr, studded tires for winter are AMAZING. cody i think you're way better off with studded tires for your car, esp since you trade cars on bad days with your GF. you can feel their lack of dry grip a bit , hard hard corners or heavy braking but if you are driving in a safe responsible manor they are just fine.

Its like you are trading 15% of your dry grip for a 50% boost on icey / packed snow conditions. They don't help any over a non studded in deep slush though. all you can do in deep slush is just slow the F down, and then slow down some more. :) unless you like having body work done to your car. hahaha

I was tempted, but I'd be sacrificing dry grip, which I'm on 95% of the time. So I think my safest bet is still a performance winter, probably 3D's again.

I just figure when conditions are at their worst i want the best possible grip i can get.

when conditions are at their best , anything round and rubbery should do. (for commuting)

Boot, do what you feel is teh bestest :P

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=123

Studded versus non studded... :O Ice braking 34.2% increase Dry road braking 5.2% decrease.

Think i'll be going general altimax artic, Studded again. Icy roads + tourists & donkeys = OH SHIT!!! hahaha

I'm just not sure if i want to do a 215/55/17 again .7" increase to sidewall (and ride height) ... on the STI since its kinda low for tahoe snow this was really nice last year...

set of 4 studded : $500
Installation $40
Pulling out a stuck SUV from the snow berm @ sierra = PRICELESS hahahaha

The only problem with that philosophy is that if you're buying tires for say 5% of the time, 95% of the time you're at greater risk of a wreck than you need to be. Imagine needing to panic stop on the freeway and coming up 1 ft short and into someone's bumper. Seems far more likely to happen than having a little bit more ice traction on the 1 or 2 days it's really scary out will save you from damage.

Plus, all that dry use on those snow tires means you may wear 'em out before you even use them to their advantage in the snow.

That was my thinking. So, par for the course, I overanalyzed it to death and decided the conventional wisdom (studdable/studless for Tahoe, Performance Winter if you live in Reno) was best.

I actually bought my first set of new tires in 7 years this season, some Yokohama AVID ENVigors in 205/55/16 for the Legacy kiddie wagon.

I'm gonna put Cody's old ones on the backup wagon, and I have some other performance all-seasons (I forget which) stashed in the garage for the SS.

So Im thinking of getting the Michelin X-ice XI2 in a 215 or a 225/45/18 on the Prodrives for the sti.. any thought's about that? Any experience with these tires? Help for a n00b?

Google up a tire calculator. Enter your OEM tire size and then the size you're considering running. Try to keep the outside diameter (OD) within a few percent. If you're lowered, I'd go with the wider size so you're less likely to high center or damage your rims and you'll have better traction everywhere but in deep snow, but even in deep snow, if you're lowered, you don't want to dig down too deep so wider is still better IMO.

That tire gets rave reviews. Go for it.

Wait... I just realized 225 is gonna be a stretch on a 18x8.5 wheel... Or do you think it'd be ok?

It's doable, but I'd stick with 245 or 255 for reasons I already stated. Have you considered some steelies for wheels instead? Get a price quote from TR anyway. You might actually spend similar money on a wheel/tire package as you would on tires alone for those massive 18's.

well I looked at a 245 but they were out of stock. I'll check 255

I have 235's on my 18x8.5. They seem perfect to me but there is definitely a size difference between brands of tire.

so if I did a 235, then what would be the full spec of the tire.. cuz I know a 235/45/18 would be super tall.. would I go down to a 40?