09-24-2021, 10:05 PM | #1 |
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"Winter" tires for the PNW coast
Suggestions for the best tires to use on very wet roads, cold but not freezing? I doubt I'll be driving it much in freezing snow/ice conditions. But will be driving it plenty in Seattle, Portland, etc over the winter.
Many of the suggestions on the winter tire thread seem much more geared to snow. What about all seasons for winter? |
09-25-2021, 08:21 AM | #2 |
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All seasons are okay at everything and the best at nothing. Dedicated winters and summers are the way to go. I look for top rated tires on tire rack and revalidate that against professional reviews.
PS4S for summer. This is a little lesss obvious but Blizzaks for winter. M4 is not here yet so I will revisit then for the winter selection. The blizzaks cut through standing rain water like a hot knife through butter though. I usually briefly aquaplane on memorable problem spots of standing water with other tires. |
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m5eattle89.50 |
09-25-2021, 11:42 AM | #3 | |
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09-25-2021, 11:45 AM | #4 | ||
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09-25-2021, 05:00 PM | #5 |
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I ran the PA4's on my M2C for two seasons, but not on the coast (in the PDX Metro). They were stellar in cold rain, and flat out weird when the temps inevitably rose for a day or two. I ran the DWS06's last "winter"...not that it was much of a "winter" and they were very good for our weird weather. I would consider them again on my M3 if I can come up with what the heck to do wheel-wise.
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m5eattle89.50 |
09-26-2021, 06:13 PM | #6 |
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If you do go full winter tire, make sure you get a "performance winter" tire. Michelin PA5, Pirelli Sottozero 3, etc. Winter tires geared towards snow are sloppy and squishy and handle poorly in typical driving.
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09-27-2021, 09:13 AM | #7 | |
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///M TOWN13142.00 |
09-27-2021, 09:44 AM | #9 |
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Ok, but in support of the OP, a lot of those threads involve folk who think the weather in their area is the weather in our area. It's entirely reasonable to have a PNW-centric version of this thread as our weather is somewhat unique compared to the rest of the country.
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09-30-2021, 01:04 PM | #10 |
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I have a dedicated set of Blizzaks for my wife's GTI. They are an awesome winter tire. However, just like with everything in life, there's drawbacks.
The Good: Amazing in snow/slush. Adding Blizzaks even on a FWD car totally transforms it in the winter. I dare say it, it feels like my Grand Cherokee did in the snow. I didn't test it up giant unplowed now banks like I did my Jeep, so there's that caveat. And it is a relatively inexpensive tire. The Bad: I don't know if the sidewall is too stiff or too soft but it does (obviously) change the characteristics of the car. The car wont handle as well, will lean into corners more, and will have heavier steering. It also is louder. When switching over back to her regular wheels and tires, the car becomes alive again. The Ugly: I don't really see much of a drawback on winter tires or Blizzaks in general. I would keep a dedicated set of wheels and not swap out tires constantly.
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10-01-2021, 07:30 PM | #11 |
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G80: Just ordered some sottozero3 which are supposed to perform better in wet compared to blizzaks. Would rather have something that performs well in winter instead of just ok which is why I went winter instead of all season.
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10-27-2021, 03:10 PM | #12 |
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Personally I use Michelin A/S 3+ as a winter tire.
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10-28-2021, 12:50 AM | #13 |
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I ended up buying the PA5* tire + wheel assembly. Thankfully can get them quickly, too.
Got impatient sitting in two dealerships order bank. (Still no M3CX allocation, btw…) When a new and nicely optioned M5C popped up on Portland BMW's showroom floor, I bought it right away. Came with PS4S* and it's getting too cold for that rubber. |
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10-29-2021, 02:22 AM | #14 |
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I am running the new Michelin AS4 on the stock wheels. So far I am very impressed with the dry performance in the 55-60 we been having lately. Wet performance is amazing as well. I get plenty of grip in the wet and feel very confident. I won't be driving the in the snow so I will not have any input there but I can highly recommend these for the rain and temps we get here.
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jjhall7824.50 |
10-29-2021, 08:47 AM | #15 |
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Great to hear…I'm having them put on my g82x today. Any noticeable difference in ride quality from the stock summers (I have PZeros)?
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///MeraldCity_G821136.50 |
10-29-2021, 11:45 AM | #16 | |
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I would imagine a little more stiffer due to the harder compound, but not a huge amount to where I can feel it. |
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10-29-2021, 11:46 AM | #17 |
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And if anyone needs a good tire installer, I highly recommend Right Away Tire, they come to you for install anywhere. All you have to do is send them tires if you purchase online. They are very fast, take good care of your wheels, and no waiting for over an hour at places like Discount Tire, etc.
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jjhall7824.50 |
11-02-2021, 02:38 PM | #19 |
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I gave up on an actual Wheel Set for this year. I almost pulled the trigger on the 829M's this morning but they are so bloody heavy that I just couldn't bring myself to spend the money on them. I also really don't want to own 3 sets of wheels for one car (uh, again...) and I'm not sold on using my 826 Black wheels as my main summer tire (don't want to argue wheels, but I don't like them much...).
So, I'm having PS4 AS's put on my 826's on Friday to cover the Portland Metro chilly rain days and hopefully there will be more wheel choices in the Spring to pick up something else for summer. If nothing else comes available, I'll get one of the more spanky BMW summer wheel options. |
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11-03-2021, 09:52 AM | #20 |
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Yeah, I’ve decided I’m going to do the same and just swap tires. Hopefully some nicer options become available before the next winter. I am also in PDX.
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11-03-2021, 11:25 PM | #21 |
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Update to the Michelin AS4 tires with the crazy rain we had tonight. Drove from Federal Way to Bellevue tonight with a heavy downpour we haven't had in a while. Temperature was in the low 50's and happy to report that the car did really well in the rain(I have the RWD Comp).
If you have driven on the 405 north in the heavy rain, you know there are water channels in some stretches of the middle lane and huge puddles on the right lane. I went through all of them without any issues. No matter AWD, AS tires, you will hydroplane some but just don't ever brake in it and you will be fine. I have never felt any tire spin or felt like I would lose control and spin out. I am not sure how the PS4S or Pzero will handle in these lower temps... I was in eco mode the whole time on the way back driving anywhere from 55-65mph. Just don't drive like an idiot and you will be fine in this car! |
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///M TOWN13142.00 |
11-04-2021, 07:34 AM | #22 | |
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It's hard to be sure since I've also changed cars so frickin' often over the last 8 and a half years, but I am sure that once the P-Zero's are off my car, they aren't going back on unless I need to use them at lease turn-in (though at the moment, I'm planning on buying out the car at lease-end unless something changes). I'll post my thoughts on the PS AS4's after the weekend. |
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