WI: snow tires for a Jetta GLI

Greetings, group.

I have recently moved from Atlanta, GA to New Hampshire. Big weather change for me. I drive a 2004 Jetta GLI VR6. It has 25k miles on it and I'm finishing off the original tires now. They don't particular handle well in the snow (got to try that out for the first time on Thanksgiving).

Looking for suggestions from people that live in similar climates with similar cars. What do you do for snow tires? One suggestion I received was to get a set of cheap 15" wheels and keep the snow tires mounted on that. Swap them out and store my regular 17" alloy wheels and non snow tires for the winter. I'm ok with that, but I have no idea what to look for in a snow tire.

If anyone has some suggestions, do tell.

Reply to
David Cantrell
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I live in Ohio. I'm retired now, but when I was working my one-way commute was 30 miles on freeways. Our winter climate in this area ranges from rain to freezing rain to ice storms to snow to deep snow. With all of that the tires for my cars have been the same year-round, just good quality tires (not studded) with good tread - and I've never been stuck. Of course, in blizzards I don't drive, but they are rare around here. The last one was in the 1970s.

The secret to winter driving is not tire type. Rather, it is to allow yourself plenty of time, slow down as road conditions worsen, pay close attention to traffic volume, and turn off your cellphone.

Reply to
Papa

snipped-for-privacy@burdell.org (David Cantrell) wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@kevlar.burdell.org:

I'll second the advice for permanently mounting your snows on steel wheels and just swapping them twice a year.

I'm using 4 Michelin Arctic Alpins on my '02 Passat wagon and am happy with them. They work well in deep snow but are also OK on dry pavement and aren't terribly noisy.

If I wanted to spend more money and get a "better" tire, I'd go with the Nokian Hakkapeliitta. Some years ago I used Vredestein NordFrost and they worked very well, but I haven't seen them for sale around here recentely.

Reply to
Bert Hyman

I used Nokian Hakka for a while, great stuff. I am now on Pirelli winter carving, great too. For anything but occasional very light snow you _do_ need winter tires. Cheap steel wheels are good and cheaper than swapping tires 2ce a year.

Reply to
Hans

I used to think the same thing - that a decent set of all seasons was all you need. But then I got a set of good snow tires. I'd never consider going without snow tires any more. The difference not only in snow, but also on ice (like freezing rain) is profound.

People seem to think snow tires are so you can get somewhere without getting stuck. What snow tires do best isn't "going" but "stopping" and "control". The real issue is not sliding through the intersection when you hit a patch of ice, not losing control on a curve and ending up in the ditch, upside down, or wrapped around a tree...

Reply to
Al Rudderham

Pop, I've got to disagree with you on the tire-type comment. Tires are the single most important part of winter driving (assuming you are a reasonably competent driver, and not distracted be cell phones, etc. -- which applies year-'round). My own feeling, based on 30 years of driving in Wisconsin, is that four-wheel-drive is not the secret to winter driving, good snow tires are. A front-wheel-drive car with a good set of snow tires is every bit the equal of any so-called "SUV" in the snow, probably better, because they're lighter and will stop more quickly. Starting traction is not the issue in winter driving, it's cornering and stopping. Every winter, we see these dingbats tearing through town at 40 mph in their SUVs, because they think they're kings of the winter driving world -- and then they have to stop quickly, and learn the hard way that four-wheel-drive doesn't do squat for braking, and that a 5000-pound vehicle won't stop as quickly as a 3000-pound vehicle. The vast majority of winter accidents around here are caused by excessive speed, and sliding wide on turns or being unable to stop. It is exceedingly rare to find any kind of vehicle that's stuck because of a lack of starting traction, which is the only situation in which four-wheel-drive is a real advantage.

Reply to
Brian Running

Snow tires certainly provide better traction, and I agree that a safe driver is even safer with them. On the other hand, far too many drivers install snow tires on their cars, then throw caution to the winds. I see (or read about) local accidents every winter, and many of them involve 4-wheel drive vehicles and vehicles with snow tires. I have had some close calls because of other drivers speeding past a whole line of cars on snowy roads - slewing back and forth as they pass and blinding other drivers with the snow thrown from their tires.

Reply to
Papa

Using 15" steels and saving yourself the hassel of paying the more expensive prices for 17" winter tires and having to mount/unmount (this damages your rim each time... tire guys always seem to make marks on my alloys no matter how good the shop is) each season is the best idea. Get some 195/65 R15, H rated snow tires for that Jetta and you'll be good to go... Then use your

205 or 225 width R17 summer tires in the spring-fall seasons.
Reply to
Rob Guenther

Any snow tire will be superior to an all-season on snow and ice.

If you are looking high end Nokian RSI, Goodyear Ultra Grip, or Bridgestone Blizzaks are all good.

Low end Kuhmo, Hankook, etc.

For sizing consult

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. Youenter your existing tire size and then your size with a 15 rim and figureout what the right size would be. DC

Reply to
David Cotie

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