Its been real fun (if not a little noisy) this summer riding the Potenzas, but the ice and snow are coming to the New York area, and my slicks are about spent.
Someone recommended PZero Nero's, but I read some mixed reviews on them at TireRack (some seemed concerned about it actually being very good in the snow...)
This area is not Canada or Alaska, but the mix of conditions varies from year to year.
Any recommendations for a "spirited" driver (who else buys an STi anyway....)?
I replaced the original Yokohama's on my Evo with these Michelins & have been very pleased:
I *do* live in Canada, but Toronto's climate is pretty much like New York's. Last year I put Nokian WR's on my STi, and pretty much like them. They are rated for 100k km. The ride is a little quieter and a little softer, and they are great fun in snowy parking lots! My only complaint is that they get a little squirrelly during hard cornering on dry pavement, at least compared to the Potenzas, and that is to be expected.
If you do much winter driving in remote areas, then the Hakkas are probably better, but anyplace where salt and plows are present, like a city and environs, the WR has the advantage.
HTH, ...Ron
Seems like you're gonna get a bunch of different responses to this one. I'll chime in, anyway.
I live in western NY, just south of Buffalo, I used to live in NYC and Fredonia, so that covers about all the microclimates in NY State. I have driven many different snows over the years but I keep coming back to Blizzak WS-50's. They make the snow melt, or so it seems. About the only time I slide is when I want to or on glare ice. There's a perfect size to fit my STi (05) and I assume yours as well :)
I just saw an add for a new Blizzak which adds the silicon filler feature which might help a bit in ice. I wish I remembered Bridgstone's number, but I did notice there was a 225/45-17 size listed.
Do you live in NYC or upstate?
2pMan, do I have to add some comment :)
I grew up in NYC and now live just south of Buffalo. I've been here about 25 years and I often fly out of Toronto on business. Last year I landed at Toronto about 6pm in the middle of a raging blizzard. Not a hotel anywhere near the madhouse, ahhh, airport. So, off I was on my quest south. 20 below, 50KM winds and a solid 1/2m snow on the highway. No big deal, but I witnessed two fender benders on the QEW right in front of my eyes! What joy! Even my Tracker was less than fully confidence inspiring at anything over 30Km/h
20 years in Manhattan, I had never once saw anything remotely that bad!In NYC 5" of snow shuts the city down completely. People know better than to go outside. In western NY 1m of snow doesn't allow me to be late to the office.
No, Toronto's climate is nothing like balmy, temperate NYC. I can see people using all-season tires in NYC, but there's no excuse for not having full snows in Toronto!
PS: In case anyone cares, I finally found a wonderful hotel about 25km out of Toronto. I almost froze to death walking from the parking lot to the lobby, but that bed was EXTRA comfy that night!
2p
In NYC, there's no place to PUT the snow.
A 5" blanket gets pretty big when plowed up against the sidewalk.
So you were in Toronto once during a raging blizzard? Well, how could I argue with that? You obviously know more about Toronto's climate than someone who grew up here! I'm glad you survived your experience here in the frozen tundra.
I've never been to NYC during a blizzard or any other time, but I find it hard to believe that there is a little pocket of temperate air that hovers over the city all winter and makes it different than the rest of the state. But what do I know? There does seem to be a lot of hot air that originates in Washington; maybe it drifts up to NYC?
My point was that the Nokian WR tires work well in Toronto, and have a long life (unlike most of the snow/ice tires) and work reasonable well on plowed roads too.
...Ron
Sorry, but I think you may have missed the point of the story. I've lived 25 years within 100 miles of Toronto and 20 years in NYC. All I was trying to say was that I'm pretty familiar with both climates. My wife always tells me that I like a good story and can loose my point in the telling of it.
PS: There IS a little pocket of temperate air around NYC. It's called the Atlantic Ocean and it serves quite nicely to moderate the climate in NYC. :)
I don't want to let anyone think I ever claimed there was anything wrong with your recommendation. I've never tried the Nokians. They may indeed be far better than the Blizzaks I run. I know full well Toronto's climate is extreme and well worth the best winter rubber you can buy.
Philip
Ron,
It's true. There climate is different just ten miles north of NYC. I grew up in NYC and live 15 miles west of it.
And ten miles north of NYC is still much warmer and less snowy than the Buffalo area, for sure.
I don't know much about Toronto weather, but I know a little about Buffalo. My wife grew up there. NYC gets much, much, much less snow than Buffalo. If Toronto's climate is similar to Buffalo's (is it?) then Toronto's climate is different from NYC's.
Tom
"And ten miles north of NYC is still much warmer and less snowy than the Buffalo area, for sure. "
Same with Cleveland, & Rochester. It's called "Lake Effect Snow", and is significant for downwind cities in the great lakes region:
Toronto doesn't get near the amount of snow that Buffalo gets either. As another post stated, it's the lake-effect snow that gets Buffalo. There is also a snow belt coming off Georgian Bay that affects the area west and north of Toronto, but usually the snow doesn't extend right to the city.
It's interesting to know about the little variations that occur within a few miles around NYC, but this was never intended to be a treatise on weather patterns. NYC is more like Toronto (or Cleveland, or Detroit) than it is like Miami, or Phoenix, or Dallas. Whatever variations exist between NYC and the surrounding area surely must fade into insignificance when one considers the normal variations of month to month, and year to year. I live just east of Toronto, where for whatever reason, we get less snow than the west end. But that variation ain't gonna make me buy different tires!
...Ron
They're all-season tires, not winter tires. If you're looking for winter tires, go winter. I'm Canadian, and the PZero Nero M+S did very well driving up over a mountain pass about nine or ten times. Whipping around gravel & snow corners I felt tremendous and consistent traction the whole drive, every time.
Since I also drive it frequently (unfortunately) in the rain, the PZero Nero M+S also did remarkably well in puddles--even big ones where every other tire I've fought with would hydroplane, these gave me excellent traction there too.
Still, New York/Ontario style winters are much harsher in terms of snow and ice, and probably don't include large volumes of rain, so perhaps the PZN M+S aren't for you after all. :-)
Don't forget to come back and tell us what you think of the tires you do end up installing!
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