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Does anyone use dedicated snow and ice tires? Ive always used Bridgestone Blizzaks on our SUV's and they are great. I have not owned a truck in 15 years and back then I never used winter tires. Im not even sure if they make snow tires in the size we need.
I run the firestone Winterforce LT in the winter pulling a snowmobile trailer they both save my summer wheels and provide much better traction in the snow. They are one of the few tires that run a 20" winter snows
Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2 are considered the best dedicated winter tire in a place where it's winter 8 month of the year. They are very well known in the oil field market.
I think SleepyGuy is referring to the Hakkapeliitta LT2 - the R2 is for cars, not trucks. The LT2 is rated for HD pickups and can be studded or unstudded. I've always run studded versions of these tires on my 4 previous single-rear wheel Super Duty trucks. Last winter, I bought a set of 6 unstudded versions of this tire for my new 2017 dually. (In the past, studs always kicked out). I was very impressed with how well this tire went even without the studs.
I run dedicated winter tires here in Minnesota on all my vehicles. I will never go back. One tow out of the ditch or fender bender is waaaaay more expensive. Looks like Blizzak doesn't make Load Range E, but Winterforce does, and Nokian tires are considered the best by European drivers. Now....I just need a set of 18" wheels.......
I think SleepyGuy is referring to the Hakkapeliitta LT2 - the R2 is for cars, not trucks. The LT2 is rated for HD pickups and can be studded or unstudded. I've always run studded versions of these tires on my 4 previous single-rear wheel Super Duty trucks. Last winter, I bought a set of 6 unstudded versions of this tire for my new 2017 dually. (In the past, studs always kicked out). I was very impressed with how well this tire went even without the studs.
I don't know how to spell it. I just know the sound it makes when it saves a man's life.
I just googles the tire name and was impressed got some what close to the right spelling. Yes the truck version but even then car version is a solid tire for cars.
Thanks for the replies. I will absolutely be checking these out. Black ice can be a problem where I live and I have learned that snow/ice tires make a big difference
It's mostly the drivers ability. I have spent a lot of years driving out to accident scenes in a near blizzard in just a Crown Vic and AT tires. And we didn't drive those cars slow.
Driver's ability is part of it, but when you hit black ice or pure ice, the best driver in the world is going to lose it if its in a corner. Troopers in VT can actually fine you for getting in an accident due to improper tires for weather conditions. All the police around here run dedicated snows, and almost all of them are driving AWD Tauruses and Explorers now.
It's 100% traction. Driver ability can compensate but end of day your really talking about traction. Yes a driver who was is more cautious and faster reaction times help but your now comparing driving styles and not tires.
If tires didn't matter then race cars would just run any old thing.
I have responded to thousands of accidents in my career and almost all were due to the driver exceeding his or her ability. Yes Sheriifs and police departments are getting 4 wheel drive vehicles now, but how do you think we drove those two wheel drive vehicles in those same conditions for all those years. I have been to countless accidents involving 4wd vehicles and I responded in 2wd and never ended up in the ditch. Northern Michigan so we get plenty of snow and ice.
I have responded to thousands of accidents in my career and almost all were due to the driver exceeding his or her ability. Yes Sheriifs and police departments are getting 4 wheel drive vehicles now, but how do you think we drove those two wheel drive vehicles in those same conditions for all those years. I have been to countless accidents involving 4wd vehicles and I responded in 2wd and never ended up in the ditch. Northern Michigan so we get plenty of snow and ice.
Would it not stand to reason to say that all accidents by diffintion are caused by a person exceeding their ability.
I drove for years with mud terrain tires in Canadian winter. Never hit the ditch once and 90% of my driving is long distance across mixed terrain. I went side ways more then a few times but always recovered. Every now and then I would slide through a stop sign or light because I failed to brake a head. It's all an estimate of stopping distance. Switching to winters just allows me to be more reactive vs proactive.
