Winter tires for the truck, Preimum or Cheapos?

[2ndAmend]

I bought a set of take-off wheels so I can have a set of winter tires for my 1/2t and use the all-seasons for the remaining 8 months or so when we do all the driving and towing.

In the past I bought GY Wranglers, I have had very good luck with them in all respects. But they are now $300 a tire!!!

https://www.sullivantire.com/tire/goodyear/wrangler-all-terrain-adventure/27565r18/15266?q=4

I have been thinking maybe getting a set of cheapos at WM, $120ea:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/seort/586862682

I am really tempted to go cheap! I don’t do many miles in winter, I plow my driveway, not much else. So noise, handling, etc is not a significant factor.

Please share your thoughts and experiences with cheap tires. Thanks!

 

[Jimmy N.]

When picking tires for most our vehicles I look up their snow and ice ratings on Tire Rack.

Using tires based on low price has never worked well for me, except in applications like for trailers that never leave the property - and traction is not a consideration.

Like with so many other things, you get what you pay for. And I'm lazy so I usually get tires that work well in all four seasons, with emphasis on snow and ice. That way I don't have to swap them out twice a year.

 

[Bobo]

I use Bridgestone Blizzaks for winter tires and Nitto 420V for summer tires on my 1/2 Ram

 

[BULL]

I just paid ~$330 for Goodyear Duratracs on the truck and was happy to do it after paying ~$550 for Pirelli tires on the DSRT, both within a month of each other.

: (

However I don't swap either vehicle for winter, I just run the same tire all year.

 

[1971demon]

When picking tires for most our vehicles I look up their snow and ice ratings on Tire Rack.

Using tires based on low price has never worked well for me, except in applications like for trailers that never leave the property - and traction is not a consideration.

Like with so many other things, you get what you pay for. And I'm lazy so I usually get tires that work well in all four seasons, with emphasis on snow and ice. That way I don't have to swap them out twice a year.

I go through tires like crazy...and by November new winter sneakers are on my truck every year.(plowing)..I have a tire guy..(also tracks his HC)..been in the business his whole life..and I never shop price on tires...and generally replace them before most would...

 

[GNBRETT]

Get the blizzacks if u dont use them much they should last 3-4 winters if not longer nothing works better in snow remember snow tires are NOT about getting UP the hill they are about being able to STOP when going DOWN the hill...... Ppl often confuse what a SNOW tire is supposed to be doing.

Ppl crash cause they cant stop not cause they are going too fast although both usually play a roll together its simply cause the tires they have arent designed to STOP on snow.

If u have a dedicated snow tire ull likely never crash in the snow the compound is simply much softer than an all season and the blizzacks have a surface that spreads out and bites the snow they are NOT designed to work when temps are above 50 degrees they will start chunking bits of tire off if used in warmer temps.

I would never run a Winter tire in the summer that would be dumb.... Its just as dumb to use anything other than a SNOW tire when it snows!

Even a rear wheel drive car with blizzacks will stop, accelerate and turn 10x better than an AWD car will with all seasons. Thats fact! Buddy works in Maine. Needed van for deliveries. All they had on the lot and all he could really afford with the RWD version. Well, he put blizzacks on it and said he doesnt need the AWD version those tires get him thru anything and everything and this was in freaking MAINE! I heard it snows there sometimes lol.....

NOT having a dedicated snow tire in the snow is the equilevant of having bald summer tires when its raining.... No one would do that so why would anyone want anything other than a snow tire in the snow?

I know, ppl dont want to spend the extra money for both winter and summer tires I get it. But the money ull pay for ur insurance deducatable and the fact that ur car now has DAMAGE and its value has decreased is worth the little extra money and peace of mind the blizzack tires give u.

 

[DaveB]

I have swapped to winter tires every season on my personal trucks for many many years (Canadian...I drive a LOT of snow and ice). I also swap tires on my company truck. If money is no object (my work truck, LOL) I like Nokian Hakkapeliitta LT3...expensive, but the best. After many different set-ups over 30+ years on my personal vehicles, I have had several sets of Firestone Winterforce LT. Budget, but darn good winter tire. If you can get away with P tires, the Passenger Winterforce are actually a bit better.

Blizzaks are a good tire...I've had them on the ex-wife's cars...but they seem to wear fast on pick-up trucks.

 

[Jimmy N.]

If u have a dedicated snow tire...they are NOT designed to work when temps are above 50 degrees they will start chunking bits of tire off if used in warmer temps.

Even a rear wheel drive car with blizzacks will stop, accelerate and turn 10x better than an AWD car will with all seasons. Thats fact!.

Well, if I ran snow tires I could be changing them twice a day. Starting out at 20 or so degrees in the morning, the snows would be fine, but when it's 60-70 in the afternoon I'd have to stop and switch somewhere along the way.

Of course, there are times when it doesn't reach 50 during the day, so maybe keep the vehicle on jack stands overnight, watch the forecast, then bolt on the appropriate set? Nah, as mentioned, I'm lazy so I stick with good all-seasons.

But I may have to try Blizzaks on something. Getting 10 times the acceleration over an AWD must be quite a sensation to experience. So far I've always been impressed with how well the AWDs do accelerate on snow. Not that I've timed them, but they sure didn't feel much less quick.

And for cornering, as well as an AWD with decent tires can go through a curve, I'm skeptical. For example, a Jeep XJ I had would do up to 50 through a section marked 35 (called dead man's curve, by the way) on a snow and ice mix. I would've never thought that a RWD with Blizzaks would manage 500 mph through that one.

Unfortunately, I'll never find out as they built a bridge and straightened that section out, removing one of my favorite testing curves.

 

[SilverBillet]

I bought a set of take-off wheels so I can have a set of winter tires for my 1/2t and use the all-seasons for the remaining 8 months or so when we do all the driving and towing.

In the past I bought GY Wranglers, I have had very good luck with them in all respects. But they are now $300 a tire!!!

https://www.sullivantire.com/tire/goodyear/wrangler-all-terrain-adventure/27565r18/15266?q=4

I have been thinking maybe getting a set of cheapos at WM, $120ea:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/seort/586862682

I am really tempted to go cheap! I don’t do many miles in winter, I plow my driveway, not much else. So noise, handling, etc is not a significant factor.

Please share your thoughts and experiences with cheap tires. Thanks!

Those GY Wranglers are all terrain but not really snow tires @2ndAmend.
I have the same type of GY Wrangler Kevlar all-terrain on my 2021 JGC. I truly like the ride and mileage I’m getting from these tires (60,000 on them and the tread still looks good for at least another 5 or 10 K). They are 265/60R18 and are on sale on Tire Rack for $269.99/ea with a special mail-in $75 rebate for 4. They are great for highway driving but I wouldn’t want to get them at that price just for the Winter season. I would think you want a real snow tire for Winter especially for plowing? Just go on the Tire Rack website and search your vehicle and tire size to see all the different tires and prices. You can see what they have in regards to the cheaper ones. The tires will show photos and have ratings and reviews.

 

[Jack_Toepfer]

For casual snow use in a 4x4 pickup, all seasons are adequate.

I’ll 2nd the Nokian Hakkapeliitta LT3 mentioned by @DaveB. In my experience, on a pickup truck, the Nokian were superior to the Blizzak. I still run Blizzaks on cars, due to the size availability, but for severe snow duty (plowing) the Nokian are hands down my favorite.
Since I run a 24” summer tire on my truck, I swap my wheels every season to the stock 20” Platinum wheels with stock all-seasons for winter duty (and usually long road trips) and they do fine here in Buffalo. It’s a 4x4 truck after all.

 

[Jimmy N.]

Just go on the Tire Rack website and search your vehicle and tire size to see all the different tires and prices. You can see what they have in regards to the cheaper ones. The tires will show photos and have ratings and reviews.

Yup, that's where I go to find out how tires compare.

For pickups and station wagons (aka SUVs these days) I usually don't even bother with ones that aren't 3-peak rated. And when I do, for the wagons, it's generally the Conti DWS06 that gets bought.

One thing worth mentioning, 2ndAmend, is that if you click on a tire, a bit down on the page you can then click on how they rate vs. others in the class. That's where I find out how they do on ice and snow.

Longevity etc. I don't give a crap about - my tires generally age out, not wear out. But I do care about price, which is why I got Continentals for the Durango and Firehawk Indy 500s for the 'Cat. Unlike BULL, I don't have the near unlimited funds it takes to buy Pirellis. And I don't like heavy run-flats even if they were half price.

 

[2ndAmend]

Lot of good info, thanks.

Yes, the GY Wranglers are AS, but they grip very well and wear like iron. I could easily get 60k mi with them but I would usually replace at about 45k to avoid thin tread depth.

The first 2 years with my 03 Silverado I plowed with the OEM Bridgestone AS and never had a problem.

Between the weight of the plow and 350# of ballast, the only thing that will stop you is accidentally backing up onto a pile of dense snow that lifts the front negating all the weight/traction, regardless of tire. Weight is king, which is why town/state plow trucks only need 2wd.

My thought in starting this thread was using a better riding and quieter AS tire for 8-9mo (when I do most of the mileage), then a more aggressive tire for 3-4mo. And if I did that, do I really need to spend $300 vs $120? If I were to go year-round, I'd do the GY's in a heartbeat, I have had absolutely no problems with them. I checked my records, last time I bought them they were $177!!!!

And if I do winter only tires, they would dry out before wearing out, like maybe 2500mi/year?

Would be better to spend the extra $ for a better tire knowing I will wear out before it does???

Thanks for the help!

 

[Jimmy N.]

Unfortunately, I'll never find out as they built a bridge and straightened that section out, removing one of my favorite testing curves.

Maybe I should point out that one reason I really liked that curve is that a failure would only result in dropping into a river maybe 20 feet below.

To me that's a lot more appealing than either a 200+ foot plunge down a steep slope, or smacking into a rock wall on the high side, which is how many roads around here are.

Maybe also somewhat important, if going down a slope there are quite a few places where it could take a long time before anybody would find the crash site. Vultures would likely be the first clue.

 

[BULL]

The Goodyear tires I replaced had 33k (7yrs old) on them and were at 7 or 8/32nds left out of 17/32nds original tread, but all four of them had been plugged to death, and one of them even had a slash in the middle of the tread that somehow didn't get into the core, but must have missed by only tiny fractions.

It was time, and of note, these new tires, which I'm sure are a design revision from 7 years ago (same exact brand/model) are MUCH quieter!

 

[2ndAmend]

Ppl crash cause they cant stop not cause they are going too fast although both usually play a roll together its simply cause the tires they have arent designed to STOP on snow.

People can't stop because most people are heavy on the pedal until they are AT the intersection then stomp on the brakes! This causes the snow to be compressed, melt, then refreeze, and after a couple dozen people, the 200' before the intersection is all ice! I had to re-program my wife's driving, one was "Slow down BEFORE you reach the intersection". Another was (and sometimes still is) "see all those brake lights and stopped traffic ahead? Consider taking your foot off the gas now."

 

[2ndAmend]

The Goodyear tires I replaced had 33k (7yrs old) on them and were at 7 or 8/32nds left out of 17/32nds original tread, but all four of them had been plugged to death, and one of them even had a slash in the middle of the tread that somehow didn't get into the core, but must have missed by only tiny fractions.

It was time, and of note, these new tires, which I'm sure are a design revision from 7 years ago (same exact brand/model) are MUCH quieter!

WTF are your roads like? Do you have a lot of angry carpenters spreading nails?

One told me once they are paid by tire co's to spread nails on roads and driveways!

 

[1971demon]

Yup, that's where I go to find out how tires compare.

For pickups and station wagons (aka SUVs these days) I usually don't even bother with ones that aren't 3-peak rated. And when I do, for the wagons, it's generally the Conti DWS06 that gets bought.

One thing worth mentioning, 2ndAmend, is that if you click on a tire, a bit down on the page you can then click on how they rate vs. others in the class. That's where I find out how they do on ice and snow.

Longevity etc. I don't give a crap about - my tires generally age out, not wear out. But I do care about price, which is why I got Continentals for the Durango and Firehawk Indy 500s for the 'Cat. Unlike BULL, I don't have the near unlimited funds it takes to buy Pirellis. And I don't like heavy run-flats even if they were half price.

WTF....wait a minute...earlier @BULL posted he only had $2.50...that aint unlimited funds...(unless he's livin under a bridge)......I'm never believin another word he says

 

[BULL]

WTF....wait a minute...earlier @BULL posted he only had $2.50...that aint unlimited funds...(unless he's livin under a bridge)......I'm never believin another word he says

I only have about $2.50 because I just bought two sets of tires, one set for the DSRT, and one set for the PW, and I need another set for the other Durango AND another set for the HC...

When it rains it pours I guess.

 

[GNBRETT]

No. Ppl cant stop in the snow cause they dont have snow tires its not the speed plenty of ppl driving fast in the snow that can stop just fine and those ppl with dedicated snow tires are able to stop when the snow gets compacted cause the tire is designed to do that. Snow compacting happens at every intersection in every state that sees snow.

Look at a Blizzack tire up close and see the technology it offers. The tire literally spreads out to grip. It has like little fingers that spread out..... Its made for the SNOW.

Cars cant get away with an All-Season tire in the snow it just doesnt work its not big enough to dig in so u need TECHNOLOGY that a tire like Blizzack offers. Its the compound that makes it work not the size of the grooves.

But make no mistake a dedicated Blizzack snow tire will work WAY better on a truck than a regular All-Season tire thats fact. An All-Season truck tire is not the same as an all season car tire the grooves are just way bigger.

People can't stop because most people are heavy on the pedal until they are AT the intersection then stomp on the brakes! This causes the snow to be compressed, melt, then refreeze, and after a couple dozen people, the 200' before the intersection is all ice! I had to re-program my wife's driving, one was "Slow down BEFORE you reach the intersection". Another was (and sometimes still is) "see all those brake lights and stopped traffic ahead? Consider taking your foot off the gas now."

 

[Jack_Toepfer]

Plowing my driveway with my trailer hitch… 300lbs of sand in the trunk. Only place I got stuck was in my driveway because of the base layer of ice under the fluffy stuff. Was my fault. Left it there for the night so that I didn’t wake the neighbors and drove it to work the next day. Tires and weight for the win.