Quadro

So there is a debate I'm having in my head on whether I should get a dedicated winter wheels or simply swap my OEM Michelin's to LTX MS/2.

I live in Canada and sometime we do get quite a bit of snow. I understand it's hard to beat a dedicated winter tire, however, because I don't want to deal with mounting the tire on the rim every year I'll have to buy a separate wheel set.

So going a dedicated winter set is going to be a lot of $$$ and I was thinking whether simply swapping to LTX MS/2 might be a better choice. While these might not be as good as a dedicated winter tires they still seems to be much better than OEMs in the snow on top of being a better tire overall. It will also be a lot less $$$ compared to a dedicated winter set.

If any of you had to make a similar choice what would you do?

Eppieguy

I do a lot of driving in NH which gets a lot of snow as well, I will be switching to the LTX tires soon. I have done the dedicated summer / winter tires on past vehicles, it's a lot of money and not worth it in my opinion.

Lolrax

Winter tires in Canada are a life or death issue IMO. Don't compromise, and the day that you get In a slide heading towards a crosswalk or the back of another car you will thank your lucky stars you got winters. The numbers surroundng stopping distances are staggeringly in favor of winter tires.

Quadro

People here run MS/2 through snow and reported back exceptional results. While I agree they likely won't beat good dedicated snow tires remember that MS/2 is snow rated so I would expect the gap to be not as big though it would be interesting to know just how big the gap really is. So far I seems to be unable to find any owners who have both MS/2 and dedicated snow tires to get any real life comparison.

kroorda

I am in the mountains of Colorado (where it snows a lot). I also go off-roading (in 4-wheel Low) a LOT. My MS2's serve me exceptionally well and despite the amount of snow I've been in, I've never felt the need for a more aggressive snow tire. If you can't get through the snow with the MS2's and 4WD, then it's time to get the chains out. Unless you have an extra thousand to spend on tires, I'd recommend that you allow the MS2's to serve you well..... year around!

Quadro

I'll be installing MS/2 next week.

SW17LS

A little late to this...but I'll add my thoughts anyways.

I just put the LTX M/S2 on my Jeep last week. Great tire, I had two sets of the LTX M/S on my old Explorer and the tires will dry rot before the tread is gone. 100k out of a set is absolutely possible. Great grip, quiet and smooth, the tire is probably the best tire I've ever had on any vehicle. Drove the Jeep around in the 3-4 inches we had here over the weekend/yesterday and it was a great improvement over the OEM Latitudes.

With that said, since you are in ON if I were you I would run winter tires in the winter. Since you spend so much time below that 45 degree mark, thats the temp below which an all season tire's rubber compounds harden and grip suffers, and above which a winter tire's grip suffers. Because your winters are so far below that for so long, a winter tire is going to perform much better in the winter than even an excellent all season tire like the M/S2.

From a safety perspective you can't beat winter tires in your climate. Your GX would be absolutely unstoppable on winter tires, even the M/S2 will still be a compromise.

Quadro

Got the tires installed on Thursday. No snow yet so haven't tested them. I was talking to a master tech who has LTX MS2 on his 4Runner and he says they're incredibly good in the snow and he doesn't feel he needs a dedicated winter set either. I think the ride is a little bit harsher compared to the Latitudes HP.

Interestingly enough Michelin has LTX Winter tire which is marketed as a dedicated winter/snow tire. The tire looks identical to MS2 -- it has the same pattern. The only difference is softer rubber compound which helps in colder temperatures.

SW17LS

Make sure the pressures are right. I thought mine were harder too compared to the Latitudes but the pressures were just high.

Craig B

I saw on the news this morning, there is a recall on the LTX M/S2. I will be calling Michelin in the morning to see if my tires are under the recall....

Quadro

No need to call Michelin, just check DOT codes and production dates against recall list: http://www.michelinman.com/voluntary-safety-recall.page

Craig B

Already checked, mine aren't part of the recall...

Quadro

The tires so far did very well in the snow. We have had quite a bit of snow in the last couple weeks and not a single time I had any issues. While other people were busy digging their cars out I was driving right out through all the snow while they were staring in disbelief. Little do they know this thing is based on a Land Cruiser Prado also known as LC150. ;-)

Eppieguy

I like the looks of those tires on your GX, I can't wait till my OEM Michelins wear out.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

T4fun, please exit this thread.

I've removed a string of picky back-and-forth argumentative posts that are entirely unnecessary, let's get this back on topic.