Taysdad

OK - I did a lot of forum searching on the best winter tires for the SC430. To be honest, there really weren't that many good pieces of advice out there related to winter tires for our cars.

I recently made a purchase of Nokian Hakkappeliitta R2s for the SC430. I can't say enough good things about these tires. There is a very good reason they are more expensive than the Michelin X-ICE3s or any Blizzak tire.........they are simply better. I debated this a lot this year because I needed to buy for both my SC430 and my IS350C.

Frankly, the car went from underivable in snow to a tundra beater (as long as the snow stays lower than the clearance LOL). If you've been debating whether snow tires will help an SC430, I can definitively tell you YES.

LexBrett

I run Pirelli sotozero 3's. The best tire I have ever owned. Smoother than summer tires and outstanding grip.

416tt

iTrader: (1)

@Taysdad - Nokian's...absolutely are the best, great choice!

Had them on my preowned 330i many years back, to be honest I didn't even know the brand at the time, it came with the car. All I remember is being able to fly in snowstorms without any worry...man time flies.

On the sc however I have only tried hankook I pikes, they are good! But havnt driven the sc much in winter to make a judgement on the tires. I'm not a fan of the sc's handling, specially in the winter.

Can't wait for summer though : (

OBP

OK I will bring up the rear here - got some low priced Falken Eurowinter 449s installed a few weeks back. Have not had to drive in the white stuff yet but they feel good when temps have been 20s or so. Slight increase in road noise but quite manageable and real stable at highway speeds. No regrets in going the budget route - so far. Thought at first I had compromised cornering performance but after the Falkens have broken in over 200-300 miles, I would say cornering is quite alright compared with my Conti DWS. Overall happy camper.

ShawnOk

iTrader: (1)

I'm running the Blizzak MZ03 RunFlats that i purchased from a member on this forum. I will say that I had some major issues in mounting them (hard rubber due to (misreported) age/ bad mounting shop gouged my rims), but once they were on the car they handled great last year in Chicago's "Polar Vortex." I was running all seasons for the first few weeks of winter and had absolutely no traction. I was stuck repeatedly and had to volunteer help to get pushed out. I just put the Blizzaks back on in anticipation of the winter ahead. Hopefully they serve me as well as last year. They really did handle so well. I was amazed at the difference and the grip they had. I was passing cars in the fast lane on my way to work with SNOW mode. I will say that they do ride a little rough and have some noise but in the snow, not a big deal if they are gripping. Def saved me a lot of headache last season once past the initial drama with mounting them.

Scott R

Taysdad, did you use the stock tire size and reuse your existing wheels?

Here's my dilemma:

I live in CT and have an '02 SC430 with Continental ExtremeContact DWS tires on them now. I haven't driven in the snow with them this year (yet). I did find in the past that putting some weight in the trunk has helped a lot. I'm also always thinking about trading in my car for something new, but can never decide what I want to replace it with.

My wife drives a '10 Toyota Highlander. It has Toyo Open Country A20 tires, which I just discovered are horrible in the snow. I live in CT and we just got a bit of snow this past Saturday, so I took my wife's car when I needed to run an errand. I was driving slow and braking gently, but the car would slide quite a bit when braking. It didn't feel safe.

Now, most of the time my wife and I work out of our house, so if it snows, no big deal. We just wait for the roads to get cleared. But I need to take a business trip within the next few weeks where I'll be driving to PA. This leaves me with a dilemma. Do I take my car or my wife's? And before I go, should I get new tires? I could:
a) Chance it with my car and the Conti ExtremeContact tires that are already on it.
b) Get dedicated snow tires for my car. The Blizzaks or Nokian Hakkapelitta R2's would probably be at the top of my list.
c) Get some Nokian WRG3 SUV all-weather tires (all-season tires that are supposedly quite good in the winter/snow) for my wife's Highlander. The Continental CrossContact LX20 or some other all-season tire might be another option. I'd prefer not to get dedicated winter tires for the Highlander if at all possible.
d) Probably not an option: Take my wife's SUV as-is. The tires felt so awful the other day, that I honestly think my SC430 and the Conti ExtremeContact are a safer option.

DiggerJim

I'd vote for B as that's what I did. I also live in CT (northcentral near the notch at the CT/MA border) and haven't had any issues running the SC in the snow we've gotten so far - including this weekend's which wasn't too bad at all. We had more the day before Thanksgiving. I go the Blizzaks on the day before it snowed

Our other cars are a 4Matic E350 Benz, an AWD Rav4 and a Volvo C70. The SC has been my daily driver since before Thanksgiving due to my son taking the Benz while home from school and my wife taking the Rav 4 helping my daughter learn to drive.

Scott R

Thanks for the input. You must not be far from me, because I'm in the same general area (I'm in West Simsbury). I don't think I've ever spotted a red SC430 in this area, though.

chillsc

I just installed a set of 16" Blizzaks on my '02.



I've used Blizzaks on two other cars, and have been very satisfied with them.

Scott R

chillsc, those look like some fancy wheels you bought just for your snow tires. How cheap could I get away with spending on 16" wheels that would still look nice?

For all of you using winter tires...what do you do with your summer tires? Are you storing them in your garage? Are there any/many places around that offer a storage service for off-season tires? One of my concerns is that my 2-car garage is pretty tight when empty, and since we don't have a shed, it's even tighter due to various tools, etc. that I store in it.

chillsc

Scott, I purchased the wheels & tires from Tirerack, about $1,000 out the door. You can go to there website, Tirerack.com, and price out a set. You can also see what the wheels look like on your vehicle on their website.

JohnnyCake

I have those tires and think they are great -- in the summer.

Last winter I was coming home in stop and go rush hour traffic on the expressway. On a banked curve, while not even moving, the SC actually wanted to slide sideways down the banking.

If there's any chance the forecast calls for more than a dusting of snow, I sure wouldn't drive with the Conti's.

OBP

Sort of like what Johnnycake said, my Conti Extreme Contact DWS failed me when I could not make it up a steep hill with 1 or 2 inches of accumulation. It did see me through less steep hills on the same drive in the snow and it is supposed to be one of the best all seasons for snow traction but no match for proper winter tires. That is why I am riding on my cheap set of Falken Eurowinter and they definitely feel good in 30 degrees and below.

bacardi11

iTrader: (1)

I do the smart thing. I don't drive in the SNOW.

Taysdad

I put on a slightly narrower tire (225/40/18) onto my old stock rims (pie plates) and left my Michelin A/S on my non-winter rims. This has worked out very well for me.
With the first significant snow fall (~6") under my belt now I am very pleased with the Nokian tires and how they performed. In fact, I put them on my IS350C as well. They both handle better than I could have imagined.

If it were me, I'd do it all again. Definitely go the dedicated snow tire route IMO.

Michael