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Subaru Crew Cafe

17133 messages,  Last post on Jun 17, 2013 at 2:18 PM

You are in the Subaru Crew Forum.

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Your Community Leaders are ateixeira and rsholland.

This is the place for Crew members to kick back, relax, and talk about...whatever!

Messages Page 1691 of 1714

#16895 of 17133 Re: Tire chains [toboggan] by xwesx

Dec 03, 2012 (11:33 am)

Replying to: toboggan (Dec 03, 2012 11:14 am)
All four, for sure, on a Subaru. If you have a two-wheel-drive (1WD with open diff!) vehicle, a pair of chains is fine for those "get unstuck" situations.
 
The problem with relying on chains over marginal tires for a long trip like the one your daughter is contemplating is that there may be many situations where she'll need them. Situations, such as ice or light (6" or less) snowfall, that wouldn't need chains at all with good tires. If her tires aren't even mud/snow rated, I wouldn't want to use them for winter driving at all. There are some pretty marginal all-season tires out there with the M+S rating on the side, so a lack of that symbol really says something about the tire's intended use.
 
So, three things on the chains. 1., Low speed only (30 mph MAX) while using them. 2., Use them only when necessary. 3., Take the time to learn how to install them before you need to install them, so that you do it right when it counts. Chains can really tear up a modern car - not only is the body at risk (as always), but there are now wheel sensors, wires, etc., in harm's way.
 
Their life span is limited, so if she hits a reasonable amount of bad weather, there's a good chance she might wear out (break) chains on this one trip.
 
Then again, if she has them in the car, you know the weather will be perfect all the way, so why are we discussing this again?

#16896 of 17133 Re: Tire chains [xwesx] by toboggan

Dec 03, 2012 (11:44 am)

Replying to: xwesx (Dec 03, 2012 11:33 am)
Thanks for the reply. Maybe we could "pop" for some decent tires for her for the trip back. Any recommendations for tire size 205/70-15?

#16897 of 17133 Re: Tire chains [toboggan] by hammerhead

Dec 03, 2012 (1:11 pm)

Replying to: toboggan (Dec 03, 2012 11:44 am)
All-weather, or dedicated winter use?
 
If all-weather, get the most aggressive tread you can find, and get them siped as well.
 
I'm guessing since she lives in PDX winter tires would be a waste, but if you go that route, there are many flavors from which to choose. We all seem to have our favorites around here

#16898 of 17133 Re: Tire chains [hammerhead] by xwesx

Dec 03, 2012 (3:22 pm)

Replying to: hammerhead (Dec 03, 2012 1:11 pm)
I'm guessing since she lives in PDX winter tires would be a waste
 
I agree. There's some nasty weather there once in a while, but I don't think such weather necessitates dedicated winter tires as she'd mostly just wear them out on dry roads. Good all-seasons, with chains for the really nasty stuff, should get the job done.
 
As for tires in particular, my current favorite all-season (overall) is the Goodyear Assurance TripleTred. Pricy rubber, but excellent treadwear and very good traction in pretty much any conditions. Downside: expect some loss of fuel economy. My Forester was consistently 1 mpg lower this summer than last (when I had the stock tires on it).

#16899 of 17133 Re: Tire chains [toboggan] by kyfdx@Edmunds HOST

Dec 03, 2012 (5:00 pm)

Replying to: toboggan (Dec 03, 2012 11:14 am)
Even all-season tires have M+S on them... what the heck does she have on there? I can't imagine summer tires on a Forester..

#16900 of 17133 Re: Tire chains [kyfdx] by kurtamaxxxguy

Dec 11, 2012 (7:13 am)

Replying to: kyfdx@Edmunds (Dec 03, 2012 5:00 pm)
Nokian WRG2'S have worked well on my Forester. They are winter rated but useable all year around. They only falter on wet ice, but do great in snow, rain, etc.

#16901 of 17133 Re: Tire chains [kurtamaxxxguy] by xwesx

Dec 11, 2012 (11:33 am)

Replying to: kurtamaxxxguy (Dec 11, 2012 7:13 am)
Everything (except, perhaps, new studs) falters on wet ice!
 
How did the Nokians do in terms of longevity? I imagine you must have gone through at least one set by now....

#16902 of 17133 RE Tire Chains by hondafriek

Dec 13, 2012 (3:29 pm)

I don't know about the US, but here in Canada Hankook have a hybrid tire of an all season and a dedicated winter tire. They are the Hankook Optimo4s. See link.
 
http://tires.canadiantire.ca/en/tires/all-weather-tires/product/0041732P/hankook- - -optimo-4s/
 
 Cheers Pat.

#16903 of 17133 Re: RE Tire Chains [hondafriek] by rsholland

Dec 13, 2012 (3:39 pm)

Replying to: hondafriek (Dec 13, 2012 3:29 pm)
Pat, I seem to recall reading some time ago (as in several years ago) that snow tires are *required* in Canada for winter driving, or maybe it was just Quebec?
 
Bob

#16904 of 17133 Re: RE Tire Chains [rsholland] by volkov

Dec 14, 2012 (12:14 am)

Replying to: rsholland (Dec 13, 2012 3:39 pm)
Varies by province and within each province, sometimes by location usually a northern cut-off. Where I live in northern British Columbia, we are required for insurance purposes to run M+S tires in winter. My drive today which was a mix of snow, freezing rain and rain and back again over 300 miles would have been suicidal on anything but winter tires. It is a usual 5 1/2 hour drive which took almost 8. We have those vibration bars on the shoulder and centre line and I was running on them multiple times today. Problem was I had no idea if I was running on the centre line or the shoulder when it happened.

Messages Page 1691 of 1714

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