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Re: Snow tires Posted by Snowmobile [Email]  (#686)  [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Snowmobile) on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 07:13:19
In Reply to: Snow tires, andym, Wed, 27 Nov 2013 10:57:54 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Like others below, I run Nokian Hakkas on all our Saabs. Nokian has specialized in winter tires for decades. Many other brands make winter tires that focus primarily on ice grip without achieving as good handling characteristics (eg Blizzaks are a little notorious, particularly as they wear). I find the Nokians are very predictable and progressive in their behaviour as you push them, and even as they wear.
I'm currently running Nokian Hakka R's on the 9-5. I bought them last year, but wish I had waited until this year, because now they have the R2 which has grit in the compound to give it better grip on ice. This will be the next winter tire I buy because studs are banned here. If we were allowed studs, I would just get the studded hakka 8... Studs make a huge difference on ice! The hakka R's replaced Michelin Primacy Alpins which were actually not a bad winter tire at all. I would say better than the R's on dry, but not as good in snow, comparable on ice. R2 would likely improve on that, possibly significantly. I'm hoping someone here running them will comment how they work on the 9-5.
On our c900 winter beater, we have (now pretty old, but still very functional) Nokian Hakka 4's without studs. This is the tire that is now made in Russia as the Nordman4 as a budget tire. It's a great tire. Really good control, especially in deep snow and slush. I don't have studs in them because we aren't allowed here, but they are still fine. The 1989 c900 with those tires on it completely outperforms the 9-5 in winter driving (with either the Hakka R or Michelins). Maybe it is just the difference in the cars: the 1989 lacks TCS and ABS (but TCS off on the 9-5 is not better for me), vehicle dynamics, narrower tires, difference in weight? Anyway, on the c900 at least, the Nordman, even unstudded, would be great. And it is cheap! If you can get it studded, you will be able to get through anything (when I lived in a place that allowed studs, I used to be able to take icy corners at normal dry road speeds with no drama, even going up hills - studs make a huge difference if you get a lot of ice, though they do make a racket whenever the roads are bare).
MI-Roger posted a great link - I had seen that before. The Contis do rank highly. They are an asymmetric tread, so that may be a pro or con depending on your biases or interests. Asymmetric blocks could possibly make the dry road experience better. They may also be a little more speed oriented - the Hakkas are not so much. The newer ones are better in that regard, but the old ones had pretty soft sidewalls (can be desirable in snow/slush but less so on dry). On the downside, asymmetric treads can be a bit less good at displacing snow/slush/rain. So it depends on your interests.
The General Altimax seems to be very well liked here also, and is also cheap. It is kind of the Nordman for Gislaved, and Gislaved is very similar to Nokian in that they are a long standing leader and specialist in winter tires. Tread is very similar to Nordman, and especially with studs, these would be awesome.
lots of choices! good luck!
, Sat, 30 Nov 2013 03:29:58, Thu, 28 Nov 2013 07:13:19 <-- Viewing This Message, Wed, 27 Nov 2013 16:52:51
, Wed, 27 Nov 2013 17:12:13
, Sun, 1 Dec 2013 12:44:08
, Wed, 27 Nov 2013 16:02:59, Thu, 28 Nov 2013 06:00:31
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