John, you may be correct about the stock tires. Your comment about it is not only tires but power management and weight distribution is something that I did not think about. I have driven 20 plus winters with snow tires and it will seem strange not to have a set of snow tires in the house. I'm looking for feedback (free advise?) to help make a decision. If I do purchase a set of Nokian WR tires, I still plan on keeping my Continental tires which have all 3040 miles on them.

Your location receives more snow than mine in southwestern Pa. However, I'm orginally from the Midwest and one of my winter hang-outs "averages" 238 inches of snow a year!