I drove all last winter with the original Bridgestones with no problem. We had less snow than average here in Maine last year, but during the times when I did drive in the snow, the TCH handled very well.

I should note that the Bridgestones are terrible in terms of treadwear and we just replaced at 26,000 miles. You can read of my horrid experience elsewhere in this site.

I replaced the Bridgestones with Uniroyal Tiger Paws that have a much more prominent tread, a treadwear rating of 560 and a 70,000 mile warranty.

I just had a discussion with my friend who purchased a Prius last summer and just paid $800 for four studded snow tires and extra rims. He insists on doing this with all of his vehicles (he previously has driven Saabs), but I think it is overkill and a waste of money.

He was advised to purchase new wheels rather than changing the snows onto the same rims and back again in the spring. The dealer advised that frequent tire changing can wear down or damage the alloy wheels - something to also consider if you are looking at snow tires.

 

So I put on my new winter tires on Thursday - a set of Michelin Primacy Alpins. They seem to have done the trick - since they've been on, the forecast is for milder weather and rain.

 

The Primacy Alpin I posted is a studless snow tire. I also ski at Crystal a little and also White Pass. Based on short experience during the thanksgiving holiday this year and much higher up on the passes, they are much better than the Energy M+S tires in ice or slush. The FE is pretty good too -- they seem to cost me only about 1 MPG based on tank to tank with the Energy at about the same temperatures and running the same commute (mostly on wet pavement of course). I havn't used them in cold snow yet, too early in the season.

 

I agree with chainedup in that studded tires are terrible for the roads. I live in Ontario, Canada, where studded tires are banned for that reason. But there's nothing wrong with non-studded tires, and as FastMover points out, they can make a very real difference.

 

I believe studded tires are banned in most (if not all) of the US.

 

That is not correct! They are legal in Oregon & Idaho. I don't know about other states.
If they are you could always use Studless. The colder it gets the softer the rubber gets in the tire

 

NY (can't speak for NYC) allows them November to April I believe.

 

They are legal in parts of Washington as well. They are legal, but I prefer not to use them -- I will stick with the studless ones.

 

Let us know how your travels go with the snow tire addition. I haven't been impressed w/the TCH handling ability w/stock tires (michelin synergy) on packed snow/ice. I drive 40k/year all over central/southern OR roads and have never used snow tires. I did notice yesterday going over the cascades the traction control engaging all too frequently and almost felt like the cars long wheelbase was causing slippage (side to side it seemed). I have had other cars w/TC and have not experienced this sort of thing on icy roads.

Any other similar experiences on snow?

cutty3

 

I also Live in Central Oregon. I have Winterforce studded snow tires. They Seem to perform well. I have not been in real heavy ice,however, a couple of days ago it rained at night and then froze in town. They worked well without traction control being activated. These tires cost me $60.00 per tire plus 15.00 per tire for studding.