I've looked at that report that shows the RR of all the different tires. (I thnk it is GreenSeal that did that report) I have heard that tire companies will make special tires for individual car models, as per the car maker wishes.
Now, let's say the tires that come with the car are X tires. These OEM tires are LRR. Now, if you go to buy X tires, there will be nothing mentioning LRR or anything. You cannot know if the X tires are the LRR version, or just the regular version. And of course the person behind the counter won't know anything.

Now, this is only somethng I have heard of before. I may very possibly be completely wrong!

 

What's the point of buying in all season tire, if you use winter tires? An all season tire has comprimises built in. It is average at most conditions at best. A winter tire vs an all season tire in the snow... there is no comparison. A summer tire in the dry or wet blows away an all season tire. Again, no comparison.

I can see your argument if you plan on using a single tire for the whole year.

 

I'm really not trying to argue.

All I was saying is that, to my knowledge, we have not determined a great replacement tire for the OE tires.

The Sumi's and snow tires are a good option for some (possibly including myself, but I don't have to decide for some time).

nf

 

sorry, my post did come across a bit harsh and i didn't mean it to be an argument. I was just trying to understand your thought process.

 

No sweat. We are all trying to help eachother out.

 

I, also, have no problem with my original Dunlops.
I have over 21K miles on them, and they look ready for another 21K.

Livvie, many people JUST use an all-season tire. For us, the Sumi's may not fit the bill at all. Not everybody needs snow tires each winter. Having said that, WHEN my original Dunlops are toast, I'm hoping to find a set of wheel/tire takeoffs from an EX. If I do that, I may put winter tires on the hybrid wheels. And eventually get to the summer tire approach with the EX rims.
I do know the performance differences when using great summer tires. I use 'em on my MB 560SL (which is seldom driven, and almost never in the winter).

 

I agree, if you don't live in an area that has snow, no point in getting snow tires, for that matter, no point in getting all season tire.

If I lived in TX or FL. I would only buy summer tires and save the expense of a winter tire.

For those that do live in area that gets a lot of snow, winter tires do make the difference. If the climate is mild and you get the occasional snow fall here and there, then all seasons makes sense.

So yes, I would say tire replacement should consider weather/climate as your biggest factor. As it did in my decision.