11-21-2010, 04:38 AM
FWIW, Tire Rack doesn't carry (or review) either Nokians or Coopers.
This forum thread has some interesting comments, pro and con, about Nokian WR G2s, which Nokian bills as 'all-weather' rather than 'all-season', because they bear the 'extreme' snowflake rating, while still claiming good results in summer.
http://www.snowtire.info/forum/viewtopic.php?t=440&postdays=0&postorder=asc&&start=0
There's there eternal debate over separate sets of winter/snow tires vs. all-seasons. Since I stopped putting dedicated snow tires on my full-size van (back in the '80s, I think), I've run all-seasons on all my vehicles. The only problems I've had is getting my RWD van going when there's light snow on top of pure ice. The FWD and the AWD cars generally have no problems.
On the other hand, it would be nice not to wear down the winter-deep tread in summer.
Here in the Metrowest area (west of Boston) the roads are generally pretty clear within a day or two of a storm, except maybe for some of the side roads in developments.
I'm trying not to spend many hours (days! weeks!) researching tires, but opinions are wildly mixed. Read the Triple-Tread reviews on Tire Rack, for instance. Some love them, some hate them. What to make of it all?
/Mr Lynn
PS What do the tire experts think of the 'asymmetric' philosophy of tire design, using different parts of the tread for different types of road conditions, e.g. on the WR G2:
This forum thread has some interesting comments, pro and con, about Nokian WR G2s, which Nokian bills as 'all-weather' rather than 'all-season', because they bear the 'extreme' snowflake rating, while still claiming good results in summer.
http://www.snowtire.info/forum/viewtopic.php?t=440&postdays=0&postorder=asc&&start=0
There's there eternal debate over separate sets of winter/snow tires vs. all-seasons. Since I stopped putting dedicated snow tires on my full-size van (back in the '80s, I think), I've run all-seasons on all my vehicles. The only problems I've had is getting my RWD van going when there's light snow on top of pure ice. The FWD and the AWD cars generally have no problems.
On the other hand, it would be nice not to wear down the winter-deep tread in summer.
Here in the Metrowest area (west of Boston) the roads are generally pretty clear within a day or two of a storm, except maybe for some of the side roads in developments.
I'm trying not to spend many hours (days! weeks!) researching tires, but opinions are wildly mixed. Read the Triple-Tread reviews on Tire Rack, for instance. Some love them, some hate them. What to make of it all?
/Mr Lynn
PS What do the tire experts think of the 'asymmetric' philosophy of tire design, using different parts of the tread for different types of road conditions, e.g. on the WR G2:
Nokian wrote:
The asymmetrical tread pattern gives Nokian WR G2 the diverse properties needed to be an outstanding tire in any driving conditions. The shape and siping of the outer shoulder make the tire easy to handle and stable to drive on all surfaces, even at high speeds, while the inner shoulder ensures superb grip in winter conditions. The tire’s center rib features new 3D siping for better handling and stability on wet and dry roads.