recommended winter tires for 2011 base

[RAV4Ont]

I'm looking for some feedback on winter tires that work well on my 2011 RAV4 base with 16-inch wheels. I live in SW Ontario where ice and light snow prevail.

[blackdograv]

I've been going through the options myself, although for a 2009 Sport. I'm going to run 17" wheels... separate set.

I will likely go with Hakkapeliita R... relatively new SUV low rolling resistance snow tire. For less money the Hankook i Pike look good. I used to run Hakka 2 studded on my Outback and those were pretty much unstoppable. Bit they were noisy and did not handle well.

I think you need to assess whether ultimate traction is more important than feel or handling... and decide on whether you want studs. If ultimate traction is your goal, the blockier patterns like Cooper. Wearhermaster and the Hakka 5 may be good. If you want to balance things out more in favor of handling and less noise, the patterns like the Hakka R and the Hankook i Pike are probably better. Plus studs. For my outback this year I ended up with an almost new set of Gislaved Nord Frost... sim to a Hakka, studless.


I may be oversimplifying... there's a lot to consider and you can spend a lot of time trying to make the perfect choice. Another strategy is to do searches on Craigslist with your tire size and see what deals present themselves. Also, search these forums as there have been other threads recently on this topic.

[RAV4Ont]

Handling is important, low noise are important, but so is traction especially in slushy, icy conditions. I'm been thinking about Michelin X-Ice, which I had on a Maxa Protege I used to own. Online research I've done is pretty polarized -- people either love them or hate them, same with Blizzak from Bridgestone, although the knock on them is that they wear out fast.

[dquangt]

Originally Posted by RAV4Ont

Handling is important, low noise are important, but so is traction especially in slushy, icy conditions. I'm been thinking about Michelin X-Ice, which I had on a Maxa Protege I used to own. Online research I've done is pretty polarized -- people either love them or hate them, same with Blizzak from Bridgestone, although the knock on them is that they wear out fast.

the reason the reviews are polarized is because there are two versions of the tire. that's why if you look at tirerack or costco they have the tire listed twice. the old tire gets pretty mediocre reviews. the newer one is getting good reviews. seems like they changed up the rubber a bit to give a better ride and better traction. if you get the x-ices make sure they are the newer build.

[Willow]

We bought some toyo open country ice and snow on 16s. bought them used, well she used them for 1/2 a season and only drove to run errands. I have been very pleased with them last year although they do not compare to the pirelli scorpion ice and snow those were amazing tires on our Xtrail but we paid full price. My dad bought the same toyos for his rav and he loves them just as much. He said best he's ever had.

[AudioQuest]

Consumer Reports November issue just tested 16 popular winter tires and the Michelin X-Ice Xi3 and Xi2 tied for first place with scores of 62 each. Considering the Xi2 is the out-going model, pricing should be better for it. The Hankook Winter I*Cept Evo was 3rd, followed by: Pirelli Winter 210 Sottozero Serie II, Uniroyal Tiger Paw Ice & Snow II, Bridgestone Blizzak WS70, Nokian Hakkapelitta R, Goodyear UltraGrip Ice WRT, BFGoodrich Winter Slalom KSI, Continental Extreme Winter Contact, General Altimax Arctic, Hankook Winter I*Pike, Falken Espia EPZ, Dunlop Graspic DS-3, Yokohama IceGuard iG20 and Firestone Winterforce.

[dquangt]

Originally Posted by AudioQuest

Consumer Reports November issue just tested 16 popular winter tires and the Michelin X-Ice Xi3 and Xi2 tied for first place with scores of 62 each. Considering the Xi2 is the out-going model, pricing should be better for it. The Hankook Winter I*Cept Evo was 3rd, followed by: Pirelli Winter 210 Sottozero Serie II, Uniroyal Tiger Paw Ice & Snow II, Bridgestone Blizzak WS70, Nokian Hakkapelitta R, Goodyear UltraGrip Ice WRT, BFGoodrich Winter Slalom KSI, Continental Extreme Winter Contact, General Altimax Arctic, Hankook Winter I*Pike, Falken Espia EPZ, Dunlop Graspic DS-3, Yokohama IceGuard iG20 and Firestone Winterforce.

i just ordered the general altimax artics from discount tire. they pricematched tirerack.com's price after shipping so i'm getting them for ~$100 each. i'm putting them on some 16" lexus wheels in a 215/70/16 size. i was looking at the Michelin x-ice and the BFG winter slalom's, but getting the the altimax's saves me about $200-300. in seattle i don't know how much use i'll get out of them anyway, they are predicting a mild winter this year.

[Jaspher]

Go for Gislaved Nordfrost 5. Perfect for crazy Ontario winter.

Reviews:
http://www.marathonauto.com/tires/sn...s-reviews.html

[The Ravster]

I have 16" steel wheels for my sport during the winter, first set of winter tires were the Michelin XiceII, P215-70-16. While the tread wear, road noise, and ice traction were very good, I found that after about 15,000 K that the traction in deep snow, and slush was not thast great. Now in the market for a new set of winters. I am looking at trying the Blizzak DM V1...anyone try those yet?

[dusty]

Originally Posted by The Ravster

I have 16" steel wheels for my sport during the winter, first set of winter tires were the Michelin XiceII, P215-70-16. While the tread wear, road noise, and ice traction were very good, I found that after about 15,000 K that the traction in deep snow, and slush was not thast great. Now in the market for a new set of winters. I am looking at trying the Blizzak DM V1...anyone try those yet?

I'm looking at the Blizzak DMV1 as well. I am curious to see how they run on the Rav4. Also any reviews on the Toyo GSI5. I was originally looking at the Blizzak WS70 but think the sidewall might not be sturdy enough and don't want to sacrifice handling.