need new tires, should i just wait and get snow tires?

[cdlong]

i really need new tires, i mean really, the inside 1/4 of the front tires are completely bald, i expect to see belts poping through soon. i wanted to get snow tires on my stock wheels and save up over the winter for new wheels and good summer tires. i would love to have good traction in the winter, which is something i'm a little worried about. but there are two things keeping me from doing this...

1) like i said, my current tires suck, they're borderline not safe. they should be replaced soon. i'm also not sure i can save up enough money to get the wheels and tires i want once it warms up.

2) i live in ohio, we get quite a bit of snow, but not a lot and not all the time. it's not uncommon to go a week or more with dry roads in the middle of winter. i also drive across the state occasionally.

i want a tire that i can leave on from late november until early march and not have to switch them if it dries up for a few days. would i burn up snow tires if i drive them on dry roads (even if it's still cold) and on the highway? are there intermediate snow tires, like a 3 season winter tire? something that does well in snow but won't wear too fast on dry roads? should i just get a set of decent all season tires and wait on the summer tires? if so, does anyone know of some all season tires that do really well in the snow?

if it seems like i'm jumping the gun with the snow tires that may be because i work at home depot in the garden department. we got snow blowers in like a week ago and we are rearranging everything for winter. summer was over for me 2 months ago :(

[syco3d]

Either drive like a grandma, or change those tires. I ended up spinning out on I-35 and putting my baby into a wall because of bad tires + heavy rain.:wtc: (already fixed it) I just replaced them ... the mechanic that mounted my new tires gave me my old ones back and come to find out I had belts showing on the inside tread...somthin I couldn't see until the wheel was off.

Ever since I started driving, people have been trying to pound in my head that you always want to have good rubber under you...but I just now got it.

[Johny5]

same happened to me also on I-35 but i just went off road and into dirt, no biggy, countersteering effectively held about 5-7 back n forths until the cars momentum took over completely. now i got new ziex 512's on, they don't look as good as the dunlops did size wise, but they work.

[cdlong]

so you guys think i should just go with some all seasons now? i think i can probably manage with out snow tires for a while. and i won't have to worry about over heating the tires on dry pavement. any tips on what tires to get for mostly winter and bad weather use?

[KiDyNomiTe]

Well you could maybe go to a junkyard and try and get some cheapo 4x114.3 wheels with half decent tread. Are all 4 really messed up or just one and the rest are mediocre. If so just get 2 rims and tires.

Or you could replace the two tires with some cheapo tires, and hold out for winter.

Obviously remember to put the better tread in the rear.

Ive got two sets of tires, got a set of teardrops super cheap so you might get lucky and get a cheap pair at a junkyard.

[cdlong]

both front tires really suck and the rears are pretty bad. the inside row of tread blocks is completely gone on all the tires and on the front the next row is pretty much gone. if the roads are at all wet i can kick the rear end out at will. it's fun, but not what anyone would call safe.

i'd rather not buy tires twice since i will get something good before winter no matter what.

[aznpoopy]

my friend had the same dilemna... he opted to wait. then one day on the highway he had to do an emergency stop; needless to say he couldn't. so bam, he rear ended someone and someone rear ended him. his insurance shot up, so he had to cancel his policy. so now, he has no car, no license and no insurance. just buy an extra set of regular tires and wheels and put them on now. swap on snowtires when it snows. in the spring u can swap back. ur going to end up spending the money anyway. don't chance it.

[Rennen]

I was in the same predicament as you are last year. I had mostly bald crappy tires and winter was coming, I decided that it didn't snow near enough to warrant snow tires, and I wanted some performance when it wasn't snowy outside.

My choice:

Dunlop SP Sport A2 "high performance" all season.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Dunlop&tireModel=SP+Sport+A2&vehicleSearch=true&partnum=06HR5A2

Based on the tire rack reviews and price, these were the best tires for me. During the winter, I got around everywhere I needed to go, and never got stuck once. We don't get as much snow in Missouri as you would in Ohio( I know I visit family in Ohio often) but I still think this tire would work for you.

-Matt

[cdlong]

i think i'm just going to get some all seasons. i sent an e-mail to tirerack and they suggested the same tires. they look decent but some of the reviews were less than favorable. most said the tires wore out really fast. that's suprising considering the 420 treadwear rating. any thoughts? how long did yours last Rennen?

[Rennen]

Well, I cant really comment on treadlife. I have put them through 7 autocross events(including 4 spinouts and the last course I kinda drifted alot:) )and about 15,000 miles in a little under a year. The tread depth now is iffy on wether or not they will perform well this winter, I guess we will see.

I am quite pleased with the all season aspects of the tire. I got around in this snow storm:
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid61/pb0c0270cca64cf44b46051398266f08b/fc31fbaa.jpg
In very heavy rain, I could go 10-15mph faster than other traffic before hydroplaning. And they are still responsive and grippy while driving the curvy backroads of the Ozarks.

-Matt