Now that warm weather is here I am jonesing for better tires on the ep. I live in Lexington, KY and we do get some snow every winter, actually its usually more ice than snow. Anyways I can only afford one set of tires this summer and dont want to swap them back and forth so I was wondering what you guys are using.

I want the most aggressive wet/dry tire that will still be passable for the 10 days a year we have snow/ice around here. I am from Buffalo so I can drive in the snow I just need an idea of what tire will suit what I am looking for.

Thanks

 

two set of wheels and tires.

your car doesn't need to look pretty in the winter. find a set of honda steel wheels (14"). sometimes people are literally giving them away. get a set of summer tires and pick up a set of snows for under $200 later

 

If you're dead-set on only 1 tire for all 4-seasons I'd look into Dunlop sp5000's. They're the best compromise that I've driven.

When I was in college I ran these all year round (had all 4 seasons) and never had any problems. And that was driving as far north as VT (skiing) and Canada, and as far south as Alabama.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by kung fu grip &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">two set of wheels and tires.

your car doesn't need to look pretty in the winter. find a set of honda steel wheels (14"). sometimes people are literally giving them away. get a set of summer tires and pick up a set of snows for under $200 later</TD></TR></TABLE>

I have thought about going this route, just leaving the stock tire on the stock rims and saving them for cold weather and betting a set of wheel/tires at the same time. We just get so little really cold weather I am having a hard time justifying the money.

 

i lived in west michigan before i moved to NC last year...like buffalo with more trees.

the 2 set system offers a few positive benefits:

your performance tires will last longer because in reality, all-season tires just aren't that great in the snow. you spin the crap out of them trying to get traction and it wears them down quicker. you also don't get the wear and tear on your "summer" wheels from the salt and sand. (the salt causes corrosion on aluminum in a different manner than steel). when it DOES snow, you have great traction. in the warm months, you can run a true performance tire, not a run of the mill all-season.

i recommend the 14" steelies for the snow because the 14" snow tires are really cheap, plus you can have that "rallycross" look

driving the EP3 on snow tires in the snow is really great.

driving an EP3 on true "summer" tires when the weather is nice is even better.

if you still want to go with an all-season, i recommend the falken ziex 512. V-rated, comfortable for highway driving, great in the rain, great price.

 

thanks for the feedback

 

Two sets is best, but Pirelli PZero Nero M&S are very good all-season tires that are great in the dry and can handle some decent amounts of snow and ice.