I just got my 5, and man that thing is useless in the snow. I drove my Miata year-round since it was new (91) with snow tires and it was fine. Of course I never had to shell out for 17" tires before, so it will be a while before I can get a set. So, what snow tires have you guys run on your 5's? I've had Nokians, Blizzaks, and "Winterforce" brands on the Miata so I have experience with several types.
Snow tires!
- Thread starter daan
- Start date
I run a set of 17" Yokohama AV Winters on the 5, a set of 17" Winterforce on the MPV and a set of 14" Blizzaks on the 323. My opinion is the Winterforce are the best for snow/ice...but that could also be because the MPV is the heaviest of the three vehicles.
Anthony
Anthony
was98strat
Member
I run a set of Pirelli's on 16 inch steelies, Ugly I know but it's not expensive. cost me $800 for tires and rims installed last winter! now I do the switchmyself as I have the correct tools! biggie is I now have to replace my summer tires as they are almost worn out!
Running Dunlop Wintersport 3Ds on 16" steelies. (thank you tirerack.com) Great snows for a modest price. Honestly the 5 is a really good snow driver with some good tires. Not sure if the 16s vs 17s do much in the snow. It was just a choice of about $650 for 16s+tires or about $900 for 17s.
Behold the beauty of the steelies... (Looks like Susan is the same color so should give you a nice preview)
Okay.. so maybe they 'aint pretty, but I've had too many tire scrapes and curb altercations in the snow to put anything pretty on there.
One last little tidbit for all with snows: I found an obscure line in the Owner's manual stating that snow tires should be inflated to 4.3 lbs higher than the tire pressure plates say. I run the Dunlops at 40PSI with no Ill effects.
Behold the beauty of the steelies... (Looks like Susan is the same color so should give you a nice preview)
Okay.. so maybe they 'aint pretty, but I've had too many tire scrapes and curb altercations in the snow to put anything pretty on there.
One last little tidbit for all with snows: I found an obscure line in the Owner's manual stating that snow tires should be inflated to 4.3 lbs higher than the tire pressure plates say. I run the Dunlops at 40PSI with no Ill effects.
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tight on budget, I resorted to getting winter tire from the dealer.. steelies and tire.. I think I had the Hankook I-pike. The kind with option to be studded but I did not stud it. It's very bad during the first winter.
This winter is the 2nd winter for the hankook tires and I'm satisfied with how it works. Sometimes I think it is equal or better than the x-ice in my old buick. Someone said winter tires need time to wear down to its 'effective layer'.
BTW, from the 4-way stops, it will still spin if you push on the gas too hard.
But then it happens on any vehicles without Traction control.
This winter is the 2nd winter for the hankook tires and I'm satisfied with how it works. Sometimes I think it is equal or better than the x-ice in my old buick. Someone said winter tires need time to wear down to its 'effective layer'.
BTW, from the 4-way stops, it will still spin if you push on the gas too hard.
But then it happens on any vehicles without Traction control.
daan,
I order them up early. When I was researching, I ran across the suggestion that you should put something like 500 miles on the tires to wear off the mold release and open up the pores on the winter compounds. I think our 5 had the factory rims for maybe 1 month...
I will also HIGHLY recommend tirerack, as they sent hub-centric wheels for the 5 and lug nuts for no extra charge. My Toyota echo has steelies that I bought in town and they are lug-centric. The hub-centric wheels fit the center hub exactly, the lug centric's have a bigger hub opening and depend on the lug nut torque to keep them in proper position.
Tirerack sent you lug nuts? That was nice of them. They told me to use the stock lug nuts for my steelies.
I've ordered, like, 5 sets of tires from the TR over the years. The sales guy spent what seemed like hours trying to track down that 4th wheel for me, but he just couldn't find one. Now that I think of it, are there other Mazdas that use the same bolt pattern that I could score "take-offs" from the dealer, or maybe a junkyard?
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I've seen the mazdaspeed wheels and even RX8 wheels on 5s, so I gotta think that the 3,5,6 and RX8 all have the same bolt patter. I'm sure TR could probably confirm. It's a shame they don't have a 4th rim, as it was sooo nice to have the UPS guy just roll 4 mounted tires off the truck
A quick update on the Snow tires. Mother nature decided to send us a "gift" of nearly 20 inches of snow over the course of last week! I had to visit the parents to pick up a rocking chair and managed to navigate about 15 inches of unplowed snow without getting stuck! I am not sure that I want to try that again, but the 5 chugged on though. Around my house, snow totals were only about 8 inches, but still enough to be extremely troublesome for most people. Again, the 5 is really a champ with a good set of snows!
I must say that every day I see the stock 17s in the garage and look forward to summer. Those black steelies and the grey/brown snow muck is a bit dreary on such a nice looking car!
I must say that every day I see the stock 17s in the garage and look forward to summer. Those black steelies and the grey/brown snow muck is a bit dreary on such a nice looking car!
SparkyBhoy
Member
I'm getting the black steelie/winter tire combo's on Monday. Got a good deal from a buddy of mine, $730CDN all in, but I don't know what the tires are yet (huh)
We have a trip to Silver Star next weekend, and I didn't fancy driving either the Coquihalla or the Okanagan Connector with the stock tires. It has been known to snow on the Coquihalla in July (boom01)
just an update on the hankook I pike winter tire, when road is realy icy. I mean shiny white frozen snow, Stopping distance is still very long and it is a scary experience. If there is a consolation, The MZ5 ABS system managed to keep the vehicle in a straight line. Lesson I learned.. enough testing the winter tires. Just drive slow. lolz.
skyhawk: Bummer to hear about the Hankooks. I nearly bout those twice locally, but backed out due to poor reviews. Though even with a good snow tire, slow and steady has always been good in my book. Perhaps my viewpoint is shifted due to year and years behind the wheel of a '77 Volvo RWD with only rear studded tires. Just about anything FWD with snow tired probably did better than that poor car!
NIcurmudgeon
Member
- :
- 2007 Mazda3 GT Hatchback
I got Bridgestone Blizzak WS60's, 205/16/55, from Tire Tack, mounted on steel wheels. I've had studless snows for thirty years, beginning with Metzeler Alpine, then Gislaveds, then Dunlops, and they just keep getting better. The WS60's are nothing short of incredible. I make several 300+ mile winter trips each year, and this year, with the WS60's and DSC, I drove those miles with more confidence than ever before.
I detest the Goodyears that came on my 3, and am going to replace them with Michelin Pilot Exalta A/S after the big thaw.
I detest the Goodyears that came on my 3, and am going to replace them with Michelin Pilot Exalta A/S after the big thaw.
Alright we got our first snow since we got the 5. I know the front tires are not the stock set. But after talking with the GF about her attempt to drive home, sounds like next winter it will have snow tires. Am I correct in saying that's the best way to go? My only other question, is how do they hold up as far as Mileage? With her drive being 80 miles a day, could I expect to get more than one winter out of a set? or will this become a yearly purchase? Thanks.
Snows are great on the 5. I would recommend a full steel wheel and tire package from tirerack.com. They will ship them mounted and balances. I paid about $650 for one of theirs middle of the road studless packages. So far the 5 has outperformed my expectations, expecially with "performance" snows as opposed to some of the really aggressive standard snows like on my Toyota ECHO.
For mileage, there is not much to worry about. Since you will be running tires for only 2 seasons, bots sets will last longer. The studless snows do have special softer compounds for cold weather, but this does not necessarily mean fast wear. You probably will wear them out faster if used all year long and especially if you are trying burnouts or something. Again, tirerack.com is a great resource. I nearly bought the blizzacks, but read that they were only 45% winter tread. This mad me a little hesitant for a few years down the road. I would suggest doing the research yourself though, as each person will have their preferences.
One thing I can reiterate though is to go for the 205/55 16s for winter. You can get 17's, but the added expense of tires and mounting will nearly cover the 16s mounted on steelies from tirerack. Also get yours early enough to put a few miles (about 500) on the set before the snow kicks in. This wears off the mold release and opens of the micro air pockets in the snows to make them winter-ready.
