New CX-9 Grand Touring/Tire Concerns
- Thread starter pitt
- Start date
Thanks for the research SportOwner.
Do you really think that there's a significant difference between the Yoko Parada Spec X's and the Toyo Proxes II's? Both are V rated all-season tires built for moderately bad weather and performance. I would definitely say that my Toyo's are better in all aspects over the Duelers and much better in moderately bad weather conditions. But both were atrocious in really bad weather conditions.
It was the initial two feet of snow that killed the Toyo's, and I would suspect the Yokos would have yielded similar resutls. We had over a foot of fresh snow on the road with hard packed snow & ice underneath. I almost fell down three times trying to chisel the road clear in front of the car because it was so slick! I don't think anything short of a true dedicated snow tire would have made a difference in those conditions, to be quite honest.
That being said, I have concerns about the Blizzaks. On the Tirerack site they claim that these tires will effectively become all-seasons after about 50% wear:
Even the cheaper DM-V1s are not exactly cheap. I'm thinking it may be wiser to invest in something even less expensive in a 17 or 18" rim that lasts longer (in theory). But Tirerack only seems to carry Blizzak models and Pirelli snow & ice for this purpose on the Mazda 2007 CX9 GT AWD.
Another huge issue I just discovered is that I think my AWD may be broken. We noticed that only the front wheels were spinning when we were stuck in the road and the "4WD" light in the dash kept coming on. At first I thought this was simply feedback, similar to the traction control light, but after reading a thread on this subject at Edmunds it sounds like I may have an issue with my AWD system compounding the problem:
So I'm going to hold off on dedicated snows to see if my transfer case is bad.
There is a way to check error codes in the NAVI. I'm going to do that as a soon as I have some free time later today...
Do you really think that there's a significant difference between the Yoko Parada Spec X's and the Toyo Proxes II's? Both are V rated all-season tires built for moderately bad weather and performance. I would definitely say that my Toyo's are better in all aspects over the Duelers and much better in moderately bad weather conditions. But both were atrocious in really bad weather conditions.
It was the initial two feet of snow that killed the Toyo's, and I would suspect the Yokos would have yielded similar resutls. We had over a foot of fresh snow on the road with hard packed snow & ice underneath. I almost fell down three times trying to chisel the road clear in front of the car because it was so slick! I don't think anything short of a true dedicated snow tire would have made a difference in those conditions, to be quite honest.
That being said, I have concerns about the Blizzaks. On the Tirerack site they claim that these tires will effectively become all-seasons after about 50% wear:
Even the cheaper DM-V1s are not exactly cheap. I'm thinking it may be wiser to invest in something even less expensive in a 17 or 18" rim that lasts longer (in theory). But Tirerack only seems to carry Blizzak models and Pirelli snow & ice for this purpose on the Mazda 2007 CX9 GT AWD.
Another huge issue I just discovered is that I think my AWD may be broken. We noticed that only the front wheels were spinning when we were stuck in the road and the "4WD" light in the dash kept coming on. At first I thought this was simply feedback, similar to the traction control light, but after reading a thread on this subject at Edmunds it sounds like I may have an issue with my AWD system compounding the problem:
So I'm going to hold off on dedicated snows to see if my transfer case is bad.
There is a way to check error codes in the NAVI. I'm going to do that as a soon as I have some free time later today...
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Thanks again. I have the car scheduled to go to the dealer on Friday.
I also wanted to give another report on the Toyos and say that with lots more snowy/icy/slushy driving conditions recently our tires have performed quite well. The problem we have seems to be isolated to the AWD system.
I also wanted to give another report on the Toyos and say that with lots more snowy/icy/slushy driving conditions recently our tires have performed quite well. The problem we have seems to be isolated to the AWD system.
2007 GT AWD - Just swapped out my 20's for 18's from TireRack. I got the Pirelli Scorpions. I had them installed by sears and the steering wheel vibrates pretty noticeably while driving. Is this normal for snow tires? Or is it a tire balance issue or mounting issue? I'm bringing it back to Sears for the follow-up re-torque tomorrow but was wondering what it might be so they can check it out.
Also, I was completely unaware that the 4WD light illuminating meant there was a problem, i'm definitely going to get the transfer case looked at by Mazda.
Also, I was completely unaware that the 4WD light illuminating meant there was a problem, i'm definitely going to get the transfer case looked at by Mazda.
- :
- 2022 CX-5 Turbo
On normal driving, the "4WD" light should not illumintate. It indicates a problem for dealer to fix (an error code, per se).
The vibration of steering column means poor balancing of tires on wheels. That is the same as a "mounting" problem. If your old 20" has no such issue, then, it is not the alignment. It is the mounting/balancing when Sears mounted the tires. Ask them to rebalance tires.
The vibration of steering column means poor balancing of tires on wheels. That is the same as a "mounting" problem. If your old 20" has no such issue, then, it is not the alignment. It is the mounting/balancing when Sears mounted the tires. Ask them to rebalance tires.
UPDATE: I found out we have basically had a 2WD car all along (1WD in snow!). $2300 for the transfer case. ugh Picking it up later today and can't wait for it to snow now.
I sure wish I had discovered this while it was under warranty though...*sigh*
BlazeZ - Let me know how the Pirelli's work out. I assume you got snow & ice?
I sure wish I had discovered this while it was under warranty though...*sigh*
BlazeZ - Let me know how the Pirelli's work out. I assume you got snow & ice?
That price included labor. I was pretty upset because I'm fairly sure this problem has been in place all along since owning the car and should have been covered by Mazda's standard warranty. But my local dealer wouldn't budge on it and I found that "Corporate" is a losing battle as well. The main problem was misdiagnosing the problem as tires only and thinking the "4WD" light was just feedback for it kicking in as opposed to a problem. Oh well.
That being said, I can't believe the difference in performance. The car drives completely differently now and I can't wait to try it in snow & ice. I'll report back after we get another storm.
That being said, I can't believe the difference in performance. The car drives completely differently now and I can't wait to try it in snow & ice. I'll report back after we get another storm.
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Just wanted to give an update...
After driving in several storms over the past few weeks, I can't believe the difference! The vehicle is a lot LOUDER on the road (tire noise), but it now pulls through even deep snow with ease. Curiously though, stopping appears to be slightly diminished (?)
I wish I had done better research early on as the Deullers were only half the problem (maybe less). So in hindsight, the Toyo tires are great in the snow and on dry roads and having an AWD car with a broken transfer case is worse than having one with no AWD (due to traction control technology).
Ah well, live and learn.
After driving in several storms over the past few weeks, I can't believe the difference! The vehicle is a lot LOUDER on the road (tire noise), but it now pulls through even deep snow with ease. Curiously though, stopping appears to be slightly diminished (?)
I wish I had done better research early on as the Deullers were only half the problem (maybe less). So in hindsight, the Toyo tires are great in the snow and on dry roads and having an AWD car with a broken transfer case is worse than having one with no AWD (due to traction control technology).
Ah well, live and learn.
SeattleCX9
Member
Wait for Yoko Parada Spec X's or go with Michelin?
I've been reading all the posts on the tires and had made my mind up to go with the Yokohama Parada Spec X's for my 2007 CX9 AWD GT. Now I'm finding out the same thing that has happened to many others.....there is a 4-6 week backorder. Just came from the dealer for oil change and they noted the tread on my front tired is 5/32. It takes me about 4-6 weeks to put 1K miles on my car. So I'm stressing about - do I wait for the Yoko's which seem to have the best rating or do I go with the Michelin Latitude Tour HP.
Living in Seattle - obviously rain is a big issue, but we do get snow too so I just want the best AS tire I can get in the 245/50R20 size.
I've been reading all the posts on the tires and had made my mind up to go with the Yokohama Parada Spec X's for my 2007 CX9 AWD GT. Now I'm finding out the same thing that has happened to many others.....there is a 4-6 week backorder. Just came from the dealer for oil change and they noted the tread on my front tired is 5/32. It takes me about 4-6 weeks to put 1K miles on my car. So I'm stressing about - do I wait for the Yoko's which seem to have the best rating or do I go with the Michelin Latitude Tour HP.
Living in Seattle - obviously rain is a big issue, but we do get snow too so I just want the best AS tire I can get in the 245/50R20 size.
I've been contemplating getting the Yokohama AVID ENVigor. They just came out at the beginning of this month so there's no review data yet.
http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/avid_envigor.aspx
http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/avid_envigor.aspx
Love 'em!
