Yep, another snow tire thread...

I can confirm that the stock tires are absolutely horrible in snow/ice. DM-V2s and 17" wheels will be installed Thursday.
 
I can confirm that the stock tires are absolutely horrible in snow/ice. DM-V2s and 17" wheels will be installed Thursday.
Not sure which trim you got, but agreed the stock 17 Yokohamas the Touring came with was awful in snow.
 
These are Toro A36 on 19" rims. Seemed to perform well on dry roads in my limited real world testing but wow do they suck on anything slick.

Not even sure it's an acceptable "shoulder season" tire for that in-between time that I don't swap out the winters. Will try them again in May.
 
I have to buy snows for trips away from the coast this winter. My 2015 CX5 normally runs 19 wheels. I plan to get 17 wheels and higher profile snows. 225-17 Blizzaks on for a great price at Costco. Any reason I should NOT run 17 wheels /tires with the same diameter as my 19 wheels/tires?

When I got my first pair of CX-5 winters( back in Feb, 2014) I went with 17" because they were much cheaper than 19" and a recommended size for winters by many. I also got a huge deal on some discontinued CX-7 OEM alloy rims from my local Mazda dealer. I finally opted for a set of Blizzak WS70's at COSTCO and still run them on my new 2018 CX-5. I may finally need to upgrade them to new pair of Blizzak's this winter...WS80's or DM-V2's. I don't remember Vancouver getting much snow so you won't have salt pounded to the roads like here in New Brunswick. I just had to have TPMS sensors installed on my old rims for my new 2018 but my dealer said NOT to get the ones with metal stems and nut as they will corrode in our salty winter environment. They installed ones with plastic stems.
 
Do you recall if your Nokians were louder than the Continentals? I almost bought a set of Continental TS830s, but I get on forums like this, and hear the horror stories about bulging sidewalls and blowouts... Even though I am in Michigan, I don't necessarily need the very best snow tires--The majority of the time, I am driving on dry or wet roads, and the Contis are known for their nice ride. Along that line, I am also considering the Nokian WR G3 "All Weather".

The Nokian WRG3 SUV's are absolute trash, and I'll never own another tire made by that company again. Absolute junk.

Take-aways:

1) Lasted 20K miles before "Snowflake" gone (below 4/32).
2) LOUD AF!
3) Terrible traction in the rain
4) Didn't last a year, so I can't even comment on snow performance, but on a few ice patches I hit late last year, it felt similar to my Altimax's
5) MPG was unchanged from my worn out LX20's, so that's good.
6) I submitted my 1-star review to their website months ago and it's not there...so don't take their bulls*** reviews for anything. They are a company of shysters. Only warranty the tire if you buy through THEIR dealers, not Amazon, etc. too. That's your first sign it's a trash product, and I wish I'd listened to my gut, there, and not bought it.
7) Never could get them balanced well.
 
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The Nokian WRG3 SUV's are absolute trash, and I'll never own another tire made by that company again. Absolute junk.

Take-aways:

1) Lasted 20K miles before "Snowflake" gone (below 4/32).
2) LOUD AF!
3) Terrible traction in the rain
4) Didn't last a year, so I can't even comment on snow performance, but on a few ice patches I hit late last year, it felt similar to my Altimax's
5) MPG was unchanged from my worn out LX20's, so that's good.
6) I submitted my 1-star review to their website months ago and it's not there...so don't take their bulls*** reviews for anything. They are a company of shysters. Only warranty the tire if you buy through THEIR dealers, not Amazon, etc. too. That's your first sign it's a trash product, and I wish I'd listened to my gut, there, and not bought it.
7) Never could get them balanced well.

That was basically a no-brainer IMO. I can't see that kind of a tire lasting more than a few years running it 24/7, especially in the hot summer. No such thing as one-size-fits-all %100 of the time.
 
The Nokian WRG3 SUV's are absolute trash, and I'll never own another tire made by that company again. Absolute junk.

Take-aways:

1) Lasted 20K miles before "Snowflake" gone (below 4/32).
2) LOUD AF!
3) Terrible traction in the rain
4) Didn't last a year, so I can't even comment on snow performance, but on a few ice patches I hit late last year, it felt similar to my Altimax's
5) MPG was unchanged from my worn out LX20's, so that's good.
6) I submitted my 1-star review to their website months ago and it's not there...so don't take their bulls*** reviews for anything. They are a company of shysters. Only warranty the tire if you buy through THEIR dealers, not Amazon, etc. too. That's your first sign it's a trash product, and I wish I'd listened to my gut, there, and not bought it.
7) Never could get them balanced well.

I'm curious as to what tire pressures you used for those tires. Mazda says to add 4 pounds of pressure for dedicated snows, what did you run in those?
 
I'm curious as to what tire pressures you used for those tires. Mazda says to add 4 pounds of pressure for dedicated snows, what did you run in those?

I can't find anything in my owners manual about winter tire pressures. I run 17" winters and 19" all seasons, so put the owners manual recommended 34 lbs into my 17" winters. When I recently purchased my 2018 CX-5 I had my old winters on separate 17" rims switched over. If Mazda was recommending an extra 4 lbs for winters why wouldn't my dealer tell me that? Whenever I get my winter(or allseason) tire pressure topped up at COSTCO they never mention adding an extra 4 lbs for my winters either.
 
I can't find anything in my owners manual about winter tire pressures. I run 17" winters and 19" all seasons, so put the owners manual recommended 34 lbs into my 17" winters. When I recently purchased my 2018 CX-5 I had my old winters on separate 17" rims switched over. If Mazda was recommending an extra 4 lbs for winters why wouldn't my dealer tell me that? Whenever I get my winter(or allseason) tire pressure topped up at COSTCO they never mention adding an extra 4 lbs for my winters either.

When discount put my Blizzaks back on, I took a tire gauge to it after to see what they aired it to, and it was closer to 38, 39 PSI. Same as the year before at a different location.

I figure they must know what they are doing.

My all seasons on the other hand, I prefer to run at 36 psi. There was a huge difference in feel between 34 and 36 psi on my General Altimax RT43's. They felt awful mushy at 34, but firmed up nicely at 36.
 
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I can't find anything in my owners manual about winter tire pressures. I run 17" winters and 19" all seasons, so put the owners manual recommended 34 lbs into my 17" winters. When I recently purchased my 2018 CX-5 I had my old winters on separate 17" rims switched over. If Mazda was recommending an extra 4 lbs for winters why wouldn't my dealer tell me that? Whenever I get my winter(or allseason) tire pressure topped up at COSTCO they never mention adding an extra 4 lbs for my winters either.

In the 2018 downloadable owners manual (pdf version) there's a section on winter driving (p 3-54) that says:

▼ Snow Tires

Use snow tires on all four wheels

Do not go faster than 120 km/h (75 mph)
while driving with snow tires. Inflate snow
tires 30 kPa (0.3 kgf/cm2, 4.3 psi) more
than recommended on the tire pressure
label (driver's door frame), but never more
than the maximum cold-tire pressure
shown on the tires.

Tire Rack did tell me this when I got my winter setup from them back in 2015. I guess all dealers are not created equal.
 
I can't find anything in my owners manual about winter tire pressures. I run 17" winters and 19" all seasons, so put the owners manual recommended 34 lbs into my 17" winters. When I recently purchased my 2018 CX-5 I had my old winters on separate 17" rims switched over. If Mazda was recommending an extra 4 lbs for winters why wouldn't my dealer tell me that? Whenever I get my winter(or allseason) tire pressure topped up at COSTCO they never mention adding an extra 4 lbs for my winters either.

It's a big misconception that dealers know all about the vehicles they sell. The dealer is only as good as the guy/kid turning the wrench on your car. I wish I had a dollar for every time I had to point out a TSB.
 
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In the 2018 downloadable owners manual (pdf version) there's a section on winter driving (p 3-54) that says:



Tire Rack did tell me this when I got my winter setup from them back in 2015. I guess all dealers are not created equal.

You are absolutely right!!! Add 4.3 lbs extra to winter tires. I finally found it, NOT in the "Tires" Inflation Pressure section or "Specifications" Tire Pressure" section where I looked high and low, but in the "Driving Tips" Winter Driving section of my Owners Manual that you pointed out. Thanks for setting me straight. I'll definitely be asking/telling my dealer and COSTCO about this. (mad)
 
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Also, if you're interested, here's Tire Rack's explanation for why they think manufacturers recommend this:


WINTER / SNOW TIRE TECH: HIGHER TIRE PRESSURES FOR WINTER DRIVING

Several vehicle manufacturer's owner's manuals recommend operating winter tires several psi (typically 3-5) higher than their recommended pressures for summer and all-season tires. While none of them actually provide the reason why, there are several scenarios that would support the practice.

First and foremost is that winter tires feature more aggressive tread designs, softer tread compounds and are often molded with deeper beginning tread depths than summer or all-season tires. While the combination of these design elements allows winter tires to remain more pliable in sub-freezing temperatures to provide more traction in snow and on ice, it often results in tires that have somewhat reduced responsiveness to driver input. The 3-5 psi higher recommended inflation pressures increase tire stability and help offset the reduction in responsiveness.

Additionally ambient air temperatures in winter typically range 40- to 50-degrees Fahrenheit colder than typical summer temperatures for the same location. The lower ambient temperatures allow tires to be more efficient at radiating heat and the tires will run cooler, building up less hot tire pressure. In this case, the 3-5 psi higher recommended inflation pressure increase helps offset the reduced hot tire pressures resulting from less heat buildup.

And finally, all tire pressures are intended to be measured cold, which means when the tires are at the same temperature as the air outside. Unfortunately, unless you park your vehicle outside or in an unheated, detached garage, and measure its tire pressures first thing on dark, cold mornings, the influence of attached garages or higher ambient air temperatures later in the day often means that drivers are actually measuring tires that are not completely cold. In this case the 3-5 psi higher recommended inflation pressure increase helps offset the reduced tire pressures associated with the conditions in which the tire pressures are typically measured.
 
The Nokian WRG3 SUV's are absolute trash, and I'll never own another tire made by that company again. Absolute junk.

Your experience with the Nokian WRs was terrible. But, that was not my experience with 3 sets of Nokian WR series tires on 3 different vehicles over a number of years. My experience with these tires is with sedans - not the SUV version. So, maybe the SUV version is just not the same. Living in a northern climate the all season "plus" tires are a great choice if you don't want the hassle or feel you need a dedicated set of snow tires. All the major tire brands are adding similar all season plus tire to their line up.

I've got some dedicated snow tires for a rear wheel drive vehicle - but will consider an all season plus tire for the CX-5. I'm also hoping that over the next 12-18 months we will get a few more choices for our 19" wheels.
 
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