215/40R18 blizzak lm-60s were 195 each. TPMS can be bought at SU for 300 bucks
you can go to tire rack and get a set of 17" steelies w/ tires for roughly 800. I have a set of rx8s with 245/40R18s direzza starspecs for summer.
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2010 Mazdaspeed3 snow driving
- Thread starter BoostisLove
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215/40R18 blizzak lm-60s were 195 each. TPMS can be bought at SU for 300 bucks
you can go to tire rack and get a set of 17" steelies w/ tires for roughly 800. I have a set of rx8s with 245/40R18s direzza starspecs for summer.
DailyDriver
Member
Thanks for the info!215/40R18 blizzak lm-60s were 195 each. TPMS can be bought at SU for 300 bucks
you can go to tire rack and get a set of 17" steelies w/ tires for roughly 800. I have a set of rx8s with 245/40R18s direzza starspecs for summer.
I did a search at Tire Rack and did not see any wheels listed for the 2010 MS3. As far as getting 17" steelies w/tires, can you be more specific about what I'd need? What are the exact specs of the wheels, and exactly what size tires would be most appropriate (for proper fitment and to keep the speedo etc as accurate as possible). Because $800 for a full set of wheels AND tires sounds like a pretty fair deal. I suppose that does not include TPMS though. Or, can I run this car without TPMS... or will the computer freak out and cause headaches?
Gee, for $800, to receive a full set of tires mounted on wheels ready to bolt on the car, that would be pretty sweet... I'd probably go for that, like right now. I'd imagine that buying a new set of 2010 MS3 bare 18" aluminum rims from Mazda would cost more than that alone... and the 17" rims (and taller sidewalls) would allow for that much more "shock absorption" over ice ruts, potholes, etc.
Any extra info would be greatly appreciated. I could call Tire Rack, but I doubt they'd know the specifics about swapping "non-original" type wheels onto a given car.
Thanks for the info!
I did a search at Tire Rack and did not see any wheels listed for the 2010 MS3. As far as getting 17" steelies w/tires, can you be more specific about what I'd need? What are the exact specs of the wheels, and exactly what size tires would be most appropriate (for proper fitment and to keep the speedo etc as accurate as possible). Because $800 for a full set of wheels AND tires sounds like a pretty fair deal. I suppose that does not include TPMS though. Or, can I run this car without TPMS... or will the computer freak out and cause headaches?
Gee, for $800, to receive a full set of tires mounted on wheels ready to bolt on the car, that would be pretty sweet... I'd probably go for that, like right now. I'd imagine that buying a new set of 2010 MS3 bare 18" aluminum rims from Mazda would cost more than that alone... and the 17" rims (and taller sidewalls) would allow for that much more "shock absorption" over ice ruts, potholes, etc.
Any extra info would be greatly appreciated. I could call Tire Rack, but I doubt they'd know the specifics about swapping "non-original" type wheels onto a given car.
yea the oem wheels for the 1st gen ms3 were quoted at 550 each. absolutely rediculous. ill talk to my buddy thats rockin steelies at the moment and get the wheel specs from him. the only drawback from not having the tpms installed is the dash light will be illuminated all the time.
It amazes me how someone can take a car out with high performance tires on in snow and even consider complaining about it's performance in snow. I see the same posts every winter. These are high performance summer tires on a performance car. How anyone can even consider it safe to drive in any type of snow is beyond words.
The cheapest, crappiest winter tire from wally mart will be 15 times better in snow then the stock ...I'll say it once again HIGH performace summer tires. If your too cheap to consider getting winters for yourself, remember YOU are the danger to the rest of us. Besides, think of getting cheap winters as a way of making your summers last longer.
I just read some article about how the new Toyota Venza was the worse winter car according to some f'n moron who apparantly is an "auto journalist". He went on to say that it slipped everywhere, dangerous etc blah blah, and tototally trashed it as the single worse AWD he's ever tested. Now someone in his field should have at least a tiny f'n clue and be able to determine that the TWENTY inch tires on the Venza are not WINTERS. Holy moron batman. He should have not even been on the road with it and that goes for anyone trying to convince themselves that tires like these are capable in snow. It amazes me, it really does. On another site, swedish, European, Venza gets called BEST winter vehicle - yes they were smart enough to put winters on it.
Sorry, but I can't tell you how many friends and family I've seen in accidents and 99% of the time, the damn f'n moron at fault....summer tires.
I applaud those here willing to take the time an do it right, good to see.
On a side note, my MS6 and winter tires = the best winter car I've ever owned, and we get real snow here. It's so good in snow, my number one requirement for my next car is AWD.
The cheapest, crappiest winter tire from wally mart will be 15 times better in snow then the stock ...I'll say it once again HIGH performace summer tires. If your too cheap to consider getting winters for yourself, remember YOU are the danger to the rest of us. Besides, think of getting cheap winters as a way of making your summers last longer.
I just read some article about how the new Toyota Venza was the worse winter car according to some f'n moron who apparantly is an "auto journalist". He went on to say that it slipped everywhere, dangerous etc blah blah, and tototally trashed it as the single worse AWD he's ever tested. Now someone in his field should have at least a tiny f'n clue and be able to determine that the TWENTY inch tires on the Venza are not WINTERS. Holy moron batman. He should have not even been on the road with it and that goes for anyone trying to convince themselves that tires like these are capable in snow. It amazes me, it really does. On another site, swedish, European, Venza gets called BEST winter vehicle - yes they were smart enough to put winters on it.
Sorry, but I can't tell you how many friends and family I've seen in accidents and 99% of the time, the damn f'n moron at fault....summer tires.
I applaud those here willing to take the time an do it right, good to see.
On a side note, my MS6 and winter tires = the best winter car I've ever owned, and we get real snow here. It's so good in snow, my number one requirement for my next car is AWD.
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BayAreaMS3
Member
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- 2007 Speed3
"Check your self before you wreck you self." Don't go around bashing the 'Car' for what it's not designed to do. Put some winter tires on it. By the way; The MS3 is the worst car to drive in the water. I'm thinking of trading it in for Yamaha Waverunner GP1300R.
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- 2011 Mustang GT
Guys, I posted earlier that 215/45/18 Blizzak LM-22s were on closeout at TireRack for $136 each.
OP, your tires are the culprit. If you think that the car is so bad, swap tires to all-seasons or snows and do the same thing. I'd bet it'll be fine for you.
This thread is getting too dragged out when the answer is obvious. I bought my MS6 in Jan 2008, and the temps were in the single digits in MI. We got snow later in the week, and I thought I was going to die with the RE050s on there. I started learning a bit more about tires, and bought a set of Pirelli all-seasons for the time being, which, in last years snow worked out just fine. Snow tires would only take it to the next level.
OP, your tires are the culprit. If you think that the car is so bad, swap tires to all-seasons or snows and do the same thing. I'd bet it'll be fine for you.
This thread is getting too dragged out when the answer is obvious. I bought my MS6 in Jan 2008, and the temps were in the single digits in MI. We got snow later in the week, and I thought I was going to die with the RE050s on there. I started learning a bit more about tires, and bought a set of Pirelli all-seasons for the time being, which, in last years snow worked out just fine. Snow tires would only take it to the next level.
mbanshchikov
Member
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- 2010 Mazdaspeed 3 Sport
DailyDriver, I can't believe you had the courage to drive the car in the snow on stock tires! That is crazyness! I have Blizzak snow tires mounted on 17" rims that I swapped from my 08 speed3. In my opinion, however, the 2010 does not handle as good as the 08 in the snow, or maybe its just me. Also, a word of caution, if you get steelies, make sure they will fit over the caliper.
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- 2010 Mazda CX-9 GT Dolphin Gray
Sorry
Threads like this amaze me. And make me even more fearful of how uneducated some drivers are. No wonder people get killed. Makes one realize how poor driver ed courses are in the USA.
I drove the Mazdaspeed3 around in the snow last weekend and I'd have to say it is possibly the worst fwd car I have ever driven in the snow. What the f is the deal here? I was driving down a straight level road and my back end started sliding out. I was doing like 15 mph!! I'm so frustrated with this car and its snow performance that I'm considering trading it in.
Threads like this amaze me. And make me even more fearful of how uneducated some drivers are. No wonder people get killed. Makes one realize how poor driver ed courses are in the USA.
agreed to what everyone else is saying. snow tires are the biggest non-driver factor in terms of how a car drives in the snow. i can't begin to talk of the HUGE difference between a summer tire and winter tire in the snow - actually both car and driver and tire rack did a test comparing the two if someone wants to look it up.
also, 4wd only improves a car's traction in the straight line in the snow - it's a myth that the car will turn or stop quicker, just feels a lot more stable and confident. snow sticks to snow. drive safely out there all
also, 4wd only improves a car's traction in the straight line in the snow - it's a myth that the car will turn or stop quicker, just feels a lot more stable and confident. snow sticks to snow. drive safely out there all
agreed to what everyone else is saying. snow tires are the biggest non-driver factor in terms of how a car drives in the snow. i can't begin to talk of the HUGE difference between a summer tire and winter tire in the snow - actually both car and driver and tire rack did a test comparing the two if someone wants to look it up.
also, 4wd only improves a car's traction in the straight line in the snow - it's a myth that the car will turn or stop quicker, just feels a lot more stable and confident. snow sticks to snow. drive safely out there all
absolutely true. AWD and 4wd can actually be MORE dangerous to the wrong driver. You don't realise how slippery it really is like you do in a rwd and fwd as the car doesn't spin it's wheels as much on start. So you get a false sense of security until you go to stop and then it's a reality check in the worse way.
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- 2011 Mustang GT
DailyDriver, I can't believe you had the courage to drive the car in the snow on stock tires! That is crazyness! I have Blizzak snow tires mounted on 17" rims that I swapped from my 08 speed3. In my opinion, however, the 2010 does not handle as good as the 08 in the snow, or maybe its just me. Also, a word of caution, if you get steelies, make sure they will fit over the caliper.
+1. Anyone who lives in a place where snow, ice, and slush are an annual affair should get winter tires and run them religiously. If you don't, you're taking a chance.
At the very least, switch to an all-season, but make sure that water and snow traction score highly, or they're not worth it. One thing to remember is that by going with the AS tires, you sacrifice traction in BOTH conditions, and don't excel in any.
DailyDriver
Member
I understand a lot of you guys thinking it's crazy for one to expect a summer performance tire to be able to perform in snow. I certainly wasn't expecting excellent snow performance with the stock tires. But I gave it a shot just to see how bad they could be... and yes, they're very bad in the snow. Very bad.
What absolutely amazes me... ok, the MS3 is a "cheap" economy car etc and we should not expect too much from it, but HOW IN THE HELL can they sell a car in the NORTH EAST that comes with tires that are DANGEROUS in the snow? Now does that make any sense? They're pretty much selling you a car that you can't drive safely unless you go out and buy a new set of tires.
Seriously, there should be a big red warning sticker on the dashboard that says, "if snow is encountered, pull off the road and go buy a new set of tires".
Ok, most or all of us here at the forum are car nuts and we are aware of such things, but the average person who might possibly buy an MS3 is not going to have any idea about summer tires, winter tires, etc. All my life, just about every car I've ever bought, owned and/or drove came with tires that performed adequately on both hot dry pavement as well as snow, I never bought a new car that REQUIRED a tire change for snow use. Until now apparently. (Not counting the Corvette of course, but that's clearly not a winter car, period, regardless of tires)
So, again, I'm not complaining, I love my MS3, and I love the price... it's a great little all-purpose car... but you get what you pay for... any north east owners (like me) will be forced to buy an extra set of wheels and snow tires... an extra expense that I had not been planning on. When I bought the car I had just assumed that the stock tires would at least be "adequate" in snow, I did not do specific research into the tires... again, I never bought a new car that came with tires that were "unsafe" for use during part of the year in my region.
Anyway, so my goal now is to find the cheapest set of wheels that will fit perfectly on a 2010 MS3 (steel, aluminum, whatever works), and then get a set of winter tires put on. I'd love to run stock 2010 aluminum wheels, but if they're really over $500 each, then no way. New steel 17" wheels sound like a good plan, I like the idea of taller sidewalls for winter use.... but, before I'd consider buying new steelies, I'd want to have exact specific specs in hand with respect to what is going to FIT on this car. Is there an exact part number someone could lay on me?
What absolutely amazes me... ok, the MS3 is a "cheap" economy car etc and we should not expect too much from it, but HOW IN THE HELL can they sell a car in the NORTH EAST that comes with tires that are DANGEROUS in the snow? Now does that make any sense? They're pretty much selling you a car that you can't drive safely unless you go out and buy a new set of tires.
Seriously, there should be a big red warning sticker on the dashboard that says, "if snow is encountered, pull off the road and go buy a new set of tires".
Ok, most or all of us here at the forum are car nuts and we are aware of such things, but the average person who might possibly buy an MS3 is not going to have any idea about summer tires, winter tires, etc. All my life, just about every car I've ever bought, owned and/or drove came with tires that performed adequately on both hot dry pavement as well as snow, I never bought a new car that REQUIRED a tire change for snow use. Until now apparently. (Not counting the Corvette of course, but that's clearly not a winter car, period, regardless of tires)
So, again, I'm not complaining, I love my MS3, and I love the price... it's a great little all-purpose car... but you get what you pay for... any north east owners (like me) will be forced to buy an extra set of wheels and snow tires... an extra expense that I had not been planning on. When I bought the car I had just assumed that the stock tires would at least be "adequate" in snow, I did not do specific research into the tires... again, I never bought a new car that came with tires that were "unsafe" for use during part of the year in my region.
Anyway, so my goal now is to find the cheapest set of wheels that will fit perfectly on a 2010 MS3 (steel, aluminum, whatever works), and then get a set of winter tires put on. I'd love to run stock 2010 aluminum wheels, but if they're really over $500 each, then no way. New steel 17" wheels sound like a good plan, I like the idea of taller sidewalls for winter use.... but, before I'd consider buying new steelies, I'd want to have exact specific specs in hand with respect to what is going to FIT on this car. Is there an exact part number someone could lay on me?
I'm not sure I agree--I think the 'average person' who buys an MS3 is into cars a bit more than your average person, and therefore would know it's sitting on performance tires.Ok, most or all of us here at the forum are car nuts and we are aware of such things, but the average person who might possibly buy an MS3 is not going to have any idea about summer tires, winter tires, etc.
I also drove in the snow last Friday night on the stock Dunlops, and barely made it home. Problem is, I got off work late, and got caught in it. It was my last day of work before the next year, so I knew I wouldn't be driving the car after that night, and the snow wasn't supposed to start until a couple hours later according to reports. But I knew I was running on tires that wouldn't handle well in the snow.
That said, the FWD MS3 with Dunlops perform 100 times worse in the snow than my RWD Miata on Falken summer tires, which truly surprised me.
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- 11 Miata GT PRHT, 00 Silverado RCSB
It's not just Mazda though. There are plenty of other sporty cars that come with summer tires. My GTI did too.
DailyDriver
Member
You'd be surprised. Don't put too much faith in the average person who might buy any given high performance car. I have spent a lot of time at the Corvette forums.... oh boy, you should see the questions that pop up there. I would think that over 50% of people who buy Corvettes have no clue about anything regarding high performance etc. The questions and stories I read there make me afraid to go out on public roads. Never put any level of faith at all in any segment of the car buying public.I'm not sure I agree--I think the 'average person' who buys an MS3 is into cars a bit more than your average person, and therefore would know it's sitting on performance tires...
I don't necessarily put faith in any particular segment of people in general, as there are an abundance of people in the world who lack common sense, but that's exactly my point: the simple fact that not all cars come with all-season tires is common sense...or at least I thought so.
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BoostisLove
Member
My MS3 clearly has serious traction issues on snow, considerably worse than just about any other car I've ever driven, and I know how to drive it. I'm often driving a RWD Mustang GT with non-snow tires on it, and it's certainly not so great in the snow, but it's way better than my MS3 at this moment.
I thought I was the only one. I couldn't have said it better myself.
I thought I was the only one. I couldn't have said it better myself.
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- 2010 Mazda CX-9 GT Dolphin Gray
It's not even a fair comparison
This is a senseless comparison. Can someone kill this thread.
My MS3 clearly has serious traction issues on snow, considerably worse than just about any other car I've ever driven, and I know how to drive it. I'm often driving a RWD Mustang GT with non-snow tires on it, and it's certainly not so great in the snow, but it's way better than my MS3 at this moment.
I thought I was the only one. I couldn't have said it better myself.
This is a senseless comparison. Can someone kill this thread.
Thank you for chiming in Newf, I was reading this thread in disbelief.
However, despite all the snow tire comments, having tires safe for a specific region would make sense but that would drive costs higher. Even Canadians get summer tires and they get heavy winters.
However, despite all the snow tire comments, having tires safe for a specific region would make sense but that would drive costs higher. Even Canadians get summer tires and they get heavy winters.
DailyDriver
Member
Specifically to those who are so offended by this thread... how about offering some useful advise about obtaining appropriate extra wheels for the 2010 MS3 in order to mount snow tires. What exactly are all you guys running? What wheels? Make, model, part numbers, price...? If I knew exactly what wheels to get right now, I'd probably make an order tomorrow for a set of extra wheels and snow tires. But the problem is, there seems to be a lot of ambiguity as to what wheels fit on the 2010 MS3 (other than stock 2010 MS3 wheels which apparently cost a fortune, I ain't spending 2 grand on an extra set of wheels).
So, I really hope I do not see any more posts such as, "oh my stars, I just can't believe how stupid this thread is", and instead see some HELPFUL info, such as, "here's how to run snows on the 2010 MS3, get part #12345 wheels, mount Blizzaks or whatever, size ABC-123, etc, etc", so that we can all be running safe winter tires. It amazes me that Mazda does not make such info readily available, this info SHOULD be printed in the owners manual.... but, whatever.
So, I really hope I do not see any more posts such as, "oh my stars, I just can't believe how stupid this thread is", and instead see some HELPFUL info, such as, "here's how to run snows on the 2010 MS3, get part #12345 wheels, mount Blizzaks or whatever, size ABC-123, etc, etc", so that we can all be running safe winter tires. It amazes me that Mazda does not make such info readily available, this info SHOULD be printed in the owners manual.... but, whatever.
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