I second taking the bus. During the 4 days of snow/icy roads I took the bus and it was fine. A $3-4 bus fare is cheaper than a new set of rims or damaging your car from driving it in the snow when obviously our cars are not made to handle those conditions.

 

I've already experienced the summer tires in snow... as described, I basically lost traction at first glimpse of snow/slush/ice. It took me 3 tries to get up the small hill to my house with like an inch of slush on the road. It was pathetic.

They do still make studded tires... In Washington you can't install them until Nov 1 and must be off by April 1 iirc.

And yes I already use public transportation or friends when travelling around town in the snow... my main reason for making this thread was for required travel (mountain passes, visiting my parents in eastern WA, etc).

 

Studded tires are legal in Washington during the winter. They chew the roads up very badly.

 

chains and belts have potential of damaging your fenders and suspension arm too....

 

Cougar,

I had the same dilemma as you (though I'm not in Washington). If you're saying you get that little snow, getting a set of dedicated tires is overkill.

a) If money is not an issue at all to you or you're an enthusiast and have to have maximum tire performance, then get a set of dedicated wheels for winter and for summer.

b) If you get a lot of snow where you live, get a set of snow tires and have them swapped every season. If you have a little extra money, get tires and dedicated rims.

c) If the G is more of "just a nice car" to you, then just get a set of all-season tires when the summer tires you have on wear off.

From your very own post, it sounds like you don't want to spend a lot of money on this issue, so it seems like c) is what you should do.

 

I forgot to mention: I don't get enough snow here to justify dedicated wheels, but we do have snow storms. I tried just using summer tires like you and it's just sad to try to drive with summer tires. It "can" be done, but I would get stuck *everywhere.* Literally. I'd get stuck at a stop sign because there would be 1-3 inches of *soft* snow on the ground. I'd get stuck at the tiniest hills and IL is pretty friggin' flat. I'd get stuck at the company parking lot. I'd get stuck on my own flat driveway even after I cleaned it. So, yes, everywhere. If you have any little bit of snow *and* you have to drive the G, then summer tires are a no no.

 

It's not a 4x4 it's a G. All in a nutshell I wouldn't chance it.

 

lmao...that would be a site to see

 

im sooo glad it dosent snow here lol

 

Oh yeah, you could sell your summer tires pretty soon too and get the all-season tires. Now that summer is coming up, you should be able to sell them for a good price. :P

 

Chains and Low-profile tires can do more than just damage your wheels/tires... Usually they prohibit chains, becuase the clearance between the tires and the suspension components.

I know on my other car, I can barely squeeze my finger between the edge of the tire and the bottom of the strut assembly.

As far as summer tires/etc... Seattle weather is similar to Portland weather... You should not be driving around on summer tires year round... PacNW weather is not warm/dry enough in the fall/spring. All it takes is 40-50 degree weather with morning dew, light mist, or rain, and the stock summer tires will be like rolling ice cubes. Been there done that. (Tire rack says definition of summer, for summer tires, is average daily temps > 60 degrees and average nightly temps > 50 degrees)

I dind't get winter tires, becuase it doesn't snow THAT much, but it does get cold/wet for quite a while, so I just got a set of UltraHighPerformance All/Season tires. Worked well for me. I didn't notice that much of a drop in performance, while driving. I do drive fairly spiritedly/aggressively, but I don't track the car or anything. I also survived the recent snow storm, where we got 8" or so on our hill.

 

Dude, get a beater! I got a 1994 4runner with 130k miles and it runs like a champ. Bought it for $3k.

Save your G!

 

If luck is against you, even with a set of snows best to carry cables with you, as many times with heavy snows they won't let you over without some sort of traction (cables/chains), without having four-wheel drive. Then you're sitting at the bottom of Snoqualme for many hours. Maybe 17" will give you enough clearance, don't know though.