Snow tire recommendations for 06?

Hiya neighbor! Welcome to PriusChat

There have been many posts on winter tires and how the Prius handles in snow - try the "search" feature. There is a wealth of information there.

Briefly, The Prius is fine in the winter with good, dedicated snow tires. Consumer Reports and Tirerack.com both have their recommendations. After reading all of them I am leaning toward the Michelin X-Ice or the Nokian HAKKAPELIITTA non-studded tires. CU rates the x-Ice as top for grip in snow and ice but I have used Nokians for many years and have really liked them.

I am picking my Prius up in January too.

 

BTW are you buying from a Vermont dealer? If so, who? My dealer, Courtesy Toyota, has no idea when the '06 is arriving here.

 

Congrats on your new car. I have 2 recommendations:

1. Definitely get snow tires. The OEM tires are not good in snow, and cause the traction control to kick in too much. This will leave you almost stuck sometimes in deep snow.

2. I think the new Blizzaks (Revo 1) are a great tire at a great price ($74 on tirerack.com, I believe). I got them locally (after getting them to match tirerack's price) because tirerack was out of steel wheels, and I wanted my snows on dedicated wheels instead of remounting them twice a year, rebalancing, etc. I ended up buying alloy wheels (Sport Edition 4, I think) that are also sold on tirerack.com for $69 each, as my local guy wanted $50+ for steel. So, I could have bought the package from tirerack.com after all...but since the local tires plus matched the total price, I went local because they will switch the wheels each spring and fall for free.

rpm

 

Welcome!

If you search the site, I was the guy who managed to get "stuck" on a parking ramp at a local mall here. That was with the "all season" Michelin Harmony tires.

I went to Dunlop Graspic DS-2 studless snow tires and they were a big improvement in traction, especially on ice. They were damaged in an incident at my condo this summer, and I was given new winter tires.

THis winter I'm running Yokohama Ice Guard 10 studless snow tires, and was surprised they have better ice traction than the Graspics did. There is a tradeoff though, sloppy highway handling.

http://priuschat.com/index.php?showtopic=12612

 

It may sound kind of strange but I wish I was in a winter climate like Vermont's instead of the rollercoaster that we get here in the big mitten. The temperatures today are in the 20s but can easily bop up in to the 50s at times which makes snow tires problematic. The rubber is too soft for this climate. For Michigan's type of winter, I've found the Triple Treds to be very good. They really grip the road no matter if there's snow or rain or dry pavement. The OEMs are kind of like tennis shoes for your car. They're fine for nice summer days but not worth a damn when old man winter comes along.

 

If you can delay ownership until after the first of the year, there is a $3,100 tax credit available. If you are in it before Christmas you will only qualify for a $2,000 deduction -- a substantally lower amount.

I am waiting until January for mine for that very reason as are many others in here.

 

Does anyone have any opinions on the Winterforce M+S? I was asking about the Revo1s at my local tire place and the salesman recommended looking at the Winterforce.

They're about $25/tire cheaper than the Revos and that actually makes me wary. I'm trying to decide whether or not I'm being overly sensitive about accessories for my new "baby".

Also, how much does the difference in revolutions/mile matter? The stock Integrities are 855 and the Winterforces are at 847.

 

I understood that I wasn't eligible for the 2006 tax credit because I payed the AMT...so that is something to research also...

On another topic. I'm thinking of getting snow tires also and I want to get steel wheels. I am having difficulty finding the right size rims. Tire rack has size 15x6, but it seems the Prius is 15x6.5, which they only have fancier rims. The .5 extra being the width. Now, I've read thinner might be better for snow tires anyway, so if I went with the 15x6 would it matter? Has anyone done this?

 

I live in upstate New York and have a 1/4 mile unpaved uphill driveway, so winter traction is a BIG DEAL for me. I ordered up a set of Blizzak Revo 1's from Tire Rack and they are truly incredible. Most days the traction control does not even kick in going up the driveway.

'06 Prius, Pkg #3

 

I ended up going with the Michelin X-Ice with steel wheels. Unfortunately I don't have a car to put them on yet It hasn't been too bad in Rochester, NY this winter but I'll probably have the dealer put them anyway on when I pick up the car.

 

As far as the steel rims, the 2004 Prius uses 15 x 6.00 JJ rims, so that is a fairly common size. Mention "Prius" and you may get blank looks, a Corolla or Matrix rim should work too. I suppose the 2006 has a different rim?

If the standard traction control on the 2006 is as overly sensitive as it is on my 2004, you really will need good winter tires. I've always believed in using proper winter tires for winter driving, so it wasn't that big a deal for me. However I still prefer studded winter tires over studless winter tires.

After a few delays, I along with a few other owners finally had that meeting with the Condo Association. It had to do with the ban on studded tires in the underground parking, due to the special chemical seal coat used on the heated slab.

I contacted the supplier of that chemical top seal, and received written opinion that studded tires will - in no way - damage the topcoat sealer. So the condo association has changed the rules to allow tenants to have studded tires in the underground heated parking.

Don't get me wrong, my Yokohama Ice Guard 10 studless snow tires provide *way* beter winter snow and especially ice traction compared to the Michelin Harmony "all season" tires. But they don't compare to a good studded tire.

I've had to drive my dad around on quite a few errands the past couple of weeks. He has a 2003 Buick LeSabre with studded Cooper Weathermaster ST/2 tires on all four wheels. There is simply no contest when you're on ice, and we've had plenty of that what with all the freezing rain.

I'm going to be ordering Nokian Hakkepellitta 2 studded snow tires. I've used the studded Nokian tires on previous cars and they work very well on packed snow and polished ice. The Hak 2 appears to combine the heavily siped tread of a studless tire with additional metal studs.