I plan on going to Town Fair Tire to get 4 winter tires for my Honda Fit Base. Anyone have any recommendations? I have never bought snow tires before but feel with major hills going/coming to work I will need them. I am little nervous of hydroplaning as someone told me they got snow tires and then they hydroplaned during a rain storm. Any ideas, tips etc would be appreciated.

 

Hydroplaning should not be a factor as the tread depth is generally greater with a winter tire as opposed to an all season tire.

Basically there are two types of snow tires, studdable and studless. You must make the election whether to stud a studdable tire at the time of purchase. (Dirt, stones, etc. get into the holes for the studs, plus tires designate specific stud sizes, and tires that are worn would eject studs that are too long.)

Studded snows and studless snows are quite similar in traction. Studdable snows, sans the studs, will be less effective. Studded snows typically last three to four winter seasons, studless snows one to two winter seasons. Studless snows use a softer rubber compouns. Not all states allow studded snows. Those that do may restrict when they can be mounted. (Colorado permits year round use; whereas California has a rather short season, which is shorter than the ski season.)

The General Altimax Arctic is a good value for a studdable snow. The Bridgestone Blizzak WS70 is an effective studless snow. There isn't that significant of a price difference between the two when you include the cost of the studs.

 

how do they work? i still have a doubt regarding that please give me some proof of that

 

I tried studded tyres and wasn't crazy about them. The are very noisy (that's inevitable with metal studs!) and the don't necessarily perform as well on snow, but will do better on ice. I don't mean to contradict the previous poster but I was always advised NEVER to stud a tyre that isn't factory studded because the studs will not be as reliable. If you do get studded tyres, I would definitely get factory studded tyres and not add them after the fact.

Also, the claim that winter tyres only last one or two winters is not correct in my opinion. Since you are removing the winter tyres when the weather permits, you are only running them a few months a year so you will get more life out of the tyre as opposed to a tyre you would run year round. Of course the performance will probably decrease after 2 or 3 seasons but an older winter tire will still be much better than a brand new all season on snow and ice.

I would invest in a set of steel rims for your winter tires. That way, it's a walk in the park to change them come the right time. I change my wheels myself; it's a great convenience because I can wait until the very last day before the first snowfall and I don't have to wait for my mechanic to have time to change my tires/wheels. He gets flooded here in Quebec come the winter season because winter tires are required by law so everyone has to get it done at about the same time of the year.

 

My experience with snow tires is that they are LESS prone to hydroplaning than all-season radials. Or slush-planing. Modern snow tires -- with directional tread -- are designed to NOT climb up on slush.

I really like Nokian Hakkapeliitta tires. There's a recent thread down in "Fit Shoes" subforum about Hakkapeliitta 7 studded tires. Hakkepeliitta R (or R2) tires are non-studded snow tires. I have used earlier versions of Hakkepeliitta tires on hilly Maine roads and my unplowed driveway.

Most Nokian tires are also low-rolling-resistance tires if that's a priority for you. Fuel efficiency decreases in winter because of different gas and longer warmup times, but LRR can help a tiny bit.

There's even a Nokian WR G3 all-season radial that's supposed to outperform some snow tires even on snow. That would make life simpler for me since I drive less in summer.

Any snow tire will work better than the original tires on the Fit. (I have a '13 base also.) That doesn't make the decision any easier and I wish you luck.

 

I bought a set of Michelin Xice 2 (last years model that was replaced by Xice 3) from tirerack at a close out price of 66$ a tire. Unbeatable savings!

 

Buy my tires

Continental bought out General Tire, and my Altimax's are friggin awesome

^^heard that on here from someone


Great overall tire, it LAUGHS at the rain going 70mph on the interstate

Good rain tires end up being at the very least moderately good with snow

The stock dunlops SUCK in the snow!!

 

Thank you all for the information! I feel better about winter tires and not hydroplaning. I will not be getting studs as my landlord will not allow it where I park, don't know about my state and might be over kill. I don't have to worry about rims as Town Fair tire takes the tires off and put tires on in the Spring for no extra charge. Has anyone taken a look at Consumer Reports? Their top pick is Michelin X-Ice Xi3 at 62 out of 100 and Nokian Hakkapeliitta R rating as 58 out of 100. I hope we don't have another winter like the last two!

 

I believe that Nokian has slightly better performance but I've read that the Michelin xIce have slightly better durability so they are considered better value. I know that Blizzaks aren't particularly durable. I think it has to do with the softer compound used in the rubber which is a trade-off between extra snow/ice traction and durability.

Winter rims are really inexpensive, a little over 100$ for all four, even less if you get them used. Somehow, I don't like the idea of having to inflate/deflate the tires and putting them on and off the rims every season. Also, if you remove and replace the tires, you have to get them rebalanced every time whereas a balanced tire on its rim is good to go.

Anyway, good luck on your winter tire purchase. I think you'll find that it is NOT a frivolous purchase. It will greatly improve winter handling and is important for your safety. I drive with confidence in the most slippery and snowy situations thanks to good winter tires.

 

The problems with TPMS haven't appeared in this thread although they're thoroughly covered in others.

Without TPMS sensors the stability control cannot be turned off. If you get stuck, turning off the stability control may help get unstuck. Buying rims with new sensors requires re-programming at every wheel swap.

If I get snow tires I'll buy summer rims and leave the original steel rims with TPMS sensors for winter.

But the whole TPMS/stability control issue has me re-thinking the Nokain WR G3 tires for all year round.

 

lol. Another piece of technology I hate. If only I could disable ABS...