Subject: Re: high performance street tires?

[Tom Winter]

On 3/26/07 7:44 PM, "thejimrose wrote:> wrote:

> at this point you can score a set of 15"
> wheels and tires for so cheap it's not worth messing around.

While I agree with thejimrose (particularly about the deals out there right
now), here are my experiences:

1. '89 Audi 100q. Bought for $500 with tires that were done. In November. In
Colorado. Car purchased in Aspen. Dry pavement to Vail. Had to drive from
Vail to Boulder (two very high mountain passes) in early season snowstorm.
Shitty tires didn't stop car from going up and over passes, it was the
stopping that was fun! (slip slidin' away). Replaced shitty tires with
dedicated snows.

Lesson: When rocking quattro, you can drive with the shittiest of tires
almost anywhere, just leave plenty of room to stop!

2. Purchased 86 4000 csq with good all season (m+s) tires. Unstoppable and
fun to drive year round, plenty of rallying in the snow (thejimrose, that's
a pic of a plowed road, right? With quattro, that's cheating!). Favorite
memory?  Berthoud Pass, unplowed 2am w/ 10" new. Plenty of sideways
acceleration around the switchbacks. No other traffic. If you've been there,
you know. 'Nuff said.

Lesson: high quality rubber is good for something. And if you live in less
snowy climes, you won't have too many problems unless you start
high-centering, which is, well, reason enough to sit by the fire and wait
until you can drive a nice, plowed road (just leave early prior to the rest
of the fools going out and wrecking into each other, thus preventing you
from getting first chair on a powder day).

3. '95 S6 Avant with snow tires. Yes, I run 'em all winter, starting in Oct
and ending, well, when it gets really summer-like here at 8,500 feet. If I
lived, say in Boulder or Denver, I'd think about something different, like
M+S tires. But I don't. I live where it snows. A lot. I like driving in snow
and driving in snow with the best equipment for the job. Spring - like right
now - is the time to score said tires with rims for cheap. If you love snow,
and live where you get plenty of it, then do it. If you don't, well, many
other options out there.  All of which will work, some better, some worse.

Lesson: Location, location, location.
Lesson 2. Don't overthink this stuff. It's pretty simple and, fortunately,
you do get what you pay for. Reason enough to listen closely to thejimrose
when he hints about spring being the time to score a winter tire setup.

For the record. I - 4000 csq excepted, and that was only for part of the
winter - always run dedicated snows when the leaves change...

Tom 
'95 S6 Avant (with snows until July, most likely)