[s-cars] A Little Quattro Weather Here in Denver

[Chad Clark]

Cody,

You may want to consult Scott J on this matter too as he does a yearly
Steamboat write-up from experience with different snow tires. 8 years worth
should give you a pretty good idea. Also, as you've already heard, Steamboat
does not allow studs on their track. Besides, I feel that studs(at least
here in CO) are unnecessary with the tire compounds/technology that goes
into the tires these days(I know that some of you still use studs where it
is absolutely necessary-frequent freezing drizzle, 45 degree driveways,
black ice and such) but god are those studs annoying in the dry, not to
mention the scare you can get during avoidance maneuvers/heavy braking in
the dry with studs.

I only have first hand experience with 4 brands of snow tires. Bridgestone
Blizzaks, Michelin Arctic-Alpin, Pirelli Winter 210 Snowsport and Yokohama
Guardex 600 and F720.

Quick impressions and again, these are all just *My Opinion* from experience
and no, I'm not a tire salesman. Hell, I work on a golf course that's under
12" of snow right now so I actually have some time to write:-) The Blizzaks
were my first dedicated snow tire back in '95. They wore extremely fast on
dry roads, squirmed like you were on marshmallows but performed really well
in the snow/ice. After 50-60% treadwear, tire was basically an all season as
you lost the "multi-cell compound" on the top half of the tire. The new
blizzaks are supposedly much better in all aspects including the MZ-02,
LM-22, WS-50. Mom's A6 quattro has the WS-50 and she called me to let me
know that they performed great in the snow the other day.

Michelin Arctic Alpin, great tire, great tread design, many sipes per
treadblock, nylon studs protruding from each tread block. These give great
bite on the ice and snow, would definitely recommend them to anyone. Pilot
Alpins for the larger, lower profile sizes.

Pirelli Winter 210's, I drove these for many thousand miles on a front wheel
drive car('92 Corrado) They're still the dedicated snows for that car, owner
loves them. They transformed that little car into something fun in the
winter. Again, great bite in the snow, fantastic traction but I felt they
gave up a bit of ice traction and stopping ability. Left something to be
desired on the ice.

Yokohama Guardex 600, what I currently use sized 195/65/15, third season,
lots of tread left, outstanding snow traction, decent on glare ice. However,
this skinny size makes the Ur-S feel like a barge in the corners. I try not
to drive the car *that* hard in the dry. However, the skinnier the better
for Steamboat's ice track. Yoko has updated this model to the F720 which the
wife has on her front wheel drive. Again, fantastic tire, great bite and
grip, fantastic stopping ability. In snow, the Ur-S accelerates like it's on
dry with these tires. Would definitely recommend these to anyone. Again, as
skinny as you can tolerate is the key.

Note, I have no experience with the Hakkapelitta, Nokian NRW's. Lots of
listers swear by this brand/model. I'd like to compare these sometime.

There are so many factors one must consider when buying snow tires. How much
dry road driving, sizes, tradeoffs- snow traction for ice traction and
vice-versa, price, longevity, compounds. All I can say is if you live in a
part of the world where snow falls and sticks to the roads, and you've been
white-nuckled before, because you keep telling yourself that your
all-seasons are adequate, I would *highly* recommend any of the tires I
mentioned-or any dedicated snow tire so as to take full advantage of what
Audi's quattro system is all about. You *will* find yourself looking for
those unplowed roads and laughing at all the 'lesser' vehicles on the road
as they struggle for traction. :-) Just don't tell me I didn't tell you so.
HTH,

Chad Clark
p.s. it's still snowing in Boulder tonight! 12" and counting!


on 10/31/02 10:29 AM, Cody Payne at Cody.Payne at bconnected.com wrote:

> After a little investigation it appears Studs (understandably) are not allowed
> on the track..so disregard the "studded" tire request; now looking for
> Hakkapelitta Tyre Non-Studded size and model for Steamboat.
>
> Thx
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Cody Payne
> Sent: Thursday, October 31, 2002 9:21 AM
> To: 'lee at wheelman.com'; t44tq at mindspring.com; S4audinut at aol.com;
> chadclark at qwest.net; s-car-list at audifans.com
> Subject: RE: [s-cars] A Little Quattro Weather Here in Denver
>
>
> Gents,
> Thoughts on the best Winter Track Tyre for Steamboat?  I assume the Nokian
> Hakkapelitta's Studded but which one and best size for a 15" rim?
> Hakkapelitta 10, Hakkapelitta 2, Hakkapelitta 1 where to get a good price in
> Denver?
>
> Thx
>
> cp
>