[s-cars] Snows - LONG

[Ray Tomlinson]

Taka,

My C2's are 225/45/17, factory eco-studded.  Non-stud option not available.
I don't know how "eco" the studs are - they sound like a Tank rolling down
the highway at 45mph, and are squirrelly (at best) on dry pavement.

Interestingly, Nokia states that the C2 is not available in the U.S.
However, I believe there are only 2 Nokia-authorized distributors in the
U.S.  East Coast RETAILERS buy through University Wholesalers in Burlington,
Vermont.  University Wholesalers supplies Nokian tires to all jobbers east
of the Mississippi.

Wholesale cost on the C2 in a 245/45/17 is $164, which means that most shops
'round here who know to ask for the C2 will sell it to you for prolly no
less than $195, plus mounting & balancing.

Like a kid in a candy store, it had snowed about 8" when I mounted my snows,
so I didn't take the time to measure the tread depth, block diameter,
overall tread patch, etc., but I can offer the following:

My C2's have 8/32" tread depth after about a week on the car.  The studs are
factory-mounted.  The tread sipes are full depth, which causes the blocks to
remain less stable than on the Wintersport M3's, etc.  Definitely not a
handling tire.  I need extra braking room and increased reaction time for
city driving.  These tires are not for the urban dweller who drives to the
hill on weekends, but otherwise commutes to a parking garage on dry
pavement.

My C2's are mounted on 17x8" ASA IS6 alloys.  The tire is a very narrow 225.
No sidewall excursion on these.  The 8" width rim was the very widest
recommended by Nokia for the 225.  Their measurements were on a 7" wheel, so
I am not using their measurements.

C2's are offered in an H or V-rated snow, which is a bit liberal, if you ask
me.  I went with the V-rated, and have sustained speeds of about 105mph in a
straight line, but routinely travel the highway at 80-85mph.  I would not
dare yank the wheel and expect the snows to hold.  These are a PURE snow
tire, not a hybrid or even a "performance" snow.  I have not thrown a single
stud, even after lighting up all four wheels from a stop, which is VERY EASY
with these tires, especially on dry pavement.

I drove through 37" of powder on the day after Christmas, until I pushed
enough snow in front of the car that it created a wall that I could no
longer push through or drive under (as I had for the first 100' or so).

Two weeks ago, we received about a foot of heavy snow just north of Boston.
I drove from Boston to my mom's farm in Vermont.  By the time I hit southern
Vermont, the snow was accumulating at about 4" per hour.  I actually drove
out the storm, so when I reached the farm, we had received only a dusting.
It took me nearly 6 hours to make the otherwise 3.5-hour drive.  Single-lane
up the highway at about 20mph.  I was driving in the left lane at slightly
faster speeds (35-40), but because the snow was so heavy, my car became
high-centered, and I had to keep the speed in check.  My tires would dig
down, but the car would float on the chassis.  Numerous SUV's off the road.
Massachusetts has a special form of natural selection here, and I'm all for
it.

When I awoke the next morning, we had received 27" of snow in under 7 hours.
By noon, the towns had done a nice job of laying down pound after pound of
salt to just make a slushy mess out of the snow, and the tires tracked
beautifully in the slop at speeds up to about 60mph.  They start to float
and get a little light at increased speeds, no doubt due to the nature of a
225-series anything in the slop.

Overall, I am exceedingly pleased.  By far the best snow tire I have run, in
any condition, in any width.  It helps that the car is AWD and 4000lbs, as
my GTI 16v with 165-series studded Hakka 1's was not as sure-footed in the
snow/slop/ice as the S6.

-----Original Message-----
From: TM [mailto:t44tq at mindspring.com]
Sent: Wednesday, January 15, 2003 10:41 AM
To: ray at s-cars.org; 'John Mertz'; 'S-Car-List (E-mail)'
Subject: RE: [s-cars] Snows


Ray-
I'd like to hear more about your Nokian Hakka C2 experience.

I can say that the NRWs are definitely too wide for an UrS or
similar size car in 225/45R17, hence my suggestion of 205/50R17,
which is a factory size for the BMW E46 3 series w/o sport package.
Also, that is a factory size for the Porsche Boxster.

Dunlop Wintersport M2 are really good when new, I noticed a significant
drop-off in performance this year, so I'll have to measure tread depth
and see how much wear has occured and why this is affecting performance
so much. Dry performance has not suffered, but the hydroplaning
resistance
and the snow capability has dropped off a lot. This is in 205/55R16 for
the A4.

Taka