RE: Stupid newbie question

[SOP8920@Siena.edu]

>I just got an A4 w/ Quattro and I keep hearing about everyone having 
>fun in the snow with these cars.   My question is: Do you put studded 
>tires on a Quattro or is everyone driving with regular tires in the 
>snow?


My $0.02 is this; The optimal set up is TWO sets of tires. Dedicated snows for
the winter months and high-performance tires for the summer. From my
understanding, All season tires are a poor compromise. They don't do anything
well. 

I convinced my parents to put dedicated snows on for the winter months on two
of the cars at home, a 96 A6q and a 92 VW golf. I stuck with the all-seasons 
I have on my Q. The difference is phenomenal. The cars at home rip through the
slick stuff like mountain cats while I slide my way around. I've managed quite
nicely, thanks to Quattro, but if I had the $$$ I would definately get some
Hakkas for the winter months. A number of times this winter I found myself
mumbling.. "wish I had a set of Hakkas, gotta get a set of Hakkas..."
:)

The same supposedly holds true for the summer. All-seasons do not perform as
well as non-season perforance tires. 

If you can afford it, I strongly recommend getting dedicated snows for the
winter and some quality high performance rubber for the summer. IF possible,
have the snows mounted on aftermarket wheels. Tire Rack has some decent
specials, and this time of year they might even have sales. 

The studded snow tire question will probably generate alot of differing
opinons. We didn't have our Hakkas studded, for the simple reason that studs
benefit on ICE but have little if any benefit on snow. The negatives
outweighted the positives for us.

Good luck.
 




                               -Osman Parvez
                                89 200q (157K miles)
                                Siena College
                                Albany NY