Snow tire roundup: Guardex 600 & Winter 210 Asimmetrico (longish)

[Chris Newbold <cnewbold@transarc.com>]

Winter is approaching and since I put nice TSW Imolas with
summer-only D40M2s on the 1993 90 back in the spring, it's time
for real snow tires...

I decided to put real snows on my wife's A3 Golf too, with the
expectation of getting real rubber for it next spring...

I went with Yokohama Guardex 600 185/60 14 for the Golf. It's
light and doesn't have ABS, so it begs for maximum winter grip.
These tires have been a pleasant surprise. Though softer than
the OEM Goodyear Invicta GLs (Q vs. H rated) they handle *better*.
Sharper turn-in and more apparent stability. That's probably faint
praise for the 600s and dammnation for the Goodyears (trust me,
they really suck), but not bad for snow tires. The 600s are quiet
and smooth around town, though they set up a vibration around
60-65MPH like corrugated or sirrated pavement. Go faster and they're
fine :-) I'm happy that the car feels at least as secure in the 
dry and wet as before.

For the Audi (much weight, ABS) I picked up the Pirelli Winter 
210 Asimmetricos, 205/60 15. These are the replacements for the
old Winter P210, and are H rated. I would have preferred 195/65s,
but for some reason that sized doesn't seem to be imported. The
205/60 is listed as an alternate fittment for the 93-95 90s, though.
They're a tad wide for the 6" OEM Ronal rims--if these weren't snows
I'd be worried about sidewall rollover, but hey, you've got to slow
down a little in the snow :-).

I can whole-heartedly endorse these tires. They are most certainly
less capable in the dry than the D40M2s, but they feel very stable
and secure. Directional stability isn't bad; turn-in is a little
squishy, but what wouldn't be after the Z-rated D40M2s? They have
about the same feel as the OEM Goodyear Eagle GA touring tires the
car came with. Again, a pretty crappy handling tire, but...

They work well in the wet, too. I over-cooked an exit ramp the other
night in fog and rain/drizzle: didn't see the stop sign at the end
until quite late. I got into the brakes hard and got some four-wheel
ABS action and came to a halt about 20 ft before the sign. The 210s
didn't feel anywhere near as secure as the D40M2s under those
conditions, but they got the job done; though with more dramatic
squeeling noises.

We haven't had any snow here yet, so I can't report on how well either
of these tires fair "in their element". Time will tell...

-Chris
1993 90CS 62k