Lights and M+S allseasons?

[Benjamin Weste Pearre <ben@marimba.com>]

I was in Tahoe this weekend with my new '90 200aq, and it was quite a 
ride.  Skied in a blizzard at Heavenly on Saturday, no-one on the 
slopes, and 2 feet of powder in the trees.  Perfect!  Sunday was 
crowded.  Monday was at Kirkwood until it started really coming down, 
at which point we decided to leave early (I have this job-type thing, 
y'know).

The quattro is just amazing.  I stopped in deep snow, uphill, ice, 
everything.  Never any trouble accelerating, never even needed to lock 
the rear diff.  I did, however, have some trouble stopping and 
steering.  In 2" of slush over ice, the car was a little squirrely.  
And once, coming down a really steep, snow-covered road (stupid, I 
know) I started skidding right into the lake, and was only saved by a 
brilliant handbrake turn onto the crossroad at the bottom.  Hehehe.  
Worse, there was one place on the highway on the way home that was a 
steep sheet of ice, and a narrow gap between 2 dead cars (which had 
been involved in a head-on) at the bottom.  Thank god for the Antilock 
switch!  But I still could barely stop.  I crept down that hill at 1 
mph, unable to slow down, and scared to steer.  The SUVs behind me had 
even more trouble.  Fun.

So: my current tires are Goodrich Comp T/A? or something like that, 
all season, M+S.  They are not very aggressive-looking at all, and 
don't feel that great in snow.  I am kind of thinking that next winter 
I should get something a little heavier, but I only have one set of 
wheels...  I live in the SF Bay area, so I want tires that will do OK 
on dry roads, but something a little stickier on ice and snow would be 
nice.  What are some good all-season tires?  How much would I spend on 
another set of wheels?  I know, no tire is great both on ice and on 
pavement, but how much of a compromise would I be making with a 
slightly better all-season?

Also, one headlight died.  As my friend remarked, the headlights on 
the 200s are really dim.  What's the deal with replacing the bulbs 
with something a little brighter?  I don't want to blind anyone, but I 
like being able to see...  what's involved in upgrading?  What works 
well?  What are these "Euro-spec" headlights everyone keeps talking 
about, anyway, and where do I get them?  Do I want them?

And it looks like another week of snow ahead... :)))
-- 
ben@marimba.com                 http://www.marimba.com/people/benjamin
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