Winter Wheels And Tires - What's Your Setup?

Haven’t had a chance to post much so finally getting around to sharing the winter setup I’ve been running since November.

Picked up a set of 17x7.5 RTX Ranch wheels on eBay for winter use. I liked that they looked somewhat ford OEM. And I wanted OEM center bore which had 63.4, didn’t wanna mess an around with hub rings ect. Wrapped them in Toyo Observe G3 Ice OEM sizing. Also the stock black ford center caps fit perfectly. Used ford open end lug nuts and installed some Amazon black lug nut covered to match it all up nicely.

Mini review on winter tires. Are they good for the money yes. I’d probably give them a 3.5 out of 5 stars but being I’ve had much better winter tires these are just ok. Positives are good traction out of the hole and decent braking and they’re actually pretty quiet for a snow tire. The negatives are they’re ultra mushy so at higher highway speed and winds you’re going to feel it. I don’t care for the turn in with the sipes are good in a straight line but when you turn there’s a feeling of unsettledness. Will they break loose, no…but it’s just that like I said I’ve had better winter tires like blizzaks and good years and many more to list, these don’t feel as confident. But in the end they’re great for what they are and you can stud them if you need to.

anyways what’s everyone else running for their winter setup? And how do you like the tires you’re running?

Michelin Crossclimate2's, worked well in the 15" of snow and sleet we just got hit with in PA. They'll break grip but catch again quick in icy slush if you push them. I'm satisfied with the performance in wintry conditions.

Ryom said:

Michelin Crossclimate2's, worked well in the 15" of snow and sleet we just got hit with in PA. They'll break grip but catch again quick in icy slush if you push them. I'm satisfied with the performance in wintry conditions.

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Oh nice, yeah you can’t go wrong with Michelin. How is the road noise? 15” is a great test, that’s impressive. I’m Indiana so far 6-7”
Was the most I’ve seen and it was no problem haha.

General Altimax Arctic 12 mounted on standard steel rims. So far so good, whether in deep snow or on icy roads and not too noisy. For the price paid ($728.33 CAD, taxes included), if they last 4+ winters, I will be more than satisfied!

Bou said:

General Altimax Arctic 12 mounted on standard steel rims. So far so good, whether in deep snow or on icy roads and not too noisy. For the price paid ($728.33 CAD, taxes included), if they last 4+ winters, I will be more than satisfied!

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I considered the Generals and would have probably ended up with them but tire rack only had 3 in stock at the time. The Toyo was decently priced and with the option to stud(not that I ever will) was cool.

Rokan said:

Oh nice, yeah you can’t go wrong with Michelin. How is the road noise? 15” is a great test, that’s impressive. I’m Indiana so far 6-7”
Was the most I’ve seen and it was no problem haha.

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No noise problem for me, but it's rare that the B&O system isn't getting a workout so I'd never know either way

Ok So maybe I'm a Snow Wimp, but my snow setup is just keep it in the garage. Snow does not last long here so we hunker down for a day or two then get on with our business. Besides I like to keep my trucklet symmetrical just like it came from the factory

What's winter?
Move to the Caribbean haha

Never bought winter tires. Just drive more conservatively when snow on ground. Of course we seldom get over 3-4 inches of snow and it rarely stays on ground more than 2-3 days. This current storm left about 6” of snow, sleet and frozen rain on ground it’ll probably be on ground for 5-6 days. I went out and drove around last two days my stock Goodyears did great. Didn’t even remember to switch to slippery mode today.

Once it warms up I’ll take off my factory wildpeaks and put on some blizzaks

Snow or Ice shows up on my roads I park my Maverick and drive my
2004 Ford Escape’
With 229,000 miles on he clock and a Fresh set of Chunky tread Faulkin Rubitreks.

Yep, at’s right !

stock wheels, stock tires, and i haven't had a problem with any of the snow we've had here in the northern midwest or the temps we've had lately. only 10k miles on them so i wouldn't expect any problems yet anyway.

I thought my first post should be something I actually know about. lol 20 years in tire wholesaling.

Lots of great winters out there, but if you want the absolute best, Nokian all the way. I've actually been to their test facility in Ivalo, Finland. They actually have 70% market share there. I've personally had like 5 sets on different vehicles over time.

scottjl said:

stock wheels, stock tires, and i haven't had a problem with any of the snow we've had here in the northern midwest or the temps we've had lately. only 10k miles on them so i wouldn't expect any problems yet anyway.

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Stock tires with mine also….only 1900 miles

I bought used steelies from a Bronco Sport for $300 and got a set of Vredstein Wintracs. Work great. Got a massive snow storm, state of emergency, ice was so bad my snowblower couldn’t clear driveway, etc. Truck drove through it all no problem. Actually it’s really boring, wish it could power slide a little better lol!

Huge fan of dedicated snow tires but got to say my wife’s Grand Cherokee with Michelin Cross Climate 2s does really well, too.