Yes, it is possible...

8) I just bought the Goodyear Assurance Comfort Tires for my 04. I do not have VSC, however, these tires are the same size as the OEM's and #3 on the list from Tirerack.

I have not noticed any decrease in gas mileage due to the tire, just temperature

Ben

 

Well, I think Fargo and Winnipeg have similar climates and winter road conditions. Winter sure does seem to last forever, and the wind always blows.

On Friday my Dunlop Graspic DS2 winter tires FINALLY came in, so I had them put on steel rims. We had warmer temps and even rain Friday so it wasn't the best time to test the winter tires.

No unusual problems in the rain, no hydroplaning. As expected, the handling was much less precise. What I didn't expect was the ride is softer, you don't even feel the expansion joints. I'd call that a plus!

On the Trans Canada at 110 km/h, no unusual handling problems. The steering response felt a bit dead, but it tracked straight.

I was worried about fuel economy penalties, but so far it's not as bad as I thought it would be. The same stretch of Trans Canada I would get around 5.3 l / 100km. With the Dunlop winter tires, 5.6 l /1 100km. Around a 3-4 MPG difference.

Driving around Winnipeg, there was no difference in fuel economy. With average speeds of 60 km/h and under, I expected that. If I did a lot of highway driving, I might reconsider.

The drive back on Sunday was much colder, and I had a chance to see how the tires worked on snow and ice. First of all, you REALLY have to try to get the VSC or Trac to kick in. I mean, you have to drive like a complete idiot. Which I did in an empty and iced-over parking lot. It was fun!

Before, the car would barely pull away from a dead stop on ice. Now it accelerates normally. If I floor it, the Trac does kick in, but it accelerates MUCH faster than before.

The ABS also kicks in much later with the winter tires, so I can take advantage of regen much more often. I'm sure most readers know that when the ABS kicks in, you don't have regen braking.

Today I tried out that nasty parking ramp at a mall that gave me trouble two weeks ago. I purposely stopped on the ramp, then tried to pull away again. No problem at all.

So I'd happily keep the numb steering response, slightly lower fuel economy, and somewhat floaty ride for my much improved winter traction.

 

Jayman, thanks for taking the time to post that clear and concise report on your new snow tires. While we don't get the winter conditions you have back there it will help in making a decision on tire purchase if we decide to take a trip up to Mt. Washington this winter.
Gary

 

I will bow to anyone who lives in Fargo. We get snow once or twice a year. Yes it stays on the roads until it melts (4 or 5 days rarely longer and no one around her knows how to drive in snow and ice) but you folks have the experience. Now when it comes to rain we know rain. I may have a set a Hydroedges in my future.

 

hdrygas, I think we share somewhat the same weather. In fact, I'm thinking of fitting a set of Beaver Aircraft amphib floats on for the winter or should I say rainy season. :roll:

 

We shair, is such a thing possible. When the Pineapple express hits I am moving to the Ford Explorer to move through the "puddles"

 

It drizzled almost 3 1/2" friday and saturday. Just about filled my rain gauge. But you know we just go about our bussiness as if nothing happened. Now convert that to snow for 10 to the inch and it's almost 36 inches of snow, and back in the winter of 1970 we had that much and it stuck for almost 3 weeks. As a kid from the north it really didn't bother me much, now with all the extra traffic it'd be h**l for sure. 1/2"= chaos now.

 

36" of snow is double the total snowfall for this area over the past 4 years. if you take out one snowfall we had this past mar, then it more than triple the snowfall.

the one in march was first snow that stuck more than a few hours in over 2 years.