Nokian Hakkapeliitta LT tires - studs or not?

Hi again,

I have decided to purchase the Nokian Hakkapeliitta LT's for my truck as dedicated snow tires. I am now debating if I should get them studded or not.
I live in Vancouver, BC and do most of my driving in the city so I know that I should probably get studless and the guy at the tire shop is pointing me that way. It's just that I do go up to the interior sometimes in the winter and have found that my Taco can be a little unstable in snowy/icy conditions. My dad swears by the studs but he also lives in the interior and only visits the city.
I am just wondering how bad the road noise really will be with the studs and if they will actually give me less traction in common Vancouver winter weather that is usually above zero and wet with rain only. Any experiences you guys/girls have that you can share would be great.

thanks,
Kyle

 

Better late than never... but if you still haven't put these tires on I would strongly recommend AGAINST getting them studded. I ran a set of studded tires when I was up north and they were great on the ice and snow. In fact my truck was a tank with those things on. BUT... when I moved down to Nanaimo, I tried using them and they were just plain awful. I found that the metal studs gave me worse traction in the wet, especially after a really heavy downpour.

Good choice with the Nokians though, I spent a winter in Finland and it seems like the entire country runs on them. So if they can survive a Finnish winter I'd say they're a pretty damn good tire. I'll probably run them once my current winters wear out.

 

Hey there,

Thanks for the reply. I did end up going with the studded ones and they seem OK in the Vancouver rain so far. I know that all the cyclists can hear me coming now

 

KRich,

Will you humor me and give me a synopsis of how your studded tires fared now that you had a full winter of use? Any regrets, best thing ever? Helps you stop (or not), great traction (or not).

Thanks man, just trying to get my head around the same issue. Studs or no studs.

Q

 

Hi Captain!

Haven't been on here for way too long. I can give you some input about the tires that will hopefully be helpful for you.

I have used them for one winter but since we had a newborn child, I never got to really put them through their paces in some good snow. They did perform well in the rain and pavement though, and I was very happy with their performance (of course there is a good chance that is due to the actual tires but I don't think the studs had an adverse effect on them at all).

Now when it comes to road noise, it is definitely there and if you are commuting in the city 90% of the time like I am, you may feel a tiny bit sheepish when you are driving down the street sometimes. I do have to say that I didn't catch anyone giving me dirty looks and I know that the extra confidence and security I will feel when I actually get to hit some ugly conditions will make it worth any minor annoyance. I have had the back end of my Taco break free in the snow when I really needed it not to so it is worth it to me.

I will be putting mine back on in the not too distant future and will start scaring those cyclists again!

 

Thanks KRich, much appreciated!

I don't commute much and don't want stud but my GF does and I'm inclined to keep her happy, if you know what I mean

Q

 

Vancouver gets like no snow. Stud are overkill.

I live in Calgary, studs are ideal. You can get by without them for sure, but they are really incredible when you need them. Useless offroad, but on icy and snowy roads, they rock.

 

I most definitely know what you mean

You are right about Vancouver usage but when I head a couple hours north of Whistler to visit my folks with my baby son in the back seat, I feel a lot better knowing that the studs are there to break through any glare ice or hard packed snow with some new fresh stuff on top.

 

I would definitely go ahead and get them studded. Studs rock. There's no replacement.

 

I ran studded hakka 7's on my truck for a season. I thought they were the best money could buy. Right now I am awaiting an answer as to why they made the truck shake after recently being mounted. I had the shop balance and rebalance them, and rotate them. Finally they put my summer tires back on, smooth as silk. Shop sent them in for warranty...