Winter Tires.

Appreciate the reviews Bartlett. Was that from Canadian Tire or tirerack dot com or Consumer Reports or some such?

At first blush I would say any of those (other than the stock Dunlops) will be excellent winter tires, the trick is matching the strenghts of one of them to your local conditions. For my local conditions and the way I use my truck, it looks like I will stick with studded Hakkas, I see deep snow in customer driveways regularly and black ice in intersections and rotaries regularly. Those are the two things the Hakka is best at. Doesn't mean they would be the best choice for anyone else, but it was nice to see I am still on the best tire I can get for the way I use my truck.

Frost heaves suck. They are just miserable. My sympathies to all who encounter them on paved roads with route numbers regularly.

 

Hey fellow Edmontonian, curious what you decided with?
Found out last year that the stock OR tires (Goodyear Wrangler) were unsuitable for winter driving.

 

I use my Tacoma for work in the bush in interior BC, Ice is a bigger concern than deep snow. We may have an 8" overnight snowfall but it will get packed in fairly quickly or main dirt roads are plowed but icy. It can also warm up and be sloppy mud. I run 235/85/16 DuraTracs on stock rims and get them siped when I buy them. Run them year round. Guy at the tire shop gives me my keys and says "siped pizza cutters, nothing stopping you." I also drop the psi for the winter.

Wife's Rav, used for paved roads that may or may not be recently plowed, has Blizzak DM-V2, haven't used them before. Her old Matrix went from Hakka's ($$$$$$ but took all the excitement and fun out of winter driving) to either Michelin X-Ice or Blizzak WS-80. Both were fine.

 

I've run Hankook in the past (2013-2020) and ran Hakka R3 SUVs last winter. I changed up my snow wheels and one of the beads was damaged so I ended buying a new set of four. Last winter up here was quite mild so I didn't get a true chance to compare the Hankook and Nokian. The Hankook was good, but it wasn't a "always run in 2WD" good either. With 4WD the road basically was the equivalent of dry payment in terms of getting moving. Obviously turning and stopping is a function of tire, not drive wheels.

The Hakkas are surprisingly quiet on dry roads. The Hankooks were a bit noisier. With that being said having run both steel and alloy wheels, my strong preference these days is alloys for snows. I know that alloy have a tendency to corrode on the bead lip and can lose pressure somewhat more often than steel, but the weight difference is absolutely noticeable both in how the truck rides and easy of mounting / dismounting.

I wish the Hakka R3 SUV came in a 265/75-16 when it comes time for my next set as I want to drop back down to my stock 16" OR alloys rather than my 17" Sport wheels.

This is nothing new in terms of information here, outside of recommending an alloy wheel rather than steel.

 

I'm running the LT3's in 265/75-16 on stockers and they are great. https://www.kaltire.com/en/tires/hakkapeliitta-lt3/10001020440047.html Load rating of D though.

 

D wouldn’t be awful, I run E on my KO2s and I love going to the lighter tires in the winter. It offsets the fuel economy hit of winter blend to boot.

My new Hakkas have late 2021 date codes so I’ve got a solid 6 years to make up my mind. My hope is to make it at least two seasons in a row without changing something in my winter set, we will see what happens.

 

Any of you run 31’s on your Tacoma? If you do any issues with rear seal? I had 30 on a Ford Ranger I use to have and I had to replace that seal every year. I also was driving from ND to Wa State once a month.

 

Toyo GSI5 I bought new 2017/2018 and this will be their last season.

 

I ended up on a set of Hankook Ipike-X today because that was what I could buy today after ice-a-geddon Christmas weekend.

1. This is a first class studded tire. I have about 20 miles on them, they work good in all the conditions where I want a studded tire.

2. I paid $996 for the Hankooks mounted, balanced and installed today. If they had been in stock, Nokian Hakka's would have been about $1350 for me today. My initial impression is the studded Hankook IPike is a good value.

3. I might be a whiny bitch princess, but for the extra $400 the Hakkas I remember are just a little bit more refined.

4. I will be on these daily, for work, until probably April. I will fool with the tire pressures. I will retorque the lugnuts. They will get the job done. I will write a more thorough review come spring time.

 

That tire has been an amazing deal for 15+ years!

 

I rock OE steelies with 265/75/16 Firestone WinterForce on my Sport. Been very pleased. Heading into my 3rd winter with them.

 

I made a point to get into some deep unplowed snow today. We had "#ice-ageddon2021" in Fairbanks starting Christmas Eve around 1700 and ending 12-29 around 1700. Three winter storms total, 23 inches of snow, 1-2 inches of freezing rain, and outdoor temps were above freezing most of the day, like 12+ hours, on 12-26 I think it was. We basically got a month's worth of snow, and a winter's worth of freezing rain, in five days. And we are looking for -30dF as an overnight low on NYE. What ever doesn't get plowed tomorrow is not going to be smooth until May 2022.

I am not a member of whatever website uses the pound/number sign, one of my daughters showed me many pictures.

On regularly plowed main roads, the ones with 2" of ice on the bare pavement with maybe 2" of snow on top of that, the Hankook IPike-X (studded) is still a first class studded tire.

On the back streets with 8-16 inches of unplowed snow, and then the ice under that, advantage Nokian Hakkapellitta. I am not accustomed to turning my steering wheel in deep snow and then waiting for my winter tires to get the message and get with the program. At like 20 mph. I am not talking screaming down the freeway with my hair on fire at 50 mph, I mean 15-20 mph on a residential street with unspeakable understeer. These are proving to be more exciting tires than I am likely to tolerate willingly for the next four months.

The one variable is my IPikes are 245/75-16, my current Hakka's worn down to be functionally studless like Hakkapeliitta R3 SUV @ 265-70-17.

I had the Hakkas with no stud left under my truck (265-70-17) and was doing fine in the deep snow but floundering on the ice. The IPike-X (245/75-16) is good on the exposed ice but more or less useless in deep snow.

I will give it the weekend, but I plan to call my tire guy Monday morning to get a due date for new Hakka's at 265-70-17, with new studs on them. The Hakkapeliitta tire cannot be restudded.

I have been thinking about this a fair bit riding around in my buzzing stud (louder than new Hakka) vehicle.

If I lived in say North Georgia or North Alabama and had to take my kid to dialysis or my mom to chemo I would (stuck in a Tacoma that can't take chains on the front axle) probably get a set of rims with cheap studs on them at maybe $100 per corner, keep them in the garage for two years, then run them for three days, then keep them in the garage for five years, and then run them for a week, that kind of thing; they would get the job done without pissing me off.

As a professional who uses my truck for work every day, in the north half of Alaska, I am on my winter tires 6/12 months every year, and I see deep unplowed snow _and_ recently plowed ice daily, Nokian Hakkas are the best studded tire that also works good in deep snow available at any price.

If you live north of Atlanta but south of Fairbanks, you should consider the studded IPike-X. You should also consider your local road conditions and your budget, and the amount of time/ the number of daily miles you use your truck. If you got the dough and are on a set of studded Hakkas, there is no point in being pissed off, you are on the best. If money is tight-ish, you might look at either the IPike-X for less if you see a lot of ice but not much deep snow- the IPike is like a newborn giraffe in deep snow. If you see a lot of deep snow but not much ice, the Hakka R3 studless is a monster in deep snow, but a bit like a horse on a hockey rink when you are following a Zamboni - I mean following a snow plow.

I have no idea how the Hakka R3 stacks up against other winter tires in deep snow, nor do I know what the R3 costs. But the R3 is essentially what I have on my 17" rims since I have worn the studs (on my Hakka 10s) down to even with the rubber. This is an incredible tire in deep snow. When I tap the pedal on the right in deep snow the truck moves. When I tap the center pedal in deep snow, the truck stops. When I twist the wheelie thingy sticking out of the dash board the truck turns. On this tire (Hakka R3) in deep snow my truck follows my instructions promptly, accurately and predictably.

I cannot say the same about the IPikeX in deep snow, and I can't do it with the R3 equivalent on ice. I might be a spoiled bitch princess, but I am getting a new set of studded Hakkapeliitta's ASAP, in 265-70-17.

FWIW we just put a set of Nokian WR G4 under my wife's Rav4 in the last couple weeks. Seems to be a good all around tire in the winter. She can (thankfully) get out of our subdivision and cross from the feeder road onto the main road that leads to retail. Her office is on a road that is plowed. It is a bit exciting riding with her in the RAV4 (the WR G4 is studless), but she has lived up here a while and knows to brake early and so forth. I would not select a RAV4 for my job going to customers homes, and she hasn't used them in the summer yet; first blush they are comparable to Blizzaks in winter weather and may do better in the warmer months.

If I had an office job here in Fairbanks, most years I would be happy with the R3s and some years wish I had something studded. But I don't have an office job, and whatever doesn't get plowed tomorrow is going to remain problematic to the spring thaw in April 2022.

 

Does anyone have a handy list or internet search term I can use to come up with a list of tires that use walnut shell fragments or similar for traction on ice instead of studs? I recognize the vast majority of Tacoma owners are in jurisdictions where studs are verboten.

I am a bit of a "greenie" in that I am in favor of clean air to breathe, clean water to drink and clean dirt to grow food in; if there is a tire that can work good in deep snow and work good on bare ice without tearing up the asphalt and lead to reduced (or less increased) atmospheric carbon I am willing to at least read up on it. Thanks.

 

My BFgoodrich KO2 is snow rated and it works pretty well in the snow with proper tire pressure. While nothing can beat the real snow tires.

 

Toyo Observe winter tire have MicroBit which is ground up walnut shells molded into the tread rubber. They have been doing that for 20+ years.

Recent research has found that metal studs work best in a specific temperature with specific ice conditions and that the newer dedicated winter tires with the newest rubber compounds are just as good on ice and superior everywhere else.

Nokias Hakka are, hands down The Best, studded or not. You wanna play with them, you need to pay for them.

 

I'm wanting to get the same tire, size and siped as well. Do you have any pics of the added siping?

 

Difficult to see because they are just razor cuts.

 

Hey, that is a really great review of some winter tires under different operating conditions. I get a laugh out of these guys who say “yeah just use 4 wheel drive and you are good to go”. Yeah, as in straight into the ditch after you hit a bad spot and over confident and no experience with varying winter roads. Man, we sure see a lot of 4x4s in the ditch here in winter. Mostly 4x4s and AWD SUVs. Hardly ever see any cars in the ditch since most are not dealing with over confidence and understand the limitations of their vehicle.

I have been driving for 35 years of winters with 4 wheel drive, throughout BC.

I will suggest to stay away from Sumitomo Ice Edge. Three winters on them now, but they were what I could afford at the time. Really no good in deep snow or ice. Plus I have 400-500 pounds of sand bags in the pickup bed and still struggle. They swim in deep snow, no cutting through. No good on ice either. I can start in 5th gear (AT), feather the gas and spin all 4 tires and that on level ground. That with no weight in the truck, or 500 pounds over the axle. Same spot the full size pickups get going without spinning.

2016 TRD OR.

Was the same with my small Mazda B4000. The smaller pickups just do not do snow or ice as well as the heavier and bigger full size pickups. I also had 2 older Fords, an F150 and an F250. They were beasts in the snow, really unstoppable compared to my lighter Taco and the Mazda B4000. My B4000 4x4 had Nokian Hakkapellita on them but still no good in the snow.

Pretty much eveyone I know who drives a Taco with 4 snow tires, and have also driven a full size pickup in winter say the same thing.

Next winter I will go with a better set of tires. The tread is too low now for any usefulness in winter.

 

Awesome, thank you. That is exactly what I wanted to see: what type of cuts or grooves you have. I was thinking of doing the same cuts via razor blade.

Some siping videos, guys are taking pretty good sized slices out of their tires and I'm over here like "Damn, that's a lot of rubber coming off !!!". Razor cuts it is!

 

Tire shop did them when they mounted and balanced when I bought them cheaper and faster than I could ever do it.