Topic: Blizzak WS-50 Alternatives for 205/65R15 on a Accord

[cchenzz]

Hi Everyone,

I am in the market for a set of winter tires & rims for my 2005 Accord.  Last time I posted for expert opinion here on a Odyssey minivan resulted in my purchase of Blizzak WS-50 two years ago.  I was/am happy with the recommended choice.

The Accord is used to drive back and forth between Montreal and Ottawa on a weekly basis.  So, not slipling out and good tire tread wear are equally important factors.  Blizzak's fast tread wear condition won't last for me in this case.

Any recommendations?  How does Yokohama IG10 rank in durability?

Charlie

[JD]

Unfortunately, as with many things in life, you can't have your cake and eat it too...

If you want to increase treadlife, you have to give up ice and compacted snow grip... The reason Blizzaks are so darn good in ice and compacted snow conditions is because they have such a soft rubber compound.

[airbalancer]

This is what I am looking at for the bmw
http://www.tiretrends.com/Winter-Tires-Packages.php?tireID=421
Wal Mart is also caryring this tire

[davidy]

Unfortunately, as with many things in life, you can't have your cake and eat it too...

If you want to increase treadlife, you have to give up ice and compacted snow grip... The reason Blizzaks are so darn good in ice and compacted snow conditions is because they have such a soft rubber compound.

The soft compound on the WS50 is only like the first 55% of the tire depth. Afterwards, the tire performs like an all season tire.....so I have been told. Treadwear on the WS50 isn't very long either.

Dave

[johngenx]

That 55% thing makes little difference to me.  I won't run a snow tire with less than 5-6/32 left anyway.

Personally, I run the best snow tire that I can get and don't worry about tread life.  If I only get two seasons out of a set, it's still cheap compared to an unplanned guardrail-interface.  I have a set of the new Bridgestone Revo 1's awaiting install on the C230, and they look alot like the WS-50's, but with a little smaller "gap" area.  On a disappointing note, they have less inital tread depth. I am not sure how they will compare in terms of tread wear, but I will know in about six months...

[morty]

WS50 is a great winter tire, but if you are looking for more wear than  I would suggest going with an H-Rated winter tire. Better dry and wet stability along with great winter performance. Will not be as good as the Q-rated WS50, but it will offer you better wear with winter performance that you are looking for.

Suggestions are:

Dunlop Sport M3
Hankook W300
Kumho KW17
Michelin PA2
Pirelli Winter 210
Yoko AVS V901

Here is a link for package options (assuming you have an Accord Sdn EX 4 Cyl):

http://www.tiretrends.com/wheel2/iuc_pview/winter_pview3.php?model=1292&year=2005


As for the half snow compound half all-season...the is really not a factor as any snow tire that is half worn looses much of its capability. Less tread depth means less flex and less volume of snow and water it can evacuate. Lower tread means shallower grooves and an ever dimishing level of performance.

[HeliDriver]

Just for the record, none of the newer Blizzaks uses an all-season compound for any part of the tread.

When the first generation of Blizzaks came out, Bridgestone did in fact use an all-season compound for the last 5 or 6/32nds of tread. This had always struck me as a smart idea, since (as others have mentioned) winter tires with less than 5 or 6/32nds of tread are not very useful for their intended purpose.

Made sense to me, but all you ever hear from people is the same old line: "Blizzaks are great when they're new, but before they're even half worn out, they turn into a plain old all-season tire."

I'm sure Bridgestone got tired of hearing that same line over and over as well, because a few years ago they quit using the all-season compound as the base for their winter tires, and instead switched over to a regular winter compound for the base layer.

Oh, yeah... back to the original question.... 

I put a set of Yokohama IG10s on my Civic last fall. Only drove 10,000 kms on them last winter, but haven't really noticed any wear so far. Ice & snow performance are excellent, so I'd be thrilled except for the fact that they are an absolute abomination on bare highways (like every other Q-rated winter tire I've had the misfortune of driving on).

I'd listen to Morty & focus your search on H-rated winter tires. You might lose 10% in pure ice and snow traction, but you'll gain at least 100% in handling and stability at highway speeds. Seems like a good trade-off to me.

[03_ap1]

what about the BLizzak LM series?  I'm going onto my 5th season on LM22's - now used on my s2000.  They're perfect for ploughed and cleared roads with the occasional ice/snow patch.

[morty]

LM is a great example of an H or V-rated winter tire. Offers a stiffer casing and tread surface that contributes to better high speed satbility and wear.

[cchenzz]

Thanks everyone for your kind inputs.

Morty, in the earlier post, you provided a list of H rated Winter tires.
How would you rate them in order of value (your own opinion), and would you rate differently if it is based on quality (i.e. cost is no object)?

Charlie

[froggy]

Personally, I am buying the blizzaks for my Civic. Worth the money IMHO, from what I gathered on the forum and on the Internet.

[Craig]

For premium snow tires, don't forget about the unpronounceable Scandanavian brands like Nokian's Hakkapeliitta's and Gislaved's NordFrost series.  They have a large following.

[HeliDriver]

Personally, I am buying the blizzaks for my Civic. Worth the money IMHO, from what I gathered on the forum and on the Internet.

Don't know which Blizzaks you're referring to, but I had a set of the LM-22s on my Civic & was very happy with them. I would have bought them again, but was too poor at the time 

[froggy]

Actually, it is the WS50.

[morty]

Rating of tires...hmm. To be honest the tires on that list are all very good. Whatever tire you choose on the list you would be safe. I have been running the W300 for the lasy few winters and loved them. Of course it was more for testing. A big factor in choosing is where you go and what they sell and recommend. Also, a huge factor is the brand you feel comfortable with. Is the Michelin better than the Bridgestone? Reality is that they are both good. Is Pepsi better than Coke? Mercedes better than BMW? All depends who you ask.

[froggy]

Coke and BMW!!! 

[morty]

me 2!

[johngenx]

Coke and BMW!!! 

That combination got a lot of Yuppies in trouble back in the 80's...

[froggy]