Topic: Which Nokian winter tires for 1.6EL?

[bf7890]

I used to have Hakka 1’s in 195-60-14 which were amazing in Montreal snowstorms so I see no reason to change brands. A lot of you seem to get 4-5 seasons but to be honest, even though tread depth “looks” quite deep after 4 seasons, slush and ice performance wasn’t too great.  Of course, I did not get these tires studded and there was a lot of dry pavement highway mileage on them.

For the last 2 winters when I was living in Toronto, I mounted 195-55-15 (OEM size), H-rated Sava’s. This is apparently some European brand made by Goodyear. I had just moved to TO when there was a freak snowstorm and (1) I’ve never seen so many cars in the ditch during a 30km drive, and; (2) a moron truck driver tail-gated me at a distance of 2 feet off an icy/bumpy/snowy ramp even though my car was literally “shaking” side to side. So with the instinct for self-preservation, I rushed off to the nearest tire dealer and the Sava’s were all that were available.

Well now, I am back in Mtl and after our second snowfall and just starting to use them into the 3rd season, the Sava’s just aren’t superb in snow and slush for my little car at speeds > 40km per hour. I am not an aggressive winter driver but living in Mtl, I certainly am surrounded by some of them so even though I've only used them for 2 seasons, I am ready to get rid of my Sava's. Since I’ll be starting a new job in January which will require a lot of time on the road, I’ve decided to get Nokians again.

Which Nokian winter tires do you recommend for an Acura 1.6EL?

-   Hakka 2 in 195-55-15 (OEM size)
-   Hakka 2 in 195-60-14 (I have rims)
-   Hakka RSI in 195-55-15
-   Nordman 1 in 195-55-15

Questions:

- I will not be studding the tire since I drive outside Quebec quite often. Will the RSI’s compromise in snow/slush performance?

- The Nordman 1 looks a lot like my old Hakka’s. Are these the same tires / treads?

- Can someone explain to me the difference in performance for all 3 tires? It seems the Hakka 2 and Nordman have the most aggressive treads so I’m assuming they’ll be great in snow but what about the RSI? Also, the Hakka's are known to be long-wearing and keeping their grip after several seasons. Does the same apply for RSI's?

- Really stupid question, but will a really good “snow” tire perform EQUALLY WELL in “slushy snow"? My experience with the Hakka 1's and even the Sava's is that they perform well in pure, packed snow but start compromising in grip when there's that 2-3 inches of slushy snow that's melting.

- I am actually leaving going to be in TO for the next 3-4 weeks. Can anyone recommend several Nokian dealers in the GTA? Also if I get the 15-inch, I need new rims (figure it's worth it since I'm keeping my car for another 4-5 years). Anyone know of a place where I can get rims for a decent price in TO? Second hand rims are okay.

Thanks in advance for your inputs.

[oversteer]

The unstudded Hakka 1 would be best for deep snow, not really for ice.  Unstudded Hakka 2 would be better on ice than an unstudded Hakka 1, probably gives up a bit in deep snow, probably better in wet snow and slush.  Studless RSI would be best on ice, and excellent in moderate snow, also slush and wet weather, but gives up a bit of dry handling because of the lower speed rating.  Since the RSI is (presumably) softer, it would wear faster with a lot of highway miles.  All the Nokians have full depth siping so they should continue to work well even as they wear.

For your purposes I think the Hakka 2 is the best bet.  You get the traction you need and a 'T' speed rating for your highway driving. 

Re: snow vs. slushy snow - I think this has everything to do with the sipes.  The Hakka 2 and RSI are more heavily siped than the Hakka 1 and would be better in slush.

For size, I would just get the 195/60/14s.  You already have the rims, and they'll be less expensive than a 15" tire.  I only know of 2 Nokian dealers in Toronto, Steelcase (Woodbine north of Steeles) and Nantucket (somewhere around Kennedy and Ellesemere).  The Nokian website has a list of dealers, though, so check it out.

[canadianexpress]

another size option with the same diameter would be 185-65-14.