[VAsti]

Stock tires in the snow is STUPED! Im at WVU snowed tonight a few inches and i drove around, going up hill and driving was fine. Stopping was not fun and kind of scary going down no kind of stopping power at all.

[Nachos Libres]

Originally Posted by VAsti

Stock tires in the snow is STUPED! Im at WVU snowed tonight a few inches and i drove around, going up hill and driving was fine. Stopping was not fun and kind of scary going down no kind of stopping power at all.

This is going to be merged with the other 3 stock tires in the snow threads.

[STiCED]

Ok Ok everyone- -placed my order for the $99 ASA's with Blizzak Lm-25's yesterday. Should be at my door by tuesday.

The ASA's aren't the best looking wheel, and they are heavy as ocean liner ancors...however I suppose it wont kill me if it's only 3-4 months out of the year.

I was half tempted to do the OZ wheels on 18" winter tires but I think that would hurt some of my performance (tire flex) in the winter. I guess having rims that are somewhat an eye-sore is a small price to pay for traction in the inclement weather of Southern Jersey.

Btw, had to take a family member's car in today to work. After reading that comment about the cold turning the RE070's into hockey pucks I felt the tire this morning and I'll be damned if it wasn't ROCK solid. Scary stuff.

Thanks everyone.

[rodent]

Why didn't you get the Blizzak REVO's?

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...pe=W&x=19&y=17

Originally Posted by STiCED

Ok Ok everyone- -placed my order for the $99 ASA's with Blizzak Lm-25's yesterday. Should be at my door by tuesday.

The ASA's aren't the best looking wheel, and they are heavy as ocean liner ancors...however I suppose it wont kill me if it's only 3-4 months out of the year.

I was half tempted to do the OZ wheels on 18" winter tires but I think that would hurt some of my performance (tire flex) in the winter. I guess having rims that are somewhat an eye-sore is a small price to pay for traction in the inclement weather of Southern Jersey.

Btw, had to take a family member's car in today to work. After reading that comment about the cold turning the RE070's into hockey pucks I felt the tire this morning and I'll be damned if it wasn't ROCK solid. Scary stuff.

Thanks everyone.

[LOLSTi]

Originally Posted by nhluhr

Anyway, the traction was so poor that it was barely any fun at all. I couldn't even get a decent scoobnut going because as soon as I started to turn and lose traction, I'd just slide off whatever ultra-slight grade there was. It was driveable, but definitely not safe.

Anyway, just thought I'd share my comparison of winter vs summer rubber on icy/snowy conditions. The difference is incredible.

Wow. That's some pretty persuasive stuff.

Time for some Blizzacks!

[nastin8]

I hate to say it, but after visiting these forums as well as nasioc for the past 6+ months, this thread has encouraged me to post my first reply to any thread.

First lets start off with a little background.... purchased my 05 sti new in July in upstate NY, and moved 2 weeks later to Roanoke VA. I still have the stock tires on with ~9k miles. I will be moving to SC in mid-Feb.

I am by no means encouraging winter driving with the stock RE070's but it is possible. The only reason that I am keeping the stock tires is that I have a month and a half and I will not see snow again.

I have noticed quite a few of the people posting on this thread are from the mid-atlantic region. I beleive that this is much of the reason that the thread is stating that driving on these tires is impossible in the snow. I hate to say it but, people down here can't drive in poor weather conditions. For example, on my way to work today (road still have minor slush from yesterday but mostly clear) I saw a 4wd dodge dakota with chains. I am from way upstate NY and I have only seen chains on mail trucks.

If you know how to properly drive in the snow, it is possible with the RE070's with extreme caution. Granted I am more afraid of the other drivers than driving myself. Here are some good tips to use if you are paranoid of driving in the snow:

1. Start slowing down for a stop or a corner much before you would normally. This may seem really straight forward, but too many time I see accidents because people are locking up their brakes rear-ending other vehicles or sliding off the road.

2. Leave a very large distance between yourself and the car in front of you. Many of the concerns in this thread have been... what if the car in front of you gets in an accident, would you rather have snows or stock tires. When driving in the snow you should leave yourself enough room to safely stop before the vehicle in front no matter what the case.

3. Avoid lane changes on divided highways as much as you can. This is hard for me because people down here really don't know how to drive and I get impatient easily. Driving in a lane that has been driven over multiple times will be safer than switching lanes and crossing over fresh snow which may cause your car to get "squirrely".

4. Always leave yourself a way out. Driving with VA drivers has made me very paranoid. When the roads are in poor conditions, I never put myself in a situation that I can not avoid an accident. For example... coming to a stop at an intersection, I will only drive in a lane with a shoulder and keep 2 carlengths between myself and the car in front of me. This way if I see some idiot coming up behind me with no chance to stop, I can move out of the way on to the shoulder and watch him/her hit the car in front of me.

5. Clear off all windows so that you have full visibility. I learned this lesson the hard way after almost clipping a pedestrian because I did not fully clear my winsheild. Make sure all windows are cleared off as well as you mirrors.

6. Practice in poor conditions. Although it may seem irresponsible, the best way to learn how to handle your car if something does go wrong, is to practice. Find an empty parking lot and learn what your vehicle does if you take a turn to fast. Do a few donuts, and learn how to control the direction of your vehicle with the gas as well as the steering wheel.

While these tips wont allow you to drive through a foot of fresh snow, they will help you drive through some minor winter conditions with caution. While I only have a couple months to deal with the weather until the move, I feel completely confident driving in these conditions with the stock tires. I have though experienced severe conditions in upstate NY with a wide variety of automobiles ranging from a 4wd Nissan pickup to a FWD 250whp Eagle Talon with bald all-season tires.

I am not trying to push people to keep their stock tires for the winter, but I just want to let it know that it is possible.

Just for reference, if you plan on taking your STi to an empty parking lot with the stock tires to have fun.... good luck. The traction with these tires is too poor to even pull off a good snodrift or do snoduts.

[BluSTiKy]

Got stuck with my 06 in two winter storms with the REs on it. Bad news. I don't care how good of a driver you are what matters is the rest of the people on the road. The REs will get you moving in a straight line but if you get cut off by a truck who decides he wants to turn you'll go sliding right underneath him. They are fun for doughnuts, stupid for driving on. Just my .02

[telum01]

a lot of people that have never driven summer ONLY tires in the snow don't understand the lack of grip when i try to explain it to them. i was in maryland for a couple weeks during winter and it snowed on me twice. not pretty at all. zero grip. zero confidence. zero fun.

[Mykl]

I got caught up north several years ago in my old RX-7 that was wearing a set of Yokohama AVS Intermediates. There was no snow on the ground when I got there, but a storm hit and 13 inches fell from the sky overnight. It wasn't fun to deal with, I got stuck a lot.

[AFSTIGUY]

I ran on the stocks at Tahoe a few weeks ago. Went out once when there was about 4" on the ground. Tires were pretty warm (came from a garage), and I did pretty well for a while. Even with the DCCD fully open, I had pretty good traction (for a summer tire that is). However, after the car sat out for 2 hours, I had to move it. I couldn't get stopped coming out of a sloped driveway (slid into the road, thank God nobody was coming). I DEF. couldn't get back into the driveway without some help. I had to get up speed on the flats to propel into the driveway, just to start sliding sidways.

Also, to get out of town, I through the Cable Chains on...great, I had front wheel traction (a little), but going down a hill, the backend kept coming around. I have a lot of snow driving experience, and have to say, this was the most scared I ever have been. Sliding sideways down a hill with chains on made me realize the problem isn't the front of the car where the weight is, it is the back end. And oh by the way, even with the DCCD locked, the back wheels still screw you up pretty good, and counteract all of the goodness of locking the differential.

[wdb]

Originally Posted by AFSTIGUY

I ran on the stocks at Tahoe a few weeks ago. Went out once when there was about 4" on the ground. Tires were pretty warm (came from a garage), and I did pretty well for a while. Even with the DCCD fully open, I had pretty good traction (for a summer tire that is). However, after the car sat out for 2 hours, I had to move it. I couldn't get stopped coming out of a sloped driveway (slid into the road, thank God nobody was coming). I DEF. couldn't get back into the driveway without some help. I had to get up speed on the flats to propel into the driveway, just to start sliding sidways.

Also, to get out of town, I through the Cable Chains on...great, I had front wheel traction (a little), but going down a hill, the backend kept coming around. I have a lot of snow driving experience, and have to say, this was the most scared I ever have been. Sliding sideways down a hill with chains on made me realize the problem isn't the front of the car where the weight is, it is the back end. And oh by the way, even with the DCCD locked, the back wheels still screw you up pretty good, and counteract all of the goodness of locking the differential.

Werd. I don't care how good someone thinks they are at snow driving. The fact remains that no traction = no traction. AWD will get you moving, that's about it; everything else will be nigh on impossible with RE070's on any truly slippery surface.

[Majin]

[Big Cam]

I still want an STI

[Big Cam]

Originally Posted by Majin

your a mod right? do it?!?

[BEEZ]

ive read this whole thread and still not sure what is the best option for me. I am buying a sti this week and i get an extra set of wheels in the deal. i go up to lake tahoe every weekend during the winter and i need a winter setup. Now since i dont live in the snow just driving up to it, should i buy a M&S tire like the Nero or kumho? or look to get something a little more dedicated like the blizzack or nokian? I will probably drive this winter setup to work during the week with completely dry conditions...but i want full control when i cruise up the mnt during the weekends. what do you experts suggest?

edit(**********

not sure if this matters but this car is around 350 whp/tq so i probably need the most control possible if i want to hit the gas.