This is just a rant that it is irritating that there are no cheap snow tire options for these cars. I live somewhere where it sometimes doesn't snow and when it does there are only about two months that it is possible. So it is hard to justify snow tires, except now I basically can't drive anywhere. (please let it stop before it gets compacted)

 

Meh, if you're willing to drive slow enough and don't have to contend with steep hills, you can probably drive on drag radials. I had a set of pirelli somethings (they don't make them anymore that I see) on my last car. Awesome tires in the summer and didn't shed snow in the winter so I drove on icey donuts sometimes. If you do buy snow tires, you'll get quite a few seasons out of them if you only have to use them for 2 months sometimes.

 

Agreed. Never snows where I am either, or so I'm told, but we just got dumped on with 6 inches of the white stuff. Couldn't get up my driveway until I shoveled it and let the ice melt. I broke down and ordered a set of Pirelli Snowsports which are supposed to come in today. I figure with all the camping and skiing around here, it's best to have them for going into the mountains anyway.

But you're right. Sticker shock sucks, but so does putting your 8 in a ditch.

 

Big-O tires just quoted me $950 out the door for 17" Wheels and "Hancook Ice Bear" tires. It also stopped snowing and roads are clear so maybe I will procrastinate more, bleh. Thanks for the moral support.

 

Get some high performance all-seasons. You may give up a smidge of summer performance, but it'll be better for in the cold, rain, and snow.

 

Yup, no real reason for snow tires these days unless you live up in the mountains and get snow a lot. I've never needed snow tires and it isn't unusual for us to get 2 feet of snow within a day or two sometimes and we have snow up to 4 months out of the year sometimes.

 

Marquis and I just did that - Kumho Ecsta ASXs. How cheap are you thinking? We both searched around and they were the best for the least amount of money. They were $116 ea through TireRack. There is a $40 rebate you can get on a set of 4 if you buy them right now and submit the form before Dec. 31st I ended up not having to drive in the snow we got last week, but they are doing GREAT in the Seattle rain so far. I've had 'em for a month.

 

and how was the drive?

beers

 

soultion:
how about move to somewhere it doesnt snow full stop?

 

…if your car comes with summer performance tires like the 8 does. The only advantage all-seasons have over other tires is that they're the tires you never need to change seasonally. (They're not as good as summer tires in summer or winter tires in winter.) But since you have summer tires already, and you have to take them off in winter, your only logical choice is to replace them with winter tires. There's simply no reason to use all-seasons if you're switching them on and off the car twice a year.

The only way you can justify all-seasons would be if you sold your original summer tires and used the all-seasons, well… all year.

Separately, as others have said, winter tires make sense even if you get little or no snow. Don't forget that summer performance tires suck, performance-wise, when it's colder than 40º, even when the roads are dry. Winter performance tires are designed to perform best when it's cold—even without snow.

 

That's why they call them all-seasons. I really doubt anyone would think it's a good idea to swap all-seasons on only for the winter.

 

If you have to buy snow tires, Michelin Blizzaks are the best I've ever tried. I had them on my A4 (well, with AWD), and it wouldn't matter if there was an inch or 8 inches of snow on the road- they just powered through it. Maybe they're made out of salt or something haha.

 

Snow,,, hmmmm. Excuse me. What is that? I've seen pictures of it on TV.

 

I thought Blizzaks were a Bridgestone product...

 

they are.

beers

 

Oops haha that's what I meant. I was thinking of the difference between them and the Michelin pilots.

 

I've never driven on my SPTs in snow, but I have driven them on dry pavement in 25 degree weather. They lose some grip, but hold the road pretty well. In snow, that would probably all change, but it would be nothing like the stock tires. The Dunlops that came with my 8 lost their grip any time the temps dropped below 50 degrees.

You could "probably" limp home on the SPTs; not so much on the stockers.

For the record, I love my M3s. I noticed a huge difference when I put them on this past weekend. The SPTs felt like they were holding the road, but the M3s make the car feel glued to it.