[Sportstick]

Originally Posted by jnj2455

The NYC metro area has become increasingly mild over the last decade (thank you global warming) but my car came with summer tires and I've currently put on a set of 18" winters.

This is my first time really dealing with winter tires so I'm curious if you guys worry about the mild winter days where it is obviously too warm for winter tires but still is the middle of the winter season. Do you pump up the PSI to compensate for the warmer/more elastic rubber due to temp rise?

I always kept them at the proper recommended inflation, taking temperature into account (1psi variation for each 10 degrees F of change). I would just drive more gently, as winter tires offer poorer performance on dry pavement and they are more easily chewed up.

The larger challenge for me (when I lived in such a climate), were the "shoulder" seasons...late Fall and early Spring when temps drop below 45, for which summers are not viable, but long before/after snow. In Michigan, we spent far too much time in these conditions. I switched to UHPAS (Michelin Pilot Sport AS3+ at the time) for three seasons, and just mounted snows when the actual snowfalls began. Now in a location where it never snows, I switched back to full time summer tires.

[jnj2455]

Originally Posted by Sportstick

I always kept them at the proper recommended inflation, taking temperature into account (1psi variation for each 10 degrees F of change). I would just drive more gently, as winter tires offer poorer performance on dry pavement and they are more easily chewed up.

The larger challenge for me (when I lived in such a climate), were the "shoulder" seasons...late Fall and early Spring when temps drop below 45, for which summers are not viable, but long before/after snow. In Michigan, we spent far too much time in these conditions. I switched to UHPAS (Michelin Pilot Sport AS3+ at the time) for three seasons, and just mounted snows when the actual snowfalls began. Now in a location where it never snows, I switched back to full time summer tires.

Appreciate your insight. I installed my winters and then it dropped to lower 30s for a few days but now its going back up to 70 and holding steady for the next week or so. And I'm like.. should I spend the hour and put the summers back on?

Do UHPAS do OK in snow on a RWD? Probably not the wisest but a part of me thought summers on the 19", then AS on the 18" once the winter tires are worn. We've had some pretty weak winters in the mid-Atlantic so snow have become less of a concern than say black ice.

[Billfitz]

If I lived in NYC and I had a reason to run summers I'd run all seasons in winter, unless I took winter ski vacations or had to visit Buffalo on a regular basis. But I have xDrive, as do all US and Canada GT owners.

[Sportstick]

Originally Posted by jnj2455

Appreciate your insight. I installed my winters and then it dropped to lower 30s for a few days but now its going back up to 70 and holding steady for the next week or so. And I'm like.. should I spend the hour and put the summers back on?

Do UHPAS do OK in snow on a RWD? Probably not the wisest but a part of me thought summers on the 19", then AS on the 18" once the winter tires are worn. We've had some pretty weak winters in the mid-Atlantic so snow have become less of a concern than say black ice.

When you set up the question about tires with regard to RWD vs AWD (XDrive) you are focusing on the least important aspect of the car's capability, that is, getting moving. Of far greater importance is the ability to stop and turn. Whether on ice or snow, dedicated winter tires with a rubber compound formulated especially for such conditions will be unquestionably superior to help keep your car out of the body shop and you/your passengers uninjured if and when something unexpected happens in your path. Any version of all-season tires, whether ultra high performance or not, are notably less capable in those conditions. Keep in mind, all seasons are actually intended to cope with a variety of temperatures without the rubber congealing into hockey puck hard...they are mediocre at stopping/turning on winter-slippery ice or snow surfaces compared to dedicated winters, even if they are capable to get the car moving originally.

[BBri89]

The odd day at warmer temperature isn't an issue, it's when the weather/temp is consistently outside the normal operating window.

10*C/50F or lower and wet.
5*/40F or lower and dry.
That's when you want winter tyres.

The odd day or two is fine, but if it's regularly below that, it's time to change.

Likewise when it swings the other way and warms up, when it's consistently warmer than above, that's when the winters are no longer needed.

[Billfitz]

Winter treads are made with a softer rubber, to compensate for the stiffening that occurs in cold weather. In warm weather this creates more friction between the tire and road, which reduces tread life and fuel economy. You wouldn't want that happening all summer, but for a few days it's no big deal. Racing tires also use soft tread rubber, because when racing they want maximum friction between the tire and the road, and they don't care about tread life or fuel economy.

[BMW in NE]

Fellow New Englander here. I pieced together a winter set from the FB marketplace. I scored a set of OEM 397 18" wheels, some blizzak 225/45/18s and a used set of TPMS. I think I have probably $700 in the whole set, and I used them on my 15' 335 and now my 18' 340. Snows make the car unstoppable in the winter.

[PJ Gross]

Originally Posted by BMW in NE

Fellow New Englander here. I pieced together a winter set from the FB marketplace. I scored a set of OEM 397 18" wheels, some blizzak 225/45/18s and a used set of TPMS. I think I have probably $700 in the whole set, and I used them on my 15' 335 and now my 18' 340. Snows make the car unstoppable in the winter.

As above, I used my stock M400s. I went with a slightly taller sidewall too give more cushion and my Speedo is still overstated.
All my cars get snow tires here in Michigan. Added safety and more mileage for summer tires and less wear on summer wheels!

The GT is great with all seasons. With snow tires I get a grin from ear to ear for the extra stopping and avoidance ability!

-PJ

[CaboM4]

I ran a dedicated set of winter wheels on my 340GT and it made the car handle so much better in the winter in general, as well as snow. You shouldn’t run summer tires in temperatures below 40F.

I have since sold my F34 over the summer and have my basically new set of winters for sale in the wheel and tire classifieds section. Perfect condition, only 1/32 of tread used ... selling for half of my original cost

[R BMW]

Put a link to the thread. The classifies are hard to find on this forum.

[CaboM4]

as requested https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1769651

[wilbur_the_goose]

My problem is that I don't have the space to store the extra set of tires/wheels. Single car garage, so I go with all-seasons. The Conti DWS06+ are great, but I don't have them on the BMW right now (bought it CPO in February, and the tread life is OK). But I have the DWS on my Civic Coupe, so I could get out if I really needed to.

PS - I'm in Philly now, but grew up in Buffalo, so I kind of know how to drive in the stuff

[Billfitz]

I doubt there's more than six days a year in Philly where a GT with AS would have a problem. Give climate change a few more years and you might be able to run summers all year long.

[IceEngine21]

I am in Munich Germany where the weather is fairly similiar to Boston I would say (I lived in Mass for 2 years as well). I am running all-season tires all year round with my xdrive. No issues so far. I must say that I mostly drive in town or on fairly clean roads and I drive conservatively. Even going skiing (pre-Covid) the roads are fairly cleaned up and I never head issues.
If you are a not in a super mountainy region, having all-season tires is a reasoanable option.
In Boston, I would drive my 2005 Acura TSX with FWD and all-seasons even at -20°F and snow without issues.

EDIT: Front 225/45 19, Rear 255/40 19 with Bridgestone Weather Control A005 Evo on my 3GT

[BBri89]

Originally Posted by IceEngine21

I am in Munich Germany where the weather is fairly similiar to Boston I would say (I lived in Mass for 2 years as well). I am running all-season tires all year round with my xdrive. No issues so far. I must say that I mostly drive in town or on fairly clean roads and I drive conservatively. Even going skiing (pre-Covid) the roads are fairly cleaned up and I never head issues.
If you are a not in a super mountainy region, having all-season tires is a reasoanable option.
In Boston, I would drive my 2005 Acura TSX with FWD and all-seasons even at -20°F and snow without issues.

EDIT: Front 225/45 19, Rear 255/40 19 with Bridestone Weather Control A005 Evo

Often the colder it gets, once you're below a certain temp (below about -10C or +10F) the grip actually increases again.

The worst conditions are ice/snow down to about -10C/+10F, as the frozen water melts under the pressure of the tyres, a bit like the ice under an ice skate melts and let's you glide on a film above the ice.


As we know, wet ice, or water/slush on top of ice offers near-zero grip, snow that's melting on the surface by the tyres sliding over frozen snow underneath, it's slippy... whereas properly cold, properly dry ice (not the frozen CO2 kind) is actually not that slippy.