New Winter Tires for the GMTS?

[Bscfrank914]

Hey all,
So last winter I kept my all seasons on my 9-7. Needles to say, with it's awd system, the two functioned terrible in the snow. Fast forward to now, I purchased a set of Cooper Discoverer M+S tires. Fortunately it hasn't snowed hear yet, so I can't say how they function in the winter weather. However, I did take them on a 2000 mile ride down from NY to TN. As for highway driving, they performed well, keeping in mind it is a snow tire. Believe it or not, the mpg was nearly the same from my all season which are the GoodYeard Assurance Fuel Max. I was averaging 19.0-19.7 MPG going 70-75 MPH. The tread on the Discoverer's are pretty intense. Hopefully they function well in the snow. From my research on the 9-7's, snow tires are a must during the winter season. I have two pics for you guys, and I'll let you know how they work.
Frank -

 

[Mounce]

Wouldn't this apply to everyone, not just 9-7x?

 

[Mooseman]

Snow tires are always a good idea just for safety. 4x4 or AWD systems are only good to get you going but braking would suck with all season tires, which is more important.

 

[Bscfrank914]

Wouldn't this apply to everyone, not just 9-7x?

Well I said it was for the Saab guys because I was under the assumption that a 4wd TB and a AWD 9-7 are two different animals in the winter.

 

[Mounce]

Well I said it was for the Saab guys because I was under the assumption that a 4wd TB and a AWD 9-7 are two different animals in the winter.

I'm unsure on how the two really differ other than the obvious things but your study on the winter tires could help someone else when trying to decide on which ones to get.

 

[carshinebob]

Yes. change the title of this thread. This could benifit alot of us guys here. I had the same tires on an 01 Blazer last winter (worst winter on record here) and they went through the snow with ease. More noise then AS tires and a little worse ride quality. Great budget priced snow tires in my opinion. ~BOB

 

[dmanns67]

Those tires look like they would perform great in winter conditions. Too bad they are not offered in 245/60R18, which is OE size for my TB.

What size Cooper Discoverer MS tires did you go with and are you lifted?

I am currently running the Cooper Discoverer LSX plus tires and they performed well last winter. The tread on yours looks slightly more aggressive though.

 

[Mounce]

If you decide to change the title, you'll realize that you can't lol. Just get in touch with one of the many awesome moderators (don't worry, they don't bite too hard) and they can change it for you.

 

[Bscfrank914]

If you decide to change the title, you'll realize that you can't lol. Just get in touch with one of the many awesome moderators (don't worry, they don't bite too hard) and they can change it for you.

Haha yes. I contacted a moderator and requested to change the title.

 

[Bscfrank914]

Those tires look like they would perform great in winter conditions. Too bad they are not offered in 245/60R18, which is OE size for my TB.
What size Cooper Discoverer MS tires did you go with and are you lifted?
I am currently running the Cooper Discoverer LSX plus tires and they performed well last winter. The tread on yours looks slightly more aggressive though.

I am not lifted currently(although that's in the plan for the future). I run OE size rim and tire (255 55 r18)

 

[Bscfrank914]

Guys,
I forgot to mention that when I was on vacation, I also took my Thule Bike Rack trailer hitch and had my two bikes mounted. Idk if that would really effect the mpg. Just wanted to throw that in there.

 

[dmanns67]

I am not lifted currently(although that's in the plan for the future). I run OE size rim and tire (255 55 r18)

Was your OE tire size 245/60R18? Just wondering because I really like the tire, but was wanting to stick with my OE size.

 

[Bscfrank914]

Was your OE tire size 245/60R18? Just wondering because I really like the tire, but was wanting to stick with my OE size.

Yessir. I bought the truck used and it came with the Good Year Assurance Fuel Max's. I believe these are the same size tire that rolled off of the assembly line.

 

[Bscfrank914]

Recently we had a snowstorm in the hudson valley. Where I live I had around 4-6 inches of snow. I dont have pics but I do have an update to how they performed.
For starters, my Saab was parked on a driveway with a relatively steep incline. I parked it towards the top with the front facing downward. I started my truck up, and let it warm up for around 7 minutes. I then simply let off the ebrake easy, then put it into reverse. I tried to go right from that position, but my trucks rear end went back, then started to slip. I then pulled up a little, and put it back into reverse, gave her some gas, and she was out with no problems. Turns out where my two rear tires were, there was two pieces of thick ice.
Anyways, I drove around on the side roads. They were plowed over once, so there wasn't too much on the road. However everything was frozen over and the roads were slick with ice, and had approximately an inch to 2 inches on the ground. I could immediately tell a difference in the handling of my vehicle compared to my good ole' Good Year Assurance's. The tires gripped the ground very well. I could tell because I would cut the wheel hard and hit the accelerator a little heavy, and you could feel them tires grip that wintry goodness on the ground. Handling was overall very responsive with little to no skidding or sliding. Braking, as well as acceleration were also very good in the snow compared to my all seasons. I didn't spin out at around 2000-2500 rpms. I drove roughly 15-20 miles in these type on wintry conditions. I must say, so far, they are paying off. I am awaiting another storm so I can post some pics for ya, and maybe even a video. Overall I am very pleased with the tires so far. I'll keep updates as frequent as I can!

 

[Bow_Tied]

Timely thread, thinking of getting some snows for my Envoy.

I am also considering the mentioned Coopers, plus evaluating the following:
Hercules Avalanche (very similar tread to the Coopers)
BGF Winter Slalom
Dunlop Grandtek SJ6
General Altimax Artic

Open to any input on the above selections from those who have used/researched them.

 

[Mooseman]

I've had two sets of the Dunlops (one on the TB, the other on our Montana SV6) and they've been good. Pretty good traction but find they wear a bit fast but being winter tires, it's understandable. One I've had in the past and that I really liked was the Firestone Winterforce. I had those on our van prior to the Dunlops and loved them.

 

[coolasice]

Wish Firestone never stopped making the winter fire, they were many times better then the winterforce, I have some cooper discoverer m+s studded tires on now for winter, work decent. (Got them used)

 

[Playsinsnow]

Timely thread, thinking of getting some snows for my Envoy.

I am also considering the mentioned Coopers, plus evaluating the following:
Hercules Avalanche (very similar tread to the Coopers)
BGF Winter Slalom
Dunlop Grandtek SJ6
General Altimax Artic

Open to any input on the above selections from those who have used/researched them.

Generals. My order is:
Hakkapelliitta-scandanavian tire. They know what's up. My favorite.
blizzak- arguably best snow tire for passenger cars.
xIce- handles wet and slush better than blizzaks. Blizzaks do better on ice imo but the xice's handle highway dry and wet speeds better.
generals- used to be a league of their own with wear/cost/performance. Price has gone up last few years,
winterforce- good blizzak alternative.
Edit: tire info

Check out the vid of a F1 car tearing up Nurburgring with snow tires I posted in random video thread.

 

[Bow_Tied]

Well I made my decision.

The Generals were the nicest of the tires and the only one on my list that was a real ice tire compound. But were almost 2x the coin. Once that was out of the way, the rest became very similar in performance with the Grandtreks having an edge. However the price variation (and in one case availability) lead me to the Avalanche tires. Not a premium tire by any means but appeared to have good performance to cost ratio.

I originally thought the cooper M&S were a similar tread pattern to the Avalanches but I must have been looking at a dated picture or looking at the wrong model of avalanches. One thing that attracted me to this tire was the heavy lug pattern. A true ice tire will beat these all day long on ice for sure but having some biting power for deeper snow and the thick peanut buttery snow/sand mix before the plows get down the side streets was more to desire. As it was told to me these are made by Cooper and are the same compound as the Cooper M&S so I expect similar performance, though possibly a bit louder since it doesn't have a closed centre bar.

I let you know what I think of them. I bought 245 65 17s

 

[SaabScott]

This tire came on my 2009 9-7X when I got it in November last year.

So far, very happy with their performance in winter weather.

As stated, they are a little noisier than AS but return similar fuel mileage.

With regards to the other question asked above, 255 55/18 is stock size for the 9-7X (excluding the Aero model).

 

[Sparky]

The Generals are ridiculously cheap compared to the Blizzaks. Under $100 a tire for stock size, and in the size I'm considering (for next winter) 245/75/16 (slightly smaller than my normal 265/75/16) they are still only $97 on Tire Rack.

They are studdable but even without studs the reviews look pretty good.

 

[C-ya]

I have the General Altimax Artic on my wife's Impala (yeah, I know), but the tire has turned that car into a different vehicle in the snow and ice. Very sure-footed and confidence inspiring. I'm looking at getting them for my TB.

 

[Bow_Tied]

I look forward to hearing how the generals do for your TB. The Avalanches I bought were ~$150 each and the Generals were going to be around $300 each (Canadian pricing) so for me by the time I add in disposal tax and sales tax it was $700 vs $1470 or something like that... I probably could get them cheaper by mail lol.

 

[C-ya]

That pricing difference is crazy! $300 CAN is $250 US. Around here/on the web, the Generals are selling for around $115 US. I paid $87/ea for the ones on the wife's car.

 

[Bow_Tied]

Well, car tires are a lot cheaper, but yes - most everything in Canada costs more. With only 10% of the population of the USA we get screwed. A lot of people close to border buy tires in the US. With a young family I have little time to do so. I may have got better pricing by more shopping but in the end was going with the cheaper tire anyway.

A couple years ago I bought General G-Max AS03s for my Chevelle and they were $1k and I thought it was a good price lol.

 

[Playsinsnow]

I have the General Altimax Artic ...the tire has turned that car into a different vehicle in the snow and ice. Very sure-footed and confidence inspiring.

Some folks will never understand that a winter tire will do this! Even better when the wife has them! It is hard to go back to not having them.

 

[C-ya]

Sitting at Tire Rack waiting for them to open to get my Altimax Artics installed. I'll post a review later today.

 

[Bow_Tied]

Awesome, looking forward to your report!

 

[C-ya]

So far, I driven plowed but icy roads, dry roads and wet roads. I tried to slide on my (plowed) road. I tried to spin from a standing start in a snowy parking lot (where I would have with my General Grabber HTS's), and I tried some hard braking.

Wow! These tires stick like there's no tomrrow. Having driven with this tire on my wife's car, I knew how it felt on a FWD vehicle. On my TB in 2WD, it feels even better. There was little to no wheel spin anywhere I tried - not that I tried hard, just relatively, comparing them to the Grabbers. I couldn't make it slide nearly as easily as I could with the Grabbers. I did get the back end to break loose on my road, but it came right back in line as soon as I let off the gas. I tried a hard brake on an icy road and the truck just slowed down. No ABS, no drama.

There is less wandering in my truck than in my wife's car. I'll have to check the air pressure in her tires. I had the cruise set at 72 (speedo 75 as these are 235/65-17) on a dry limited access highway and the tires felt fine. A little noisier than the Grabbers, but not even the slightest bit annoying. It's just that the Grabbers are so quiet, I did notice the Altimax Artics.

Wet roads are a joke. These tires grip in water like a soft compound tire would grip hot asphalt. Both my wife's car and my TB have no issues whatsoever in the wet.

So far, they have earned two thumbs way up. I have read about a very long tread life on these tires. My wife doesn't drive her car very far, so we only have about 1500-2000 miles on them since November. I have about 120 miles on mine now. More later today, but mostly interstate.

 

[C-ya]

Oh yeah, the obligatory photos.

Not too much wheelwell.

 

[C-ya]

High-speed check, SAT.

Coming home this afternoon a guy in a Celica GT was feeling a little froggy and was darting in and out of traffic. Once we cleared traffic from a light, he nailed it. I decided to play along and caught and passed him at about 110. Once I cleared his entire car, I grabbed 2nd, hit the brakes and made my exit onto the interstate.

Thanks, Jeremy!

 

[dmanns67]

Shifted to 2nd at 110mph

 

[C-ya]

It's an automatic, it prolly shifted to 3rd first, then when it could, it went to 2nd. Try it sometime. Drag it back to first - it won't go to 1st until you are slow enough.

 

[C-ya]

Tested on real ice today. Lots of melt in the last couple of days and it was 20F overnight last night. I could get the front to activate the ABS on a frozen puddle, but it still felt like I had more control, as the ABS wasn't as severe as I have had it before. I was able to spin the rears on ice, but again, it just felt more in control. Ease off the throttle and then ease back in and you were moving. With the Grabbers, it would spin, so you let the off and got back on and it would spin some more. So, even on ICE, these tires are much better.

 

[C-ya]

I am loving these tires. Haven't used 4WD since I put them on. Well, that's not entirely true. I did put it in 4HI to try a straight-line launch. Holy crap! Other than that, 2WD and loving it!