psychodo

Hankook I*Cept Evos. I almost went with a all season High performance instead but decided that the every other weekend trip into snow/ice warranted the winters. Great except for deep snow, but like you no way I was doing dedicated snows. I think you'll be fine and it sounds like snagit loves the brigestones.

snagitseven

Yes, I do!

As for snow, my experience with other A/S tires, the Quattro will make up a good portion of snow performance difference with A/S compared to front wheel drive with dedicated snows. Not as good but was adequate for all but the deepest snow. Plowed roads should be fine.

Tirerack surveys give the RE970's a #2 rank at 7.4 for deep snow and 8.1 for light snow traction. Very respectable for A/S UHP tires and just slightly under the Conti DWS numbers for snow (the 970's rate above the DWS in just about all other criteria). The best rated performance winter tires come in at 9.0 to 9.4 as a comparison so with Quattro, we should be not too far off with the RE970 A/S.

2008A6

Thanks for the great feedback on the bridgestone 970AS. I just wore out my Conti DWS and was close to trying the Bridgestones, hoping for a slightly less mushy ride. But ended up taking a chance on a new performance A/S tire on the market - Toyo Proxes 4Plus. (255 35 19) Very high treadware rating and still breaking them in but so far very quiet and steering feels better than the DWS. We'll see how they handle snow in the coming months, but they did very well in heavy rain.

I have a set of barely used Pirelli P-Zeros (summer) in my garage if anyone's interested. Taken off a new Audi at dealership and still have visible new tire markings on the tread surface. Posted in classifieds..

snagitseven

I sold my almost new P-Zeros on Craigslist. You might try that as well.

MileHighJC

Had a set of the Bridgestone RE970AS mounted up yesterday replacing the P zeros for the winter. Some initial thoughts here - I don't have a lot of miles on them yet (maybe 60 or so).

Left the shop to test drive them - first some in town, then a little 65-70mph on a two lane, then some twisties west of Lyons CO.

• In town they are quiet and competent. Nothing here to challenge them, but did seem quieter than the P zeros, especially on coarse pavement.
• On the two lane at speed they seemed a little noisy (grooved pavement). Hard to tell if they were noisier than the Pirellis, but the sound is definitely different - less of a hum, and more of a hiss. I actually thought I might have had a window cracked. Nothing annoying, but I did notice it.
• In the twisties, they were excellent. Frankly, I cant say I noticed a material difference in handling from the Pirellis. Its a stretch of road I have driven quite a bit since getting the A6 - they handled aggressive turns with ease.

Overall, I think I'm going to like them a lot, and I feel a lot more confident with them when the snow does fall. Interestingly a neighbor just put a set of P zeros on his 2007 A6. We ski together, and I'm pretty sure he is NOT going to like them on the snow, but Ill have the opportunity to experience first hand the difference between the two tires.

snagitseven

JC, you will notice a bit of noise on grooved pavement compared to the P-Zeros (like when a road is "stripped" before repaving) but it's not as noticeable after 3500 miles. If you push real hard in a turn, I've detected there is a slightly lesser performance compared to the RE970's, but not much at all considering they're a/s vs. summers. Give them about 1000 miles and they will settle down nicely including getting much quieter.

I've played around with cold tire pressures and have found that 33 psi rear and 35 psi front is the best settings for me - not harsh over the bad stuff but still provides excellent road holding with the 19" Sport Package. Let me know what you think.

RobC

I suspect most people probably don't push their car hard enough to really notice (or need) the difference between a very good summer tire vs. an all-season tire. What it boils down to is that an A/S tire is good enough for aggressive street driving, but when you really start pushing the limits, you will certainly be able to tell a difference.

It's kind of like my perception of R-compound vs good street rubber -- on the street a max performance tire is all you will ever need, but once you get on the track (road-course) there is a night and day difference. What a revelation it was my first time on R-compound .

snagitseven

The closest my A6 will get to a track is the parking lot.

salvadorik

Guys give a shot to Michelin Pilot Super Sport and I am almost certain that you wont regret. Those of you who have sport package I think these are the best performance tires that you can get in the market. They are comfy, quite, durable, extremelly sticky (wet and dry). I replaced Goodyear Eagle F1 Assymetrical and boy watta big change. Pilot SS are a lot better. It is not only me. Shop around and you will find mostly positive reviews. Just something to think about.

snagitseven

I don't doubt they're very nice but they are summer tires and this thread is about the Bridgestone RE970AS which are Ultra High Performance All Season tires.