Laz

I Live in Seattle, and dont really want to throw on dedicated winter tires, as we RARELY get snow in the city (maybe 3 days a year or so). I currently am running the Dunlop SP5000's and have an option to buy some 15" black steel rims with studded tires for $200 from a friend (90% tread left). Not sure I want to run around the city in studs for 3 months, or take on that look. But I want to get back into snowboarding this year, so I plan on heading up the mountain passes maybe 3-4 times a month this season.

Do you think that warrants dedicated snow tires (Blizzak's, M2's, other), the studded, or should i stick with my SP5000's? If it does warrant dedicated rubber, is it worth the secondary rims, or should i swap rubber on my current? Also trying not to break the bank.

If I had more dedicated summer tread, it would be easy, but the SP5000's are "all season," so I'm not sure what to do...

Any advice? - Thanks!

Eddie@Tirerack

the Dunlops I have driven on our testing in the snow & for light snow like you may experience, it is one of your best performers in light snow duty, so that should be adequate for your area.

Deep heavy snow, freezing conditions, etc, should dictate a dedicated winter tire.

Hope this helps!

AJLa4

otherwise you would be OK with the SP SPORT 5000. I use them in Chicago and have not had a problem, so in Seattle you should be fine.

But not on mountains! I use to drive up snow mountains in Vermont all the time and you need both, 4WD and snows. Some people even used studded snows and/or chains....depends on the mountain.

Big R

I, too, lived in Vermont for a few years, and skied 20+ times/yr. I did just fine with front-wheel drive and cruddy all-seasons. With Quattro and all-seasons you should be able to get up the hills fine, especially if you stick to main roads.

Take it slow coming down the hills.

The only reason really to go w/snows is if you'll be in a lot of cold and ice or on unplowed roads.

I can't imagine you'd have any need for studded snows.

Good luck!

Steveo369

I live in Seattle, and used to teach boarding (still go up about 2x a week during the season) I would recommend against getting studded tires for this climate.

If you're only going up to snoqualmie pass on that regular of a basis (3-4x per month for 3-4 months) you can probably get by on the SP5000 all seasons. Just be prepared NOT to go if there's a big storm coming.

If you're going to Crystal or Stevens to go boarding, definitely look into a performance oriented dedicated snow tire, like the M2. It can save your bacon when you get a good dump of snow, but doesn't sacrifice THAT much ride/handling quality.

I would only get the studs if you were planning on hitting up Baker about once a week. That road is treacherous, and they get tons of snow!! Even then, studs probably aren't required...

I used to run studs in my 4wd Subaru GL10, loved it, the only time I got stuck was when I high-centered on a snow bank! They will get you just about anywhere, but are generally overkill for the pac NW.

hemants

Your situation calls for H rated snows!

The one day you try to stop or turn on snow with your SP5000's and end up in a ditch will be the one day you realize it would have been worth it to get snow tires.