Hi,
I have a 2004 Enthusiast, with the Potenza tires on it. I used to live in the
Dallas and just recently moved to the Hartford area.

Any tips with regards to tires? I dont think i wanan trade my Z in for another car. I just want to get through the winter in a safe and smart manner. I did have a tough time driving today 12/8/06, Honestly it was stupid of me to even go to work today in the storm, and i had a tough time.

I would appreciate any constructive comments from Z owners in the area, espeicially if there r snow tires for Z and how much of a help they are.

As of now I drive as slow as I can and loaded the back with 100 lbs of sands for added rear wieght

thanks
ZTHIS

 

hey there i live in CT as well! all you gotta do is grab yoursefl a nice set of tires!! i suggest checking on tirerick.com, try to get some nice winter tires, i would recomend the winterforce tires, however i hvae the dunlops ds-2's now on my honda and they are great! best of luck

 

Try...

http://www.tirerack.com/snow/WinterP...oModClar=Coupe

Good Luck!

 

so do you drive you Z during the winter or the Honda?

 

both, with snow tires the z is tame, you just gotta keep off the power

 

let me ask you something else now , so do I just throw away the potenza that I have on now and Can i re use them in the summer? I havent driven more than 8-9k mi on it.

thanks a lot man

 

you're lucky that you weren't in an accident...

the potenza's are useless (dangerous) in any snow condition... you wont' even get up an inclined driveway...

that being said, blizzak's or any other winter tire will do... (you're not going to race anybody in them anyway... nor should you)

As for me, I got myself Kumho ECSTA ASX all season tires and I don't drive when there's more than a few inches.. I carpool with my wife

With TCS and due caution you should be ok with all-seasons once the road has been plowed...

If you have to drive on the day of the snow, then winter tires are a must...

BTW a few sand bags in the trunk helps too...

 

well dont throw away the potenzas, just have them switched for some snow tires, and bring the potenzas back to your house for storage untill summer comes around. if you plan on upgrading yoru tires next summer then sell the potenzas to me but definatly buy some nice snow tires for now!!!

 

aite I have a cheap alternative for snow tires. Discounttires or something has hankook w404 i believe they are called for 90 bucks a tire. Read the reviews on them, they are really good. if u have the stock 17z u get the 225/45/17 and u will be able to drive through all the snow, but be careful accelerating and turning since they squish like crazy. they have pretty good tread life so they will last u alot longer than blizzaks that are usually gone after 2 seasons. My recommendation is to get these tires on your stocks and then buy a new set of rims spring time and store the stockers for your winter use.

 

thanks for the reply, but did you mean thats i get new rims for the winter tires ?? I dont quite understand.

thanks again man

 

if you have 18" rims or bigger than you will need new rims. I don't think the snow tires come bigger than 17". I could be wrong so check. But here is the plan. Buy snow tires. Get them from tirerack.com or the like, b/c it is cheaper. Then once they are delivered take them and the car to a tire shop, justtires, ntb etc... You will need someone with trunk space to go with you. Have them take the craptenza's off and put the snow tires on. Keep the cratenzas, take them home and store. Once the winter weather is done in the spring, do the same thing but in reverse. Or you can buy new sweet rims and new tires in the spring, cause the stock tires suck anyways and then just keep the winter ones on your current rims for next year and get nice new tires for your nice new volks. Any more questions? Good luck and have fun.

 

I think what he meant was that your best course of action is to have two sets of rims...one dedicated set for your winter tires, and one set for your summer tires. This makes the changeover really easy, since all you have to do when the weather gets cold is remove the summer wheels/tires and then mount the winter ones in their place.

 

they make snow tires for cars up to 19z

 

Off topic, I see some CT people in here . . . PM me for some info on meets/our car club if interested

 

I have a the stock 17in wheels that came from the factory, I currently have 225/50/17 front and a 235/50/17 rear. Can I just get 225 for the rear too when i get my snowtires. By the way I have decided to get the Dunlup Ds-2.
What would I do with this forum. I really appreciate comments from all you Zeers

 

225 all around is fine u wont have a problem

 

Cooper makes a snow tire called a Mastercraft Glacier Grip II which is t rated. It handles
well and I got four of them installed mounted and balanced for $470. Work great with
sensible driving. Summer tires do not work. Period.
Plus you can get 225/55/17 and 235/55/17. Maintains original setup and gives
you an extra 1/2" ground clearance.

 

but wud increasing the clearance mean changing the rims?

 

i stand by hankook but it sucks in the corners and ur traction goes off occasionally cause of the reduced sidewalls.

 

No clearance problems with 55 series. They are also much quieter than the
Potenzas so you can turn your radio down. Michelin x-ice and Blizzak WS-50's
are only Q rated so the handling is scary. The Glacier Grips are T rated so
they are very similar to the OE tires (V rating) at reasonable winter speeds.
Blizzak LM-22's are V rated but very expensive. Proper sizes are also hard to find. Do not mix ratings front to rear. BTW I believe the Glacier Grips are
studdable, which may be a good idea in your area. I once ran studded rears
on a 327 Vette and passed up ditched VW's in an ice storm.