Winter tires and rims 2018

Uchi

Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2018
Location
Fayetteville WV
TDI
2015 Golf
I just purchased a 2015 Golf TDI. It's been a great car and I'm starting to get prepped for the winter. It currently has 18" rims and I'm running Continental extreme contact 225/40/zr18's. I'm looking for suggestions on the best snow tires for 2018. 2/3 of the driving I do is on curvy, hilly, rural mountain roads in WV. The other 1/3 is on the interstate.

Also, I'd like to have a dedicated set of rims for the snow tires. I'm considering a set of 16" rims for the winter. The rims and tires should be cheaper and I think there will be less chance to dent and beat them up if there's more rubber. In rural WV and the plowing isn't always done in a timely manner and the pot holes grow to be 4" deep in the winter. Any suggestions on rim size and brand are welcome as well.


Thanks
 

KITEWAGON

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2009
Location
Seacoast, NH
TDI
2014 Touareg Exec, 2014 JSW
205/55/R16 is what I'd run


For brands, there are lots of good choices. I like the Altimax Arctics but am going to try something different because I haven't loved the way that they wear. I've had a couple sets get "chopped". Could have been an issue with the car, not the tires, but either way. The Michelin X-Ice 3's are decent. I have a set that I'll run this year on my car. They were on my wife's car previously so I don't have much experience with them. Blizzaks and Nokians always seem to be mentioned as well. I am thinking about getting a set of 18" Blizzaks for my wife's Treg.
 

Uchi

Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2018
Location
Fayetteville WV
TDI
2015 Golf
Looks like everyone like the Blizzaka. The next question is whether to buy the standard WS80 tires or the winter performance lm001?
 

Steve-o

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 13, 1999
Location
Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA
TDI
2003 Jetta Wagon
I'll put in a vote for Nokians. Blizzaks are great ice/packed-snow tires but they relatively quickly revert to more of an all-season tire as they wear down. Nokians are winter tires all the way down to the last tread-wear indicator.

I happily ran Nokians for years on my Wagon but when I retired, the lower annual mileage made the cost delta for Nokians over other winter tires harder to rationalize. We went with Altimax Arctics and have run them for the last several years on both my and my wife's car. FWIW we have not had the "chopping" problem you've experienced.

When my wife's Arctics "aged out" I got a good deal on some Hakka 7s. I don't know if the extra performance of the Hakkas is worth the difference in the tires' list price, but it was worth the extra $10-15/tire we paid.

If what you usually see is not ice/packed snow, however, you might want to go for a winter tire with a more open tread pattern which will cut through fresh/deep snow. Not sure what in the Blizzak line fits that bill (or Michelin's or Continental's ftm); in Nokian's it's the Nordman line.
 

Uchi

Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2018
Location
Fayetteville WV
TDI
2015 Golf
Thanks for the info. My driveway is on a decently steep hill and is all ice/packed snow in the winter. I drive my work truck on a daily basis. I only drive the Golf to Charleston and back once per week,and to Beckley once a week. It's about 120 total miles per week. If you feel the Blizzaks do better with the ice packed snow than they may still be the front runner. What ever I buy should last forever, as I hardly get a chance to drive the car. I don't mind spending money on a good product. Especially if it's only once every 3 or 4 years.
 

tdiman

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 30, 2000
Location
bridgeport wv
TDI
jetta 2015 sel grey / black interior
Blizzak are your tire then. Have used them on my suv also nothing compares
 
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