Winter tire recommendation please | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Winter tire recommendation please

machm1970

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September 14, 2013
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Year, Model & Trim Level
2002 Explorer
My daughter has an '07 2WD, it's terrible in snow. I've added 250 lbs of salt in the back end and that helped a little, but she really needs better tires. Looking for all season, good in snow, what do you recommend?

Thanks!

Matt
 



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I chose Hankook I-Pikes. I liked the deeper and more open tread and they've gripped well for 3 seasons now in my Tahoe. However, it's 4WD. My sister chose Nokian winter tires for her Grand Marquis, but hasn't tried them in the snow yet.
 






L
My daughter has an '07 2WD, it's terrible in snow. I've added 250 lbs of salt in the back end and that helped a little, but she really needs better tires. Looking for all season, good in snow, what do you recommend?

Thanks!

Matt
 






Like you I purchased new Bridgestone Blizzak snow tires for my daughters 07 Chevy Equinox
AWD, I can't say enough good about these tires, they are amazing. That little car crawls
around like a baby bull dozer. Last few weeks here in N.E. Iowa we had almost 20" of snow
and she has not had any issues.
 






The OP doesn't have the AWD feature, just 2WD.

I'd select some General Grabbers. I've had them on every explorer I've owned and have been very happy with them. Aggressive tread design but quiet on the highway. Good long term mileage. You might still need some weight in the rear end though. Tough to get around that in a 2WD vehicle.
 






BFG T/A KO2's are a great all season tire. Great in the snow, Great in the rain too. They wont do as well as an actual winter tire like a blizzak, but you dont need a second set of tires laying around for once winter ends....

250 lbs sounds like an awful lot of weight to add... I would consider adding that to a RWD pickup truck, but thats because they have a lot less weight over the rear tires vs the front tires when the bed is empty. An SUV is already pretty close to 50-50 weight distribution, so if it were going to add weight, I wouldn't go more than 100lbs or so. especially if you are adding it to the very rear behind the 3rd row (or where ther 3rd row would be).
 






If you put two adult males in the back seat you'd have 250#'s easily. Using sand, you save the cost of feeding. But you'll probably see a slight decrease in gas mileage.
 






If you really have a lot of snow to drive in every year, the Blizzak's are the best bet, but with dedicated Winter wheels for them. True Winter tires are much softer than other tires, much softer than all season tires included. That's how Winter tires grip way better than anything else, the rubber is much more pliable to grip with.

My Blizzak's are ten years old now, look like about 80% of new, and still do way better than a regular tire. I have a replacement snow tire by Nokian, but haven't tried then yet. These have studs built into them, but I haven't cleaned the used 17" wheels yet(someone filled them with fix a flat).

Get a good brand Winter tire, and go slow driving on snow and ice.
 






As others have posted, the best solution is a set of dedicated winter tires. Virtually any winter tire will be a vast improvement over an all season tire. I've had a set of Hankook Ipike RW11's for my 07 4WD Explorer for the last 6 years. They have been been pretty good and wearing well.

That being said, if you don't want to store anything (or can't store tires/wheels), then a great choice in the all season realm is the Michelin Defender LTX M/S. Most folks who buy those praise the winter traction - for an all season. Pricey though!
 






General Altimax tires grip pretty good on ice, and are decent in snow. If legal in your area I’d surely go with studded tires.
 






4th the blizzaks. I drive a 4wd up here in the great white north. I'm on my 6th winter season with them and they still have lots of life. Even with our -40c temperatures they still have decent bite, -20 is summer driving. Great in the lakes ice fishing, and plowing your own trail on the way to work, before the sand trucks get out.
 






I just had Hankook iPike RW-11's put on without studs (i'Pike RW11 | Hankook USA) and they've been great on the snow and ice of this area. Highly recommended.
 






Even with our -40c temperatures they still have decent bite, -20 is summer driving. Great in the lakes ice fishing, and plowing your own trail on the way to work, before the sand trucks...

Where the hell do u live man? That sounds miserable
 






Even with our -40c temperatures they still have decent bite, -20 is summer driving. Great in the lakes ice fishing, and plowing your own trail on the way to work, before the sand trucks...

Where the hell do u live man? That sounds miserable

according to his stats he lives at "Your mom's house"
 






My mom has 4 houses, could we be more specific please
 






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