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[john970]

Found these Hankook Icebear W300 "high performance" winter tires, they are asymmetrical and look like they have great dry traction to maintain some ability to have some fun on those sunny winter days.

Anyone used them? I believe they are fairly new.

http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?ti...l=Icebear+W300

[mikeo]

I have them on my wife's '07 Mini Cooper S. They work fine--not as sticky on snow as Blizzaks which are not high performance (99mph), but very good.

[john970]

Originally Posted by mikeo

I have them on my wife's '07 Mini Cooper S. They work fine--not as sticky on snow as Blizzaks which are not high performance (99mph), but very good.

Are they better on dry than the blizzaks?

[mikeo]

Originally Posted by john970

Are they better on dry than the blizzaks?

Far better. The blizzaks felt pretty "greasy".

[john970]

Great, planning on ordering up a set of 205/50R17's on some style 142's if I can find them. 149mph snow tires, who would've thought. I'm hoping they are better in the snow/ice than good all-seasons.

Found them for $89 a corner:
http://ssl.delti.com/cgi-bin/details...711&Country=US

[vanbmw]

Originally Posted by john970

Are they better on dry than the blizzaks?

One note on the Blizzaks. I had blizzaks 4 years ago and they were incredible in the snow/ice and not bad in the dry. My biggest complaint was the tire wear in the dry. Terrible! They were too soft and I used them up in a hurry. HOWEVER...the newer Blizzacks are far better in the dry. I know several users of Blizzaks bought in the last 2 years (newer higher preformance versions) and they are very very happy in the dry as far as wear is concerned.

[Gary@TireRack]

Originally Posted by mikeo

Far better. The blizzaks felt pretty "greasy".

It's an apples to oranges comparison. The Blizzaks in question are studless ice and snow tires with a lower speed rating.
A performance winter tire will always out handle a studless ice and snow tire.

Put them on the ice and snow and you get the exact opposite outcome from a traction perspective.

[john970]

Originally Posted by Gill@Tirerack.com

It's an apples to oranges comparison. The Blizzaks in question are studless ice and snow tires with a lower speed rating.
A performance winter tire will always out handle a studless ice and snow tire.

Put them on the ice and snow and you get the exact opposite outcome from a traction perspective.

Trying to figure out what to expect from them. They are still M+S winter tires with a winter rubber compound which should make them better than any all season tires, right? I mean are they closer to blizzaks or to all seasons?

I'm not putting a plow on my 1er but I don't want to buy single season tires and still slide around all over the place either.

[Gary@TireRack]

Originally Posted by john970

Trying to figure out what to expect from them. They are still M+S winter tires with a winter rubber compound which should make them better than any all season tires, right? I mean are they closer to blizzaks or to all seasons?

I'm not putting a plow on my 1er but I don't want to buy single season tires and still slide around all over the place either.

I've never tested these personally but they appear to be your "typical" performance winters tires with a dedicated winter compound. They will perform much better than All season tires and the higher speed rating will allow for better handling on dry winter roads.

Think of this as a 3 step platform in terms of winter traction. All season tires occupy step one, performance winters on step two, and studless ice and snow on the top step.

Performance winters were invented for people who want good winter traction while keeping decent handling characteristics.

All seasons in Denver combined with 300hp and RWD sounds like a recipe for disaster to me, no matter how good the driver, unless your planning on using another vehicle when conditions are expected to get dicey.

[john970]

All seasons aren't an option, I have summer tires stock and I will be buying either studless blizzaks or the W300s and am trying to quantify the difference.

I assumed any dedicated winter tire would be fine but now I'm not so sure. In denver I'm in snow/slush/ice maybe 10-14 days a year and don't want to have to resort to something as crappy on warm asphalt as the blizzaks. We do get some 60 degree days in February (like last week). Denver's near the mountains, not in them .

I have a feeling I'd burn those blizzaks up in a season. At least the back ones... :biggrin:

[Gary@TireRack]

Originally Posted by john970

All seasons aren't an option, I have summer tires stock and I will be buying either studless blizzaks or the W300s and am trying to quantify the difference.

I assumed any dedicated winter tire would be fine but now I'm not so sure. In denver I'm in snow/slush/ice maybe 10-14 days a year and don't want to have to resort to something as crappy on warm asphalt as the blizzaks. We do get some 60 degree days in February (like last week). Denver's near the mountains, not in them .

I have a feeling I'd burn those blizzaks up in a season. At least the back ones... :biggrin:

Agreed. Performance winters would be best for your application.