2016 CX5, Cherokee or???

[MikeM.]

Very well said Mike! You've made me want to purchase snow tires for the next snow season here.

Thank-you! If you pull the trigger, I think you'll like the change. If you do a fair bit of winter driving on bare roads I can highly recommend the Goodyear UltrGrip Ice WRT (must say WRT as the UltraGrip Ice are a whole different tire). These WRT's get along very well with the CX-5 in any cool/cold weather condition and have been wearing very well. I've used a number of winter tires that did not provide a satisfying experience on bare pavement but these are really good.

 

[Unobtanium]

The only real reason I can't recommend that strategy is that repeated mounting/dis-mounting stresses the bead and could contribute to future failure. Probably not too much concern if done by a skilled tire technician with well maintained equipment (but where can one find that?). Plus, I like to do the changeovers myself, it's much more convenient and I can inspect brakes, CV joint booties, etc. with more care than most tire monkeys care to.

Of course this is a much better solution than driving on icy highways with summer tires.

LX20's are not summer tires. Also, the Destination LE2's on my Jeep did great in ice and snow. Never an issue, even with me acting a fool. I grant you that snow tires are superior from what I've seen/heard, but they just aren't what people do around here. I have yet to see any snow tires on any cars. People just don't spring for it for a few days of ice and snow every day. Again, that said, I may do so because I will be living in the mountains. Another alternative I have considered are those snap-on polymer type "chains". Thoughts?

 

[MikeM.]

LX20's are not summer tires.

But I didn't mention LX20's and neither did the person I was responding to. But you are kinda splitting hairs if you are drawing a major distinction between summer and all season radials. In terms of snow/ice capability there is a huge difference between winter and all season and a much smaller difference between all season and summer tires (both suck).

Also, the Destination LE2's on my Jeep did great in ice and snow. Never an issue, even with me acting a fool.

Yeah, I used to think all season radials worked great in the winter too. Until I had more winter driving experience and realized that all snow and ice is not the same. There are hundreds of different types of each and countless combinations of both. And you never know what you're going to encounter until you're on it. Some ice has 1/10 the friction coefficient as ice you may have encountered in your Jeep. They both look almost the same. Some ice you can easily see as you approach it, other ice looks just like wet pavement until you and your all season radials are doing a new 360 every second or two. If your Jeep did great on ice using LE2's then you didn't encounter the latter type of ice. And I'm not saying there are two distinct types of ice, but rather, an infinite number of types. Just check u-tube for videos of AWD and 4WD vehicles with all season radials who are completely helpless on roads that often are not even that steep. Sometimes just the normal slope of the crown of an otherwise flat road is too steep for all season radials to hold a stationary car from sliding onto the shoulder. This has nothing to do with how good the AWD system (the brakes are on) and everything to do with tire grip. In these conditions steel studs are preferable but fortunately this kind of ice is rare and nobody is going fast and studless winter tires will probably suffice.

I grant you that snow tires are superior from what I've seen/heard, but they just aren't what people do around here. I have yet to see any snow tires on any cars. People just don't spring for it for a few days of ice and snow every day. Again, that said, I may do so because I will be living in the mountains.

I'm hearing mixed messages. On one hand you talk about living in the mountains, on the other hand you say you only get "a few days" of ice and snow. I'll confess, I'm not familiar with the Ozark "mountains" and when I Google photos of "Ozark Mountains", no photos of mountains show up, just foothills (and not very big ones at that). I'm not familiar with the weather there. Only you know whether you drive far enough in winter conditions for snow tires to be worth it. My only point is that if it's imperative that you be able to travel under difficult and slippery winter conditions, you need winter tires before you need AWD. AWD adds very little to winter driving capability compared to winter tires on a two wheel drive vehicle.

Another alternative I have considered are those snap-on polymer type "chains". Thoughts?

I wouldn't recommend them for general use. I certainly would never consider them for covering big miles or fast miles and they will never provide as much traction as winter tires in most conditions. That's what winter tires are for. If you have a dedicated set of winter wheels, a pneumatic wrench and a floor jack you can switch between sets in under half and hour, not much longer than installing four polymer "chains".

 

[Unobtanium]

But I didn't mention LX20's and neither did the person I was responding to. But you are kinda splitting hairs if you are drawing a major distinction between summer and all season radials. In terms of snow/ice capability there is a huge difference between winter and all season and a much smaller difference between all season and summer tires (both suck).



Yeah, I used to think all season radials worked great in the winter too. Until I had more winter driving experience and realized that all snow and ice is not the same. There are hundreds of different types of each and countless combinations of both. And you never know what you're going to encounter until you're on it. Some ice has 1/10 the friction coefficient as ice you may have encountered in your Jeep. They both look almost the same. Some ice you can easily see as you approach it, other ice looks just like wet pavement until you and your all season radials are doing a new 360 every second or two. If your Jeep did great on ice using LE2's then you didn't encounter the latter type of ice. And I'm not saying there are two distinct types of ice, but rather, an infinite number of types. Just check u-tube for videos of AWD and 4WD vehicles with all season radials who are completely helpless on roads that often are not even that steep. Sometimes just the normal slope of the crown of an otherwise flat road is too steep for all season radials to hold a stationary car from sliding onto the shoulder. This has nothing to do with how good the AWD system (the brakes are on) and everything to do with tire grip. In these conditions steel studs are preferable but fortunately this kind of ice is rare and nobody is going fast and studless winter tires will probably suffice.



I'm hearing mixed messages. On one hand you talk about living in the mountains, on the other hand you say you only get "a few days" of ice and snow. I'll confess, I'm not familiar with the Ozark "mountains" and when I Google photos of "Ozark Mountains", no photos of mountains show up, just foothills (and not very big ones at that). I'm not familiar with the weather there. Only you know whether you drive far enough in winter conditions for snow tires to be worth it. My only point is that if it's imperative that you be able to travel under difficult and slippery winter conditions, you need winter tires before you need AWD. AWD adds very little to winter driving capability compared to winter tires on a two wheel drive vehicle.



I wouldn't recommend them for general use. I certainly would never consider them for covering big miles or fast miles and they will never provide as much traction as winter tires in most conditions. That's what winter tires are for. If you have a dedicated set of winter wheels, a pneumatic wrench and a floor jack you can switch between sets in under half and hour, not much longer than installing four polymer "chains".

The ozarks are technically mountains, although I digress. They are not very impressive in my way of thinking, either, but I still deal with elevation changes, etc. that in snow may well matter.

I am going to build a house on the side of a "mountain", and the road is curvy and can be steep.

Yet it only snows here for a few days out of the year, total. I literally know NOONE with snow tires. That said, my Jeep with AWD and all-seasons did me a very solid favor in helping me get around last time this happened. Yes, if I slammed on the brakes like an idiot, I could slide it 50+ feet from a 10mph speed or so. Yet I could also floor it on that same patch and it would take off beautifully. Wonderful ECU management and infinite torque application, seamlessly, is an amazing thing...I expect the same from my Mazda after all you've said. We can re-visit it when it happens.

That said, yes, for a few days out of the year, snow tires would be nice. Stay away from pneumatic wrenches though, as they just cause problems. I went through 3 sets of rotors on my 370Z because the dealership kept warping them...

I will keep my eyes out for a set of used CX-5 17" rims. I really would like to keep the OEM look, and just mount snow tires on those. I agree that mounting/unmounting tires is bad juju.

 

[MikeM.]

That said, my Jeep with AWD and all-seasons did me a very solid favor in helping me get around last time this happened. Yes, if I slammed on the brakes like an idiot, I could slide it 50+ feet from a 10mph speed or so. Yet I could also floor it on that same patch and it would take off beautifully. Wonderful ECU management and infinite torque application, seamlessly, is an amazing thing...I expect the same from my Mazda after all you've said.

The CX-5 is more of a driver's car than what you describe. It uses throttle position in real time to modulate power to the engine and if you floor it the computer will be quite aggressive in trying to give you what you ask for including aggressive downshifting if you are already in a gear above 1st or holding first gear far longer than ideal (assuming there is not bare pavement approaching). Your fastest take-off will occur when the driver doesn't apply excessive throttle beyond what the tire with the most grip can handle because you want the shift to second to occur at a lower rpm than will happen if you leave it floored. 2nd gear is almost always better than 1st for maximizing traction but it will still start in first in case it finds a high traction surface. Your job as a driver (who knows everything is as slick as snot) is to apply appropriate throttle inputs to encourage it to shift up ASAP (or use the manual shift mode). If you floor it on a slippery ice surface it will still remain straight and true and in control but it will just become more aggressive and the speed of your launch will ultimately suffer (assuming the icy surface continues indefinitely). If it is just an icy patch at a stop that soon turns to bare pavement so you want to hold first gear to maximize acceleration on the bare pavement, by all means floor it. The system responds very quickly to driver input if there is enough traction to do so. From your description it sounds like the Jeep has two modes of taking control, the fast millisecond mode whereby it cuts power to a wheel that is slipping and a second, slower "learning" mode layered on top that will over ride the ham-fisted driver inputs (in terms of shifting) if it determines the surface traction over-all is slippery. I believe the Mazda only has the first (quick) mode and this is the only electronic "nanny" that I find useful. Why use a computer to regulate something I can easily do manually.

That said, yes, for a few days out of the year, snow tires would be nice. Stay away from pneumatic wrenches though, as they just cause problems. I went through 3 sets of rotors on my 370Z because the dealership kept warping them...

Like any tool, you need to know how to use it. A well-regulated air supply, a pneumatic wrench with adjustable power and an accurate torque wrench for the final tightening will insure a proper job. You still have to know what you are doing (even if you manually remove/install the lug nuts) which is why I don't let any of the local shops do this important work (technicians always give the tire jobs to the least knowledgeable guy in the shop). Cleaning the mating surfaces of the wheel/wheel hub is an important step to avoid disc brake warping and/or pad deposits. Many shops skip this step.

I will keep my eyes out for a set of used CX-5 17" rims. I really would like to keep the OEM look, and just mount snow tires on those. I agree that mounting/unmounting tires is bad juju.

Wheels are highly personal. I really enjoy the split personality of my vehicle as I change from winter to summer mode.

 

[Unobtanium]

Can the mazda vector torque left to right? I know it can shift up to 50% front to rear.

 

[Kedis82ZE8]

Can the mazda vector torque left to right? I know it can shift up to 50% front to rear.

I believe that is only in the Mazdaspeed 6. Someone correct me if there were other models that had it.