Winter Tires Needed for 2016 AWD?

[ssl1900]

Hi. I am soon to buy 2016 cx-5 (iihs safety ratings, superior fuel economy, and style in class chose this for me actually) and was wondering if anyone in Canada or close to the boarder has experience with their cx-5 AWD through a winter with and without winter tires.

The trim GT has 19" wheels that look quiet heavy duty whereas my probable purchase of the GS+leather is 17".

Winter tires looking at some sites online can be from $900+ for a set of 19"'s and $600+ for 17" for a set of 17" on the low end.

The sales rep at the dealer said as we were talking around the GT model that winter tires wont even be necessary. If the 19" doesn't need them but the 17" may need them then maybe just pay more and get the GT model.

Just trying to see how to get the best deal and any advice or experience would be appreciated.

-Thanks

 

[hersh]

There are 3 of us at work (in Mississauga) who have CX5s. Mine is a 2015 GT but I have 17 inch tires mounted on steel rims for winters. My coworker drivers a 2014 GT with 19 inch oem all season tires year round. My other coworker has a 2013 GS with 17 inch summers and 17 inch winter tires. I would say if you can then get the GT and get 17 inch winter tires on steel rims later on down the year. You won't need them now but the 19 inch rims don't make our cars invincible.

I think your sales guy is another nut case who has no idea of what he is selling. Upgrading to a GT will not make your car any superior in the AWD handling dept.

 

[fdew]

I have the 19 in OEM "all season" I bought used wheels that were OEM on the Mazda 3 and 6 The fit perfect, and are the correct size (17 in) I bought 4 4 Hakkapeliitta Snow Tires for $596.00
I have been using Hakks for years. I discovered them when I read that they had been banned from European winter rallies because they made the race to fast! I have never seen anything like them. I have watched as the cars in front of me had all kinds of trouble while I could not tell that it was slippery. A friend of mine was running them. Stopped quick when there was a accident in front of him, saw a car coming at him from behind, stated back up, pulled over on to the shoulder and watched as the car behind him slid into the car that was in front of him.

Yes they are that good.

 

[ssl1900]

There are 3 of us at work (in Mississauga) who have CX5s. Mine is a 2015 GT but I have 17 inch tires mounted on steel rims for winters. My coworker drivers a 2014 GT with 19 inch oem all season tires year round. My other coworker has a 2013 GS with 17 inch summers and 17 inch winter tires. I would say if you can then get the GT and get 17 inch winter tires on steel rims later on down the year. You won't need them now but the 19 inch rims don't make our cars invincible.

I think your sales guy is another nut case who has no idea of what he is selling. Upgrading to a GT will not make your car any superior in the AWD handling dept.

Ok, so I take it snow tires are still a must have even with an SUV AWD regardless of tire size. Who knows maybe Ontario will copy Quebec and make them mandatory one day.

The salesman didn't imply to upgrade to buy the GT because of that reason. He implied the SUV with AWD was adequate enough. He didnt know I was thinking GS anyways, it was just the GT we first walked upto in the showroom. Hersh, is the CX-5 really good in the snow in general? Have you noticed a significant improvement compared to other vehicles?

Never heard of Hakka's but I will do my homework on them.

 

[fdew]

Ok, so I take it snow tires are still a must have even with an SUV AWD regardless of tire size.

the easy way to think of the effect of AWD on winter driving is to think of stopping When you put on the brakes yours and my wonderful Mazda is just another car, and a very tall car at that.

Tire width has some effect on winter driving but tire diameter has no effect at all. Also if you look at the outside tire diameter of the 19 and 17 in tires on the CX-5 you will see that they are the same. (otherwise they would need a different speedometer for CX-5 with different wheel sizes.

I have owned and driven RWD FWD and AWD with and without snows. (I used to be broke and crazy) so I would put them in the following order.

RWD All season worst
FWD All season
AWD All season
RWD Snows
FWD Snows
AWD Snows Best.

Yes, I am saying that old tech rear wheel drive car with 4 good snows is better in snow then a new CX-5 AWD with all season tires. and the difference is so clear that it is easy to demonstrate. This is coming from a gut that started driving FWD in 1976 because I realized it was better, safer, and more fun then RWD. My first AWD car was in 2001

 

[hersh]

Hersh, is the CX-5 really good in the snow in general? Have you noticed a significant improvement compared to other vehicles?

CX 5 is a very capable vehicle however keep it in mind that there are many factors including how the car is driven and what shoes is it wearing (aka snow tires in winters). Snow tires will inspire confidence and will help drive the car better than having all seasons all year round. Especially for the freezing rain, snow mix, etc.

I have driven a Ford focus without any traction control and ABS (broke down) and with all season tires about 8 years ago. Compared to that car the snow tires are life savers when it comes to tricky driving conditions.

I had a 2013 CX 5 GT before and traded it in for the 2015 model; could have gone for a different car but settled for the CX 5 again. It's a nice vehicle overall and that extra ground clearance as compared to car also helps.

I did send you a PM so if you want you can call me and I will be happy to answer your questions.

 

[flymo]

The answer to your question depends on your driving habits. If you frequently have to travel long distances in snowy conditions, really need to get out sometimes regardless of how snowy it is, or just want to maximize safety, then snow tires are a no brainer. If you can simply stay put when it snows, and wait for the roads to be cleared, then you're probably fine with the all seasons. The difference in cold and icy conditions between all seasons and good winter tires is pretty dramatic - the softer compound really improves the grip.

If you do decide to go with snows, look on auction and for sale sites for used rims from other Mazdas, and you can save a lot of money. Then put what you saved into a top-class set of winter tires - going "low end" on something that affects your safety is a poor choice.

Flymo

 

[mech_e]

Just anecdotally, its very easy to lose grip with the 19"s in snow with all seasons. Which is why I'm happy mazda gave us a handbrake on the '15s. That said, we'll be getting a second set of wheels for snow next year.

 

[Ride92]

I would say you are better off getting a set 16" or 17" rims with the proper size snow tires. I would avoid getting 19" with snow tires. The extra height of the side wall on the 16's or 17's will help for a smoother ride in the winter as the roads tend to be rougher in winter due to the ground freezing and expanding the road surfaces. It's generally thought that a narrower snow tire will be able to "cut" thru the snow a bit better then a wider tire so I wouldn't go any wider then the 225 stock width. You could maybe run 215/70R17 that would be a bit narrower but I don't think they would make that much difference. I would only run that size if the price difference was significant. And looking at tirerack.com it appears that the 215/70R17 only has one tire choice for winter tires, the Bridgestone Blizzak DV-M1 at $129.00 a tire. I think the better option for 17" wheels would be the 225/65R17 Bridgestone Blizzak WS80 at $121 a tire or the Conti ExtermeWinterContact at $115 a tire. If you decide to drop down to 16" rims the tires get a bit cheaper about $90 to $110 price range and wheels will be cheaper too. I believe the Mazda3's used 16" steel rims that should fit on the CX-5 so maybe you could source a used set of those for your winter rims off of Craigslist or something. Hope some of that helps.

 

[vroom]

If you go back in the forum, this has been debated tons of times. Most threads will bring you to the same conclusion as this one. Get snow tires.

AWD can't realy be considered a safety feature (unless getting stuck can put your life in danger, which is unlikely near Toronto). AWD mostly helps in forward acceleration (moving from a stop or a red light on a slick surface, or climbing an icy slope). Practical, yes. Fun, possibly. Safer, not realy. AWD does not help you stop faster, and will help you very little in keeping traction and control while cornering (unless you have the skills of a rally driver). Only winter tires will help you in those important sittuations where safety might be an issue.

Equating rim diameter with safety in winter is just rediculous and shows how little your dealer knows.

BTW, I have a set of Hakka R2 on 17" rims on my GS AWD. These are truly amazing. I know my winter conditions up here are somewhat harsher than yours, but for me at least they are worth every penny...

 

[deepfriedsushi]

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/show...explaining-Summer-All-Season-and-Winter-Tires