So guys, with this snow that's been coming down lately, my bald summer tires were not doing the job.
I read some reviews on tire rack, and decided to go with the Goodyear Assurance Fuel max. Called around locally and Sears said they have the 'Fuel-max', for a really good price too.
Went and got them yesterday, drove home in 6 inches of fresh powder on the road, and I could not believe how well they were handling it. I was able to stop easily within a few feet from 30 mph. With my Sumitomo's I was running, I could almost always get the car going, but the slightest hint of brake and the ABS would kick in. An improvement more than 10 fold there.
BUT
I get home, check out the tires in the garage (was gonna up the PSI
) and I notice the letters dont say Assurance at all. They say Weather Handler. I've never even heard of this tire. BUT They also have the Fuel Max logo. Check around online and it seems this is a tire sold at Sears and other outlets, but I can't find a lot of reviews for them.
The other thing about the tires was 1) I noticed a greater ride, but this is probably because of the tire pressures at the moment 2) The tires are nearly silent on road until about 45 mph. For the 2 days I've had them I cant be happier right now. I went up a steep incline with a foot and a half of unplowed snow without any issue. Just put it in second and it tore ass right up it.
I'll report back on these a few days/week as to how the gas mileage is, but I expect it to stay roughly the same for the first few hundred miles. Maybe worse. It seems most people see 2~5% improvement going to these, which is roughly what good year claims. I guess its too bad I didn't have the original weather-handler tires to compare them to. But hopefully the Fuel-Max designation is more about the tread compound and not about the tread shape.
Today
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