Marginal Weather Tire Advice Wanted
 

I have planned a massive road trip to begin three weeks from today (departure 5/23). Milwaukee to Seattle via ND and MT. The return will bring me to Yellowstone for three days starting 5/30 and then to the Black Hills on 6/4 for another three days with hotels reserved all along the way.

My worry is with this wretchedly cold Spring, and the snow that continues to pound the high altitudes in the West, can I still get by with Summer Sport Hankooks, or should I sink $500-$600 insurance into an all-season set of tires that I would only use for this trip?

Based on how this Spring has gone, I'm expecting temperatures in the 20s, maybe low 30s, for morning starts, and possibilities of snowfall?

It's got the PSM option, so I would like to think careful driving could get me through even coldest temps (but probably not snow), but I have no experience to support that hope.

DBear

20-30s with possible snow? I would mount a set of A/S tires so I wouldn't end up in a ditch on some remote mountain pass. You live in WI, isn't that enough reason to invest in a second set of takeoff wheels and mount A/S tires to extend your driving season?

I drove on snowy roads with a bunch of Porsche enthusiasts on Jan 1 this year with summer tires but the roads were heavily traveled with lots of sand. Black ice in the morning would have been bad.

I live in WI, yeah. But I don't drive it in the cold months. I stopped driving October 15 last year and first brought it out April 13 this year. The only time I would use the tires would be for this trip.

DBear

Get a set of Continental DWS tires for your road trip....just do it.

I never driven either of my cars in the snow. But, I've driven both of them in cold weather with performance tires, and have had ZERO issues. And I've driven them aggressively with respect.

Tires are PS2's Yoko AD08's and Kumho Exsta's.

Here's one tip I can give you. Flush & fill the tires with Nitrogen. On a trip like yours, with huge temperature swings, this very dry air will give you more stable tire pressures over the temperature gradient. A more stable tire pressure of even 1 or 2 PSI will make a big difference, especially when you start out on those chilly mornings.

Kumho Ecsta 4X is a great A/S tire. Have them for my winter set.