Any tire experts here?

[Ohboiya]

With all this snow am going to put winter tires on my wife's car.

I've narrowed it down to the following:

Hankook W409p; and
Continental Viking Contact 3

Does anyone have any opinions and experience with either and or both?

Thanks!

[TheZodiac]

Consider Gislaved nord frost 3 or 5's also great snow tires.

[Ohboiya]

Consider Gislaved nord frost 3 or 5's also great snow tires.


Are these studded?

[TheZodiac]

Are these studded?

No,

[Crisqo]

studded aren't allowed on GTA roads..

I got a set of brand new Gislaved Nordfrost 5 tires FS...
check my post...

btw: i can mount as well..

Thx

[ES_Revenge]

^Studded tyres are banned anywhere in Ontario province...

As for what tyre to chose, I haven't had experience or even really heard of either personally; best advice I can give is for you to find a site that sells them and has tyre reviews or find any other reviews you can find on them.

Because not a lot of people really drive their cars IMO, you should take a look at how many negative reviews there are and what the negative reviews say. I mean look at the good reviews too but I'm just saying I find middle-ground and negative reviews to be a little more useful when it comes to tyres. Or at least a positive review that states some deficiencies in the tyres. For example winter isn't all snow but a lot of winter tyres aren't very good in dry/wet conditions (which are very common in the GTA where snow is plowed and salted to oblivion regularly).

Personally I think if you're in the city, finding a winter tyre with good low temperature dry/wet characteristics is just as important as it's snow/ice characteristics. It's rare that you'll find a tyre that's perfect for all winter conditions, there's always trade-offs. The degree to which side the tyre favours is important I think.

Now if you find only good reviews and tons of them, then it's probably a good bet. Also look for what cars people have them installed on in their review--the ones with more similar configurations to your car would likely be more useful to you.

[decadent]

you're going to get tons of different opinions. The truth is that you've already narrowed it down to 2 fines winter tires.

Out of the 2, I would pick the Continental because they are a new original design and they are highly regarded in Europe. I think Europeans make the best tires. Hankook I'Pike is a copy of an older Nokian tire, but it is not as durable. It's still a fine choice budget wise.

Gislaved makes great studdable winter tires, almost as good as Nokian (should I dare say equally good?) but for a fraction of the price. Even without studs they perform well.
Another option is the new General Altimax Arctic, it's a new tire and it's identical to the Gislaved Nordfrost3, which is discontinued. Continental owns both Gislaved and General. Both are made in Germany.

[GMech]

Anyone knows company that carries Gislaved in Scarboro or Markham?? :confused:

[Ohboiya]

thanks :)

you're going to get tons of different opinions. The truth is that you've already narrowed it down to 2 fines winter tires.

Out of the 2, I would pick the Continental because they are a new original design and they are highly regarded in Europe. I think Europeans make the best tires. Hankook I'Pike is a copy of an older Nokian tire, but it is not as durable. It's still a fine choice budget wise.

Gislaved makes great studdable winter tires, almost as good as Nokian (should I dare say equally good?) but for a fraction of the price. Even without studs they perform well.
Another option is the new General Altimax Arctic, it's a new tire and it's identical to the Gislaved Nordfrost3, which is discontinued. Continental owns both Gislaved and General. Both are made in Germany.

[BeaverLiquor]

Anyone knows company that carries Gislaved in Scarboro or Markham?? :confused:

i hear steelcase carries them, http://www.steelcasetires.ca/

[torlou]

I purchased the Hankook iPike W409's for my wife's Yaris and had a chance to put them through their paces over the weekend.

They were able to plow through deep snow with minimal slippage. I think if the car was heavier, the tires would have performed even better, but the Yaris is as light as a feather. I think I'll put a couple of bags of salt in the back to even out the weight.

All in all, I would rate them as a good tire for the money. I got them from the Discount Tire deal in October for $300 on steelies.

[kleptodathief]

geta quote from tires23.com bfore u buy..course online at tirerack.com is the cheapest if u wanna drive accross the border...GL

[sideout88]

i was in the same position last week... deciding between these exact 2 models oddly enough. other than reviews on 1010tires, i couldn't find much customer testimonials for either tire.

in the end, i took a chance and went with the Viking Contact 3 (due to the fact that the w409's were out of stock for the size i was looking for - 205/55/R16).

after putting the Contact 3 thru its paces during this weekend's winter storm, i'm very impressed with the way it handled. great grip, minimal slippage, and good bang for the buck. the tread pattern doesn't look as aggressive as the w409, but aesthetics don't necessarily reflect performance. i've only had these tires for a week, so i can't provide a complete assessment, but so far so good.

one con (albeit very minor) is that this tire is Q rated (Q= 99 MPH, 160km/h). i occasionally like to drive on the faster side, but considering these tires are meant for treacherous winter conditions, i'm learning to drive slower.

[Twinbros]

I have the vikings on both my cars and they are have been great. The wear is very good and wet traction is very good when compared to the 4 season tires. I highly recommend them.

[Ohboiya]

thanks guys ... I did end up with the continentals as well ...

[Ohboiya]

I purchased the Hankook iPike W409's for my wife's ...

All in all, I would rate them as a good tire for the money. I got them from the Discount Tire deal in October for $300 on steelies.

wow ... that's cheap! what size tire?

[torlou]

wow ... that's cheap! what size tire?

175/65R14

It was when they had the $100 off tires and $100 off rims deal. Second best quote I got was from Tires23 for $550 all in. Oh yeah, the $300 also included 4 hubcaps and lug nuts, but I also paid $45 in tax bringing them across the border.

[kag]

I'm about to buy the Viking Contact 3, Ohboiya how do you like them in the snow or on a slippery road?

[Shiifty]

We have the Hankook's on our Saturn, they've been terrific. Great traction.

On a side note, the Saturn dealership was selling these on rims for about $1000+tax, we got them for half that at another store ... !