Factory tires performance in snow?

blheron

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I have been using Nokian WR G4 on my Subaru here in Idaho. I checked and it is available and recommend for EV as well. I recommend them.
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generaltso

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For those that don’t want to store a second set of wheels but want greatly improved winter performance it’ll be about waiting for a proper size of something like the Michelin CrossClimates or Nokian WR G4. (Or for 18” wheel size Mach-Es I think you can already get the CrossClimate).
The CrossClimate2 is already available in the correct 19” size, though the load raring is 99. The WR G4 is not available in the correct size yet.
 

xspartachris

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Of course the flip-side is that the drivetrain and traction control does seem very good from what little I’ve played with it in on dry roads. So with proper winter tires I’d expect the AWD Mach-E to be one of the best winter cars out there until it runs out of ground clearance. Like the Teslas have already proven.
 

xspartachris

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The CrossClimate2 is already available in the correct 19” size, though the load raring is 99. The WR G4 is not available in the correct size yet.
Ah the load rating must have been why TireRack wasn’t showing them to me. Unfortunately a lot of the winter tires shown as fitting on TireRack are Porsche OEM variants so they have the OEM variant markup. If TireRack is willing to measure the wheel clearance on my car (so they will sell me 18” wheels) I can take it to their Denver distribution center. But I need to try to get ahold of the right person there.
 

highland58

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Exactly, this was on I-70 near Loveland pass during the snow on Friday night. I wasn’t in the car but what my wife said is that the tires were losing traction way more than the Blizzaks she normally drives. Which is not at all surprising, that’s comparing an efficiency-oriented all-season to a benchmark winter tire.

As a drivetrain it is very capable and thus can do better on those tires in the snow / ice than other vehicles might with the same tires. But in the end tires matter far far more than drivetrain and the OEM tires are optimizing for driving range instead of winter performance (very shallow tread, likely a compound on the harder-side of all-season compounds).

For those that don’t want to store a second set of wheels but want greatly improved winter performance it’ll be about waiting for a proper size of something like the Michelin CrossClimates or Nokian WR G4. (Or for 18” wheel size Mach-Es I think you can already get the CrossClimate).
In the Seattle area the roads are wet more than 150 days a year so that is my primary issue with tires, the high performance A/S tires that I put on my FWD Clarity are already starting to slip after 23K miles. I can take my F250 up to the snow but it gets poor mileage. There has been very little snow in the lowlands this year, thanks to the proximity to the Pacific Ocean. Canada is sending its snow further east :cool:
 


xspartachris

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In the Seattle area the roads are wet more than 150 days a year so that is my primary issue with tires, the high performance A/S tires that I put on my FWD Clarity are already starting to slip after 23K miles. I can take my F250 up to the snow but it gets poor mileage. There has been very little snow in the lowlands this year, thanks to the proximity to the Pacific Ocean. Canada is sending its snow further east :cool:
At least Seattle is a little easier to do tire shopping for since you can get more “performance” / warmer-weather compound all-seasons that also have very good wet performance if you are looking for that.

Since I’ve already posted too much without including photos:
Ford Mustang Mach-E Factory tires performance in snow? 56CC8C81-520C-4B94-94E2-07533573D1D2
 

AllenXS

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In the Seattle area the roads are wet more than 150 days a year so that is my primary issue with tires, the high performance A/S tires that I put on my FWD Clarity are already starting to slip after 23K miles. I can take my F250 up to the snow but it gets poor mileage. There has been very little snow in the lowlands this year, thanks to the proximity to the Pacific Ocean. Canada is sending its snow further east :cool:

Don't worry, we're saving it up and trucking it down to Pike Market as soon as the border is open in our new F150's. ;-)
 

benk016

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We got some snow last night, and are expected to get a ton overnight tonight. Since it wasn't a ton today, I went out in it. I thought it drove amazingly well in the snow. Even on a road that was completely covered in snow, I couldn't get it to slip even when I tried. I tried slowing aggressively with 1 pedal driving, I tried turning the wheel suddenly while driving and nothing. A few times going around a corner, if I accelerated too hard, it would slip an inch or so and correct itself.

Overall I am very impressed with its snow abilities.
 

xspartachris

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I finally got a chance to drive it myself on snowy and icy roads and in an open area where I could turn traction control off and play. Overall the motor management / traction control / stability control does a very good job at managing limited traction. So if you are coming from about any other car (aside from a Tesla maybe) that was on all-seasons I think you’ll be very impressed with the Mach-E even with the OEM tires.

But drivers used to less powerful cars definitely need to be careful. With only ~1/4 accelerator you can break traction when on a snowy road (of course traction control will kick in immediately and cut the accelerator input). With traction control off it is easy and very controllable to step the rear end out, but it does feel like the stability control will then bias more towards the front motor try to pull straight again. That’s also great for making the car feel confident in the snow but it would be fun to have a rear-drive-only setting.

If you are used the grip offered by winter tires on icy roads you can still notice the difference in traction, especially under braking. The ABS is good, even feels smoother than most, but the stopping distance on an icy surface is significantly worse than good winter tires.
 

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And how is AWD vs RWD in the snow? I've ordered AWD, but I've been asked if AWD is as necessary with an EV like the Mach-E.
All I can tell you is that the factory tires are doing great for me with AWD. I got my car last Tuesday. Since then, I have used it about 50% on hard packed snow roads and have sought out and used it on fresher snow about 25% of the time. The biggest new snow since I got it was only about 4 or 5 inches so I don't yet know how it will do in greater depths but with 4-5 inches of fresh snow on top of packed snow, it is really good. For over 40 years, I have had at least one AWD or 4WD vehicle in the garage. The AWD Mach-E is as good or better than any of my other vehicles (in the amount of snow I have driven in so far).
 

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In the Seattle area the roads are wet more than 150 days a year so that is my primary issue with tires, the high performance A/S tires that I put on my FWD Clarity are already starting to slip after 23K miles. I can take my F250 up to the snow but it gets poor mileage. There has been very little snow in the lowlands this year, thanks to the proximity to the Pacific Ocean. Canada is sending its snow further east :cool:
That snowfall changed quickly for Seattle, didn't it!
 

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The CrossClimate2 is already available in the correct 19” size, though the load raring is 99. The WR G4 is not available in the correct size yet.
WR G4 SUV is available in the right size, but the load rating is lower - same with cross climate 2.
 

sldave84

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For those who have one - how does it do in snow on the factory tires? I’m particularly interested in unplowed or poorly plowed roads, or going through say 3-5 inches of unplowed snow. Some days, I’ll be lazy, and just pull my escape straight out of my garage and down my approximately 20 foot driveway if there’s only about 3”-4” of snow, then come back later and shovel. Also, they do a very poor job plowing my development so I know I can count on driving in car tracks through poorly plowed, or unplowed snow.
We got 6 inches last night in Detroit. Drove into the office today. Handled like a champ. Honesty very impressive
 

highland58

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That snowfall changed quickly for Seattle, didn't it!
Yes, we often escape storms that hit further east, but not this time. I had to use the F250 to get around. We had about 7" at the house, Olympia had more like 12"

Somebody earlier said that 235/55 R19 should not be used on the Premium 7" wheels, but both Discount tire and Tirerack show that the 235/55 R19 will fit as small as 6.5" wide rims. I will be getting the crossclimate 2 tires in that size. Discount tire said they would give me at least $40 per tire for the stock Michelin Primacy
 

highland58

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I now have the 235/55 R19 105H tires from Discount tire. They said that the 225/55/R19 tires are not common, but they agreed to give me $40 per tire for the Primacies. So far I am pleased. They don't seem to be any louder than the original tires. The handle great on dry pavement, it will be wet soon enough.
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