Snow Tires are they needed or Not really

[ProfZoom]

Live in Minnesota Twin Cities and I have a 26 mile commute daily.

How are the factory tires? I really don't want to get snow tires never had them before and I know how to drive in the snow so are they needed or just a nice to have?


What am I going to expect with battery mileage when it is below -20?

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[Hammered]

at -20 you should keep the car plugged in and use departure time setting to ensure maximum range via battery heating as well as getting the vehicle interior up to temp using shore power.

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

I live on the eastern edge of Lake Ontario. Very similar weather to Chicago.
At -20 I would expect to lose 33-40% range on short trips where you get the cabin up to temp only to turn the car off again.

There is the option of preconditioning the battery by setting a departure time. Then, if the car is plugged in, the battery will start to warm about an hour before you leave and some of your range will be preserved. Maybe you only see a 20% loss. But for a 26 mile trip, you’ll burn more electricity warming the battery than you’ll save by making that drive with a warm battery. IMHO, preconditioning is for long trips were you need to squeeze out every mile of range, and you wont need that in your daily commute.

TIRES: the stock tires are OK In snow. But not great. It depends on your driving style and experience. I think the MME is a wonderful winter car, but I have blizzaks on in the winter. I had a dealer loaner for a bit last winter and it caused me to stop driving everywhere in OPD Unbridled because the braking was aggressive enough to lose traction in snow. OPD in Engage was fine. YMMV depending on how you drive. Since your in Chicago I suspect your an adequate winter driver and can get by quite easily with the stock all-seasons.

 

[glenthompson]

I’m a firm believer in using winter tires in snow country. Stock tires might be fine in light snow but usually come up short in deeper snow or ice. AWD only helps you go in the snow. All cars have 4 wheel brakes. The brakes stop the wheel, the tires stop the car.

 

[MellowJohnny]

The rubber compound used for winter tires is completely different vs summer tires - it stays softer in colder temps. So it’s not just tread pattern, it compound. Soft rubber = better traction in all conditions.

Snow tires will stop much quicker on a cold dry road than summers.

It’s a no brainer for me - as soon as we get consistent temps below 7c I swap.

 

[Mach-Lee]

Live in Minnesota Twin Cities and I have a 26 mile commute daily.

How are the factory tires? I really don't want to get snow tires never had them before and I know how to drive in the snow so are they needed or just a nice to have?


What am I going to expect with battery mileage when it is below -20?

The stock Michelin tires suck pretty bad in snow. Lots of sliding. I run winter tires and it's way better. Recommend you do the same.

 

[ArthurDOB]

I live in the Cities, too. I haven't driven my MME in snow yet as I've only had it since late May. In any case, I've never had snow tires on any car I've owned up here. I try to drive safely at all times, but particularly so in winter. If you plan on pushing the car more than that, maybe snow tires are for you. You are the best judge of what sort of winter driver you are.

 

[AKgrampy]

Our roads are frozen from October to April. I ran the all seasons the car came with and had no issues. Never even slipped much. I will say it would probably be safer with dedicated snow tires. I did have to go that route with my Expedition. I keep mine in a heated garage so I do not precondition and still lose quite a bit of range as expected in colder conditions.

 

[Shayne]

Our roads are frozen from October to April. I ran the all seasons the car came with and had no issues. Never even slipped much. I will say it would probably be safer with dedicated snow tires. I did have to go that route with my Expedition. I keep mine in a heated garage so I do not precondition and still lose quite a bit of range as expected in colder conditions.

I keep mine outside plugged in when cold so the vehicle can maintain itself. I agree the ASR that come with the car are fine up here on ice packed roads. Better that any ASR I ran on 4x4 pick up trucks for 40 years. I would not recommend wasting money/time on snow tires until they try it in the snow and see if all seasons will work for them. Winter tires build confidence that does not exist when the coefficient of friction approaches zero. Best to know how to drive in the snow and take those precautions no matter what tires are on it.

Should precondition the vehicle to heat the large battery pack when really cold. If you would plug the block heater in on your ICE vehicle set a departure schedule for the car (need a L2 charger 32 amp+ to work). Regening frozen batteries can not be good.

 

[awp0]

I went through my first New England winter with the MME on stock tires and never felt very comfortable in mixed winter weather. Braking in snow/ice in particular was pretty sketchy. There was night-and-day between the MME with stocks and our Telluride with Cross Climate 2's. IMHO, a big part of it is the way the MME brakes in general. I'm not talking about drive modes, even in Whisper the braking performance is sensitive and not as easy to modulate compared to other cars, which makes for a tough time in snow/ice with ABS kicking in sooner than you may want. I'm considering putting a pair of winter tires on the MME soon, but not sure yet.

 

[21st Century Pony]

Snow tires can be better termed "very cold temperature tires" because of their different rubber compound.

All-season tire compounds turn hard and thus lose significant traction when it is freezing or below. The presence or absence of snow is less important than the decrease in traction overall, even when there no snow at all but the temp has frozen all the ponds solid.

 

[Tom L]

Live in Minnesota Twin Cities and I have a 26 mile commute daily.

How are the factory tires? I really don't want to get snow tires never had them before and I know how to drive in the snow so are they needed or just a nice to have?


What am I going to expect with battery mileage when it is below -20?

I live in Wisconsin close to the Minnesota border and have been through two winters, one with OEM tires and one with Michelin X-Ice winter tires. The difference was dramatic with the winter tires greatly improving braking, steering and traction especially in icy conditions. We did have a banner year for snowfall last year with over 100“, but for any modest winter outlook my recommendation is to switch tires from Thanksgiving to Tax day. As far as range loss my mileage was typically down 20-30% over the winter months and the worst at -20 was 45% less range.

 

[sotek2345]

Not directly relevant to the OP, but just wanted to chime in and say that the stock Continentals that came on our GT (Not PE) were WAY better in the winter than I expected and we felt no need to go with snows. I am getting them replace with the stock tires in a month or so (wear) because we were so impressed with them.

 

[thedoc]

Swedish law: If from 1 december–31 march you do not use winter tires, and there's winter conditions you'll have to abandon your car & you'll be fined. The police decides whether you have driven during winter conditions. I have had a set of winter wheels for my cars as long as I have had cars.

 

[AKgrampy]

Bottom-line - do whatever you feel is safest! Just drove my daughter to the airport on icy roads, one inch of new snow, second winter on the tires, 15,000 miles and no slipping or issues at all. But that is me. Key for yourself and for others is to feel that you are in control when driving. I changed out tires on my ICE vehicle because it was dicey stopping. Mach e no issues so far. Drive safe!

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