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[TheBigYahi]

I'm looking for a tire that will get me through from mid-March to early December in central NY (temps down to the teens, very little snow) before I put on my Blizzaks. Based on the temperatures I've been looking at the Conti DWS, Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric A/S, Pilot Sport A/S and the new Pirelli P Zero All-Season Plus.

I see a lot of people raving about the DWS but it seems like they're using that as a year-round all season in moderate climates. Is anyone using it for 3 seasons and doesn't feel like it's too big of a compromise in the summer? The Goodyears are reported to be noisy, the Pilots are the most expensive and the P Zero's are too new to have much information out about them.

I'm driving a 330xi so I don't exactly have a need for the highest performance available, I just don't want to sacrifice too much summer performance since I'm using a dedicated set for winter.

[bmw325i]

I use my Hankook v12's year round. No real winter here but I still drive it in light snow. They are summer tires but they actually work better in the snow than the all season General gmax's I had before.

[OP3NAIR]

I've had the Conti DWS, they're pretty decent as long as the snow is light enough. Fairly quiet tires too. They were great in the rain.
Wife has the Goodyears, I started off impressed, but they are getting loud.
Have a friend who raves about the Pilot AS3s to the extent that it might be the next set of all seasons I buy, when I need them.

[Gary@TireRack]

Since you have dedicated winter tires and stated that you don't want to sacrifice much in performance versus a summer tire, you may want to lean towards the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S3. These have handling and grip that rival many top summer tires, but will still get you through some cold weather driving and some light snow.

Tires http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=AH8&...ires/index.jsp

[TheBigYahi]

Gary, do you have any thoughts on why the A/S 3's test so well in your comparisons but rank so low in the surveys (9th)?

[kisho]

Originally Posted by TheBigYahi

Gary, do you have any thoughts on why the A/S 3's test so well in your comparisons but rank so low in the surveys (9th)?

Take a look at the chart. For dry/wet, scores for the A/S 3 is 8.9-9.1. This is far better than any other tire in the category. However, when you take a look at the winter/snow scores, 4.6-6.1, it is significantly worse than those in the top 10. So even though the A/S 3 is marketed as a Ultra High Performance All-Season, it is significantly more geared towards wet/dry traction like a dedicated summer tire. As Gary mentioned, "These have handling and grip that rival many top summer tires".

These are probably what you are looking for as you have dedicated winters.

[TheBigYahi]

I think the only problem I have is that the A/S 3 is the most expensive option that I'm considering and I see a lot of people complaining about treadwear. Since I rotate/change my own tires I'm dubious about whether or not Michelin will blow me off on a treadwear claim regardless of how much documentation I keep.

Regarding the survey, maybe this is a little bit of survey psychology, are we saying that the A/S 3 which is rated highest and "has reset the performance standard for an all-season tire" according to Tire Rack's testing is ranked by consumers below the Conti, 2 Goodyears, a Firestone, Hankook, General, Dunlop, and a Yokohama based on the winter performance alone? I mean, I hope so because that's what I'm looking for, but it's hard to ignore its 9th place ranking instead of, say, top 4. I don't know how Tire Rack ranks within a category but by eye it looks like they just average the ratings so the winter fall-off hits it hard.

[SLOWER]

I run DWS all year in the Boston area and the New England snow. Great tire in all conditions. I would certainly buy another set.

[SC300T]

I just put Michelin Pilot Sport AS3s on my 335xi, and have had the Conti DWS on several vehicles. In a nutshell, the AS3 is far sportier in terms of handling than the DWS. The ride of the DWS is quieter and softer. The AS3 has REALLY good transient response and sharp handling that the DWS lacks. If you want a sporty tire that can turn and carve and handle a little snow, the AS3 is hard to beat. If you want a soft highway tire with luxury car moves, the DWS is the choice. The AS3 is not noisy compared to 10k mile runflats, but is a bit louder than I expected it to be, and louder than the DWS (which I don't think is the absolute quietest tire either). I would judge the impact harshness of the AS3 to be between a runflat and the DWS.
Hope this helps.

[kisho]

Originally Posted by TheBigYahi

I think the only problem I have is that the A/S 3 is the most expensive option that I'm considering and I see a lot of people complaining about treadwear. Since I rotate/change my own tires I'm dubious about whether or not Michelin will blow me off on a treadwear claim regardless of how much documentation I keep.

Regarding the survey, maybe this is a little bit of survey psychology, are we saying that the A/S 3 which is rated highest and "has reset the performance standard for an all-season tire" according to Tire Rack's testing is ranked by consumers below the Conti, 2 Goodyears, a Firestone, Hankook, General, Dunlop, and a Yokohama based on the winter performance alone? I mean, I hope so because that's what I'm looking for, but it's hard to ignore its 9th place ranking instead of, say, top 4. I don't know how Tire Rack ranks within a category but by eye it looks like they just average the ratings so the winter fall-off hits it hard.

You're right that the Michelins are the most expensive option and my response to that is, "you've gotta pay to play". How much do you value having the highest rated tire for dry/wet performance in the Ultra High Performance All-Season category? Honestly, what you'd be paying for is literally a lesser version of the PSS that last longer. If that's not appealing to you then, you should save that ~$200 and go with something else.

The other thing you need to consider is that that Tirerack rankings are just an overall picture. What you want is a all season tire that you'll only run during the warmer months, so you can ditch all the scores from the snow/ice category. If you do that then the A/S 3 is easily #1. Second place would probably be the Goodyear Eagle F1. The only reason the DWS is #1 is because it's the best All-season tire. It's the only tire that has all Excellent or higher scores for every category. So your notion of being unable to ignore the A/S 3 9th place ranking is baseless. You go back to the rankings and resort them using the options on the left. Go by what you most value in the tire that you are purchasing. But if you go by either wet or dry options, A/S 3 will be first in all of them.

[TheBigYahi]

I just said it was hard to ignore, not impossible. I have the A/S 3's going on next week after all the positive feedback here, thanks all. Local shop has a $70 rebate going that wasn't available nationally so I went that route.

[Gary@TireRack]

Originally Posted by kisho

Take a look at the chart. For dry/wet, scores for the A/S 3 is 8.9-9.1. This is far better than any other tire in the category. However, when you take a look at the winter/snow scores, 4.6-6.1, it is significantly worse than those in the top 10. So even though the A/S 3 is marketed as a Ultra High Performance All-Season, it is significantly more geared towards wet/dry traction like a dedicated summer tire. As Gary mentioned, "These have handling and grip that rival many top summer tires".

These are probably what you are looking for as you have dedicated winters.

+1

[cdgatti]

Gary, how much improvement in the dry/wet summer handling department do you think the new DWS 06 will make to close the gap on the a/s3?

[Gary@TireRack]

Originally Posted by cdgatti

Gary, how much improvement in the dry/wet summer handling department do you think the new DWS 06 will make to close the gap on the a/s3?

I would not expect the new DWS06 to close the handling gap.

[cdgatti]

Originally Posted by Gary@TireRack

I would not expect the new DWS06 to close the handling gap.

Gary, the question is from what you know about the new DWS06 - how much of the gap will be closed?

[Fundguy1]

If you're not going to use it in snow, all season is a waste. Get Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires.

[Gary@TireRack]

Originally Posted by cdgatti

Gary, the question is from what you know about the new DWS06 - how much of the gap will be closed?

No way to put a % or number on it until we test the tires this summer.

[Fundguy1]

Maybe it's me, but again an all season tire is for all seasons. You're changing your tires seasonally. Winter/summer. Why not take advantage of the staggeringly large amount of traction you'll gain with a summer tire vs all season? I lived in the Northeast so I've gone both routes. My favorite solution was winter tires on stock rims and summer tires on the hot aftermarket rims. I just think you're limiting yourself unnecessarily but that's me.

[Volasko]

A dedicated high performance tire are expensive and have poor treadlife vs. a good all season tire. After burning through a set of conti DW on my daily driver I vowed never my next set of tires would have sacrifice some of the performance to get some more tire life. Looking at what the AS/3's offer with regards to dry performance and tread life I would say they are the best "overall" tire for our car.

[Fundguy1]

True except for Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires. They have a new compound that gives them much longer treadlIfe. Plus since they're going to be on only a portion of the year you'll probably get 3- 4 years out of them with average driving. I've had the Continental DW and the pilot super sports and the PSS last way longer and grip even better. All around much more superior.

[e92_BMW]

i live in NY and i've always liked Pirelli P Zero tires on my car....they always worked great for me but they're not going to be that good in the snow