Given
84%
while driving a
Nissan 350z
(225/55 R17 T) on
mostly motorways
for 5,000
spirited miles
I purchased 4 of these last March 2017 , while winter was almost gone I didn't really try them with bad weather until right now (It is being f... freezing/snowing/icing in Chicago).
First of all I probably have one of the worst cars for winter (performance rear wheel drive high torque no TC open differential manual transmission) , that's why I felt forced to by winter tires , my first winter tires...
Expectations where kind of low, I am from a warm place (never seen snow before) and I did not imagine a tire could change that much the behavior of the car. Also, buying a non brand name tire got me nervous, but the price was too good for not at least trying it.
So an expected surprise was that just by changing tires (from summer performance to these) when dry, my car was not a sports cars anymore, it felt like a van... everything was spongy , steering wheel less reactive and you could feel the tire deforming more than a conventional tire,however this happens with all winter tires , specially if it is warmer than it should...
On the other hand , I have been extremely surprised how good they perform on wet , snow and ice. I had the chance of comparing myself side to side with SUVs with ALLSEASON on it and my traction , stopping and cornering abilities where WAY superior to them. I have been able to drive (below normal speeds) with bad weather conditions when others had to pull over (AWD & 4X4 included), the level of confidence that the tire provides in ugly days it is just mind blowing.
So my recommendation is, if you see snow, ice ,rain and cold weather (below freezing) often give a try to this tire, if you just see cold weather but no that much snow go for a winter performance tire (WSL2) , you will have less trade offs on dry and slightly over 32s F days.
Summarizing , if you can not move to a warmer place , just spend the extra money on a set of winter tires and rims, you will never regret.