Towing with Dedicated Winter Snow Tires (snowflake rating)

[freetheheal]

I tow a travel trailer toy hauler along with a sled deck and snowmobiles in the pickup throughout the winter. I'm interested in dedicated winter snow tires with the snowflake rating. During the summer I would switch out the wheels/tires to a summer tire. I'm wondering if anyone else does this and what tire they use. I'm looking at the Cooper M+S. My concern is the tire being soft and wearing out quickly. Any input is appreciated.

[freetheheal]

crosscheck wrote:

freetheheal wrote:

crosscheck wrote:
I run studded Cooper M +S on my F 350 throughout the winter. Tow the TT a few times up ski hills. Good traction but get only maybe 2-3 years out of them. Hakkapelitta LT2 studded 275 R 70 18 that is rated for close to 3700lbs are something that I would consider next time. Have double the studs compared to Cooper. Just installed Hakkipelitta 9 studded on my wife's vehicle and have had great results.

We live 5 months up in ski resort. Lots of snow/ice.

Dave

Thanks Dave. Are they squishy feeling or squirmy on the road? Another concern is the soft compound. I've heard a lot of bad things about the Duratracs from guys who tow with them just because of how soft they are.

And how many miles are 2-3 years?

The Coopers are not squishy or squirmy but I don,t pull the loads that you do. At a guess, I get maybe 25,000 miles before replacement.

I am a studded tire guy for winter driving. I wonder if some of the problems you had on your winter trip to Canada was partly to do with lack of studs on icy mountain roads?

Dave

That could have been part of the problem. A couple times I got stuck the snow was really heavy and slushy too.

[crosscheck]

freetheheal wrote:

crosscheck wrote:
I run studded Cooper M +S on my F 350 throughout the winter. Tow the TT a few times up ski hills. Good traction but get only maybe 2-3 years out of them. Hakkapelitta LT2 studded 275 R 70 18 that is rated for close to 3700lbs are something that I would consider next time. Have double the studs compared to Cooper. Just installed Hakkipelitta 9 studded on my wife's vehicle and have had great results.

We live 5 months up in ski resort. Lots of snow/ice.

Dave

Thanks Dave. Are they squishy feeling or squirmy on the road? Another concern is the soft compound. I've heard a lot of bad things about the Duratracs from guys who tow with them just because of how soft they are.

And how many miles are 2-3 years?

The Coopers are not squishy or squirmy but I don,t pull the loads that you do. At a guess, I get maybe 25,000 miles before replacement.

I am a studded tire guy for winter driving. I wonder if some of the problems you had on your winter trip to Canada was partly to do with lack of studs on icy mountain roads?

Dave

[ktmrfs]

I run the TRUE snowflake winter tires, Blizzaks on my 04 duramax and 2015 duramax in the winter. W965 IIRC These are true studdless winter tires. I get around 20K miles on them, go on/off as needed during the winter mounted on a seperate set of rims. Last about as long as a studded winter tire.

There are not many true studdless winter tires avaiable in LRE, but the blizzaks and Michelin ice are available.

I've towed with them, and they are fine in the winter. Like any true studdless winter snowflake tire, they will wear fast,especially in the summer.

Dry traction is like any studded winter tire, not great, but wet traction is very good.

Interestingly, when the original snowflake rating came out it was for studded or true studdless winter tires. Now it seems like this has gone the "M&S" route where lots of tires have snowflake rating. And the difference can be pretty dramatic.

[carringb]

I run snows all year. When you get into light-truck snow tires, some are a true all terrain that can be run year round. Mine are the Les Shwab Wild Country made by Dean tires. Mhy brother runs the Coopers on his Class C motorhomes.

Tire Life is comparable to the Open Country A/Ts I've run before. But not near as long as the M55s. Now that the M55s are Mountain-snowflake rated, I'll be switching back to those next go around.

[freetheheal]

crosscheck wrote:
I run studded Cooper M +S on my F 350 throughout the winter. Tow the TT a few times up ski hills. Good traction but get only maybe 2-3 years out of them. Hakkapelitta LT2 studded 275 R 70 18 that is rated for close to 3700lbs are something that I would consider next time. Have double the studs compared to Cooper. Just installed Hakkipelitta 9 studded on my wife's vehicle and have had great results.

We live 5 months up in ski resort. Lots of snow/ice.

Dave

Thanks Dave. Are they squishy feeling or squirmy on the road? Another concern is the soft compound. I've heard a lot of bad things about the Duratracs from guys who tow with them just because of how soft they are.

And how many miles are 2-3 years?

[TimnJo]

Just make sure the weight rating is appropriate for the load you are carrying; many of the true winter tires don't have the capacity of other tires.

Ask me how I know.

Tim

[crosscheck]

I run studded Cooper M +S on my F 350 throughout the winter. Tow the TT a few times up ski hills. Good traction but get only maybe 2-3 years out of them. Hakkapelitta LT2 studded 275 R 70 18 that is rated for close to 3700lbs are something that I would consider next time. Have double the studs compared to Cooper. Just installed Hakkipelitta 9 studded on my wife's vehicle and have had great results.

We live 5 months up in ski resort. Lots of snow/ice.

Dave

[freetheheal]

Thank you for all the replies. It's very helpful.

I know a dedicated snow tire will not last as long as something like an AT but I wasn't sure if the mileage was 20,000 miles or 40,000 miles. Sounds like it may wear quicker then I thought, especially towing 9,000 pounds with 2,000 pounds in the bed.

Brulaz, thank you very much for all the tire suggestions you sent. I had been looking hard at the Nitto EXO and almost ordered them. Then I had this idea of maybe going with a dedicated snow tire as I already have an extra set of rims.

I used to have a dually and last year we drove up to Canada on a ski trip with the snowmobiles in the bed and towing the trailer. This was the first winter trip with a bumper pull and I was blown away at how horribly it performed. There were passes I could not get up in 4WD running BFG KO2's (in heavy snowfall/blizzards).

Since then I've sold the dually and now have a SRW. I just want to make sure I don't run into the same trouble as last year because that sucks pretty bad.

[goducks10]

I run KO2's on my Ram 2500. I have about 25,000+ on them. I figure 35,000 tops. I tow a 9,000 lb 5er with 1800 lbs on the pin. I tow about 4,000 miles a year and drive about 9,000 miles total a year. I've never towed with then in the snow. However the KO2's are fantastic in the snow.

[BarryG20]

I have run the Goodyear Wrangler Adventure with good luck which are snow rated. First set got 58k on my old truck. My new truck just got a set after the Firestones were done with 32k on them. I found them to be excellent tires in the snow here.

[Grit_dog]

Dedicated snows are a great choice. I've frequented a lot of the snowmachine areas in the mountains and never had an issue with a good set of AT tires (before I siped tires).
True statement, snow tires are better slippery traction with half tread than other multipurpose tires, but they still won't dig through loose or deep snow like a tall/ deep lug.

[brulaz]

freetheheal wrote:

...
I'm interested in dedicated winter snow tires with the snowflake rating. During the summer I would switch out the wheels/tires to a summer tire.
...

Are you sure you want "dedicated" winter tires?

There are quite a few All-Terrain tires with the triple peak snowflake rating. They are not "dedicated" winter tires but but are good enough for many and certainly should last longer on dry pavement than dedicated winters. People run these year-round. Here's a few:

BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2
Kumho Road Venture AT51
Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac
Goodyear Wrangler Silent Armor
Nitto EXO Grappler AWT
Nitto HD Grappler
Hankook Dynapro AT-m
Toyo OpenCountry C/T

And there are even "All weather" tires with the triple peak snowflake rating that should last even longer and have a tread wear warranty. Here's a few:

Yokohama Geolander A/T GO15
Cooper Discoverer X/T4 (or A/TW)
Sumitomo Encounter AT
Nokian Rotiva AT Plus
General Grabber APT

Good luck.

[2003silverado]

I have the Mastercraft courser MSR (made by cooper) Tires on my truck that we plow with and tow a roughly 6,000 pound trailer in every snow storm with as we do commercial snow removal. I can't even begin to tell you how much better the winter traction is between these tires and any other all-terrain tire I have ever used. It is very "sure footed".

Treadwear will suffer greatly on dry pavement towing as compared to a standard all-terrain tire, however my tire guy told me the winter tires will be "good to the last drop" in comparison to all terrain tires which start to suffer traction loss in snow when tread depth gets below 40 or 50 percent.

One other thing to consider is tread squirm. Winter tires have a MUCH softer tread compound than all season tires, and have (im guessing) 2 to 4 times the siping of an all-terrain tire which makes the tread quite flexible. While this is great for snow traction, in crosswind situations pulling a travel trailer they might give you an uneasy feeling.

[Grit_dog]

I love M 55s but they're very limited in size and also a very hard compound rubber. Only had one set and they wore like iron, which tells me not ideal for icy or wet/warmer packed snow on roads. I could be wrong.

[Grit_dog]

Cooper MnS seemed like the standard in the mtns in CO when we lived there.
How long they last is directly proportional to how much dry pavement you drive and also how much while towing. In general, I've found dedicated snows to last about half as long as ATs with mixed use.
Presume you have a 4x4 so that lessens the need for dedicated snows.
For all condition traction, better traction in deep or soft snow and bit better longevity I run siped mud tires in the winter. Most of the traction of snow and ice tires, better on unplowed or forest roads.