All weather tires with the 3 peaks symbol

How good are tires like the Bridgestone Revo 3, Falken Wildpeak AT 3, Cooper Discoverer AT 3, and others in the snow and ice? I usually get a set of dedicated snow tires/wheels but getting old and lazy so thinking of just switching to one of these type tires for year round use. I have a Subaru that I switch to Blizzaks for the winter so I can always drive that in bad winter weather instead of the Tacoma. Switching one set of tires every November and March is bad enough. LOL

I'm in N Idaho and have about 3 miles of dirt road from my place to the highway. The dirt road end up becoming sheet ice after the snow is packed down and melts and refreezes. I have to use cleats to walk on it. The Blizzaks can handle the ice well.

 

Would chains do the job? Yeah - 4 tire changes a year would be a royal PITA.

 

Chains are a pain too. It would be easier to just swap tires/wheels every 6 months or so rather than putting chains on every time it snows.

I had a 2019 F250 that I traded in for the Tacoma to downsize. The F250 had 8 studs/wheel and I had to torque the nuts to 165 ft-lbs so it was a lot of work.

 

Coming from dedicated snow tires to anything other than I think you’ll be disappointed. Not to say they won’t do the job but they won’t do it near as well on hard pack and ice.

 

^^
Real snows have a "stickier" rubber compound. They don't wear as well, but realistically you're gonna minimize their time on bare pavement.
My local shop swaps mine out and resets the TPMS for about $40-50. Well worth it IMO (getting older & don't have the ideal place to swap them out nor the device to reset the TPMS).
While it's nice to be independent, the accumulation of years makes it tougher.

 

I ran Duratracs last winter and they worked great for me. I ran the Coopers 2 winters ago on my Tundra and the worked great as well. I don't have to deal with ice very often just snow.

 

I got programmable TPMS’ in my snows (yes I live in SD, yes I am an idiot). Swapping should be pretty quick if I had a floor jack and garage space. I just take it to DT though and they do it for free on the lift, probably about the same next time since they are only a mile away.

 

For your situation, if you had the space for parking, I’d consider a dedicated winter vehicle (perhaps the Subaru or perhaps some new truck). My buddy has a lift in his garage where he keeps the winter vehicle during summer and the convertible during winter. I realize this is not cost effective and your financial situation may limit your choices but I’m guessing based on your location that parking space is not a limiting factor.

With today’s global marketplace you can get just about any tire to your door in 2-3 days. I’m in a very urban environment but I still order the exact tire I want instead of doing Costco or DT who will only have a limited set of options. Extra wheels are also super easy to get, I spent $45 total on 4 extra steelies.

 

I love my Cooper Discoverer AT3 4S tires. I've had several sets since 2016. But, like everyone said, they're not going to be as good as dedicated winters. However, I don't have storage or the budget enough for a dedicated set of winters and so those are my go to.

I will say they're about as close as you can get though. My last truck came with winter tires and they were fantastic. I didn't notice a ton of difference with the way I drive, but it was there. I believe Tire Rack compared 3 different sets of tires, including the Coopers, to a set of snow tires. The Coopers were far and away the closest to the winter tires in terms of performance. Although now I can't seem to locate the link.

 

As an alternate tire choice.....

Michelin LTX M/S, or LTX A/T2, or X LT A/S.

 

I have the Les Schwab Open Range and they are great in the snow and ice. I have floored the gas pedal in 4 Hi going up to Schweitzer to try to get them to slip and they just hung on. Very impressive tire and quiet on the road too.

 

Stick with your blizzaks

 

I have Toyo Observe GSi winter tires which are superior to the Toyo Open Country ATII or ATIII tires, I have, in all winter conditions.

 

my wife and son’s car have the observe for winter. Those are amazing.

 

If I ever get another truck, the go to tire is going to be the Michelin LTX M/S.

They're not super popular with the "off road" crowd but they work excellent for commuting and maintained dirt roads

 

That ^^^

But if you have realistic expectations and want a one tire for all seasons check out the Nokian Rotiiva AT Plus. It's quite good in the snow as far as an all season/AT. Not sure about how it is on polished ice. It's also light compared to many AT tires and some sizes are available in C load rated sidewalls which is nice on light trucks like a Tacoma.

 

Thanks for all the info and advice. I have lots of room for storage especially after I sold one of my '69 Mustangs. Still have one more to get rid of. I have a 30'x40' attached garage and a separate 30'x50' garage so there's plenty or room for extra tires and working on vehicles. I used to like working on cars but I'm tired of it now. I'll look into the tires that were recommended. Thanks again!

 

My 4runner has Toyo AT3s and my Taco has Wildpeak AT3Ws. Both tires have the snowflake, and both handled very well in the snow (which we had a handful of multi-foot dumps this year). Dedicated snow tires are great on hard pack and ice, but ATs with the snowflake do way better in deeper/unplowed snow and the mashed potato slush (and still do decently on hard pack and ice).

 

You must be around Wrightwood or Big Bear/Arrowhead if you had snow days in So Cal. Which of the two (Toyo or Falken) seems better in the snow/ice?

 

Duratracs fo the Win!

But they aint no Blizzaks