dannobre

iTrader: (3)

Hardly:....all I'm saying is that with the traction control on....you won't be able to get going in some situations where you can if you shut it off. If you find the throttle is being cut with minimal slippage......you can shut it off and probably get going.

As for revving the snot out of it and spinning your wheels to get going........anyone that has driven on snow and ice knows that if you heat up your wheels you will go no where....

Raptor75

I myself hate to have a spare set of tires lying around and having to switch them twice a year so I bought a set of all season high performance tires. They are about 90 to95% the holding power in warm climate but are also good in the cold weather. Snow traction is adequate but not great. Chicago plows well so it is not really an issue. Ice has been the hardest to deal with.

early 30's crisis

I had the same problem too. I managed to get out of the driveway, but that was it. It took me 45 min to travel 15km to go get the winter tires. Very scary (although people seemed to appreciate the trouble I was having and gave me alot of room! how rare!). With the winter tires I have no issue, and I am zooming around in our Canadian winter on snow and ice better than hubby's 4WD SUV could ever dream of.. no extra weight required.
As for the 'engine light' I have no idea.. mine just flashed the traction control light?
Good luck!

Roaddemon

I had to buy snows because no one offered all seasons for the 8 in 04. I now have the Bridgestone all seasons but have'nt had a chance to use them since we had heavy snow right after buying them. I changed over to my snows right away. Any body want to buy some snows on rims? Just kidding, I'll keep them. Takes me 11/2 hours to change over 2x per year. kind of a chore but I enjoy doing it. They also take up valuable storage space in my garage.

eug

iTrader: (2)

We have separate winters and summers for both our 8 and IS. Takes me about half an hour to change a set; I don't see how can that be a bother when it's only done twice a year? Sure they take up room in your garage but that's a necessary evil.

Besides, with two sets of tires you don't need to compromise; you can choose the best winter tire for your geography, *and* choose a summer tire with the best performance. Plus, you can go a few more years before needing to replace a set (OK, maybe not with the stock RE040's, but that's beside the point). You just need to shell out the initial costs of the two sets in the first place. Money well spent, IMHO.

apotocki

Ahhhhhh, its threads like this that make me sooooo happy my 8 is in the garage tucked away for the winter!

skycat

Well mine isn't tucked away for the winter but it is definitely tucked away until the street in front of my house is melted down to cement. I'm guessing next week it will get to come out of it's one month hibernation to play, now my motorcycle on the other hand won't get to see the sun until April or May (I won't ride unless it's 60F or warmer).

dynamho

Gotcha!

Right! This is like the principle behind the fact that the weather can be too cold to ice skate. Ice skates actually need to hydroplane on water to move. The water is made by the skates' pressure heating up the ice.

Spinning and heating up the tires will melt the snow, creating a slippery film of water.

Raptor75

It's a personal call. I have enough going on in my life without having to worry about changing tires twice a year. With All Season Ultra Performance tires I don't have to worry about storing anything and I have an extra $1,200 dollars sitting in my pocket.

From a summer performance stand point my AVONs perform very well and are quieter then the OEMs. In winter they are not as good as Snow tires but for the couple of days a year snow tires would make a difference all the advantages of the all-season tires win out.

Here is a story that helped me make up my mind to go All-Seasons. I was talking to my wife's brother in law, as it turns out his brother has a RX-8 so I strike up a conversation and tires come up. It is the middle of winter and he starts to tell me about how great it is to run the RX with snow tires so I say lets go outside and take a look at them.....he pauses and tells me he hasn't had a chance to put them on yet. All Seasons it is. IMHO.

Groundrush

Heh...I bought my 8 at the end of March 06 and hadn't had the...opportunity...to drive it in snowy/icy conditions until late last week. I'd read on here how bad the stock tires are in these conditions, and thought to myself "Geez...it can't be THAT bad..."

WRONG. I backed out of my driveway last Thursday morning to go to work, with a dusting of snow on the ground. There was a thin sheen of ice beneath that that I was unaware of. I successfully made it back out of my driveway onto my street, which is a dead-end deal, with a slight grade (perhaps 5%) up to the intersection. I dropped it in first and hit the gas, and nada. DSC light was all blinky, and I went nowhere. Turned off DSC, put it in reverse to rock it back and forth and ...nada.

I actually stopped in the middle of the street for a moment to contemplate my situation and noticed that my car was gradually sliding SIDEWAYS. I pulled back into my driveway after some effort, got a running start, and had enough momentum to get me going up the street. Fortunately the rest of the streets were salted and I had no trouble. Looks like I need some Blizzaks...it's a scary thing when my Miata handles better in snow/ice than a substantially heavier car. Still love my 8 tho!

shaunv74

Please make no mistake about the OEM tires. They are summer performance tires only. They are not designed to drive in snow. Also the car is rear wheel drive which is another disadvantage in the snow for traction. If you plan on driving in snow of any kind you will need to buy snow tires. You can go the all season route if you want but at that point you already have to buy a 2nd set so my advice is just buy a second set of rims with snow tires on them delivered to your door by tirerack.com or wherever you prefer and swap them out. It's the only way you can safely get around in snow.

As a side note I'm glad you didn't make it out of your driveway. I'd hate for you to have gotten into an accident and damaged your brand new 8. Welcome to the club!

tmak26b

It's fun flinging the car on snow tires too

Raptor75

When I bought my car part of the deal was to have the dealership remount tires I provided. Bought the Ultra Performance All Season tires from Tire Rack and sold the OEM on this web site to cover the cost. One set of tires I can drive year round. Also the these tires kick *** handling wise in the 50 to 70 degree range.

tmak26b

umm no, the performance tires will still do better

grinn253

Just to acknowledge, that I utilize this method as well

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

and don't just get any winter tires, get Bridgestone Blizzaks with the multi-cell tread compound, nothing else will come close in icey conditions

tony_673

Screw buying winter tires! Buy a damn 4x4 vehicle! You are a freakin dentist right? You should be able to afford a $2000 jeep. (Unless you spent all of your cash on cheap booze and cheaper women.)

volk

amen to that.

Raptor75

Never said they wouldn't.

Unfortunately I don't have the data to agree or disagree with you statement. Logically, the performance tires are better in warm weather and much worst in cold weather what needs to be determined is the cross over point temperature wise. My experience with other tires would make me believe it would be some were in the 50s. Once the summer tires harden up from the cold there performance suffers. If you have any articles or data supporting your statement I would love to see it, not trying to be a smart *** just looking to learn something I may not know.

ALP22

Yet another vote for snow tires here. I have Dunlop M3 wintersports on cheap rims from TireRack (under $1k balanced and shipped). Well worth the investment, and no big deal to swap them (under an hour). Also I like to carry one of the un-used wheels (summer or winter) in the car to act as a full-size spare, since the stock spare tire or fix-a-flat kit is just a joke!

I have to disagree on weight in the trunk though. Mine handles perfectly OK in snow with the regular 50/50 weight distribution. Sure some more weight in the rear might help you to get going, but screws up the handling (less weight in front = understeer) once you're actually moving.

One more thing - plow/shovel your driveway if there's more than about 6" of snow. Some folks here have reported that deep snow really does a number on the front skirt of the car, and can even result in large chunks of plastic being ripped off due to the front end acting like a scoop.

V_for_velocity

I hope they didn't sell you an RX-8 without mentioning the tire problem. I mean, you do live in Ontario. The stock tires are worse than useless in snow -- as you now know.

shaunv74

Someone should photochop a plow onto the front of an 8 and post it in this thread for giggles and to see if anyone will ask how much to get it installed.

tmak26b

It's all an urban legend. As you drive, your tires are going to build up heat. Softer tires are going to build heat even faster, you can get up to operating temp pretty quickly. The advantage is a lot less in the rain, but not in the dry.

Scientific data? Nah. I do have a bunch of race result with race and street tires.

Btw, that's like saying race tires with grooves don't work in the rain. I can honestly say my completely worn RA1 were better in the rain than my Azenis and RE040. I think only the S-03 came close to it, if not better. I havent had the chance to drive a set of new RA1s yet.

Winfree

Your car may be saving your life by not getting you out on the road - if you have enough road snow you might try using tire chains to help get you to a place where you can get winter tires - if studs are legal in your area please consider them, especially if you will be facing a lot of ice.
Cat litter is heavy, get the biggest sized not the clumping - the clumping stuff will just make things worse - or gravel from a pet shop or garden store (cheaper at garden store), Also carry a couple of old rugs or blankets they can get you out of some slippery situations, a small shovel may also be a good carry on.

Raptor75

I don't don't know about this....there are a lot of sites and people who work with tires that state Summer performance tires harden in winter and provide inferior handling characteristics and braking, period.

Not following you on your last analogy?