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Opinions/recommendations on which winter tires to get on E-Class W212?
Hi everyone, its that dreaded time again where the "northerners" have to install winter tires. Since I bought a used set of Mercedes-Benz rims that had the WINTER SOTTOZERO series 2 tires, I am now in the market for winter tires. And I wanted to get people's opinions/recommendations on which winter tires they recommend and why?
Personally, I find the Pirelli - WINTER SOTTOZERO series 2 a bit load/noisy compared to the Michelin - X-Ice Xi2 (on my second car - non-MB).
I have Yokohama iceGuards on my E400 4MATIC wagon. Got them last winter and the car was unstoppable in the snow last year. Climbed a steep icy road that folks in SUVs were stuck on without issue. I’m happy with them.
ETA: I’m in Toronto.
I’m running studded Nokian Nordman 7 225/50/17 98XL on dedicated rims. I like a more open tread pattern than the typical ice tire as I often drive in snow. I downsized the width for snow traction and increased the profile for pothole protection. I live in VT.
I came across this video today which you may find useful
If you live at 42° latitude (roughly Chicago) or further north, then you MIGHT benefit from dedicated Winter tires, IF you get long periods of snow, and live where snow removal resources are spotty. Otherwise, I feel that all-season tires are more than sufficient.
I've driven 50 years of my life, 35 years of it at St.Louis to mid Illinois latitudes (38°-40°N). Cities in this range (and south) seldom get lasting snows, and when they do, it's worse than further northern climes, because the snow removal infrastructure has very little depth to cope with it. Because of this, schools and businesses close for a day or two, until the limited resources can tackle the challenge. So I seldom had to drive... I just worked from home.
When I did have to venture out, the all-season tires worked fine. FWD always helped, of course. But I've also climbed many a 1/4 mile hill to my home over a 4-6" snowfall in a RWD Nissan 300ZX on all-season tires. Never owned a 4WD vehicle until I moved to Texas, where it is worthless.
Accordingly, to this day, on more than 20 vehicles I've owned, I've never owned a Winter tire... Just IMO for perspective.
It's more your comfort, I think. I have not bought winter tires in decades. We get snow in northern NJ, but the roads rarely are impassable. A few years ago, I had my 1998 Lincoln Mark VIII at the office, darned if I could remember why I was driving Markie instead of my usual car. We had a very significant snowfall that day and the afternoon commute was pretty bad. But despite a good snow covering on the road, and that I only was running Michelin MXV4 all season tires, and that the Mark VIII is a rear wheel drive car, I did very well and was driving around and passing everyone on the road. I had an easier time, it seemed than the FWD drivers, the AWD car drivers, and the SUV drivers.
Your comfort level and therefore your confidence level will vary. Decide what you need based on what you need to feel confident that you have what you need for winter. Personally, I've done exceptionally well with both Michelin and Pirelli all season tires. Wouldn't bother with anything else. YMMV.
I find it amusing when flatlanders join snow tire discussions and debate their value. ��
Stated another way, when it snows and I feel the need to drive in it, my Mercedes-Benz is the last vehicle pulled out of my stable. I have other vehicles for "flatlander" ice skating, snow plowing, rock climbing and mud bogging. They're called "beaters." I'm sure you've heard the term...
So your real recommendation for winter snow tires for a W212 is another car?
I also have the choice of driving a beater car, which is also equipped with studded Nokians, and I did so in yesterday’s several inches of snow as I didn’t want to get my freshly washed car dirty.
I grew up in a ski town atop a long, steep driveway, if you didn’t have AWD AND snow tires you often had to walk up.
When it snows heavy we are headed out into it to go skiing, etc, versus staying home, so having good tires helps us do that safely. YMMV
I find it amusing when flatlanders join snow tire discussions and debate their value. ��
The original poster is in Toronto, where I once was driving around in a rented RWD Lincoln Town Car with all season tires during a snow storm. Also, on my way home there's a, I believe, 13% grade on the Interstate that rarely is plowed in a snowstorm, probably because of the stuck and abandoned FWD Toyotas and Hundais scattered on the hill. Once off the interstate, the hills are a bit steeper. It's not the Alps, but it's roughly analogous to what I recall of the Toronto area, but not as cold.
When it snows, my wife feels more comfortable with AWD so she takes my car, which have been four wheel drive (Navigator) or all wheel drive (MKX, E400) since the late 1990s, and I drive her car or sometimes the Mark VIII. Currently she has a RWD Jaguar XJL which isn't available in AWD with the V8, and we wanted the one with the V8. Both have RWD and all season tires with traction control. Both are fine for me, but she's not comfortable unless she has my car with AWD.
Extreme conditions require better tires and more sophisticated AWD, the system on the MKX was awful. But for everyone else who is not located in such an area, confidence in one's setup and comfort with what one is driving is almost as important as equipment.
On the other hand, Tire Rack evaluates some of the tires they sell, including winter driving tires. This may be of some interest to the original poster.
So your real recommendation for winter snow tires for a W212 is another car?
Even when I was in my early twenties with little money to spare, I've always had a choice of two (or more) vehicles to drive in the snow. I would just pick the vehicle with the better tread on its (all-season) tires. Beats designating a whole corner of the garage for storing multiple sets of mounted wheels/tires not in use year-round. That's 28-30 cubic ft of space -- floor to ceiling -- I can use for something else.
My 1977 Honda Accord (3-dr hatch), and it's FWD and all-season tires would leave everything in its tracks during the epic 1978 blizzard in the midwest, and several occasional snows since. 5-7 years ago, we got 6" of snow for Christmas day here in Dallas, too. So, this "flatlander" has plenty of experience driving in the snow, and four vehicles to choose from now. None of them have snow tires.
You can buy the best snow tires available, and that will not prevent some clown (in his beater) sliding/slamming into your Mercedes on the snow and ice... Better to keep your prize MB at home in the garage, I think, unless it's an emergency.
Your situation is different, as is the OP living in Canada. And I respect that. The thread is titled "Opinions/Recommendations" I didn't write that you did not need snow tires... I only offered my opinion (perspective) that most people don't need snow tires with today's all-season tire tech.
The stats are interesting, and predictable. If I lived in any among the 2/3s of states ranked 21-50 in average snowfall -- and I have -- I would not consider snow tires to be any priority at all.
That's all for me, really. Please continue your discussion of snow tire prefs with those forum members who live in rural Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Alaska, etc. I've just tried to keep this thread alive until someone from these states (or Europe) chimes in. Of course, I have a friend in Maine who exclusively drives a 2009, 4WD Ford Expedition on monster snow tires with 200 lbs of dog food bags in back, from October through March. His Lexus sits on trickle-charge in the Garage for 6-months.
Thanks for the feedback everyone. I am still looking out to see if others have used different brands on their w212 and what their recommendations/opinions are.
My w212 is scheduled for a B (b5) service at the end of this month and that's when I will have to decide which brand/model to get as the dealer stores my winter tires with rims.
11-12-2019, 04:35 PM
