I'm from North Bay. -40F temps are pretty normal in January and February. My poor SS absolutely hated me last winter when I tried to fire her up in those kind of temps.

Luckily for the car I live in Toronto now, so nowhere near as cold. But anyway, back on topic.

 

My local tire dealer is recommending the Nokian Hakkapeliitta R winter tires over the Blizzack WS60s. Has anyone ever used them? I was curious about road noise, traction, etc

 

I picked up Pirelli Snowsports in stock TC size. Ill put a review up in the spring. By looking at the tread they should be pretty good in snow.

 

I've heard nothing but good things about those Nokians - they're a favorite of our local STi drivers. The problem with the WS60 is they're multi-cell compound tires... I.e. much of their traction comes from the super-soft rubber compound. Beyond 50% wear or so, they lose a lot of their effectiveness. The Nokians deliver traction from pure tread pattern, requiring a less soft compound. You may get more road noise, but they'll last much longer.

 

maxxis MA V1....picking them up tomorrow

 

Well I know what i'll be buying next if the X-Ices don't work out lol

 

Road noise...hmm.. Isn't that what a loud stereo is for?

 

I just got my tires on for winter last weekend, a little early but thats because I kept losing air in one of my continental tires. I kept my stock rims on but by next season plan on getting some enkei rims and having the continentals put on them. For the tires I got it was $840 for everything out the door.

 

what tires did you get?
How come I have never heard of said nokians? is it a canada thing?

 

Nokians are Swedish and not as common as the big brands. The other major Swedish tire maker is Gizlaved (I have a set).

Because they aren't well known, they're fairly cheap, while performing as good or better than the big names. They're typically imported by specialty shops, Volvo dealerships, and Subaru dealerships.