2004 Gs 300 Snow Handling?

[JET LI FAN]

My wife is not a very experienced driver and drives daily in Chicago with baby on board - are original Goodyear tires with 25KMi on them enough for GS 300 " 04 in winter or I should definitely get a snow set for her. If yes then any recommendations on tires?

Thanks much

Jason

[tex2670]

I think you want this thread in the Wheels and Tires forum.

[JRRRRRR]

My wife is not a very experienced driver and drives daily in Chicago with baby on board - are original Goodyear tires with 25KMi on them enough for GS 300 " 04 in winter or I should definitely get a snow set for her. If yes then any recommendations on tires?

Thanks much

Jason

I drive between Seattle and Montana sometimes twice a month. The trip involves three mountain passes. My research has me leaning towards Bridgestone Blizzak WS-50 snow tires. I've got a couple of weeks before I need to purchase a set and would be interested to hear other opinions.

-JRRRRRR

[Scott M]

My wife is not a very experienced driver and drives daily in Chicago with baby on board - are original Goodyear tires with 25KMi on them enough for GS 300 " 04 in winter or I should definitely get a snow set for her. If yes then any recommendations on tires?

Thanks much

Jason

I drive between Seattle and Montana sometimes twice a month. The trip involves three mountain passes. My research has me leaning towards Bridgestone Blizzak WS-50 snow tires. I've got a couple of weeks before I need to purchase a set and would be interested to hear other opinions.

-JRRRRRR

The WS-50's are very highly rated but they are on clearance, as the new model is the WS-60.

I just bought a set of 4 Blizzak WS-50's on 17" Aluminum 5-spoke wheels from tirerack.

Mounted and balanced (skipped the $400 pressure sensors) for less than $800 and shipped right to my door.

They look awesome and can't wait till the white stuff flies, so I can put them on.

WS-50 Comparo and test results.

[1999Lexus_GS400]

I run WS-50's on my GS400 they are awesome tires in the winter. I have had them now for 3 years and they are still like new.

Amazing grip on ice or snow. The car handles better than my SUV in the winter time. Good luck with your purchase.

Dave

[Matty]

I have no experience with the Blizzaks but I can tell you that all of the best shops I've talked to around here (upstate NY) have told me the same thing: Hakkapeliitta. They're made by Nokian, a Finnish company and these are serious snow tires. I didn't buy them from a Lexus dealer but I noticed that all of the Lexus dealers carry them. I asked why and they said that there aren't a lot of snow tires that perform well in the snow AND provide excellent ride and handling. One mechanic said that if I were driving a Cavalier or Sebring or something like that, I'd never notice the difference between many snow tires but that in a Lexus I definitely would. Everything is so fine-tuned.

I run the Hakkapeliitta 2 on my '03 GS300 and they are awesome. It might depend on your specific conditions. In NY, our biggest problems are slush and ice, packed powder is rare, just like the skiing here! Again, nothing against the Blizzaks, I just thought I'd add my experience because this was big deal for me before even buying a RWD car. The Hakkas were $168 each when I bought them in August. I'm sure they're more now but it could be money well-spent.