KDL

I need new all seasons for my '02 AR 2.7T. I live in Brooklyn, only rarely have to deal with snow and ice, and am a reasonably aggressive but not performance-obsessed driver. Looking for good tires that will survive Brooklyn potholes, can handle light slush and snow and are reasonably quiet and non-squishy. My Yokohama Advan S4s really struggled in light snow a couple of weeks ago. Have my eye on Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus and Conti Extreme Contact DWS. Many thanks in advance.

Reggie

I had Contis on my Q5 and they worked ok - never lost traction but never felt confident in them so after one winter I put snows on and use the Contis as my summer tires and they have been great.

Gary@Tirerack.com

The Michelin Pilot Sport A/S3 is only fair at best in snow and ice but has outstanding handling and steering response for an all-season tire. The Conti DWS has some of the best winter traction we've experience out of a UHP all-season tire but has slower steering response than most others in its category.


Tires http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=AR8&...ires/index.jsp

KDL

Thanks, Gary. What would you recommend? There are other contenders, too, such as Pirelli Zero Nero M&S. Looking for good handling, ability to deal with ice and snow better than my Yokohama Advans, and durability on the Brooklyn streets -- had read somewhere that the softer sidewalls of the Contis could be an issue because of that. Can you elaborate on the steering response issue and what that really means practically?

Gary@Tirerack.com

Slower steering response simply means that the DWS response more slowly to steering inputs. It is not a measure of the durability of tire.

The next best we've found for winter traction in this category is the Goodyear F1 Asymmetric A/S.