Studding pickup truck tires need info asap

[downslope]

So stopping distances are increased? Well that makes sence as you are removing the tread of the tire from contact on the road a small amount. I guess if I cant get these tires studded I will wait till next snow season. I can buy winter drive tires and leave them studded. My plan is to leave the steer tires unstudded. 70 % of braking is normally done in the front so I can definitely leave those unstudded.

When I lived in Michigan tires were illegal to stud for personal vehicles. I was shocked to find that studded tires are legal here.

Why don't you just buy the new winter tires now (studded if you want) and be done with it, after all it's still January. When late spring comes you can put your current tires back on, rotate the fronts or whatever.

On the pickup I would only do the rear, that's the way everyone did it for years. This thing about winter tires on all 4 corners really started when front-wheel drive cars became popular. People would try to put the winter tires only on the front and the car would tend to oversteer in slippery conditions, with the back end sliding every which way. On a RWD pickup you will be fine with winter and/or studded tires on the rear only. It will make a big difference and if you can afford it I'd do it now.

 

[k0ua]

Why don't you just buy the new winter tires now (studded if you want) and be done with it, after all it's still January. When late spring comes you can put your current tires back on, rotate the fronts or whatever.

On the pickup I would only do the rear, that's the way everyone did it for years. This thing about winter tires on all 4 corners really started when front-wheel drive cars became popular. People would try to put the winter tires only on the front and the car would tend to oversteer in slippery conditions, with the back end sliding every which way. On a RWD pickup you will be fine with winter and/or studded tires on the rear only. It will make a big difference and if you can afford it I'd do it now.

With the Blizzak winter tires, you gain braking and cornering.. They need to be on all for wheels or not at all.

 

[ME83]

Why don't you just buy the new winter tires now (studded if you want) and be done with it, after all it's still January. When late spring comes you can put your current tires back on, rotate the fronts or whatever. On the pickup I would only do the rear, that's the way everyone did it for years. This thing about winter tires on all 4 corners really started when front-wheel drive cars became popular. People would try to put the winter tires only on the front and the car would tend to oversteer in slippery conditions, with the back end sliding every which way. On a RWD pickup you will be fine with winter and/or studded tires on the rear only. It will make a big difference and if you can afford it I'd do it now.

Let me get this straight...when the necessity arises that you need to steer or brake quickly in slick conditions, you choose not to be able to? This is why people get into accidents, they put tires on one axle so they have traction to gain speed but then loose control.

Put snow tires on all four corners. I had blizzaks on my 4wd Chevy 1500, excellent when slick but had no bite in deeper snow. Same with the blizzaks on my wife's current car, a tdi jetta wagon. My current truck, a 4wd F350, I have studded Nokian LT2 tires and they are amazing. When the blizzaks on the car wear down it will be getting studded Nokians.

 

[batwing]

If it is done today, the same way it was done 45 years ago, you can't stud used tires. Back then, just about any place that sold tires could stud them with a hand held gun that shot them in with compressed air. The bad thing about studded tires is that traction on dry pavement is decreased. Stopping distances are increased quite a bit.

Agree, we studded a lot of tires in the 70s real hard on the road. really tears up the garage floor if not careful.
Ron

 

[downslope]

Let me get this straight...when the necessity arises that you need to steer or brake quickly in slick conditions, you choose not to be able to? This is why people get into accidents, they put tires on one axle so they have traction to gain speed but then loose control.

Put snow tires on all four corners. I had blizzaks on my 4wd Chevy 1500, excellent when slick but had no bite in deeper snow. Same with the blizzaks on my wife's current car, a tdi jetta wagon. My current truck, a 4wd F350, I have studded Nokian LT2 tires and they are amazing. When the blizzaks on the car wear down it will be getting studded Nokians.

Obviously it would be better to have them on all 4 wheels. People used to or still do use chains on the rear wheels of RWD cars and trucks. Would it be better for braking and handling if they put chains on all 4 wheels assuming they would fit? It probably would, but no one does it. All of the vehicles you've described are either front-wheel or 4WD. I agree, if you put winter tires on the front then you really must put them on the back also.

The OP has an old rear-wheel drive pickup. The least desirable setup for him is NO winter tires at all. Next best would be winter tires on the rear driving wheels only, and of course the best if you can afford it and it's worth it on a 17 year old truck is to put them on all 4. But to suggest that it's an all or nothing deal and a rear-wheel drive vehicle would be safer with no winter tires at all then having them just on the back makes no sense. Even with winter tires only on the back the RWD vehicle will start and stop better than no winter tires at all and the cornering performance will be the same assuming you drive within the same limits. The problem is that someone gets the good tires on the back, starts driving too fast for conditions and then sues the tire store when the vehicle runs off the road.

Again, all this stuff about must have 4 snow tires, new tires have to go in the back, you really should buy all four new ones etc. started when front-wheel drive and 4WD cars and SUV's became popular.

 

[diesel lover]

The only problem I'm seeing is that I came here from another thread I created named changing an open diff to a limited slip for ice and snow. I have belonged to a ford truck forum for years. They said "do not buy winter tires for only the drive wheels" on the tbn thread limited slip or open diff you guys said "purchase winter tires for only the drives it's okay to do that" I'm so stuck now. The whole entire reason I did not purchase winter tires for the rear of my truck is because on ford trucks.com they told me all four or nothing at all. Years ago on my 88 f150 I bought only rear snow tires for it and they worked well.

 

[lostcause]

i grew up with fairly heavy front wheel drive vehicles and i don't recall anyone who ran studded tires on the rear wheels until a decade or so ago. they made it illegal in my state to run front studs only a front wheel drive vehicle - you have to run all 4 with studs or none at all. rear wheel drive vehicles were still able to run with rear only studs, unless they've since changed that one too. check your state's requirements to be safe.

if you have already run the tires on the road, don't add studs to them. the holes will have small rocks & grit in them. you need to make the stud decision when you buy the tires.

you will find those people out there who will tell you that you are an idiot if you don't run all four studded, and those people i tend to take with a grain of salt... sure, 4 will give you better traction for the steer wheels, so by all means do it if you want. also, if you are required to do it by law then you probably should too. if it's a choice, then you need to make that decision. i grew up in a garage where we sold and mounted tons of tires for the same front wheel cars. i don't recall many, if any who ever ran more than that two studded tires until they made it law, and it's not like there was an accident issue with those customers back then. maybe those people just had more respect for the roads and the conditions.

 

[diesel lover]

Yes, my main problem here in Indiana is winters can be cold without snow. Sometimes a month at a time is spent with clear pavement. Since this one has been extremely icy I thought the studs on the rear would improve my starting traction and having no studs on the front would improve my handling on the dry pavement as well as help with stopping distance

 

[bigtiller]

The only problem I'm seeing is that I came here from another thread I created named changing an open diff to a limited slip for ice and snow. I have belonged to a ford truck forum for years. They said "do not buy winter tires for only the drive wheels" on the tbn thread limited slip or open diff you guys said "purchase winter tires for only the drives it's okay to do that" I'm so stuck now. The whole entire reason I did not purchase winter tires for the rear of my truck is because on ford trucks.com they told me all four or nothing at all. Years ago on my 88 f150 I bought only rear snow tires for it and they worked well.

Your ford.com friends must be pretty young. I've never seen snow tires on the front of a 64 Chevy. I did see them on a 66 Oldsmobile Toronado but it had front wheel drive.

 

[flyingcow]

I live in northern Alberta and we can run studs chains whatever we want all year round if we deem it is needed for safety. First only new tires can be studded second tall skinny and third PLEASE PLEASE do all four corners. Up hear you can only buy winter tires in sets of four if you are having them installed at the shop. I may be young but **** do I know about ice driving

We run studded tires all 4 corners of my minivan and two cars. Nov to march. Never noticed any big difference in stopping power on dry pavement. And it is possible to drill and stud tires. Very few shops will know how to or just flat out won't do it. They'll only stud predrilled ones. We drill and stud out trailer truck tires for winter time.