Recommendations for tire chains?

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dmbshn41

Active member
Joined
Oct 23, 2017
Messages
38
Location
Fernley, NV
Looking for recommendations for tire chains. Living in Northern Nevada, and may see the need for them occasionally.

Was thinking of going with a a pair of stock steel wheels, snow tires, and just install on the front. Any concerns with this?
 
These are the chains I ordered and were recommended for my Leaf with 16" wheels.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000VAKXVA/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Note I only paid $29 and I see they are $35 now, I think the price goes up in the season you might need them, I purchased mine before the cold season started.
 
Those look like a good choice and the price looks reasonable. I am used to the price of chains for trucks and SUVs that I drive in winter conditions throughout the western US (3 or 4 times that price).
 
dmbshn41 said:
Thanks for the feedback. I’ll check the above out.

Any comments to snow tires on the front only?

Not generally a good idea. I did it for years, and got away with it by using aggressive all-seasons on the rear, but it did eventually bite me when I was traveling a slick road in a snowstorm and the car tried to pass itself something like 10 times in a mile or so. The wind was coming from the side, and the rear tires were losing grip well before the front ones. Given the situation here, mediocre snow tires would probably be safer than great ones.
 
While this video was done using summer tires in the rear (so basically zero grip in the snow), it does show what can happen when traction at the rear of the car is vastly inferior to that of the front:

https://youtu.be/A5aMnmekA38
 
Not quite the same situation as mine, but a good illustration.

Picture a '95 Camry doing about 55MPH on a fairly straight road, with the wind blowing at it from the right side. The rear of the car slowly but surely starts to go to the left - the beginning of a spin. I correct, and it comes back, going slightly to the right before I correct again. About three seconds later it happens again. And again. And again. I was off the gas so the car was slowing, but I had to do so many just-barely-effective corrections in the space of about 3/4 of a mile that I was really scared. That was the end of front-only snow tires for me.
 
I believe thats why they always suggest(and many shops will only) put tires with the better tread(if they are worn different) on the rear, even on a FWD vehicle. I'm not fond of that and if they won't, I'll use my jacks to do the rotation myself, putting the better ones on the front, but I'd really not suggest mixing different type of tires(snows and M/S or even summer tires). Various levels of worn though, I'd prefer the better ones on the front. While I wouldn't want the rear of the car fish-tailing or passing the front, I'd rather not lose grip in the front and have the car head towards a ditch or even concrete barrier :shock:
 
As far as handling goes in the snow, the LEAF is great with chains on the front tires. I've never experienced fish tailing, I suspect because the centrally located battery pack means a pretty even weight distribution front to back.
 
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