One girl two cars

[3 Justin 3]

If I can drive my Chevy Cobalt outside when it is snowing/blizzarding so bad I can see a maximum of 20 feet in front of me, and have to do pizza deliveries in this for 5 hours, with normal tires. I think she can drive a Versa in the winter with winter tires. I know that isn't totally the point, but why waste money buying a second vehicle, when you can spend less and just get winter tires. If she honestly thinks a 13 year old SUV is safer than a 2007 Versa with winter Tires, then she is hooped.

The SUV will have winter tires, or? Because if not, the difference won't be that much, if any, and since it is a 13 year old vehicle, the tires you get on the SUV could be useless anyway.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by Bownesian

It's false economy. Using winter tires will cause less wear in the summer tires, making them last longer. In the long run, it's nearly a wash if you get winter tires on steel rims .

My wife's Matrix came with brutal "all season" tires. Apparently Toyota thinks that all season means the road can be wet some times in addition to being dry. Anyway, she switched to winter tires a couple years ago and the difference is amazing - about a third the stopping distance and never any lateral skidding.

that's because tire companies use the American definition of all-season, which is much different than ours. the proper term for Canadian tires is all-weather, like the Nokians that you can drive all year round on and they're still great in snow

[Flashpoint]

Buy her some winter tires. You know better than she does, and sometimes we need to protect our loved ones from themselves.

[Wookie]

Originally Posted by Flashpoint

Buy her some winter tires. You know better than she does, and sometimes we need to protect our loved ones from themselves.

Haha, I should print this one and save it!

There hasn't been as many comments on the waste of money I thought there would be, mostly just winter tire comments.

Am I right in thinking it would be a complete waste of money? The Versa is a "run of the mill" car that's depreciating probably quite a bit. To have paid it off, park it, and go buy some 13 year old car that could have any amount of problems, poor gas consumption seems absurd to me. Tying up $3,000, then the added insurance, immediate investment in inspections, registration, and any immediate repairs. Not to mention using up an indoor parking spot and parking the SUV outside all winter.

One thing I was uncertain of. How much would a 13 year old SUV be depreciating? If you get rid of it a year later what kind of hit are you going to take if you paid.. say $3,000?

[Flashpoint]

It's an absurd waste of money for virtually no reason. Unless she's driving to Banff every day. In which case I'd be more worried about her last century gas guzzler breaking down in the middle of nowhere at 40 below.

[VladtheImpaler]

This is a sign that you should avoid any long-term commitments until you are 35...

[Burninator]

I drive a Mazda 3 and it probably comes with worse all season tires than the Verza does. I've not made it up hills a couple times in the winter and I get stuck at lights with a slight slope when its icy. They are awful, awful tires. So I want to buy winter tires this year.

When is the best time to buy in terms of getting the best deal or catching a sale?

[Antithesis]

Of course it's a complete waste of money, that "$3,000" SUV is probably going to end up costing you/her $5,000 to operate this year as you'll have to do some repairs to get it to proper running condition ... you'll have to get it inspected which might turn up a lot of problems. And then she'll decide that it's not really a lot better anyway.

Maybe all of our testimonials in this thread will sway her (though - if she is like my wife - probably not!!) towards winter tires. They are awesome. I will never drive a car in Calgary during our 8 winter months without them again. Can you reach a compromise here? Try the winter tires for a bit and then if she's still that unhappy, go for the SUV?

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

You can add me to the winter tire camp (like one more person in that camp will convince you), but my reasoning is a little different.

It basically goes like this.
If she is not confident enough to be driving a small front wheel drive vehicle in the winter, then is that really the kind of person who you want driving around in a big heavy SUV? Sure the 4 wheel drive will help getting up that hill, but now stopping is a problem. It's been my experience that people that insist that 4x4 is a necessity in the winter (I drive a truck, and while it is nice, it certainly isn't a necessity), are the same ones that don't understand that it doesn't help you stop any faster, which is where you get a MUCH greater advantage with the winter tires, and a much lighter vehicle.

So hopefully you can woo her with this logic.

SUV = no safer than the Versa unless it gets winter tires
So why spend $3000 on the SUV if you're just going to put winter tires on it anyway.

Of course that's assuming women can be convinced with logic....good luck.

[REDVAN]

Originally Posted by Burninator

I drive a Mazda 3 and it probably comes with worse all season tires than the Verza does. I've not made it up hills a couple times in the winter and I get stuck at lights with a slight slope when its icy. They are awful, awful tires. So I want to buy winter tires this year.

When is the best time to buy in terms of getting the best deal or catching a sale?

As that season is approaching, I'd say sooner rather than later.

I have winters sitting, and will put them on when the temperature gets to 10-12 as a high I think.

[malcolmk14]

Get her some winter tires and teach her to drive in the snow.

[an_album_cover]

Versa + proper tires > old busted up SUV

With similar tires, the Versa will stop in a shorter distance than the SUV. If you find yourself stuck in a situation that only 4x4 can get you out of, then you probably shouldn't have been there to begin with.

Go with ALL WEATHER (not all season) tires. I put on some Nokian WR G2s on my 3 Series and couldn't be happier. They're perfect for Calgary because they don't get chewed up by asphalt as fast as pure winter tires. Let's face it; there's really only a few weeks each year that we have large amounts of snow on the actual roads, but during those weeks it's hell. With these tires, I was going up hills that 4x4s were getting stuck on, no lie.

I find that sometimes people get a false sense of security when driving a SUV (I know that I did when I had one).

[burn_this_city]

Honestly if you can't drive a tiny fwd car in the winter you have no business driving.

[Kybosh]

Sounds to me like she is trying to find reasons to justify buying a vehicle that she doesn't need. Don't shoot me but some chicks like the rugged look of older SUVs and that might be all she's after.

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by burn_this_city

Honestly if you can't drive a tiny fwd car in the winter you have no business driving.

I agree . . . . on all weather tires as well.

Get her a rear-wheel drive car and then she'd be squealing legitimately. Those things are horrible in the winter.

Also Wookie, I have the suspicion if you told to her to go out and do whatever she wants WITH HER OWN MONEY but with the suggestion of winter tires, that she'd probably drop the second vehicle thing in a heartbeat and get winter tires. And maybe drop the winter tires thing too.

Access to your wallet might be the problem.

Cowperson

[FurnaceFace]

I put Nokian's on my Subaru before the winter. They seem very good...but then I never really had a problem with the OEM tires that were on there. That could be an option to toss at her too as they're rated highly for the snow but she wouldn't need to change them in the summer err...ummm... have you change them for her in the summer.

[psicodude]

I purchased winter tires for the first time ever last fall on the recommendations of this board. Let me tell you straight up - I will NEVER go through another winter without them. I was very skeptical and figured I was wasting $1500. I now believe it was some of the best dollars I have spent this decade. The confidence you gain from knowing that when you hit the brakes you will actually stop without sliding is worth every penny!

Remind your GF that the chances of a 15 year old vehicle leaving her stranded on the side of deerfoot in 40 below temps are probably 1 in 4. I would never even consider playing those odds on my wife.

Go get a quote on winter tires. I assume the Versa has 15" tires, so it shouldn't be terribly expensive.

[mykalberta]

Whats the best set of tires to purchase for a sporty car that has virtually no weight in the back? I live in a condo so I dont have room to store an extra set of tires. Currently I have been purchasing winter tires and driving them year round and replacing them every 3 years or so.

[psicodude]

Originally Posted by mykalberta

Whats the best set of tires to purchase for a sporty car that has virtually no weight in the back? I live in a condo so I dont have room to store an extra set of tires. Currently I have been purchasing winter tires and driving them year round and replacing them every 3 years or so.

I am not a tire expert, so I will let someone else comment on which tires to purchase. I am fairly certain, however, that driving winter tires all year long is not only a big waste of money, but can actually be unsafe. I have read that most winter tires are not designed for hot summer roads, and can melt slightly which can lead to a loss of control.

You should really find a buddy with a garage.

[The Yen Man]

I'm telling you right now, a Versa with a set of good winter tires is better than an SUV without winter tires, hands down. Winter tires makes a world of difference. After my trying them for the first time 10 years ago, I can tell you I am NEVER going without winter tires in Canada during the winter. The difference is like night and day.