I live in Calgary, Alberta (Canada, eh?)

As such, we deal with some pretty interesting winter weather. Heavy snow rolling through, plenty of ice, and week-long stretches of bare pavement follow each other in seemingly random succession all winter long. And sometimes into May...and again as early as August. A slice of heaven, I tell ya.

I wheel as often as I can during the summer, and want to do some winter wheeling as well. My Jeep is also my daily driver and my transport up the access road to ski resorts in the Rockies.

I want to go from 32's to 33's - both because they'll perform better off road, and also because they will look more natural in the wheel wells once I throw on a 2.5" or 3" lift for 35's next summer. The word is that as long as you don't get too stupid with flexing out, 33's will work just fine on a stocker.

What I'm looking for is a winter tire (I'll be running KM2's in the summer) that will give me good off road winter performance as well as solid on-road winter performance. I'm aware that this indicates studded tires, as tires made for excellent grip on ice without studs tend to blow chunks in deeper snow. I'm leaning towards buying 16" steelies to stick these 33's on...both to save my alloys from winter crud and to ease potential backspacing/fit issues.

So far I see the Toyo M55 as the front runner, in either 33X10.5 or 33X11.5. We run these tires on our one tons at work, and they stand up to some incredible abuse on abyssmal roads.

I'm aware that whichever one I go with, I'll be wanting to pick up some chains if I'm doing any serious winter wheeling. I may be new to being a Jeep owner, but I'm not new to driving off-road.

Can anyone give me first hand info about their experiences with the M55's off road in the winter? I'd also love to hear about people's experiences with other designs that are intended to be studded.

 

Personally, I've sworn by Hakkapeliitta's for all my cars but on the Jeep this year I'm going with the BFG -KO's (285/70-17's [33's]). They're more aggressive looking and suit the Jeep better.

 

I have sworn by Cooper Discoverer M+S.....great studdable winter tire, that has long life and has great traction in snow and ice!

I have run this tire on several of my work pick-up trucks and Dodge Magnum R/T AWD and it has stood up very well on off-road and pavement use. However, the drawback is I believe they only come as big as a 32 x 11" tire for the 16" rim but I could be wrong.

 

You have brought up an interesting topic I have not seen discussed and that is chains. People talk all the time about clearance for tires but never talk about how much added clearance is needed to run chains. What is everybody’s experience with chains on a JK?

 

W squared...I know I have used the BFG all terrains on past vehicle's and think they perform awesome in the snow....Since I purchased the AEV Wheels and Pro Comp Extreme Muds...I would love to wheel them in the snow, but since I do so much highway driving back and forth from Vancouver to Whistler...I think the 35's X12.5 will not be the best on ice covered highways and I would damage the AEV wheels.... so, I will be switching back the stock rims and BFG Muds for winter season.....but I am thinking of purchasing 33/12.5 BFG's all terrains for the winter.....even though the 12.5 are not going to add traction on the ice....I want them to fill out the fenders in the mean time...

The all terrains in my opinion are a great tire and a good choice....not sure if you are planning on keeping the winter tires you want to buy for summer as well...good luck....enjoy your cold Alberta winter....I lived in Red Deer for 4 years...The patch can be cold...

 

I hadn't thought of that one. I just took a look at the Cooper site. Lots of siping and pinned for studs, which says that they'll be fabulous on icy roads and packed snow. I'm just unsure about the seeming lack of void space in the tread and the effect on traction in deeper snow.

I hear you on the BFG all terrain, RubiSteve. I spent a couple of years doing geophysical work, and we ran them too (non studded). Great traction in snow and good on ice for an A/T. If I studded them, they'd be a good candidate.



As far as chains go, I have yet to put 'em on my JK. I don't have any specific answers to give you for clearance there, but I'll give a few general pointers.


#1. Put them on in your driveway to make sure they fit, and that you have the required tools for the tightening system. This is not as easy to do as you might think...practice in good conditions will save your a lot of swearing later.

#2. Put 'em on snug, then drive about 1km, then stop to snug them more. If you're not swearing while tightening them, they're not tight enough.

#3. Use at least 4 bungees on each set in a criss-cross pattern to keep them close to the tire. This will reduce the clearance needed.

#4. Leave one window on each side down so that you can HEAR what your chains are doing. After a while, you will get to know what the usual "chain slap" sounds like. If you hear anything other than that, stop...immediately.

#5. 30 km/hour is the fastest that I will drive with chains on. (rougly 20 mph IIRC). Other people will say different...YMMV.

#6. Carefully check your sidewalls for damage. If you install the chains with anything that's not smooth up against the sidewall, you will wear a groove in it.

#7. If you've never driven with chains, you'll be amazed what you can do on ice and packed snow.

 

W_Squared....

The Cooper M&S is awesome in deeper (wet/sticky) snow especially with the deeper lugs as it spits out the snow great. I have run this tire on winter forestry roads going through 2 ft of fresh snow (unpacked) up an incline in 4x4 and never spun a tire just kept on trucking. However, it did help having them studded as they gripped that much more.

They are fabulous on icy and heavy slushy roads! However, I don't think they will have the size you want for your JK.

 

That's just the type of feedback that I'm looking for! Sizing is negotiable - I'm just hoping for something that I can run with my stock suspension now, and won't look puny once I've got a 2.5" lift on.

That Cooper is sounding good. I've had good experience with the Toyo, but it's more of a winter-friendly off-road that will accept studs than a specific winter tire.

 

I can't comment on the Cooper M & S, but I do have the Terra Nitto Grapplers, by far the best winter tire I have ever used. Now keep in mind we don't get the snow you do, but we got about 2ft a while back and I didn't miss a beat. Neighbors were trying to get up our street for 2 days, many were pissed I was the only one able to get out. I put a set on my Jeep and they perform just as well, they are heavily siped with decent but not large lugs and do great on wet, icy and snow covered roads. They are very well mannered and allow complete control at all times.

Just another one to think about.....

 

Probably more money than you want to spend, but the Michelin A/T 2 is a great snow tire. Does well off-road if you stay out of mud. The Toyo AT is also pretty good in snow.

I used to live in Ohio where there was plenty of snow. I don't have to worry about that now that I am down here in Louisiana.