All Season Tires for 00 Max

[SVTCOBRA]

My daughter will be in need of some all season tires soon.She will most likely be attending college in the NC Mountains, so I would like something that's good in rain and snow and dry conditions. She doesn't need super high performance tires.Any recommendations??

Thanks, I did search a bit, but maybe not enough cause I didn't find too much.

Oh, and I do check tirerack and a couple of other sites for tires, but would like to know from the forum.

[Trav1s]

(I buy Cooper tires - American owned and most are made in the states. Great tires for a competitive price. Mastercraft is another tire line owned by Cooper and many of the tires between the Cooper and Mastercraft lines share cores --> Sensys01 and Touring SLE's mentioned below are produced on the same prod line)

Currently I have Mastercraft Sensys01 in the stock 225/50r17's on the Maxima. I am VERY impressed with their wet and snow performance as well as fair weather driving. They are quiet, have a nice ride and corner well but are not a true HP tire. They work perfect for out 1000-2000 mile road trips throughout the midwest and our daily driving. For an all-season tires, the Sensys01 hold their own and do much better than the Cooper Lifeliner Touring SLE's we had on it before.

SLE was a good tire too but at the end of its life, it was NOISY and did not stick on wet roads and floated in heavy snow. (One evening after work, my wife called from the side of the road on US RT 20 - She said that she was stuck. All the car would do was shutter and there was smoke coming out from under the front of the car. I got a lift to pick her up and discovered the Traction Control got confused. She lost momentum merging into traffic and that was it. I turned off the TC, gave it hell and made it home... but was not fun, even for an experienced snow driver)

Cooper has since replaced the Touring SLE with the CS4 Touring. I have the first set sold in Ohio and they are on the G20 in 205/50r16 on Sentra SE wheels. The tread is a cross between the OLD SLE and the Sensys01. They do a MUCH better job at getting water out from under the tread than the SLE's. Currently have 10k miles on them and this winter has been a real test - the most snow here in 10 years. (25+" from Dec til now, 2-4" called for today) I am very happy with them so far. Not overly sticky but handling is predictable and ride is a nice compromise between firm and squishy. (This impression is based on the same wheels/tires being installed on 2 different cars --> 01 Sentra GXE and 02G20Sport)

Pics of the CS4's are here on my cardomain page for my old Sentra: http://www.cardomain.com/ride/2306689/3

[MaxGig]

I recommend Continental Conti's. I put them on my son's Volvo and they are good in all types of weather.

[davskins97]

I have heard some good things about the Nokian WR G2's. Anybody have those on their maxima in the north? I need something to deal with this snow and ice in Wisconsin.

[asianstyle]

Falken Ziex Ze 912

[MinisterofDOOM]

Asianstyle, your signature is too big, would you mind resizing it?Signature guidelines can be found here: zerothread/203223

Thanks!

[davskins97]

Falken Ziex Ze 912

Unless there have been some major upgrades to the grip since the Zeix Ze 512 I would highly recommend staying away from this tire in any snow, ice, or even rain. I have about 16,000 miles on mine and they are absolutely grip-free here in Wisconsin. The mileage really doesn't matter, because they sucked last winter too when they had half the miles on them. If the road is wet, forget about trying to pull out into traffic, because they break loose at the slightest bit of throttle. I paid about $300 for the set and they are marginally worth that cheap price.

[MinisterofDOOM]

I've had exactly the opposite experience with the ZE512s. And from the extensive research I did before buying them, so have most other people who use them.

You can't quantify a tire's grip from spin on acceleration alone, and especially not acceleration in the wet. Remember you're driving with the VQ30 that makes a fair bit of torque during from-stop acceleration. What counts is DRIVING grip, lateral grip, how predictably and linearly the grip goes, etc.Spinning tires on acceleration from stop is inevitable in FWD cars, no matter the tires. It's one of the unfortunate facts of the dynamics of the design. When you combine FWD with 200+ ft lb during acceleration AND rain, you're going to see wheelspin even if you've got the best tires on earth.

I haven't driven on the 912s, but my 512s are great in the rain and even pleasantly surprising in the snow and ice.

[davskins97]

Minister of Doom: First of all let me say that I have seen your posts on other threads and I respect your opinion and I know you're a knowledgeable guy.

I read a lot of reviews as well before I bought them. I expected to get average performance in slippery conditions. I completely and totally disagree with anyone who claims that they perform well in these conditions. These are without a doubt the WORST tire I have ever had for traction - Period. Starting, stopping, extremely light acceleration even while already moving. My abs works overtime any time I try to stop with more than light braking pressure in snow. They're pathetic. My front wheel drive Honda Odyssey puts my car to shame in the snow. I live in Wisconsin, I have owned several different cars and many different tires. Trust me, these tires are horrible in any weather. These are an accident waiting to happen. I had a near miss when they were 6 months old where I tried to stop and slid and had to get off the brakes and drive between 2 stopped cars at a red light to keep from rear ending them. Scary. I wouldn't advise these tires to my worst enemy. I absolutely wouldn't recommend them based on the lack traction alone, and that doesn't even touch on the fact that they wear at a very high rate. In my opinion they are garbage. They are very inexpensive, but don't let that suck you in. In this case, you still don't quite get what you pay for unless you live where it rarely rains and never snows.

[SVTCOBRA]

Thanks guys!Currently, she has Falkens on the car. Not sure which model....too dark and cold out right now, but will post later. They've been fine around here, but they do roar a bit.

Was thinking about some Kumho's or Yokos. Recently put some Yoko Avids on the Wifes G and they seem to be great so far. Son's GF put some inexpensive Kumho's solus (sp?) on her 00 I30 and she's been very please. Much less expensive.

As for Coppers. That's what are currently on my G. They were on there when I bought the car. Lifeliners. So far, so good. Very hard tire. Keep spinning the rear tires on wet and dry pavement.

got to run my son to wrestling tourney....

[SVTCOBRA]

They are the 512's

[davskins97]

Did you make a decision yet? I am sliding all over the road up here in Wisconsin and I'm trying to decide what to do: Spend big bucks on all-seasons that get good snow traction or buy snow tires and mount them to my factory wheels. I really don't want to put them back on my car for 4 months out of the year. I'm worried that after one or 2 years the all-seasons will lose their effectiveness in the snow. I really want to try the Nokian WR G2's, but I have been quoted $800 for the set. That's a lot of dough to try them out.

[asianstyle]

Asianstyle, your signature is too big, would you mind resizing it?Signature guidelines can be found here: zerothread/203223

Thanks!

sorry man.

[Trav1s]

On topic - the 99 SE we had came with Toyo Proxes (I forget the version) and they were very impressive in snow and rain. I know that tire has since been discontinued. What did you decide???

Did you make a decision yet? I am sliding all over the road up here in Wisconsin and I'm trying to decide what to do: Spend big bucks on all-seasons that get good snow traction or buy snow tires and mount them to my factory wheels. I really don't want to put them back on my car for 4 months out of the year. I'm worried that after one or 2 years the all-seasons will lose their effectiveness in the snow. I really want to try the Nokian WR G2's, but I have been quoted $800 for the set. That's a lot of dough to try them out.

Dedicated snows are the way to go, especially in Wisconsin. I am in the same place over here in Iowa but I could be moving south in the spring and don't want to spend the money unless I stay in Iowa/Wisconsin.

I would suggest getting an old pair of 15" (or even 16") wheels from a 95-99 and mounting dedicated snows on those. They will fit over the brakes on your 2k1... Tirerack.com sells packages for your Max under $800 and the cheapest I could put together was $458.00 plus $85 shipped to me in Iowa.

[davskins97]

Thanks for the input Trav. I have been considering getting dedicated snow tires for my stock wheels that are sitting in my garage right now. The problem is my Falken's suck in any weather, and I have a pull to the right even though my alignment has been set and checked. So, if I buy snow tires now I am still stuck with these garbage tires in the spring unless I drop another $500+ on new all seasons. I am thinking that I will buy all-seasons soon and buy winter tires year after next when my all-seasons become less effective.

Side note:I found a consumer reports that showed the H-rated Ziex 512 having a 4 out of 5 in the snow and a 3 out of 5 on ice. The V-rated 512's got a 3 out of 5 in snow and a 2 out of 5 on ice. This may explain why I am so dissatisfied with my Falkens as they are V-rated.

[SVTCOBRA]

Thanks for all of the feedback!!I still haven't decided on what to put on it.....Actually, my daughter will be coughing up the money for the 2 new tires. So, I'm going to let her decide. But, I'll get her to read this thread first. I'll have to go check her Falken 512's, don't know if they are V or H....Dinner is ready, and I'm not going back out. will check in the AM.

Thanks guys!!!!!