Do you drive your OEM tires in temps below 35F?

[Harlaquin]

Just curious. As manufacturer strongly suggests you do not. I know people who do. I know lots of you bought two sets winter/summer. But for those who live in the areas like I do where we have winter but there is only really maybe 20/25 days the temps get that low it is not reasonable to spend that much money on a set of extra tires. Now i did investigate a second set but when I found used car a whole perfectly fine car for less then the second tire set up i just went down that path. plus now have a back up car. so those who DID NOT go buy a second set what do you do on cold days?

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[EAClarke]

35F is really low. (2 degrees in Canada-land). We've always been told if it's going to be consistently below 7 degrees (44F), then we should switch to winters.

Driving the Type R OEM's in temps below 35F is just dangerous.

 

[Harlaquin]

35F is really low. (2 degrees in Canada-land). We've always been told if it's going to be consistently below 7 degrees (44F), then we should switch to winters.

Driving the Type R OEM's in temps below 35F is just dangerous.

Yeah i couldn't remember if it was 45 or 35F. but now that you mention it i think it was 45 they said don't drive on them. But I know people who do, so was curious how many did. But I guess people wont come here and admit they do I do know a guy who did and i say did because not long ago he slide right into the back of someone in temps in the 30S

 

[Zeffy94]

I did it last year, I just made sure to keep the speeds low and not try to do anything crazy. When it gets really cold (single digits) and you drive it then you risk damaging the tire.

And if it snows and it’s more than a light coating you may as well forget about it. Extremely bad idea to try and drive in snow with the OEM tires.

 

[EAClarke]

Yeah i couldn't remember if it was 45 or 35F. but now that you mention it i think it was 45 they said don't drive on them. But I know people who do, so was curious how many did. But I guess people wont come here and admit they do I do know a guy who did and i say did because not long ago he slide right into the back of someone in temps in the 30S

That's unfortunate for him but he took his chances by not spending $1000 to get winter tires.

 

[Ouhei]

I've been driving on summer tires year round in central NC for 14 years and never had an issue with just cold temps. Granted we rarely have days where it never gets above freezing, but for example I drove in to work this morning and it was 28 out and just drove normally...

 

[Will Solo]

I did it here in Colorado when the weather took a sudden turn for the cold. I drove slower than normal even though it was bone dry out, just cold. I didn't do any snow driving, but I have since switched to a winter tire setup. For $1200, I'd do that any day to ensure my loved ones are safe. If it was just me, I'd maybe do an all-season but with my kiddo in the car with me most mornings, $1200 isn't anything to keep her safe. Do I lose some performance? Sure, but it's winter and I know the winter tires aren't in the same league as the OEM Conti's or any summer tire.

 

[remc86007]

Coldest I've driven them was 33 degrees, and that's as cold as I'd risk it. I was on vacation at the dragon run. The temps eventually got up to 50 degrees, so it wasn't like I was running them all day in the cold. I also didn't push them until I got some heat in them. If it isn't wet out, these tires will warm up quite a bit and, once up to temperature, will grip really well even if the ambient temps are around 45 degrees.

 

[Muggsy]

The only time I drove the stock tires in cold (under 40 degrees F) was when I picked up my car from the dealer in December 2017. Drove it home, very slowly, and swapped out the summer tires for all-seasons the following week. You can do it in a pinch if absolutely necessary, but I wouldn't risk it. Summer tires turn into hockey pucks in cold weather.

 

[slowman]

I've driven on them in mid-upper 20s. No issues. Wouldn't recommend it but didn't have any issues, was just normal. That was about 2 weeks ago. Been parked since due to snow/threat of snow. Probably won't get it back out until March now at this point. The Fit is my winter beater, with General Altimax Arctic tires on it and does great.

 

[ctrmofo]

there is little to no grip in less than 60f....so no, don't do it.

 

[Z06Chris]

I'm guessing they're like the Michelin Super Sport and Sport Cup 2's I've used. They warn that under 35 degrees there is a LOT less grip but they're fine to drive on as long as temps don't dip into the 20's and the car sits for a long time. If it gets into the 20's and the car sits at those temps for a while and then is driven, you risk cracking the tires and then they'll need replacing.

 

[dn7309]

When I drove my CTR stock from CA to CO I drove through a snowstorm and made it out in one piece. During one traffic stop my car did loose traction in the snow. As soon as I made it Denver to changed the tires right away.

 

[s2kdriver80]

On my S2000, I use extreme performance summer (tirerack's highest performance category) Bridgestones for 3 seasons out of the year and up until the first snowfall of the year (It's mid-January now and I'm still on these tires as we haven't got any snow yet on Long Island this season). Obviously, these tires have much less traction in the cold, but in my experience, they haven't given me issues down to even around 10F. As long as you accept the decreased performance and don't drive like a clown for the conditions, you should be ok. The S2000 is the worst type of car to drive in the wintertime (RWD, mid-engined, short wheelbase, lower polar inertial moment, relatively lightweight, oversteery), so driving the CTR with stock tires in colder temps should be ok. Is there a higher risk of tire damage in cold temps, sure, but I myself haven't had any issues driving with performance tires in the winter for 15 years. So do it at your own risk.

Now, once snow hits the ground, forget it. You won't be able to proceed in performance tires, so don't even try. We don't get crazy snow in this part of New York, so I've been using the Blizzak LM series tires on the S2000 with good results.

 

[ctrmofo]

no tire damage if using stock tires below 40-50f which likely get more damage if they're under-inflated than anything else. it's damage to your car if you crash that you should be worried about.

if you guys don't play it safe and get proper winter and properly called aka low temp tires (not just called snow tires), then fine. $1000 or so for a cheap set of wheels and winter tires will save your car and maybe life.

winter tire compound is made for a reason...grip below 40f temp and well into sub-zero temp, not just snow and ice.

helping y'all out here.

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