Winter Studded Tires Size Question

[TransCanadaTom]

Hey team,

I am wanting to put some studded winter tires on the Grenadier and the tire I’ve always liked and appreciated was the Nokian Haakapelitta LT# Studded. Unfortunately they don’t make it in the 255/70/R18 but they do make it in a 275/65/R18. Does anybody know if that tire would fit without any rubbing? Are there any other issues that might come up using that size tire? Thanks in advance for any information you could provide.

 

[C-Mack]

You should not have any issues with the 275/65 18” as they are the same diameter 32.1” as your 255s. You could even go with 275/70 18” (33.2” diameter) as shown on the image below. This is the size I’m going to replace my 255s with when they wear out. 255s are 10” wide 275s are 10.8” wide approx.

 

[TransCanadaTom]

Thank you thank you very much for the advice. I was able to find them in the size that you recommended. I’m just torn now between studded and non studded.

 

[Glen]

Thank you thank you very much for the advice. I was able to find them in the size that you recommended. I’m just torn now between studded and non studded.

I lived in Alaska for 45 years driving lots of different vehicles. In the U.S. the only type of road-legal studs are round carbide studs that come in typically aluminum (but sometimes steel if not prohibited by legislation) holders. If you drive on dry pavement for more than 60 miles, these type of studs are immediately worn down flush with the tread where the carbide is completely surrounded by the holder metal. From there, they can provide some extra grip, but only when there is enough traction to deform the tread and expose them. And at that point, it’s really the relatively soft holder metal - which quickly rounds off - that is doing any work.

When this type of stud is new, the only appreciable benefit I noticed was a very minor increase in traction on water-over-ice. Maybe a 5% reduction in braking and a similar improvement in acceleration distances. But once they’re worn down flush, they provide almost no benefit over non-studded tires. Sometimes our roads would stay ice covered for months and the studs would be noticeable for a while. Other times, we’d immediately luck into a spell of bare pavement and the cost of studding ended up being a waste.

One benefit of no studs is you don’t have to worry about swapping tires out before a legal deadline. In Alaska, studs weren’t legal after May 15, and it wasn’t unheard of to need snow tires as late as June 1. So with non-studded tires, I didn’t have to worry about getting caught out.

Here in the Colorado Rockies, I’m driving my Grenny on studless LT Bridgestone Blizzaks. They work great on snow and ice. The Nokians are great tires too.