How did your stock LC perform in snow last Winter?

[Ike582]

I've been a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon driver for many years, and swapped it for my LC in May. It's been a pleasure, but I missed out on seeing how it performs in snow and ice. My old Jeep was great in miserable weather.

For those of us in snow country, how did your LC perform? My LC is on the stock 265/60R20 Yokohama Geolander X-CV All Season tires.

 

[NoMe cruiser]

Mine came with the Dunlops but I put blizzaks on for the winter. I hunt on logging roads and fish on lakes so I can’t chance being stuck out there. I did get stuck this spring on a snowmobile trail after I swapped back to the Dunlops. Honestly there is no tire that would have made it in that situation. The guy who pulled me out got stuck as well. Full time 4wd is great but if you can afford it… get yourself some dedicated winter tires. Those geolanders won’t be very good on the ice.

 

[DoMoCruiser24]

Been busy but we got to drive up to the condo once last season. Did well in moderate snowfall and icy roads driving up the mountain at night. Did not drive through deep snow.

OEM 18in wheels and Dunlop tires.

 

[omgponies]

On semi-plowed roads or better, the Dunlops were fine even at "high" speeds (wasn't driving crazy, but basically driving similar to if no snow).
On thinly iced roads, they were fine (drove slower).
In heavily falling snow that plows were not keeping up with, but like ~3" of snow on the ground, again - totally fine (I slowed down).

In ~3-6" slush and ice, I had understeer when trying to turn from a main road onto a side road which was the main time I thought well, should have better tires. Didn't feel like I was driving fast (but apparently was, for those conditions with those tires).

I never went off into deep (8" or more) powder, but had I, I would not expect the Dunlops to do well, but I mostly do highway/town driving, so not really something I expect to run into. I was regularly in about 2-6" of unplowed snow at low speeds (20-40mph) and as long as I gave myself more stopping room, was totally fine.

So not bad, but I wouldn't call them good - they are most definitely not "snow tires" (and make no claims to be). I am too lazy to maintain two sets of tires given my current needs - if this winter I end up in more dire circumstances more frequently (joined a new range up north, not sure how much I will go in the winter) - then maybe that will push me over to have two sets.

 

[midlifeflysis]

Mine was great. It came with Blizzaks as I bought it in winter so I can only speak to its performance with winter tires on. Traction was great, power was always routed where it needed to go even when I tried to get it to cut loose it would stay on track. All in all, as good as any all wheel drive vehicle I have owned. It never saw snow more than 8 inches deep but it handled it all like a champ.

 

[PDPete]

The vehicle itself handles winter weather great...but the tires you choose to run on it will be a huge factor! The stock Geolanders that came on my 1958 were decent enough in light snow and slush, but they did NOT give me much confidence in heavier snow, ice or moderately slick conditions.

I've got KO3s on mine now, and depending on how they do this winter, I may consider getting a dedicated winter set...but generally here in the mid-Atlantic we don't get a ton of snow (for better or worse), so I don't usually like to keep 2 full sets of tires like I would if I were in New England or somewhere with a lot more snowfall.

 

[Nor Cal Cruiser]

Numerous trips to Lake Tahoe last winter, on Toyo AT3’s, and the performance was great at all times, in heavy snow, on ice, and going up or down hilly roads in every kind of condition.

 

[TrailWhale]

Pro: The full time 4WD is fantastic for all winter conditions.
Con: The truck is pretty heavy and pretty easy to have the rear slide a bit - in particular on steep and twisty mountain roads.

Aside from that, it's 100% tire selection. I kept my Falken AT4W (SL) tires on for the winter and they did great in the mountains on stormy days and on cold/dry/deep conditions. In slush or ice on the mountain they were OK but nothing to write home about. I also have a RAV4 with Blizzaks so in the end, the RAV4 was making most of the drives up to the ski resort.

In town here we have pretty mild winter conditions (but still wintry)- occasional snow/slush with a quick melt off. There was no concerns, and I would expect a good set of all seasons with the 4WD would be perfectly fine around town but a little hairy if you venture into the mountains regularly. YMMV!

I considered halfway through the season putting Blizzaks on the cruiser, but didn't end up doing it because I don't like storing tires in my limited space. And practically speaking, outside of the deepest snowy conditions, the RAV4 is the better option around here. I'm still not completely decided though, and may end up putting blizzaks on it next winter.

 

[Kevin]

I drove the stock Geolander X-CV tires in Minnesota last winter. I would rate them as fair, but not great. Good enough that I didn't want to throw away new tires, but not something that I would buy again. Light snow and slush they were fine, but struggled a bit on ice.

Once they wear down a bit, I'll likely replace them with Michelin Defender LTX M/S2, which were fantastic on my previous vehicle (Dodge Durango).