What that video DIDN’T show was difference in handling on dry pavement…Yes I agree that winter tires will handle better in the road conditions depicted on that video…which account for about 3% of your driving here in NE…The other 97% of the time you driving on dry or wet (i.e above freezing) roads.
NE doesn’t get much snow…here in Southern NH we average about 35"…Worse winter ever was just over 100"…And most of that snow comes in just a few storms that dump several inches of snow…Then the plows come out to clear the roads and salt…then the sun comes out…and the roads are dry in just a few days.
Now if I was driving a fwd vehicle back in the town I grew up…then I’d buy winter tires…But that town averages almost 10 times what Southern NH or MA does…Many times you don’t see dry pavement for months at a time.
There are winter tires that do as well if not better than normal all-seasons on dry days(noise, braking, dry/wet hanndling) of winter. A great example is the Michelin X-Ice model. Also they do extremely well on the extremely cold but dry pavement days where all-seasons simply don’t perform well.
The main issue that hurts all-seasons is the tread compound has to be optimized for a much larger temp. range. For most it does not matter. However for those who spring lots of money on a performance vehicle for performance why put sub par tires on in winter and summer.
I’m not saying winter tires may not be better during the winter months…just that on MOST days the difference between them and all season tires is very very narrow. We’ve never needed winter tires…and I don’t see a need to own them…The all season tires we buy don’t give us any problems at all…I can count the number of times on one hand the times the tires actually slipped while driving at normal driving speeds.
I’m leaning towards getting dedicated tires and wheels with a smaller diameter and larger profile.
Why? In snow you want a thinner profile so it has a higher PSI on the snow so it can dig down through the snow better. I personally would favor a larger diameter, because they will give you a little more road clearance and less likely to be damaged by a road hazard.
Actually, winter (not snow) tires are built to work better in the cold temps. Need them? Maybe not, but they will out-perform all-seasons just because they work in the cold, and will last longer too, because they never run in the warm and get rubbed away.
I’m going to go against the grain here on the steel wheels. Steel wheels rust, bend more easily than alloy wheels, and don’t handle as well-- hence your vehicle having alloy wheels to begin with. The only advantage to steel would be cost. You have to weigh that part of the formula on your own.
The problem is not getting to your destination, it is about getting there safely. Winter tyres will help keep your wife on the road and help prevent her from sliding into someone else.