The Vince Files

…is one that hasn’t been invented yet. Until then, we still have the Nokian WR G2. These tires are sold in British Columbia exclusively by KalTire. I paid an arm and a leg for these tires but so far they’ve been totally worth it.

Nokian’s tire is classified as an “All-Weather” tire and bear the Severe Service Emblem endorsed by Transport Canada and the Rubber Association of Canada.

Forget the “All-Season” classification nonsense. All-Season tires generally have a “M+S” (for mud and snow) marking on the sidewall but really are just a compromise: they work just OK in a variety of conditions. This is why some people will use two sets of tires: performance tires for the summer (on nice alloy wheels), winter tires for the winter (usually on black steel wheels). You get dedicated tire performance for the weather conditions.

But what tire can I use all year that’ll give me good performance in snow? This is where the Nokian WR G2 excels. CanadianDriver has an article on the first generation WR. The WR G2, however, has a new asymmetrical tread pattern that offers the improved handling on wet and dry pavements.

Most all-season tires perform great in dry summer conditions, are “ok” in the wet, and really suck in the snow. My Mazda5’s OEM tires - Toyo A18 - are no exception.

I’m not the type to go swapping tires on my car. I drive a Mazda5, I’m not going to win any autocrosses anytime soon. And besides, our climate here is considered “temperate rainforest” climate. We get a lot of precipitation here. So I decided to get a tire that I can leave on year-round that shifts its characteristics more towards improved wet/snow performance. We’ve already had a few days now of snowfall (15cm of snow in my neighbourhood this morning) and so far, the WR G2’s don’t disappoint. Don’t get me wrong, the WR G2’s are still great in the dry, but when it comes to rain and snow, you really can’t put a price on safety.