Sorry if this has been covered, I couldn't find it......Anyways, I was wondering what the pros and cons of Tire chains and Tire studs are. Effectivness, Price, Easy to take on and off? That kind of stuff. I have stud holes, and Im trying to see what I can do for more snow traction, My college is on the top of a plataue(sp) and I'm feeling that it might snow alot more here than it did back in Nashville.

 

I would go with chains just for the fact that you wont have snow covered roads 24-7 and somewhat easy to take on and off The studs will be noisy all the time

 

Unless you were in snow all year, I'd go with chains, too. Studs are not only noisey but they're illegal in some states and I've heard they degrade the tires performance in other areas. Chains can handle deep snow better than studs and a good set can be installed pretty quickly. Ask the locals what they use. It's good to be prepared but don't over do it if you don't have to.

 

Chains will give you more traction in deep snow, but they have to be installed and removed each time. You can't (shouldn't) leave them on all the time, and your speed is limited when they are on.

Studs, as others have already said, are illegal in some areas. Some areas limit their use to certain times of the year, which means you have to put other tires on during the off months. I did use studded snows on my earlier truck for years, and they did help on ice somewhat, but they also tended to reduce traction somewhat on plain wet road surfaces.

One point to mention, you shouldn't attempt to have studs installed on anything other than brand new tires that have not been on the road yet. The stud holes in the tires tend to pick up very small pieces of rock and road debris, and if you insert a stud into a hole with something in it the stud can make the particle work its way through the tread and cause a leak.

 

Looks like chains are the way for me to go...I have prolly 1000 miles tops on my tires so far....Any good places to get chains, or what kind to get?

 

Oh man, I WISH we could have studs in Ontario. Most provinces and states have banned them, due to the old-fashioned notion that they ruin the roads. While it's true that the older, steel, studs are damaging, newer composites are harmless. My GF's car had them (in Newfoundland) and I LOVED driving with them. Great traction on icy roads, but a little noisy. And I'm sure they reduce mileage, but the safety factor is fantastic. For occasional use I'd get chains, but for extended weather, like we get in Ontaio winters, I'd opt for studs, mounted on a second set of new tires.

 

http://4x4abc.com/ML320/ml_chainss.html

I'll take some chains please.

Ease of installation is irrelevant when it concerns mine and my family/friends safety.

 

I love my SCC Z-Chains (cables). They work very well, super easy to install w/o moving the truck and the zig-zag cables cover the face of the tire very well:



http://www.scc-chain.com/Pages%20Tra...oducts/zp.html

 

Remember, with chains you should not drive over 25-30 mph. Studs.....not so, you can drive any speed with studs.

Just sayin'

 

On certain vehicle you can have clearance problem with chains. With ice studs you`ll see a reduction in fuel consumption and you can go fast with studs, not with chains.

As mentionned in the post, the new carbide ice studs are less damaging on roads and impose less stress on your vehicle than chains. But make sure you check your law for your region.

As for ease on installation, you can get Maxigrip studs which are easily removed with a normal drill and don`t require studs hole. I got mine online from www.maxigripstore.com. Depending on your tires size they can be more or less expensive than chain.