Blizzak Winter Tires

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
April 06, 2013

These converted our AWD Montego to a winter half track. Studded these tires on their own wheels and they actually out performed the Blizzaks on our other car, for a lot less cost. They have the usual studded winter tire squirm and noise, but not as bad as others were before. But after getting a 3 foot blizzard and many other snow storms, these have proven themselves. And on ice? You can't beat studded tires in my opinion. Took Tire Rack's advice and went down an inch in wheel and tire size, but the taller sidewall gives us the same effective ground clearance, which is valuable in deeper snow. And that taller sidewall is more forgiving on Maine's frost heaved, potholed roads.

Our new Michelin hydro all seasons were downright dangerous in snow the previous winter, so glad we got them off for winter!

Initial Review, 1,000 Miles on Tires
April 16, 2013

Used All Season tires that came with the car for two winters. All season are good but using them after my third winter didn't give me much traction so purchased 4 of the LM-25 RFT. Made a big difference. Dealing with Tire Rack was great! Very professional and the Rep named tanner was very helpful in every detail. Tires were delivered in less than 2 days.
Expectional tire and company to do business with!

Initial Review, 31 Miles on Tires
December 14, 2012

Just bought a set of MD10 (17” alloy wheels) and Bridgestone WS70 tyres (balance & mounted with sensors) from www.tirerack.com and saved over $1300.00 Canadian Dollars compared to buying them directly from the Dealership. I got the alloy wheels and tyres in 4 days from the United States. Great service, as well as fast and efficient. I got Lexus of Calgary to mount them onto my Lexus CT200H 2012. These tyres are like Velcro to ice and snow. I live in the South West of Calgary, which is very hilly, like Bow and Sarcee Trail. These Bridgestone WS70’s perform very well indeed and I have great confidence in their hill start, accelerating, cornering and most importantly stopping. I have over 24 years of driving experience from Europe, as well as here in Canada and I must say that these Bridgestone WS70 tyres, perform very well indeed. I would never dream of driving in winter without them.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
April 18, 2013

These tires have two upstate NY winters under their belts and I couldn't be happier. I owned a set of Blizzaks on my old Civic and these are as good or better for less $$. My nose heavy FWD Acura plows through ANYTHING I threw at it with these tires on. I would most certainly buy them again, as well as recommend them to others. From light powder to packed icy snow I've always had confidence and control. Take em to an unplowed parking lot to play around and you'll see what I mean!

Initial Review, 20,000 Miles on Tires
April 26, 2013

I mount Blizzaks during the winter so my winter driving assessment is somewhat hypothetical but these tires make my car feel like a 'sports car' on dry twisty roads....the car feels like it's on rails..
They are rated for 40K and will probably reach that easily.
If they make 50K I'd never buy anything else...

Initial Review, 8,000 Miles on Tires
April 22, 2013

I live at a ski resort at 8500 feet with an annual snowfall of 500". These tires on a subaru were awesome. I passed other all wheel drives and SUVs that didn't have snow tires and they were sliding off the road. The traction is unbelievable. These tires were cheaper than blizzaks and I knew I would be driving some highway miles as well. Stopping and turning on snow was no problem. Driving up to Alta and Snowbird was a dream! I am not sure about the wear. I drove 2000 dry highway miles and then six months of 50/50 snow and dry driving and the tires look brand new.

Initial Review, 1,000 Miles on Tires
February 07, 2013

We got about 9" of snow today and these tires made me feel safer than I ever have driving in a snow storm. When other people are slipping, these tires keep me rolling without an issue. They're as sturdy and surefooted in light, powdery snow as they are in the heavy, wet stuff we got today. In fact, I drove into a parking lot with about 6" of untouched snow, and it was like nothing for my tires. I've had Blizzaks in the past, and I'm not sure they could've handled that scenario without some spinning. I am a nervous winter driver, and I am so relieved to have a tire that makes me feel more confident on my long commutes to and from work in rural areas.

Initial Review, 3,000 Miles on Tires
January 24, 2013

I have these on a Rear Wheel Drive V8 Caddy and I could not be happier. I live in NE Ohio, so snow is not an uncommon occurrence, and dedicated snow tires make all the difference in the world.

Keep in mind, these are snow tires, so don’t put them on too early or leave them on too long. Know that even ½ throttle will over power them if you have a real motor and corners should be taken with a little more care than with the summer shoes.

Noise is no issue, it is winter – your windows should be up anyway – and if noise is a problem, it’s not the fault of the tire - you just need a Cadillac. I
I would definitely buy these again, and this is a much better solution than buying an AWD car with their lower MPG and heavier handling.

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
April 09, 2013

Bought these to replace my worn out Pirelli Scorpions. Thinking spring had arrived I pulled off my Blizzak WS-70's and put these on. As luck would have it, 3 days later we got hammered with almost 2 feet of snow. Very quickly found out how good my Blizzak's really are. Calling these "All Season" tires is being optimistic. Traction in loose snow (after roads were plowed) is marginal at best. Cornering in loose snow caused the front end to plow and the traction control to activate immediately. Deep snow (unplowed roads) resulted in lots of wheel spin and darting. To be fair, I didn't buy these for winter driving and I did get a chance to evaluate them on dry roads prior to our spring snow. Road noise is low to moderate. Not as quiet as my Pirelli's but not annoyingly so. Haven't seen wet roads yet so I can't comment on how these do on them. Dry traction feels good but there is a small amount of sidewall squirm that you can feel in cornering. We have a lot of rutted roads thanks to the use of studded winter tires and these tires wander around when you get in a rut. It's not uncontrollable but it does make me feel a little loose compared to the OEM tires. I only have 500 miles on the tires so maybe they will get better as they break in and the roads warm up. I'll write a followup review in another 1000 miles to see if this is the case.

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
April 06, 2013

These are great winter tires. I have a jeep 4x4 and these out perform my wrangler with its all terrain tires in the snow any day. If you are looking for a set of snow tires these are the ones you want.

Initial Review, 20,000 Miles on Tires
April 08, 2013

Only run this tire in winter months. I have driven down hyway at speed limit on slipery roads and not even realized it was slippery til I see other vehicles sliding off road. I puchased these because my driveway is very steep (usually have to put my 4x4 f350 in 4x4 to get up hill) The toyota van could not make it up hill with factory all season tires. With the blizzaks on it goes up plowing snow with front bumper. I highly recommend this for ice and snow. They are a little noisy, Would not recommend alot of dry warm weather running on them as they are soft and will wear quickly. I run the factory all seasons the rest of the year (8 months).

Initial Review, 7,500 Miles on Tires
December 24, 2012

I bought the WS70's last winter but it hardly snowed here in central Iowa, this year looked like it may repeat but then we just got hit by a blizzard and 12 inches of snow. The snow was the best part of the storm, it was the 2 inches of ice that was left on the roads after the snow plows went through that I thought would be the problem. I was very pleased and sometimes amazed how good these tires are, not once did I lose traction or start sliding around unlike many trucks and other 4wd vehicles that were in the ditch. I am still grasping that people don't buy winter tires in snow country or drive on bald tires year round, oh well I didn't need a tow truck to pull me out 3 days later. Buy these tires if you value safety of your family above all else. Now to the other details. Dry traction is a little on the spongy side and I feel the need to concentrate more but I expected that in a winter tire so not that surprised. Also I wouldn't go over 80 on these tires as it doesn't feel the safest. Overall these tire do exactly what they are supposed to do in the winter.

Initial Review, 17,000 Miles on Tires
February 09, 2013

The 710s are the OE tire on our 2012 Sienna XLE.

The outstanding characteristic of this tire and vehicle combination is steering response. The steering is so light and easy it is unlike any other vehicle I've driven. It makes this 2 ton+ vehicle seem like a much smaller, lighter vehicle. To call this van 'light on it's feet' is an understatement. We've taken it on one 2,000 mile trip and thought it was great on the highway. There is little noticeable wear after 17,000 miles. We've also driven in quite a bit of snow this winter and, while they're no Blizzaks, they get around just fine. I went through the tire selection matrix on Bridgestone's website and they are recommending the Dueler 422 as the top-of-the-line tire for this vehicle but I love the way this Firestone works so well on this minivan that I'd be worried about any loss of the great driving dynamics from the factory.

Initial Review, 100 Miles on Tires
December 11, 2009

Waited for a decent snowfall to write review.Blizzak definitely live up to being superior ice & snow tires. In stop & go traffic, cornering, steep hills & hwy driving they hold the road. Only used the 4x4 during the snowstorm, but soon realized the tire gripped so well (no fish-tailing) that I didn't need to use it.Highly recommend for winter driving.

Initial Review, 4,500 Miles on Tires
March 19, 2013

This is my first ever set of winter tires, so I can't really compare them to any other tire, except all-seasons. My first misconception was that the tires would make my car invincible in the snow - they didn't. You still have to be mindful of how you're driving. Having said that, I've only driven a handful of times in the snow with these tires, and I fully enjoyed all of them. I could drive twice the speed of the other cars, in a lane that was still snowed in and had barely any tracking. I've also played around in a parking lot with about 2-3 inches of fresh snow and the responsiveness of these tires is very good. You will still slide if you're braking too quickly or turning too sharply, but much less than with the all-season tires that I've had in the past. I had one experience with deep snow, and it wasn't a good one. I tried to plow through a foot of snow in my driveway and got stuck. Not really the tire's fault, but I did notice that FWD with an open differential is not very good for those instances. That's why I think that your drive train will play a big part in the overall performance of these tires. Last thoughts - they look nice and meaty, noise level is low, and ride comfort is great. Not recommended for spirited driving, but excellent for everyday use. I would like to compare these to the Bridgestone Blizzaks, if I ever get the opportunity. Snow tires are fun!

Initial Review, 2,500 Miles on Tires
March 02, 2010

This is more a review of these tires on my specific car.



Great in the snow, absolutely great. The more snow the better, or so it seems. Braking is easily better than all-seasons, as is handling and acceleration. Wet snow is noticable more difficult to maintain control, however. Now for the bad news, seemingly terrible in the slush. Not sure if it is my car or the tires, but the car gets pushed around very easily by even small amounts of slush. I tend to believe it has more to do with my cars suspension, weight, and width to wheelbase ratio than the tires though. Easier to drive through 6 inches of snow than 1 inch of slush. Fun to have a car willing to rotate on dry roads, but not so much on wet winter slush.



Dry roads are mixed, as these things like to grab every little pebble and sand grain the road commission dumps on Michigan. Slip and control is well within tolerance though, and really only becomes an issue in spirited driving. It takes very little to spin the inside wheel accelerating through a tight corner if there is any sand, debris. Clean roads are great in the dry though. Some tire wandering above 65 mph, although determined mostly by road surface. Tires seem to move and stretch a noticable amount more above freezing temperatures, although this is only apparent driving back to back temperature differences.



Very quiet tire, almost as quiet as the non-OEM all-seasons that I had on before. (Coopers?) Much quieter than my father and bro-in-laws Blizzak Revo's. Stock wheels are 17", these are on 16", I notice more rebounding motion from the tires than stock, although small imperfections are slightly smoothed over versus stock. In retrospect, I should have gone with 17" as the extra sidewall can be felt in hard acceleration. Not sure on tread-wear yet.



In summary on my Mazda 6s, great on the snow, bad in slush, matches wet(rain) A/S performance, dependable dry weather performance and a very quiet ride for snow tires.

Initial Review, 25,000 Miles on Tires
March 06, 2013

The only reason I would possibly buy these again is because I believe the performance is worth the extra money on the Blizzaks. These tires, though, are impressive in their own right as they have worn EXTREMELY well. I have had these exact tires mounted on a '95 //M3 as well as this '98 323 for most of the use. Believe it or not, the difference in suspension setups still provided for similar commentary:
These tires are quite noisy (expected with winter tires) but corner extremely well. They ride quite harshly as compared to a more pricey Blizzak or Vatiiva, but for the extended wear I'll take it! All in all, I still have about 6/32 of tread after literally 6 seasons of use. This is with SPIRITED driving style. The tires have shown some rot along the sidewalls, so it is now time to replace. Overall I am happy with these considering the money spent. If you have some more cash to lay down, I would recommend some Blizzaks. Beware more frequent replacement however.

Initial Review, 3,000 Miles on Tires
March 02, 2013

Impressed with this tire so far with spirited driving. Easy to forget they are winter tires on dry pavement, obviously a bit softer but overall a very good compromize for the marked improved winter weather handling. Pretty quiet, much quieter than Blizzak WS60 on '09 Odyssey.
Makes the Xdrive wagon very stable family hauler until ground clearance becomes an issue.

Initial Review, 8,000 Miles on Tires
March 06, 2013

These tires replaced some terrible Michelin all-seasons which made the hatchback Mercedes basically a hockey puck in the ice/snow. The LM-60 tires are absolutely the best rubber I've found, hands down, for winter sport tires. This opinion is compared to Dunlop Wintersport M3, D3, Blizzak WS-60, and Nokian Vatiiva. I have used all of these other tires extensively on multiple cars with multiple driving styles, and I would now go with the Blizzak marque in general for ALL winter vehicles from here on out.
Cons- winter tires are always noisier, and the Blizzaks fit the mold. Mileage suffers a bit, and wear is accelerated with the softer rubber. Driving with an average style can prolong life and get you hopefully 4-5 seasons out of them. Start getting some G's on your turns frequently, and you may only get a couple seasons at best. These tires will not wear well on cars with suspension work / increased cambers. Beware.

Initial Review, 3,000 Miles on Tires
March 06, 2013

This set of Blizzak WS-70s are superior to the previous older set I owned and ran for 9 New England winters. As long as one only runs them during winter months, they last a reasonable amount of time with very good performance. They really excel in icy and slushy conditions, which are common in the Northeast.