Just got to put my all season DWS's into heavy action for the first time due to yesterday's northeast blizzard. I chose these because the feedback on the forums was good and they were rated very well on TireRack.com's survey. I won't say I'm disappointed, but I will say I had slightly higher expectations. I expected some slipping here and there which was very manageable. I did not, however, expect the rear to slide out going up an incline and again while making a very slow 90* turn. I expect that kind of behavior from the Advans. In hindsight, I wish I had went with the Blizzak WS60 - which is a dedicated snow tire. I was wondering if anyone had the luxury of trying both tires and give their opinion of the two.

 

I'm running same setup with no problems.
Traction control + winter mode was on?

Obviously the dedicated winter tire will do better in the snow, but I'd rather buy a pair of all season and save the cash for performance mods. Which I did lol

 

https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...t-however.html

 

What tire pressure do you run? I run my DWS at 36psi because of their soft sidewalls.

I feel the same way about the DWSs as you. I bought a set a couple seasons ago because I needed a light duty winter/snow tire. I expected them to hold up better in the snow then they did. They can really get slippery when making turns as you described--not confidence inspiring at all. They are great in the rain though, and relatively quiet on dry road. And mine seem to be wearing well after 20k miles so there are some pros to them. But overall the DWS is not a great summer or winter tire. It's a snow capable tire that doesn't handle like a marshmallow on dry pavement--i.e. it handles okay.

 

That's strange, both you guys are in NJ.. I would assume somewhat similar weather. My DWS are so far perfect. It's about 15 degrees outside right now. No snow, we've had no snow accumulation in KC this season. Winter tire only would suck for me. Most of the time the streets are cleared, cold, dry or slushy. All I would get with the winter only would be decreased wear, and increased cost with no benefit. imo get snow tires if you are driving on snow covered roads most of the time... am I wrong? Why would you want winters if you were not driving on snow most of the time? I think when people say AS suck it's related to the weather where they live. I had the stock advans on last week and they were like driving on flintstone tires when it was below freezing.... so AS is best for me

 

I live in south jersey and have dws's on my evo x as well. They're great for powdery stuff provided it's not too deep (over 6"). on ice or packed snow not as great but part of snow driving is driving smart too so you have to be able to temper your expectations.

I was forced to use them this year on the track as well (my summers were too worn to be used safely) and they handled ok. too much sidewall flexing to the point of it being uncomfortable to drive confidently in fast corners but the level of grip was surprising (for an all season tire).

 

Man, I couldn't imagine taking these on the track. What tire pressures were you running?

 

34 psi if i recall correctly. wasn't sure how much it would go up on the track, it was a very hot day so i just left it at that.

the good news is these are purely for dd now and i have a set of nitto nt05's just waiting for warmer days. only problem is my "track" wheels have the dws's so i'll have to pay like $200 to remount/balance both sets.... lol...

 

Ive had my DWS's since last year...i too expected more out of them. Dont get me wrong they are a good All Season tire but the way everyone talks about them, i thought they were almost like Blizzaks.....i used Blizzaks on my Civic hatches for years and loved those things in the winter storms. The DWS get through light snow but slide in deep snow...i really got to test those things in the NJ winter this year. I will be purchasing Blizzaks next year for my winter tire. Again the DWS's are good but not great. I will tell you one thing, i took this chic out for a date in the last snow storm, it was her first time being in the X. She thought i was gonna cancel because of the snow...i told her i have AWD and an EVO, lol. Of course she didnt know what an EVO was. Anyway, we went out for drinks in Hoboken during the storm. We leave the lounge and my car is buried!!! At least 4 inches in 1 1/2 hours...i clean the snow off the car and plow through the fresh snow with no problems. We get to a bridge and it looked like an apocalypse!! There were cars stuck everywhere, at least 10 cars and 5 taxis. I plow through the snow again, weaving pass the stuck cars...i get to the end of the road and get stuck after this car stops in front of me. I toggled the AWC from snow, to tarmac, to gravel, and rock the car back and forth for almost 2 minutes and the X was moving again. Long story short i ended up at her house and had a great night lol. The next time we went out she said she told all her friends about my car and how it made a better impression than i did...lol, the X is such an attention *****. Sorry to go off topic but my point was the DWS's got me through the blizzards this year, but not without some hiccups. It felt good driving past all those stuck cars, but i know the Blizzaks have better traction in the snow from experience with them in prior cars that were FWD.

 

I think one of the things to remember is that no matter what, they're still not dedicated winter tires with winter compound + massive amounts of sipes. What that means is, in moderate snow, where a lot of the traction comes from the snow sticking into the voids in your tires, it'll perform well but if there's ice, it won't have as much grip as a winter tire.

Could very well be that you were on very compacted snow or ice. Either way, the dws is still miles ahead of any other all-season tire.

 

I got a set of DWS and it is a great tire for daily driving!!! I know not everybody tracks his car, thus DWS is definitely recommended to him. It's a lot quieter than stock, and the ride quality improves by whole lots. However, I do sense that DWS gives me less road feel. UTQG grade is 540 for the DWS, and it should last a while. I give it a 9.5/10

Lastly, I just realized that I had to slow down a little bit for several ramps on the freeway where I pass by everyday.
It doesn't grip as hard as the stock advans.

 

I've been through a a couple blizzards this year no problem.

The last one, which was a winter storm that was classified as a blizzard, in KC the snow was deeper then my front nose ride height. I'm at factory ride height. Got around with zero problems... up hills, deep snow drifts.. love the tires, but really what's getting me through everything is the car.

 

Dws is rated as Ultra high performance all season, it's not high performance all season, therefore if it handles snow decent then it's awesome tires for the winter.

 

I have used my DWS through two NE OHIO winters now. I have never had any issues with slipping or sliding. I just drive normal and don't expect to be driving like its JULY.

I guess I need tires to get by, not be racing or at max performance in the winter. If you have trouble with this tire, I suspect it is driving style or lack of skill/experience as the issue (I have been driving in OHIO winters for 26 years). For those with trouble, do you use your SNOW setting to vector torque more to the front?

Also, for the price of this tire ($135 for mine), it is more than adequate compared to the price of dedicated winters (50k warranty also, you ain't getting that with winters!!).

I like how the DWS is competent and stable on dry pavement where a lot of winter tires get squirmy at highway speeds.

 

I drive VERY careful in rain,sleet, and snow...i dont drive like it July and i consider myself an experience driver. I drive my X with the Snow setting on but still i get slippage with the tires...i've had Blizzaks on FWD cars that were GREAT...the DWS are GOOD. I find it hard to believe that you never ever once got the slip signal on your dash display with these tires...