I run VREDESTEIN QUATRAC PROs all year. They are technically all seasons but are severe snow rated. I drive all over the UP and they have been great. I’m in a FWD tiny car too. No issues since switching.
I have used these for years and they offer great performance in the dry or snow
I’m a winter tire guy. Have been since my MK6 TDI. I’ve never been stuck. With the manual transmission and grabby tires, I just rip through that shit. Vredstein set for me. “Performance” winter set.
I did not end up purchasing Vredestein (I was considering the HT), but it was the only tire I felt was worth the money below $250/tire that I was looking at, which was Continentals, Pirellis, and MIchelins. Agree they rate much better than similarly or cheaper-priced tires in most rankings.
Vredstein Quatrac Pro. Great tire for the money, really quiet, a lot cheaper than the equvalent Michelins.
I put a set of Vredestein Hypertrac Pro on my daily driver about 5k miles ago.\n\nI am very impressed with the Vreds. They don't slip at all on wet pavement. They are significantly quieter, ride smoother, and were significantly cheaper than the CrossClimates. They handle AMAZING. This is my first \"sport\" tire though, but they really transformed the character of my car.
255/35-19 vredestein wintrac pro is what i use. looks like they replaced it this year with the pro+ but they're great performance winters.
Anyway, for what it is worth, I tried the 275/35ZR-21 Vredestein Ultrac Vorti+ XL both on and off track earlier this year. It is still a summer performance tire. Off track, I was seeing slightly improved efficiency over the factory P Zero, but the Ultras were slightly noisy on rougher roads (no foam inserts); on the track, for the first couple of laps, they were decent (plenty good enough for spirited driving), but driving to the max lap after lap they got squirrely and very vocal.
My initial impression of the Vredesteins was, "Holy cow, the rear end is going to swap places with the front." The car wagged and bobbed all over the road. It was scary. After a short 5-mile drive home, I adjusted the tire pressure to 41 psi in the rear (they were at 40 and 45 left/right) and drove around a bit more to break in the tires. Once broken in, they drove much better.
Going straight they're fine and don't notice too much difference between the old EP500s and the new Vredesteins. Maybe the ride is slightly better due to the Vredesteins’ softer sidewall. Noise is about the same—they’re quiet tires.
We get a lot of rain here, and the Vredesteins are great in the wet. They’re better than the stock EP500s, likely due to their less aggressive tread pattern and greater tread depth.
However, corners are where it all falls apart. The initial turn-in is great because the front EP500s, despite their poor tire life, handle well. But there’s a slight delay as the rear wobbles into the corner. You can feel the car load up, and you have to counter-steer slightly to keep the car in line as the rear flops over. While the Vredesteins have good grip, the side/slip angle is so large during aggressive driving that the traction control freaks out in fast corners. When you straighten out, the rear flops back and wobbles a bit.
My wife texted me on her way to work this morning, saying, "The car is wiggling so much I think I might throw up."
Any type of turning has the rear bobbling and wagging around. Bumps in the road will also cause it to bounce around. It's just not a pleasant experience whatsoever.
After driving on them for a while, I’m considering whether running Vredesteins on the front as well might correct some of the handling issues.
The real criminal act they committed is putting Landsail tires on. That kind of rubber gets you killed. Never, ever save on tires.
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