What Are The Best Winter Tires for an F 150? Blizzaks?

[Nate977p]

I came here to say just that!
I know people love their Blizzaks, but then they haven't probably tried Hakkas.
Can't say I tried em on a pickup, but with the added weight in the back from the battery I'm assuming/hoping the Lightning will handle a lot more like a SUV in the snow compared to a tail happy truck.

I've had Hakkas on a lot of my cars and they handle really well in snow and slush. Past 10 years I've only used the studless ones but even so, they are pretty good on ice. If they let go on snow (as a result of an overconfident driver) they do it with control so you can still recover fairly easily. I will definitely use those on the Lightning as well.

Exactly on the Hakkas! I was turned on to Hakkas once I switched from a chain tire store that damaged my car to a local shop about 15 years ago.

I ran Blizzaks prior to the Hakkas (on both a 1999 VW Passat and a 2011 F150) and they were amazing tires. Incredible grip. But the lifespan on them does not compare to Hakkas. On our Model 3 P, I am finally replacing my Hakkas, after driving them 4 full winters (there were a few flats rotated in) and we drive about 25k a year on that car.

If you have a local store that does Hakkas, their grip is incredible, lifespan is amazing for snows, and the comfort/noise is great. A huge plus, is they are a very EV-forward brand, making EV specific snow tires that are lower rolling resistance. Even with the regular Hakka snows, we get much better efficiency on our snows than summers.

One final note... I always find it funny talking snow tires with people, because Nokian is still a very rare brand in the US that is tough to find a shop compared to other brands. Due to that, many reviews do not include them. For those who have not heard of them and are confused why they are not compared, I make a comparison. Usually it is something along the line of "all the other brands are premium, think BMW/Audi/Mercedes, but Nokain is Bentley at BMW prices. Of course they are not going to compare them "

Pardon the long message, this is like 1/10th the length of my full snow tire rant

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[Nate977p]

Ohhhh and to add.

My tire shop has my studded Hakkas waiting an appointment. I called them back in July when we got the truck to make sure there was a model that fit and met the load ratings. Few months later, he called saying they came out and he snagged them for me.

 

[FirstF150InCasco]

Exactly on the Hakkas! I was turned on to Hakkas once I switched from a chain tire store that damaged my car to a local shop about 15 years ago.

I ran Blizzaks prior to the Hakkas (on both a 1999 VW Passat and a 2011 F150) and they were amazing tires. Incredible grip. But the lifespan on them does not compare to Hakkas. On our Model 3 P, I am finally replacing my Hakkas, after driving them 4 full winters (there were a few flats rotated in) and we drive about 25k a year on that car.

If you have a local store that does Hakkas, their grip is incredible, lifespan is amazing for snows, and the comfort/noise is great. A huge plus, is they are a very EV-forward brand, making EV specific snow tires that are lower rolling resistance. Even with the regular Hakka snows, we get much better efficiency on our snows than summers.

One final note... I always find it funny talking snow tires with people, because Nokian is still a very rare brand in the US that is tough to find a shop compared to other brands. Due to that, many reviews do not include them. For those who have not heard of them and are confused why they are not compared, I make a comparison. Usually it is something along the line of "all the other brands are premium, think BMW/Audi/Mercedes, but Nokain is Bentley at BMW prices. Of course they are not going to compare them "

Pardon the long message, this is like 1/10th the length of my full snow tire rant

Nokian site says there is not a version of the Hakka snows that will fit an F 150 Lightning Lariat.

 

[mr.Magoo]

Nokian site says there is not a version of the Hakka snows that will fit an F 150 Lightning Lariat.

https://www.nokiantires.com/tires/by-tire-size/non-studded-tires/275-60-20/

Same load rating as OEM, lower max top speed, but there's probably few occasions where you need to go faster than 105mph in the winter.

 

[FirstF150InCasco]

Ohhhh and to add.

My tire shop has my studded Hakkas waiting an appointment. I called them back in July when we got the truck to make sure there was a model that fit and met the load ratings. Few months later, he called saying they came out and he snagged them for me.

Nokian site says there is not a version of the Hakka snows that will fit an F 150 Lightning Lariat.

https://www.nokiantires.com/tires/by-tire-size/non-studded-tires/275-60-20/

Same load rating as OEM, lower max top speed, but there's probably few occasions where you need to go faster than 105mph in the winter.

Thanks for the link. I'll check it out.

 

[mr.Magoo]

New test, unfortunately Bridgestone isn't init but valuable information nonetheless (particularly rolling resistance)

 

[JPro]

Ohhhh and to add.

My tire shop has my studded Hakkas waiting an appointment. I called them back in July when we got the truck to make sure there was a model that fit and met the load ratings. Few months later, he called saying they came out and he snagged them for me.

Which studded Nokians did you install and how are they working out for you?

 

[Nate977p]

Which studded Nokians did you install and how are they working out for you?

I'll have to look at exact model, but new Hakka Studs, I am assuming 9s?

They went on 2 weeks back. Driving comfort is fine. But I have to say studs RUIN the amazing serenity in the truck. I have run studs on many cars and the noise never bothered me. But the first 5 minutes in the truck and I instantly was mad at myself.....

Just my experience so far

 

[LightningShow]

I opted to go with the Blizzak LT instead of the DM-V2 to account for the higher weight. They will likely ride a little stiff, but I expect I will get better life out of the tire.

How have these worked out? I was about to buy the DM-V2 but noticed that the rating doesn't meet the rear GAWR (after the 9% de-rating for light trucks). Did you put them on the 20" stock wheels? What size did you opt for? Looks like the 265/60R20 is about 0.5" smaller than OEM and 275/65R20 is about 1" larger than OEM.

 

[96161Lightning]

How have these worked out? I was about to buy the DM-V2 but noticed that the rating doesn't meet the rear GAWR (after the 9% de-rating for light trucks). Did you put them on the 20" stock wheels? What size did you opt for? Looks like the 265/60R20 is about 0.5" smaller than OEM and 275/65R20 is about 1" larger than OEM.

I went with LT265/60R20 and bought a separate set of 20" wheels. I put 5,000 miles on them last winter and already have 1k on them this season and they still look like new, very happy with them in terms of wear.

 

[LightningShow]

I ordered the LTs in 265/60R20 from Costco. I’m curious about the range hit. These tires not only have higher rolling resistance but they’re significantly heavier than the Grabbers.

 

[mefly2]

KO2s have not really hit my efficiency ... speed does, however.

 

[LightningShow]

Here’s some feedback on the Blizzak LTs from the Rivian forum. They don’t seem to be seeing much range hit. Also nice to see that the OP had pretty minimal wear over the last winter season. Since these tires are rated to 80psi i’ll probably up them to 48-50 to help with the efficiency.

https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/20-blizzak-lt-winter-usage-summary.14338/

 

[vvgogh]

I ordered the LTs in 265/60R20 from Costco. I’m curious about the range hit. These tires not only have higher rolling resistance but they’re significantly heavier than the Grabbers.

Will Costco install those Blizzaks with their lower speed rating (R = 106 mph) vs the OEM (my lariat ER has T = 118 mph)

 

[LightningShow]

Will Costco install those Blizzaks with their lower speed rating (R = 106 mph) vs the OEM (my lariat ER has T = 118 mph)

They did install them. The installer called me about the size being off from OEM but he just wanted to make sure i knew. There wasn’t any concern from them.

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