Blizzak WS-50s Snow Tires

[CateraMV6]

This year I decided to drive the Catera through the snow, Last year and the year before that I parked it in storage and used my other car, but hey what the heck I called tire rack and Ordered 4 new Bridgestone Blizzak Tires WS-50s

Tires were at my door a few day slater... now the crazy part is the price... they were originally listed at $149/tire, the clearance sale reduced them down to $98/tire and finally the sales rep offered me a $23/tire discount for some screw up that they did at their wearhouse... but either way total cost was $300, I got free install and balance at the local Discoun tire and the wheels were a steal deal from a Saab 9-3...

Overal impressions the car is smooth, I can hear a slight noise from the tires when the radio is off... its like a hummmm... but nothing that my mother would notice.
I had a chance to try them on a 2" of snow and let me tell ya, you thought the catera couldnt go anywhere when the white stuff came down huh? well you are very wront...

I tried braking on a steep down hill and the ABS didnt even kick in, then accelaration on the same hill and the traction didnt even bother... the grip is simly amazing, not quite like dry pavement but pretty darn close.
Also I tried them on ice and I couldnt tell the difference... the car was solid... with my all seasons I couldnt take off... not to mention that I stayed away from any slopy streets...

So overal, I am very happy with the purchase... for about $500 I have a set of winter shoes that I can trust and know that my car can get through most of the stuff I throw at it without any worries.

Here are some of the pictures... Any comments are welcome...


My car before the snow tires... Last shots with the sumer wheels..

The tires...

[lakesidepark]

thank you so very much! I really didn't want to drive a truck all winter! I bought Goodyear Eagles 2 years ago 'cause they were speed rated, and my one experience on snow scared the smelly outta me. Glad to know someone out there got gutsy. spent the money and found a good alternative.
I don't need to go 125mph anyway. I'd rather stay on the road in January in my Cat. I'll report on how they work for me when I get them.

[CateraMV6]

I think if you look on the site they are still for sale... at 98$/tire... which is still one hell of a deal considering the original price of 150$, and also Dunlop WinterSport M3s are on sale as well around 105$/tire, and if you call a sales rep you can probably get them to give you a few more bux in discounts...
Otherwise the tires are 99mph rated so you gotta keep your foot out of it but I did get up there in speed and didnt notice any differences... a little louder but no big deal, the good part is the tread is soft and stays soft at sub zero temps so snow gets ceaned out easily and the traction on ICE is scary awesome, you never quite expect so much of it, and when you do apply the brakes thinking you are about to slide thorough an intersection and you end up stopping 10ft short of your destination... a Julia Roberths 32 teeth smile pops on your face and I am not kidding you here...

I cant wait to get some more snow to have fun again! I drove thorugh about 1-2" of snow a week ago on 94 towards Detroit and I was the only car doing 65mph down the highway, no one could keep up and no one dared... and I felt confident because for once the brakes felt solid and the traction was staying out of my business...

>....SO snow tires in the winter, summer ones in the summer!!! dont cheapen youreself out of some 300-400$ repairs to your health and car could easily be worth 5-10 times more then that...

[investor74]

I have both a Catera and a SAAB 9-3 and never realized that the wheels are compatible. Interesting....

[lakesidepark]

Originally Posted by CateraMV6

... a Julia Roberths 32 teeth smile pops on your face ...

down in dese parts dat wud be ah 15-teeth smile...

[CateraMV6]

Originally Posted by lakesidepark

down in dese parts dat wud be ah 15-teeth smile...

I guess you got a point there brothuhhh!

[dkozloski]

WS-50 Blizzaks have been obsolete for over a year now after being replaced by WS-60s. That's why they're selling at cut rate prices. That being said, I bought some from TireRack last year with a similar deal and I also think they are great. I've got nothing but good things to say about them after having driven thousands of miles on ice and snow with them here in interior Alaska.

[CateraMV6]

Yep, I got nothing but good things to say about them as well..
Last night we got 4-5" of snow in Detroit and I was out driving, had to do a few things... and to be honest I dont think I can get my car stuck even if I wanted... I drove through some pretty deep stuff and I had no problems, traction everywhere...
The only part I didnt like was the slushy wet snow packed that caused the whole car to slide and affected the steering, but the car can start moving in just about anything I threw at it... felt like a tank... on certain intersections with lots of packed snow I could outaccelarate SUVs and 4x4s.

Now the WS-60 just doesnt seem as capable winter tire as the WS-50, I think it will do better on ice but when it comes to deep snow traction I think the WS-50 is supperior due to the deep tread and multiple wide channels for snow biting edges. I bet if you put them side to side, the WS-60 will do better on ice but worse on lets say 2" of snow... the tread doesnt seem to have very deep/wide channels for the snow to get into...

I will try to take some pictures and maybe a video of the car on snow...