Get your own set of K&K Auto Accessories Snow Socks for your car, truck, or SUV and travel with confidence in snowy and icy conditions. Go to ( amzn.to/3Rkpk4D ) today!
I am shocked about the performance of the snow socks. I have been using Blizzacks for o Er 30 years now which is just unbelievable performance when I am hitting pure ice. I wonder how those socks would perform on pure ice .
I checked Amazon customers reviews on these K&K and general complaint is that the inside seam tears off and the band rips/wears out after one use and adhering to instructions. USD 120 for a couple hours use is too expensive. A durability test before recommending the item would be excellent. Thank you and saludos desde 🇺🇾 Uruguay
Something I noticed about chains is that they churn up the snow and ice for better traction for other drivers coming after you, which is an unintended benefit. I find myself thanking the drivers with chains when I drive after them. We had a brief one day snowfall followed by a half-inch ice storm and having the ice churned up by chains was very helpful.
If you only get occasional snow I highly recommend the Michelin CrossClimate 2 tires. A real all season tire that is also snow peak rated is awesome! I got mine last winter and they are perfect for Western Washington state.
@@Mapavia89on Michelin’s website it’s a all season tire. No such thing as an all weather tire. Just like there is no official thing called winter tire it’s called a snow tire
100% agreed. Not all 'all seasons' are created equal. Michelin's CC2 are phenomenal. We drove a rwd Merc from the UK to Kosovo in February, encountered blizzards and unplowed mountain passes (particularly in Montenegro) and the tyres performed phenomenally; predictable, stable handling, braking and acceleration. As well as performing admirably in the snow, they also happily sat for sustained periods at 130mph on the autobahn
@@trebors386 it says All Weather right on the tire 🤷♂️ and it’s Snow rated… an All Season tire wouldn’t be snow rated hence why this is called an All Weather
I bought some snow socks a couple of years ago. I was working in an area that was having constant snow and was on a steep incline (South of England). Great for getting you out of trouble but not fora journey. I keep them in the car for that extremely rare occasion.
Snow socks are great. One thing he didn’t mention about them is that they are a wear item. If you’re frequently needing to use traction aids like chains, then you should probably stick with chains. Being cloth, the socks will wear through on longer uses. But if you just need a set of traction aids as an emergency item, then socks are great. Not perfect (because nothing is), but really great. They’re easier to store in the vehicle, quicker to put them on, and they work really really well in the snow. We use socks on motor coaches, and they work great even for heavy commercial vehicles.
So the socks would be pretty useless in slushy/ice conditions? Pretty much anytime you dont have loose dry snow, since they need to pick up snow to work
Part of the problem with them cable snow chains is they don't have constant contact with the ground, especially when braking. I think the results would be very different with a quality set of diamond pattern chains. Throw them on ice, and they'll blow all other options out the window Although I'm in the boat of always running winter tires, and then having chains as a backup ontop of that for real extreme scenarios where you actually need to the bite into ice. No point going half measures with snow chains
Agreed, unfortunately, many vehicles these days cannot run those diamond pattern chains. Trucks, yes. Many sedans and crossovers can only use cables or textile chains for clearance.
One thing I’d like to see is how socks compare to chain on ice, especially the kind of ice you’d get in a freezing rain situation. We don’t want to drive in freezing rain, but some of us live in rural or semi-rural locations where an emergency may compel us to try to drive to the hospital when conditions are sub-optimal.
Socks are very ineffective on ice. They do a bit better than all-seasons, but a lot worse than winter tires. Traditional link chains absolutely dominate on ice. The "Tyre Reviews" channel did an excellent comparison recently.
Even snow tires are not good on ice, unless you can use them with studs. Snow socks on ice should have more grip than snow tires but you should remove the layer of snow that has accumulated on the fabric.
They don’t do well in ice, I know people that will swear by them. I live in a ski resort town and you see people stuck es with the socks on all the time. Also they seem to rip easily enough. I would say they are slightly better than not running chains or cables. But just slightly better than winter tires.
@@darthvader6864 I work in commercial transportation in Alaska, and some of our drivers swear by socks. I’ve never used them myself, but by observation they’re certainly not as rugged as chains, and seem quite a bit more sensitive than chains to being driven too fast.
problem with studded tires is the studs are fixed, so the only way to get rid of them is to change tires...snow socks are more convenient as you can take them on and off. Also, studs can cause damage to the roads on days there's no snow on the asphalt, and they're also very noisy.
The first test you ended it at the back bumper I believe.. the second text you ended it on the front tire . You need to be pick one point to go to and second thing you need to know where you need to apply the breaks at . If you go over by 5 feet that is 15 feet added on . If you apply 5 feet before you stop 15 feet sooner .
Thanks for the video. I would like to add, even in pavement in very cold weather, stoping in all-season tires is not best. As you mentioned rubber in all-season get rigid therefore stoping in longer than winter tires. From December 1 to March 15 winter tires are the only legal tires allowed in Quebec.
Great video! I’m from central WI and drive a rwd Chevy Colorado with no G80 locker. I don’t have winter tires but find I get around just fine 90% of the time. In the 10% that I don’t I carry a set of truck claws in the bed of my truck. They’re amazing. Not something to drive around in, but rather something to strap on to get unstuck or climb an icy hill. They’ve never failed me. I’d love to see a comparison video that includes them to see the results vs other chains, cleats, socks, etc.
@@JETZcorp so just looked up he video and found what I think you’re talking about. The straps they use are a little different from truck claws. What I have is a big metal cleat that ratchets onto the tire. It’s got about a 2 inch profile so it’s not something you drive more than a few miles an hour with in a pinch, but it has a steel extender that can be added too to give more surface area. They’re awesome! I’d love to see TFL get a pair to compare. They are pricier-around $350 but much cheaper than a 4 x 4 upgrade on my truck 🤷♂️
I would have liked to see the comparison against class-leading snow tires such as Nokian Hakkas, Bridgestone Blizzaks, or Michelin X-Ice instead of some also-ran like the Toyos.
Snow socks work amazing. Had a 2012 sienna up a in some 11" deep snow but the roads were plowed and it did incredible. No loss of traction taking it easy. Insanely fast to install and remove, and so much less noise and vibration than chains!
I suppose it makes sense. The socks are essentially a crazy amount of siping. They just don't seem practical to have to take on and off depending on the conditions and speed, but definitely nice to have as an easy option to keep in the car during winter. I still prefer snow tires since there's less to think about as they stay on all winter. And it's not uncommon here to have random snow difting across and otherwise dry highway and always the chance of black ice.. in addition to the periods where the highways are snow packed for days or a couple weeks straight.
Agree 100%. Real world conditions often involve many miles of completely mixed conditions, slow speed and high speed. Theres no chance snow socks would hold up in those conditions over time. Constantly taking them off and putting them back on is impractical. Dedicated snow tires are the way to go.
Problem with snow socks is that they really are for temporary snow use only. They will wear out very quickly, especially if you drive them on bare road surfaces.
Yeah. Snow rarely comes without ice. Actually I think the one place where it most likely appears is unmaintained minor road with not much traffic. Maintained road? Snow gets plowed away, baring the surface. Which then generates ice on the cold surface due to no insulating Snow. Plus heavy clearing equipment running over packs the remaining snow into snow pack ice. Same with frequently trafficked road. Wheels pack the snow in to ice. Snow sock do have their place, but it is a very niche use. Snow sock is not same as winter tire. It only works on snow and at slow speed. It's a "get out of this specific stuck situation" or "oh no, I got surprised by snow storm on all seasons, I can *limp* to some safe location to wait this out/ make arrangements". It's like emergency spare tire on car. You have an imminent emergency, it helps you crawl out of it. It isnt a normal conditions solution. If one has to use snow socks more than once in winter, get winter tires. Most likely one skirted with danger multiple times that winter already upon driving around and wondering "should I or should I not bother get out and put the socks on". Plus as said socks don't work on ice. Only proper winter tires or tire chains do that. Tire chains being the speed limited extra option.
In states like WA where lowland snow is rare (about every other year), but people frequently traverse 10-30 miles of snow covered mountain passes, snow socks are a perfect addition to safe winter driving.
Here in the Midwest we rarely get deep snow. Plus many communities plow and salt quickly qhen we have our few major snow events. What does happen is random ice patches. Often at intersections, bridges, and back roads. For that reason a more permanent solution like a snow tires is preferred. Last year we did a little testing and found that snow socks loose their advantage over snow tires or chains on ice.
what midwest are you that you rarely get deep snow LOL I've lived in SE and SW Michigan my entire life and both places get deep snow on a regular basis SW way more often due to the lake but 4 to 8 inches in either location is pretty "avg" for both locations any time it snows, a bad storm easily twice that much
@@taylormadedaydreams6914 SE and SW Michigan haven't had "deep snow" on a roadway for more than 24 hours in at least a decade. This content is about driving cars on roads, not the depth of the snow in the woods or someone's yard. We do have slush, ice, "black ice", and maybe -just maybe- for a short time a thin layer of packed snow to drive on.
How long do the socks last? I put on snow tires for the winter months, but still carry cable chains for an emergency and they take up more space than I like. If the weather is so bad that my snow tires aren't good enough, I'm going to seriously consider if I need to be driving anywhere!
Thanks for the video. Great information. I'd be interested to see chains with 'ladder' configuration on two & four tires and as another commenter mentioned 'studded' tires. The problem where I am is that we more often get ice rather than snow.
I would have loved to see how studs compared. Get some Bridgestone Blizzaks or something. Also, 13:35, was that just an offhand hypothetical scenario, or is Tommy actually engaged?
Also what would be great test is to see the results with socks on winter tires and studded tires. What is the setup that will get you really close to stopping on a tarmac?
I remember seeing snow socks a long time ago. Don't know why I forgot they existed and didn't know how great they are. Definitely have to look into getting a set for my SUV. Would be much more easier to use socks than having to jack up the vehicle and swap out all 4 of my all season wheels with the snow tire wheels everytime I head up to the snow, then swap them back out once spring hits.
Should of done allterrain tires too. Saw a video awhile ago about snow socks, ended up getting chains for my ride, but after this, I gotta look into it again.
Great video. Living in Colorado, I am tired of seeing big tracks and SUV’s think they have snow traction when any small car with snow tires is safer. I have a 200 Land Cruiser with 3PMSF AT tires and I have a Volvo v60 with a Hakkapeliittas. The Volvo is far far better in the snow.
Really great video! I wonder if the chains would perform better in compact snow/ Ice. Also it would be cool to see how a 3 peak rated tire performs compared to these. Excellent work 🎉
compacted snow/ice AND....deep snow, they would be fighting for first place with the snow tires and the chains almost act like paddles in the deep snow.
Thanks for this video: I really like real world tests on the same vehicule. On the other hand, I don't understand why you chose the Toyo as a snow tire. It's not a really good snow tire. Michelin Ice-Snow, Hakka R5 or Continental Wintercontact would have made this much more interesting.
Even if Tommy chose either of those someone would have said "why didn't you use such and such brand?" He giving a general comparison, not a competition.
Interesting video. For anyone in the UK or Europe, All Season tyres here are designed for all season use and the US equivalent are called All Weather tires.
Not trying to be critical here, I respect and appreciate all that Tfl does they bring us a lot of good information. On the other hand snow tires will not melt in hot conditions, I'm from NW Ohio and moved to south Florida and ran my snow tires for 2 years before replacing them. I didn't plan on moving back to the snow belt and wanted to at least get my money's worth from the tires, figured they'd wear down pretty quick but after 2 yrs they still had 50% life left. They are Artic claw and phenomenal. Also snow cables are good but there's no comparison to snow chains. Chains out preform cables in both acceleration and braking by far.
It seems like these would be great to keep in your car for extreme conditions but my main concern would be how well these hold up over time. It would be great to eventually see a long term review.
I've actually ran them on my semi truck and they hold up better than you would think. Because they are so easy on/off, as soon as you hit asphalt, 3 minutes and your good to go! They do not work well in deep snow, for those conditions you still need chains.
thanks just bought a pair not due to your video was already researching them and had seen amazon reviews but this video made me feel better about my choice I'm in SW Mi with that lake affect snow so I need it for in town driving on the days where the snow comes down all day
I'm very surprised by the results. In my experience chains are king in snow and ice. It's basically like driving with super studded tires. Although that good in slushy conditions. But the cable chains you used are have very little metal in contact with the ground so I'm not to surprised by their bad performance.
Awesome! Thanks for your video on the different types for snow. I’ve been wanting the snow socks for awhile now. I wasn’t real sure. I’ll be getting them for my SUV. I’m not in snow here only once in awhile. Mostly if i’m going were snow could be in forecast. (I live Southern Arizona- we can get some snow) Will be traveling up North soon! Thanks again! 👍🏻🤗
Ive been subscribed to this channel for a while and seen them test winter tires but never heard them talk about the brand nokian tires and their studded tires
I don’t prefer studded tires, so I don’t feel the need to promote them. I find them to typically be loud and very hard on road surfaces. So hard in fact they are banned in several states. -Tommy
It’d still be an interesting comparison rather than doing the same tests you’ve done before. Is the show just about Tommy’s preferences? Maybe TFL stands for Tommy feels like…
@@TFLcarEven here in BC, they are not supposed to be used all year, but it amazes me how many people get away with it. Any cop can hear them coming.😂 Nice reviews. 🤙
I installed snow chains on my sedan when I used to drive to the ski resorts. I did it all by myself. They were pain to install on the side of the road, they made load noise and vibration. I didn’t know snow socks existed at the time. Thanks for the demo!
On my car, I have a set of toyo Celsius II all weather tires. I live in the Chicago suburbs, and these tires have performed great year round. They are like a better all season tire because they are actually 3 peak snow rated
Absolutely love this video’s, so full of information and super helpful. Thank you for fighting the cold, and coming up with new winter “need to know” ideas every year 👍👍👍
Great to see a review of snow socks that is postive. I’ve seen many fail during the test. Imagine a RWD car braking on snow …. Where do you want those snow socks: on the rear, the driven wheels or on the front where most of the braking force is applied ? 4 socks seems to be the best option….
To me, cables usually aren't very good. I run a set of Quality Chain Corp Diamond Back chains on my 2020 Civic(sedan, sport trim, 6MT, factory 18s), and the only time I did get stuck was going through about 5" or so of slush, going up a steep hill(CA138). Those are much easier to put on than other chains or cables, in my experience. I should mention that I have 2 sets of wheels, OEM with Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 tires for winter, and Motegi Racing MR131 Traklite with BFG GForce Comp2 AS for the rest of the year.
This was great! Thank you for doing reviews like this. It would be awesome to do the same setup once you get some icier conditions. Really surprised how poorly the cables did in packed snow.
@@ayboss44 Is 25 mph speed limit to be taken seriously? What is the highest speed you have driven at, with the socks on? Also, does driving over dry or salted patches of road damage the socks? Thanks!
@@sansinutube Since i cannot even go higher than 10mph on snow chains going with 25mph is like a gift. I didnt try to go ever 25mph. I used them 15th run and approx. 50mil since they are reusable and washible they are so fine
Have you guys compared flooring it vs limiting tire spin for acceleration or stuck conditions? I have been in scenarios where I could only move with my truck in 1st and redlined. Also seems to be faster accelerating but that could just be placebo because it feels faster with all 4 spinning and the engine screaming. For context I run Blizzaks on my gmt800 with posi and this is bumper deep snow that almost made me stuck. If we had any snow this season I'd be out testing for myself but it's about 2 months late by now.
It corresponds very well to my own experience from the skiing holiday last year. The car was fitted with winter tyres, but it was difficult to get up some of the hills. When we fitted the snow socks, we got just the extra grip we needed. But the socks are not long-lasting. They lasted the skiing holiday, but then they were done too. What I would really like to see is a test of Michelin's Easy Grip mounted on winter tires, not All season tires.
I just bought a pair of snow socks for my 2015 jeep grand Cherokee 4x4 that i iust purchased because it came with all season tires on 20 inch wheels. Just until I can purchase set of A/T.
How do the snow socks do for varying conditions though. Some roads in our area are treated with crusty icy surfaces and periods of bare pavement if ice melt used, not packed snow. Will they tear apart in those conditions or do you have to take the socks off if road sections are bare?
Snow socks like chains are a temporary install unlike dedicated snow tires. I live in Maine and run dedicated snow tires. Nokian Studded Hapakkalita (spelling) 9. Best sniw tires I've ever owned. I'm assuming you are running the Pilot in the normal traction position as opposed to the "snow" position. I drive a 2017 Honda Pilot awd.
what is safe top speed ? I live in Tennessee, we have short snow ice seasons, and black ice frequently in those periods of snow. So I would see a mix of cleared main roads and a lot of neighborhood travel that is still covered with snow and ice. I think the snow sock is going to be the best choice.
I always thought of snow cables and snow chains as two different things. Why didn't you test true chains? I'm getting my new truck ready for next winter so looking for chains. There isn't much information on Chains out therre.
4 fully studded snow/ice tires on my 03 Town Car, RWD only...+ I carry a set of snow cables in the trunk for an emergency..I've went up huge mountains in 8 inches of snow and stopped no problem on a sheet of ice when everyone else was in the ditch...
You were using a Toyo winter tire. The Toyo AT 3 is 3 peak snow rated. It would be interesting to see where it falls compared to the winter tire and the all- season tires.
You should start adding all weather (all season with snowflake) to these tests. It doesn’t snow enough for me to get a winter set but it does snow for one-two weeks a year. I wouldn’t consider all season ever again now that all weather exists but I’m curious on results if it even makes a difference.
I would like to see how some mud tires (M+S and 3 peak rated), as well as some all terrains compare to snows. I have a 1979 Subaru DL and run Achilles Desert Hawk 175R13C mud tires year round in New England. They perform well in rhe snow but I wonder how well they would perform on a heavier car (mine is only 1800 lbs).
Finally some tests on brand new 2024 snow, it can be so deceiving for newcomer in rented awd in snow, my tires were just all terrains and i could not make it slide when i was testing it on big parking lot, i went in little suburb few houses subdivision on side of mountain to test further and almost no slides very good grip, i bought cables to make sure before i left city, but never needed them, 50,60 mph on 4 lanes hwy didn't feel like problem, but we all know better and should stay vigilant
The only bad thing about chains, cables, and socks, you can’t drive with the flow of traffic and in Colorado you would have to pull over many times between Denver and Vail to take them off and on as you almost always hit long periods of dry roads before the next snow packed stretch
Snow socks work great when there's snow covering the road. When the state patrol requires chains because the snow level is near the top of of the mountain pass, you'll often drive several miles on wet or slushy pavement before hitting the snow. Snow socks last about a mile or two on bare pavement before getting destroyed in my experience. Pretty expensive alternative. Since that mountain pass was my daily commute to work and probably 40 days each year were chains required (unless you had four wheel drive) I opted to go with an SUV to avoid the hassle.
I used to own a hotshot rig, Ram 3500 HO dually with a 35' Diamond C fmax 212. I had socks and am a true believer! I once hauled a portable conex shower unit weighing 15k into a mine in ID on a 100+ mile round trip snow covered single lane mountain pass that required an escort vehicle and radios to stay in close contact with the whole fleet. When I pulled out my socks all the truckers made fun of me thinking I was nuts but I had them on in 5 min when it took everyone else 20-30 min. When I got into the mine I got made fun of even more by the miners but by the time we were escorted back out I turned everyone into believers because I had zero issues what so ever. Even the escort driver said he was going to order some that night when he got home. They work well, really well, are very easy to use, and won't tear up your vehicle if they do come loose. And no I'm not a rep haha
Live in the Canadian Rockies and the best way to go is snow tires and my preference is to have them studded. Socks or chains would be great for that hill you can't climb otherwise as an all round winter use, they would be useless.
When when to tire shop and I ask 2 new winter tires in my front Car using as temporary or about 3 months for winter season and the shop owner advice me 4 new tires even my summer tires still new. In short you need 4 socks intead of 2?
Would you be able to test different types of compounds and tire ratings on a trailer with braking and demonstrate if a snow tire can improve the stopping distance of a trailer in the snow.
Not necessarily… the benefits of studs are only for speeds less than 30 mph anything over 30 the decrease in contact patch actually starts to hurt you. Studs can be defeated by better tire compounds. The snow tire in this video actually defeated a studded Michelin x ice in a brake test on a sheet of ice. How?? Tiny walnut shells in the compound. I have a set and they’re noticeably better than the Nokia Nordmans studded.
Curiosity, I would think the target test for chains/socks vs winter tires might be a little different than shown. Correct me if I’m off base here, but I would think the goal of socks/chains is to get you unstuck or keep it from happening. I wonder how much stopping is necessary.
can you do the same test but in 3-4 inch of light, medium, and heavy density snow. you may find different performance numbers. I use peerless diamond chains which have a constant chain on the ground vs the cable chain you used.
Yeah would be good to see the peerless diamond and maybe other chains compared. Too bad the snow chains they use in the video are not actually snow chains. Real snow chains work quite well compared to the steel cable versions in the video.
Get your own set of K&K Auto Accessories Snow Socks for your car, truck, or SUV and travel with confidence in snowy and icy conditions. Go to ( amzn.to/3Rkpk4D ) today!
Why not try snow tires with studs?
No promo code?!
I wish you would have included your Michelin CrossClimate2 tires in this.
Can snow chains or cables be put on snow tires or is the rubber too soft?
I like the idea of them, 25 MPH limit is a deal breaker for me.
I am shocked about the performance of the snow socks. I have been using Blizzacks for o Er 30 years now which is just unbelievable performance when I am hitting pure ice. I wonder how those socks would perform on pure ice .
I checked Amazon customers reviews on these K&K and general complaint is that the inside seam tears off and the band rips/wears out after one use and adhering to instructions.
USD 120 for a couple hours use is too expensive.
A durability test before recommending the item would be excellent.
Thank you and saludos desde 🇺🇾 Uruguay
Something I noticed about chains is that they churn up the snow and ice for better traction for other drivers coming after you, which is an unintended benefit. I find myself thanking the drivers with chains when I drive after them. We had a brief one day snowfall followed by a half-inch ice storm and having the ice churned up by chains was very helpful.
If you only get occasional snow I highly recommend the Michelin CrossClimate 2 tires. A real all season tire that is also snow peak rated is awesome! I got mine last winter and they are perfect for Western Washington state.
It’s called an All Weather tire. It’s actually a really great tire.
I have those on my Grand Marquis and they do a fantastic job.
@@Mapavia89on Michelin’s website it’s a all season tire. No such thing as an all weather tire. Just like there is no official thing called winter tire it’s called a snow tire
100% agreed. Not all 'all seasons' are created equal. Michelin's CC2 are phenomenal. We drove a rwd Merc from the UK to Kosovo in February, encountered blizzards and unplowed mountain passes (particularly in Montenegro) and the tyres performed phenomenally; predictable, stable handling, braking and acceleration. As well as performing admirably in the snow, they also happily sat for sustained periods at 130mph on the autobahn
@@trebors386 it says All Weather right on the tire 🤷♂️ and it’s Snow rated… an All Season tire wouldn’t be snow rated hence why this is called an All Weather
I bought some snow socks a couple of years ago. I was working in an area that was having constant snow and was on a steep incline (South of England). Great for getting you out of trouble but not fora journey. I keep them in the car for that extremely rare occasion.
Didn’t know Snow Socks existed.
Same
I didn't want to know they existed.
You’ve never watched TFL?
@@Silverback_GMT410 Not every video. Maybe every one in three. Some are not interesting to me and, therefore, are not worth my time.
Snow socks are great. One thing he didn’t mention about them is that they are a wear item. If you’re frequently needing to use traction aids like chains, then you should probably stick with chains. Being cloth, the socks will wear through on longer uses. But if you just need a set of traction aids as an emergency item, then socks are great. Not perfect (because nothing is), but really great. They’re easier to store in the vehicle, quicker to put them on, and they work really really well in the snow.
We use socks on motor coaches, and they work great even for heavy commercial vehicles.
So the socks would be pretty useless in slushy/ice conditions? Pretty much anytime you dont have loose dry snow, since they need to pick up snow to work
Heavy snow they are perfect anything else they suck .
Part of the problem with them cable snow chains is they don't have constant contact with the ground, especially when braking. I think the results would be very different with a quality set of diamond pattern chains.
Throw them on ice, and they'll blow all other options out the window
Although I'm in the boat of always running winter tires, and then having chains as a backup ontop of that for real extreme scenarios where you actually need to the bite into ice. No point going half measures with snow chains
Agreed, unfortunately, many vehicles these days cannot run those diamond pattern chains. Trucks, yes. Many sedans and crossovers can only use cables or textile chains for clearance.
Used the snow socks once last year and my 35 minute commute was easy compared to other cars, no brainer
One thing I’d like to see is how socks compare to chain on ice, especially the kind of ice you’d get in a freezing rain situation. We don’t want to drive in freezing rain, but some of us live in rural or semi-rural locations where an emergency may compel us to try to drive to the hospital when conditions are sub-optimal.
Socks are very ineffective on ice. They do a bit better than all-seasons, but a lot worse than winter tires. Traditional link chains absolutely dominate on ice. The "Tyre Reviews" channel did an excellent comparison recently.
@@JETZcorp Thanks. That was my intuition, but I haven’t actually seen a study.
Even snow tires are not good on ice, unless you can use them with studs. Snow socks on ice should have more grip than snow tires but you should remove the layer of snow that has accumulated on the fabric.
They don’t do well in ice, I know people that will swear by them. I live in a ski resort town and you see people stuck es with the socks on all the time. Also they seem to rip easily enough. I would say they are slightly better than not running chains or cables. But just slightly better than winter tires.
@@darthvader6864 I work in commercial transportation in Alaska, and some of our drivers swear by socks. I’ve never used them myself, but by observation they’re certainly not as rugged as chains, and seem quite a bit more sensitive than chains to being driven too fast.
It would be interesting to see these tests performed with studded tires too.
100% agree. I live near these guys, and in the horrific winter of 06-07, I ran studs, and they were amazing on my old Sub..
@@richfarfugnuven6308 thanks for sharing that. I may need to invest in a set.
I doubt you'd see much difference in these conditions, ice is where they really shine.
Also, test standard shaped studs vs. triangular shaped studs (nokian hakkapeliita 9 and 10)
problem with studded tires is the studs are fixed, so the only way to get rid of them is to change tires...snow socks are more convenient as you can take them on and off. Also, studs can cause damage to the roads on days there's no snow on the asphalt, and they're also very noisy.
Would have liked to see the performance of all weather tires with the 3 peak snowflake that can be ran year round.
Yeah I hate when car guys act like they don't exist. (As if they're not The Next Big Thing for the past several years)
The first test you ended it at the back bumper I believe.. the second text you ended it on the front tire . You need to be pick one point to go to and second thing you need to know where you need to apply the breaks at . If you go over by 5 feet that is 15 feet added on . If you apply 5 feet before you stop 15 feet sooner .
Thanks for the video. I would like to add, even in pavement in very cold weather, stoping in all-season tires is not best. As you mentioned rubber in all-season get rigid therefore stoping in longer than winter tires. From December 1 to March 15 winter tires are the only legal tires allowed in Quebec.
True that. All season tires are really 3 season tires. They work well, until water stops being wet. At that point, specialty tires are needed.
In BC, they are required on all mtn highways from Oct 7-Spring.
one advantage snow chains have over snow socks is that Snow Chains can be used in the mud aswel!
Great video! I’m from central WI and drive a rwd Chevy Colorado with no G80 locker. I don’t have winter tires but find I get around just fine 90% of the time. In the 10% that I don’t I carry a set of truck claws in the bed of my truck. They’re amazing. Not something to drive around in, but rather something to strap on to get unstuck or climb an icy hill. They’ve never failed me. I’d love to see a comparison video that includes them to see the results vs other chains, cleats, socks, etc.
Tyre Reviews has something like that. Uploaded about a week ago.
@@JETZcorp awesome, I’ll check that. I appreciate the heads up!
@@JETZcorp so just looked up he video and found what I think you’re talking about. The straps they use are a little different from truck claws. What I have is a big metal cleat that ratchets onto the tire. It’s got about a 2 inch profile so it’s not something you drive more than a few miles an hour with in a pinch, but it has a steel extender that can be added too to give more surface area. They’re awesome! I’d love to see TFL get a pair to compare. They are pricier-around $350 but much cheaper than a 4 x 4 upgrade on my truck 🤷♂️
I would have liked to see the comparison against class-leading snow tires such as Nokian Hakkas, Bridgestone Blizzaks, or Michelin X-Ice instead of some also-ran like the Toyos.
Snow socks work amazing. Had a 2012 sienna up a in some 11" deep snow but the roads were plowed and it did incredible. No loss of traction taking it easy. Insanely fast to install and remove, and so much less noise and vibration than chains!
I suppose it makes sense. The socks are essentially a crazy amount of siping. They just don't seem practical to have to take on and off depending on the conditions and speed, but definitely nice to have as an easy option to keep in the car during winter. I still prefer snow tires since there's less to think about as they stay on all winter. And it's not uncommon here to have random snow difting across and otherwise dry highway and always the chance of black ice.. in addition to the periods where the highways are snow packed for days or a couple weeks straight.
Agree 100%. Real world conditions often involve many miles of completely mixed conditions, slow speed and high speed. Theres no chance snow socks would hold up in those conditions over time. Constantly taking them off and putting them back on is impractical. Dedicated snow tires are the way to go.
Problem with snow socks is that they really are for temporary snow use only. They will wear out very quickly, especially if you drive them on bare road surfaces.
Yeah. Snow rarely comes without ice. Actually I think the one place where it most likely appears is unmaintained minor road with not much traffic.
Maintained road? Snow gets plowed away, baring the surface. Which then generates ice on the cold surface due to no insulating Snow. Plus heavy clearing equipment running over packs the remaining snow into snow pack ice.
Same with frequently trafficked road. Wheels pack the snow in to ice.
Snow sock do have their place, but it is a very niche use. Snow sock is not same as winter tire. It only works on snow and at slow speed.
It's a "get out of this specific stuck situation" or "oh no, I got surprised by snow storm on all seasons, I can *limp* to some safe location to wait this out/ make arrangements".
It's like emergency spare tire on car. You have an imminent emergency, it helps you crawl out of it. It isnt a normal conditions solution.
If one has to use snow socks more than once in winter, get winter tires. Most likely one skirted with danger multiple times that winter already upon driving around and wondering "should I or should I not bother get out and put the socks on".
Plus as said socks don't work on ice. Only proper winter tires or tire chains do that. Tire chains being the speed limited extra option.
In states like WA where lowland snow is rare (about every other year), but people frequently traverse 10-30 miles of snow covered mountain passes, snow socks are a perfect addition to safe winter driving.
Here in the Midwest we rarely get deep snow. Plus many communities plow and salt quickly qhen we have our few major snow events. What does happen is random ice patches. Often at intersections, bridges, and back roads. For that reason a more permanent solution like a snow tires is preferred. Last year we did a little testing and found that snow socks loose their advantage over snow tires or chains on ice.
what midwest are you that you rarely get deep snow LOL I've lived in SE and SW Michigan my entire life and both places get deep snow on a regular basis SW way more often due to the lake but 4 to 8 inches in either location is pretty "avg" for both locations any time it snows, a bad storm easily twice that much
@@taylormadedaydreams6914 SE and SW Michigan haven't had "deep snow" on a roadway for more than 24 hours in at least a decade. This content is about driving cars on roads, not the depth of the snow in the woods or someone's yard. We do have slush, ice, "black ice", and maybe -just maybe- for a short time a thin layer of packed snow to drive on.
How long do the socks last? I put on snow tires for the winter months, but still carry cable chains for an emergency and they take up more space than I like. If the weather is so bad that my snow tires aren't good enough, I'm going to seriously consider if I need to be driving anywhere!
Thanks for the video. Great information. I'd be interested to see chains with 'ladder' configuration on two & four tires and as another commenter mentioned 'studded' tires. The problem where I am is that we more often get ice rather than snow.
I'm in Idaho and run Cooper AT3 4S tires year round on both my AWD Element and 4WD Vitara. Highly recommended.
🎉🎉🎉TOMMY ..CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR ENGAGEMENT 🎉🎉🎉
I would have loved to see how studs compared. Get some Bridgestone Blizzaks or something.
Also, 13:35, was that just an offhand hypothetical scenario, or is Tommy actually engaged?
Even though this was clearly a sponsored commercial, the Gran Turismo like music kept me watching.
Also what would be great test is to see the results with socks on winter tires and studded tires. What is the setup that will get you really close to stopping on a tarmac?
I remember seeing snow socks a long time ago. Don't know why I forgot they existed and didn't know how great they are. Definitely have to look into getting a set for my SUV. Would be much more easier to use socks than having to jack up the vehicle and swap out all 4 of my all season wheels with the snow tire wheels everytime I head up to the snow, then swap them back out once spring hits.
Socks are really good in snow. BUT, they perform very poorly on ice and will be destroyed if used on dry or wet pavement for even a few meters.
Should of done allterrain tires too. Saw a video awhile ago about snow socks, ended up getting chains for my ride, but after this, I gotta look into it again.
Great video. Living in Colorado, I am tired of seeing big tracks and SUV’s think they have snow traction when any small car with snow tires is safer.
I have a 200 Land Cruiser with 3PMSF AT tires and I have a Volvo v60 with a Hakkapeliittas. The Volvo is far far better in the snow.
Great work, and thanks for doing this in the snow and changing tires too.
Normalized for the same speed was a great comparison.🎉
Really great video! I wonder if the chains would perform better in compact snow/ Ice. Also it would be cool to see how a 3 peak rated tire performs compared to these. Excellent work 🎉
Chains will perform best on ice. Go check out the tyre reviews channel for excellent tyre testing. Socks are useless on ice.
The very first test was a snowflake/3 peak tire
compacted snow/ice AND....deep snow, they would be fighting for first place with the snow tires and the chains almost act like paddles in the deep snow.
The chains are only beated by studded tires. Also look for the new Michelin chains, they are as good as studded tires
Thanks for this video: I really like real world tests on the same vehicule. On the other hand, I don't understand why you chose the Toyo as a snow tire. It's not a really good snow tire. Michelin Ice-Snow, Hakka R5 or Continental Wintercontact would have made this much more interesting.
Or even the BS Blizzak dmv2
Even if Tommy chose either of those someone would have said "why didn't you use such and such brand?"
He giving a general comparison, not a competition.
@@WheresHerb yeah but usually when you compare stuff you compare it with an industry standard. That would be the Blizzak or XIce.
Hi! You have viewers from outside US. Could you please provide temperatures and other measures in both, "USA systems" and the Celcius & metric system?
Do some tests with Nokian studded Hakkepalitta!!
Interesting video. For anyone in the UK or Europe, All Season tyres here are designed for all season use and the US equivalent are called All Weather tires.
Not trying to be critical here, I respect and appreciate all that Tfl does they bring us a lot of good information. On the other hand snow tires will not melt in hot conditions, I'm from NW Ohio and moved to south Florida and ran my snow tires for 2 years before replacing them. I didn't plan on moving back to the snow belt and wanted to at least get my money's worth from the tires, figured they'd wear down pretty quick but after 2 yrs they still had 50% life left. They are Artic claw and phenomenal. Also snow cables are good but there's no comparison to snow chains. Chains out preform cables in both acceleration and braking by far.
It seems like these would be great to keep in your car for extreme conditions but my main concern would be how well these hold up over time. It would be great to eventually see a long term review.
They are definitely only good for emergencies and when on snow covered roads. Pavement will destroy them.
Any kind of ice, rock, or pavement will tear them to shreds. They're definitely only good on snow.
I've actually ran them on my semi truck and they hold up better than you would think. Because they are so easy on/off, as soon as you hit asphalt, 3 minutes and your good to go! They do not work well in deep snow, for those conditions you still need chains.
@@uro6761 - Good to know, thanks for sharing the information!
Very good analysis. Thanks for taking the time to make this excellent video. Very clear.
thanks just bought a pair not due to your video was already researching them and had seen amazon reviews but this video made me feel better about my choice I'm in SW Mi with that lake affect snow so I need it for in town driving on the days where the snow comes down all day
I'm very surprised by the results. In my experience chains are king in snow and ice. It's basically like driving with super studded tires. Although that good in slushy conditions. But the cable chains you used are have very little metal in contact with the ground so I'm not to surprised by their bad performance.
Awesome! Thanks for your video on the different types for snow. I’ve been wanting the snow socks for awhile now.
I wasn’t real sure. I’ll be getting them for my SUV. I’m not in snow here only once in awhile. Mostly if i’m going were snow could be in forecast.
(I live Southern Arizona- we can get some snow) Will be traveling up North soon!
Thanks again!
👍🏻🤗
Ive been subscribed to this channel for a while and seen them test winter tires but never heard them talk about the brand nokian tires and their studded tires
I don’t prefer studded tires, so I don’t feel the need to promote them. I find them to typically be loud and very hard on road surfaces. So hard in fact they are banned in several states. -Tommy
It’d still be an interesting comparison rather than doing the same tests you’ve done before. Is the show just about Tommy’s preferences? Maybe TFL stands for Tommy feels like…
@@ReformedBrantI love my Nokians on my LR.
@@TFLcarEven here in BC, they are not supposed to be used all year, but it amazes me how many people get away with it. Any cop can hear them coming.😂 Nice reviews. 🤙
I installed snow chains on my sedan when I used to drive to the ski resorts. I did it all by myself. They were pain to install on the side of the road, they made load noise and vibration. I didn’t know snow socks existed at the time. Thanks for the demo!
peerless auto-trac chains… about 90 seconds per tire to put on
On my car, I have a set of toyo Celsius II all weather tires. I live in the Chicago suburbs, and these tires have performed great year round. They are like a better all season tire because they are actually 3 peak snow rated
I have pirelli Scorpion all terrain plus tires on my vehicle. They also have 3 peak rating and they perform great in northern Wisconsin winters.
@@chrisstilwell9869 mine are on a 05 camry. My one friend has those scorpions on his pickup and they are great
Another great video. A follow up video testing the durability of the snow socks and add the Michelin CrossClimate 2 in the testing would be great.
The cross climate would probably out perform the winter tyre they chose for this test.
Best video of a winter traction product hands down.
Going to be ordering a set for both of my cars
Superb presentation TFL car.
Check customers reviews on durability. Very disappointing.
Will do thank you
Absolutely love this video’s, so full of information and super helpful.
Thank you for fighting the cold, and coming up with new winter “need to know” ideas every year 👍👍👍
Well, those K&K guys got a new customer.
Great to see a review of snow socks that is postive. I’ve seen many fail during the test.
Imagine a RWD car braking on snow …. Where do you want those snow socks: on the rear, the driven wheels or on the front where most of the braking force is applied ? 4 socks seems to be the best option….
K&K ones are tough. They are more thick heavier than AutoSock and cover more area on tire so they wont rip of or tear.
To me, cables usually aren't very good. I run a set of Quality Chain Corp Diamond Back chains on my 2020 Civic(sedan, sport trim, 6MT, factory 18s), and the only time I did get stuck was going through about 5" or so of slush, going up a steep hill(CA138). Those are much easier to put on than other chains or cables, in my experience. I should mention that I have 2 sets of wheels, OEM with Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 tires for winter, and Motegi Racing MR131 Traklite with BFG GForce Comp2 AS for the rest of the year.
Thank you for posting this. I drive up the 138 often and was thinking about what type of traction aids to buy.
This was great! Thank you for doing reviews like this. It would be awesome to do the same setup once you get some icier conditions. Really surprised how poorly the cables did in packed snow.
Well done brothers Kase and tommy.
Can snow socks be used on surface streets with 2-4 inches of snow cover, for daily commute ?
Also, how do the socks perform on ice?
I’m using those ones exactly for that
@@ayboss44 Is 25 mph speed limit to be taken seriously? What is the highest speed you have driven at, with the socks on? Also, does driving over dry or salted patches of road damage the socks? Thanks!
@@sansinutube Since i cannot even go higher than 10mph on snow chains going with 25mph is like a gift. I didnt try to go ever 25mph. I used them 15th run and approx. 50mil since they are reusable and washible they are so fine
Have you guys compared flooring it vs limiting tire spin for acceleration or stuck conditions? I have been in scenarios where I could only move with my truck in 1st and redlined. Also seems to be faster accelerating but that could just be placebo because it feels faster with all 4 spinning and the engine screaming. For context I run Blizzaks on my gmt800 with posi and this is bumper deep snow that almost made me stuck.
If we had any snow this season I'd be out testing for myself but it's about 2 months late by now.
It corresponds very well to my own experience from the skiing holiday last year.
The car was fitted with winter tyres, but it was difficult to get up some of the hills.
When we fitted the snow socks, we got just the extra grip we needed.
But the socks are not long-lasting.
They lasted the skiing holiday, but then they were done too.
What I would really like to see is a test of Michelin's Easy Grip mounted on winter tires, not All season tires.
I wish you would have had a set of the all weather tires like you tested a while back.
I just bought a pair of snow socks for my 2015 jeep grand Cherokee 4x4 that i iust purchased because it came with all season tires on 20 inch wheels. Just until I can purchase set of A/T.
How do the snow socks do for varying conditions though. Some roads in our area are treated with crusty icy surfaces and periods of bare pavement if ice melt used, not packed snow. Will they tear apart in those conditions or do you have to take the socks off if road sections are bare?
Any chance have you guys done a video testing the Bridgestone blizz ax tires for SUVs
Snow socks like chains are a temporary install unlike dedicated snow tires. I live in Maine and run dedicated snow tires. Nokian Studded Hapakkalita (spelling) 9. Best sniw tires I've ever owned. I'm assuming you are running the Pilot in the normal traction position as opposed to the "snow" position. I drive a 2017 Honda Pilot awd.
Would love to see how the Michelin Cross Climate compares to snow tires.
what is safe top speed ? I live in Tennessee, we have short snow ice seasons, and black ice frequently in those periods of snow. So I would see a mix of cleared main roads and a lot of neighborhood travel that is still covered with snow and ice. I think the snow sock is going to be the best choice.
Would be curious about how an AT tire would compare to the all season.
Thanks. Wish I could have seen them all climb and descend a hill. My driveway is my trickiest spot for winter.
Have you tested socks on more icy gard pack or black ice condition?
The socks did amazing on our wrx when our vehicle wasn’t able to move around on its own lol. Only needed them once tho
I always thought of snow cables and snow chains as two different things. Why didn't you test true chains? I'm getting my new truck ready for next winter so looking for chains. There isn't much information on Chains out therre.
Would love to have seen you test cross climate 2's
4 fully studded snow/ice tires on my 03 Town Car, RWD only...+ I carry a set of snow cables in the trunk for an emergency..I've went up huge mountains in 8 inches of snow and stopped no problem on a sheet of ice when everyone else was in the ditch...
Studdeds are illegal on most states. Dont even mention EU
You were using a Toyo winter tire. The Toyo AT 3 is 3 peak snow rated. It would be interesting to see where it falls compared to the winter tire and the all- season tires.
Growing up, we just had studded tires on the drive set. Only legal half the year, but wurkt like phonix for those snowy/icy months.
Its all well and good doing these rests in an AWD with an automatic box but i run a FWD manual box
This felt like a commercial for the snow socks lol. But hey i just ordered a pair so great job tfl
You should start adding all weather (all season with snowflake) to these tests. It doesn’t snow enough for me to get a winter set but it does snow for one-two weeks a year. I wouldn’t consider all season ever again now that all weather exists but I’m curious on results if it even makes a difference.
would you expect snow socks or snow tires to have any impact when road is covered in ice? would chains make the difference there?
I would like to see how some mud tires (M+S and 3 peak rated), as well as some all terrains compare to snows. I have a 1979 Subaru DL and run Achilles Desert Hawk 175R13C mud tires year round in New England. They perform well in rhe snow but I wonder how well they would perform on a heavier car (mine is only 1800 lbs).
Finally some tests on brand new 2024 snow, it can be so deceiving for newcomer in rented awd in snow, my tires were just all terrains and i could not make it slide when i was testing it on big parking lot, i went in little suburb few houses subdivision on side of mountain to test further and almost no slides very good grip, i bought cables to make sure before i left city, but never needed them, 50,60 mph on 4 lanes hwy didn't feel like problem, but we all know better and should stay vigilant
...wonder if the snow socks would work less well over the all-seasons. ...less grippy, cold rubber maybe not transfer grip as well to the socks?
Could you do a comparison between the snow socks vs all weather tires like a CrossClimate 2?
Can you ride the socks on regular pavement with patchy snow?
would they allow snow sock over chains in state of Ca, ie Big bear etc
The only bad thing about chains, cables, and socks, you can’t drive with the flow of traffic and in Colorado you would have to pull over many times between Denver and Vail to take them off and on as you almost always hit long periods of dry roads before the next snow packed stretch
Snow socks work great when there's snow covering the road. When the state patrol requires chains because the snow level is near the top of of the mountain pass, you'll often drive several miles on wet or slushy pavement before hitting the snow. Snow socks last about a mile or two on bare pavement before getting destroyed in my experience. Pretty expensive alternative.
Since that mountain pass was my daily commute to work and probably 40 days each year were chains required (unless you had four wheel drive) I opted to go with an SUV to avoid the hassle.
I used to own a hotshot rig, Ram 3500 HO dually with a 35' Diamond C fmax 212. I had socks and am a true believer! I once hauled a portable conex shower unit weighing 15k into a mine in ID on a 100+ mile round trip snow covered single lane mountain pass that required an escort vehicle and radios to stay in close contact with the whole fleet. When I pulled out my socks all the truckers made fun of me thinking I was nuts but I had them on in 5 min when it took everyone else 20-30 min. When I got into the mine I got made fun of even more by the miners but by the time we were escorted back out I turned everyone into believers because I had zero issues what so ever. Even the escort driver said he was going to order some that night when he got home. They work well, really well, are very easy to use, and won't tear up your vehicle if they do come loose. And no I'm not a rep haha
Live in the Canadian Rockies and the best way to go is snow tires and my preference is to have them studded. Socks or chains would be great for that hill you can't climb otherwise as an all round winter use, they would be useless.
Does snow get caked into the socks? Seems like it would build up and become icey in the right conditions.
When when to tire shop and I ask 2 new winter tires in my front
Car using as temporary or about 3 months for winter season and the shop owner advice me 4 new tires even my summer tires still new.
In short you need 4 socks intead of 2?
Can't wait to use those snow socks in Florida this winter.
What about in mixed conditions? Packed snow, loose snow, ice, snow on top of ice?
Would you be able to test different types of compounds and tire ratings on a trailer with braking and demonstrate if a snow tire can improve the stopping distance of a trailer in the snow.
I'm curious how the falken wild peak all trails would do.
Good job , thank you for making my decision more eazy!🎉❤
The road to our local ski mountain requires 4x4 or chains at times. Seems that for this use, the socks would be an excellent solution!
Those snow socks seem like they would be great for city winter driving
Were the chains on all tires or just the drive train tires
Where did you get that "old" Pilot? I thought this might have been a regurgitated test from 6 years ago.
Studded tires are a better option than all of the ones you tested for winter in the mountains and here in Montana it is what most people use.
Studded tires are ILLEGAL!
@@ayboss44 Where? In WA and OR its just illegal to run them when it isnt winter.
Not necessarily… the benefits of studs are only for speeds less than 30 mph anything over 30 the decrease in contact patch actually starts to hurt you. Studs can be defeated by better tire compounds. The snow tire in this video actually defeated a studded Michelin x ice in a brake test on a sheet of ice. How?? Tiny walnut shells in the compound. I have a set and they’re noticeably better than the Nokia Nordmans studded.
I am curious what the performance of all of these would be on ice or near complete ice. Can a snow sock perform better than chains on pure ice?
Curiosity, I would think the target test for chains/socks vs winter tires might be a little different than shown. Correct me if I’m off base here, but I would think the goal of socks/chains is to get you unstuck or keep it from happening. I wonder how much stopping is necessary.
can you do the same test but in 3-4 inch of light, medium, and heavy density snow. you may find different performance numbers. I use peerless diamond chains which have a constant chain on the ground vs the cable chain you used.
Yeah would be good to see the peerless diamond and maybe other chains compared. Too bad the snow chains they use in the video are not actually snow chains. Real snow chains work quite well compared to the steel cable versions in the video.