Seeking Experience/Opinion on Half-Worn Michelin Defender LTXs M/S in Winter Conditions (vs. A Prius w/ New All-Seasons)

Y'all,

My girlfriend and I are driving to Minnesota from Georgia for Christmas and I am debating on whether to take the Tahoe with half-worn 6/32" tread Michelin Defender LTXs or her Prius with brand-new Yokohama Avid Ascend LXs; the Tahoe is 2WD w/ G80 and the Prius has traction control.

I have no concerns over taking the Prius, as we've done this trip three times in the Prius during winter and it's done fine, but it's not terribly comfortable for long trips (we did a 900-mile trip in one day in it, though). I figure the Michelins on the Tahoe would be fine in dry snow, but I'm concerned how they'd do in wet or slushy snow conditions, and my bet is we'll encounter that on the outbound and return trips.

We won't be taking any rural or otherwise out-of-the way roads. She's a Minnesota native, I have six years of winter driving experience from being stationed in Washington State and North Dakota.

Any opinions or experience on this?

Thanks,
Scrappy

(As an aside, one issue is night driving in the Prius, because the high beams suck despite being factory xenons. TBH, the Tahoe's headlights also suck, so no advantage there unless the backordered Diode Dynamics driving lights show up on time.)

I visited a friend there when the windchill was like -40, wind blasted right through my leather jacket..
felt like I was wearing NOTHING when I stepped out of the car. cold memories..
I was in shorts a couple winters ago through colorado and kansas.. -11 degrees most of the way, no problem getting out the car and gassing up.
That windchill -40 is waaay different!

Hard to say on the tires...
Personally I would want to drive my Tahoe. (I always want to drive my own car for some reason, their car just doesn't feel like mine)
Already familiar.. More space and more mass, should someone hit you. I heard they are good about plowing out there..

Plus I'd want to play in the snow in my Tahoe..
Make sure your rear brakes work. I had a bronco with bad rears. When braking in snow, it would push me a couple extra feet before stopping..

Frankly, if it was me, I'd take the Prius.

Better tires, FWD and better mileage.

If the Tahoe had 4wd, my answer would be different.

I have the LTX MS/2 on my Denali. Mainly because Duratracs would look silly in a 20/55 tire. They've never really impressed me in winter, and that's on an AWD truck.

I'd rather be in the bigger vehicle with more protection.. not to mention the fact it's much more comfortable to drive... Most of the time they take pretty good care of the roads anyways unless it's a really big snow, it's mostly going to be dry or wet and salty. These bigger vehicles are built for road trips.

I'd tend to want to take the Tahoe for better comfort.
Toyota might have better traction but the Tahoe has better ground clearance so you can run into problems either way.

6/32 will be fine with those tires. I have the same ones and I have about the same wear on mine. I just drove the Eisenhower (high up in the Rockies) over Thanksgiving and had zero issues dealing with the snow up there. I do have 4x4, and only used it in the deeper snow in Silver Thorne stopping for gas. I was in 2wd on I-70 and hit some heavy snow that caused mainly a dusting on the road (yay snow plows) and my G80 handled it just fine. Also had no issues stopping.

Laughingly I’d say put the Prius in the back of the Tahoe for traction and ride on. Tahoe for the WIN! And comfort!

Tahoe all day long, it's a much safer and comfortable vehicle. The extra money spent on fuel is the cost of safety and situational awareness.

I'd vote for the Tahoe for comfort and safety, and your current Defenders will have no problem dealing with the winter conditions. If you encounter any crappy weather, just drive intelligently, while looking out for idiots on the road, and you will be fine.

Thanks for the input, Y'all!

GMCChevy said:

Toyota might have better traction but the Tahoe has better ground clearance so you can run into problems either way.

Click to expand...

That's a valid point. However, if ground clearance was an issue, I wouldn't be continuing with either vehicle on that route. Yes, I understand unexpected situations like unexpected weather that moves through and/or hasn't been cleared yet, but this trip isn't a "must press on" situation and we'd wait it out until road conditions had improved sufficiently.