Wrong. The compound of a winter tire allows it to stay pliable in very cold conditions. This is so the tire can still grip the road when frozen. The added siping of the tires allows them to grip as well. Summer only tires have larger tread blocks for summer grip, but that does little for grabbing and pulling in the snow. If you were to take a new summer-only tire out on a 10 degree morning and do the same thing with them as a snow tire, you'll soon see that snow tires will run circles around them for grip. This is indisputable not only within the tire industry, but also those here who know the difference between the two.

 

...probably from people trying to use summer-only tires.

 

I don't think so. Go out in ice or snow in that C4S with your standard high-performance summer tires and you will quickly find yourself with damage. AWD is not a cure-all, a purpose made snow/winter tire is.

 

What tires do you run? I doubt it's a "Summer" tire. More likely some kind of all-season that performs OK and gives that cushy ride, but a set of real "summer" tires and a set of real "winter" tires would improve the car in terms of handling during the summer and everything during the winter.

 

My car is a DD with Michelin Super Sports in the Summer and Pirelli Snosport 240's. The correct tires are key no matter what you drive. My C4 has saved my butt more times than I care to say. I really prefer the 4 over the 2. With PSM (standard on a C4 it tells you when you are doing the wrong inputs. The more you drive the less the PSM comes on = faster in Summer and Snow. Do I drive like a maniac..nope. But it sure is nice to know how your car reacts in special circumstances.

 

I know this to be untrue because I lived it. One year I was lazy in switching over to the snows, still had the summers on after Turkey day. We got a flash freeze after rain one night, I attempted to drive home from NYC where it's often few degrees warmer -- no ice. What a mistake. Once I was into colder weather I could barely keep the car on the road. I had to dump it until the temps came back up the next day. Promptly switched over to the the snows on my winter wheel set, no problems at all when the temps dropped again. Wet weather performance also magnifies the cold weather issue of useless summer tires.

To the OP, I also don't at all care for all season tires on performance cars.
Car feels numb in summer, useless if you get caught out with heavy snow.
Probably fine in a Corolla.

 

Ask yourself....What's the effectiveness of ABS for stopping AND stearing on an ice rink with winter tires vs summer tires...?

 

Bridgestone Turanzas.

My RX tire chains work in ALL wintertime conditions whereas wintertime tires only function with a "soft", penetrable surface.

 

They already have. Take a look. Please show us a comparison with your instrumented testing.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=167



"...To find out what sort of handling and traction the newest and best Studless Ice & Snow tires deliver, the Tire Rack team conducted a Real World Road Ride and Ice Rink Drive. We compared the new Michelin X-Ice Xi3 with the Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice WRT and two of the best already available in the category -- the Bridgestone Blizzak WS70 and Continental ExtremeWinterContact. Our evaluation used 2012 BMW F30 328i sedans fitted with new, full tread depth 215/60R16 tires mounted on 16x7.5 wheels..."

 

C2 in snow? No problems what so ever

 

Remember, a C4, at most can only give 30-40% of power to the front wheels (to make it behave like a rear-wheel drive car) - so it's not quite as "4WD" as a jeep.

As other people have said, a C2 on winter tires will be much better than a C4 on all-season.

There is no substitute for good winter tires.

I went through the same thought process when I got my car - and I did get a C4, but if I had to do it again, I wouldn't have made that a deal breaker.

One important thing to remember is that the C4 came standard with PSM - which can offer a certain amount of "piece of mind".

 

Following Van's last post, the PSM on my car certainly helps out in slippery wintery conditions. Recent example from last week I was going round eg suburban 15mph 90 degree corners it is natural to rlease power, engine brake and the back will come around if not being careful, PSM helps even here! I see it flicker and hear it brake outside corners etc. I have Pirelli Snowsport 240's which is a true winter tire. Turning off PSM typically means a little sloppiness and backwards u go

BTW it is 20" snow and 10F here.

 

this is spot on - but 100% the reason to get a C2 over C4

having a car that will bite you if not driven right is better than a car that is saving your bacon all the time - but you have to learn what that means and where the edge is, how to control it, and how to drive it

put on a new set of good snow tires and a C2 is a point and shoot car --- absolutely predictable and controllable with some skills - and a real hoot to drive

plus in the summer, its more agile / lighter

 

Watch this Vid of 2 wheel drive Porsche in snow.

 

+1. I'm from Boulder, and when it's slick or snowy, the Porsche stays safely in the garage, and the F150 4x4 comes out.