Quote Originally Posted by EP3toMS3 View Post
Thanks for the reply, aLmk. I sort of figured there was no perfect compromise or everyone would be running them. I do live in Alabama, and snow accumulation on the roads is both rare and typically leads to road closures, so I'm still leaning more toward running an extreme performance tire but perhaps without the ultra-aggressive tread pattern (or lack therof) of the NT05.

The Conti DWS is a great suggestion. I've heard some good things about them on the mazdaspeed forum, but the topics there don't really address the milder climates that just get cold snaps, it's either Blizzak or extreme summer tires, and those look like a pretty rigid compound rated at 50k miles / 540 TWR. It would probably be smart of me to get those or something similar, but I think I'm going to try my luck with something softer so I can run them year round.

Yoko S.Drives, Pilot SS, and Cooper RS3-S have my eye at the moment, all being 300TWR and having plenty of siping to evacuate water and maybe offer enough grip to get me to work on semi-slick roads. If I have good results with whatever I choose, I'll report back!
The S-drives are pretty good, I used to have them on my old 18x8 ce28n's. However...
Quote Originally Posted by EP3toMS3 View Post
I'm almost embarrassed I forgot about those tires - they were on my EP3 when I bought it! They cornered like beasts until they wore down, and it was almost as if the rubber compound changed and they got really greasy. With how cheap they are I could definitely give them another shot - and the sexy tread pattern does look like it could handle shedding some light snow. I don't know if they can hook on a 235/40/18 on a warm day, but I suppose there's only one way to find out.

Hopefully next winter I'll have some extra wheels/tires for the car, but I'm having difficulty prioritizing for our typical climate and those remaining mods screaming for my wallet.
..I'm currently running the Nexen N3000's. I'm pretty surprised at how well they perform! Slight downside is the soft sidewall, makes cornering a bit tough if you have a stiff suspension setup. Then again, i'm running 17x9's woth 245/40 all around. For now anyway. Next season, gonna go much wider up front