I had the same experience with my 2012. The goodyear LS2 tires that came factory are a joke in the snow. I bought a second set of rims and fitted a set if dedicated snow and ice tires. Now it goes through anything, lots of snow in Minnesota this year.

 

OEM 20" tires are not good for winter roads. Snows are needed though the ruts and ice we have right now (MN) will challenge any vehicle.

 

If you don't use dedicated snows, try Conti DWS. Been solid for me.

 

You haven't said what wheels and tires you've got, nor the tread depth left on them.

 

This does sounds like a result of "not so good" winter tires...

 

Thanks for all the info. Seems like I should look into getting some good snow tires. I'm pretty sure the tires on the truck are factory all season. I'll let the husband know!

 

All season tires does not work well in real winter conditions - at least not compared to real winter tires.

In Norway the insurance companies might refuse to pay up if you have crashed in real winter conditions with so called "all season" tires, as they will claim you have not equipped your car with the proper tires for the driving conditions.

 

We have 13 TREG with vredestein 19" wintrac tires - awesome in snow and ice


It is a totally bad misnomer that a 20" snow tire is not very good. We have an 11 x5 with 20" Vredestein Wintrac snows and it is equally competent to the TREG on snow and ice.

We live in Colorado and we spend 2/3 weekends skiing in either TREG or X5 so I have LOTS of snow and ice driving experience in both cars and although they are very different cars, they are equally competent in the snow and ice BECAUSE they are great AWD vehicles to begin with but MAINLY because they are fitted with EXCELLENT snow tires.

The 20" wheel on the X5 is equal to the 19" on the TREG with regards to snow and ice cability (IMO), but as I have noted, I have driven both vehicles allot in the snow and ice to reach this conclusion.

 

We have 13 TREG with vredestein 19" wintrac tires - awesome in snow and ice It is a totally bad misnomer that a 20" snow tire is not very good. We have an 11 x5 with 20" Vredestein Wintrac snows and it is equally competent to the TREG on snow and ice. We live in Colorado and we spend 2/3 weekends skiing in either TREG or X5 so I have LOTS of snow and ice driving experience in both cars and although they are very different cars, they are equally competent in the snow and ice BECAUSE they are great AWD vehicles to begin with but MAINLY because they are fitted with EXCELLENT snow tires. The 20" wheel on the X5 is equal to the 19" on the TREG with regards to snow and ice cability (IMO), but as I have noted, I have driven both vehicles allot in the snow and ice to reach this conclusion.

X2 on the 20" snow tires! My X5 had 18" snow tires and my Touareg has 20" snow tires! Both were equally fantastic in all winter driving conditions. As far as stability on the road rolling over potholes, "not in them"and sticking to the road, I would take the 20s over the18s.

 

Changing rim diameter is really dependent on the road conditions. In the past doing a -1 or -2 gave better traction. As usual technology is changing that. The other consideration is that a - size increases the sidewall to help absorb more impact. Today we are driving on ice ruts that are very rough. Where the ice has been removed dealing with serious potholes. A 20" wheel with 45 aspect tires stands a greater chance of damage than the -2 that I am running? It also is less damaging to me. Unfortunately winter driving is about much more than traction in snow.

 

Winter Tires TReg

I got a set of 19" Touareg Rims and put Michelin X-Ice Tires on them....Sticks like crazy in Chicago Snow and Severe Cold Ice....Last Month..-10....Runs like a champ.....2011 Touareg

 

Seems difficult to find the Vredestein Wintracs locally. I've seen them at the Porsche dealer...look sweet.

 

That is indeed a sexy looking tire, if there is such a thing.

To my non-snow-tire-expertise-mind, they don't at all like they would do very well in the snow, BUT they do look good...

 

Rolling over potholes with a wide tire is better than falling in a pothole with a narrow tire.

 

I drive my 2004 V8 Treg with air suspension. I bought a second set of rims (Porsche Cayenne take-off on EBAY) and have Nokian 235/65 R17 all season "Vattiva" tires on them for fall and winter. I have been driving for 2 winters on them here in Connecticut and this winter we sure got a lot of snow and ice. I have yet to put the Treg into 4-wheel drive, it just goes through everything I have encountered, including unplowed streets. But then I learned to drive in snow going to Vermont to ski in my bosses hand-me-down Buick Riviera lol.

 

I I have yet to put the Treg into 4-wheel drive, it just goes through everything I have encountered, including unplowed streets. But then I learned to drive in snow going to Vermont to ski in my bosses hand-me-down Buick Riviera lol.

It is always in AWD. You mean you never used low range which you would not use in snow anyhow. I hope you haven't had it this long and thought it was a normally 2wd vehicle.

 

Touareg in Snow

We have used Continental Extreme Contact DWS with great success on our 2010 TDI. Factory 19" wheels and the Touareg gets through about any condition we put it through in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa Winters.

Dean
2010 Touareg TDI
(Just gave a VW engineer their wings this week...100k)

 

I have a set of wheels with Blizzaks mounted on them. My 2004 and now my 2013 work very very well in NE Ohio winters. (have the same tires on my Audi A3, which except for clearance issues, will go anywhere)
So-called all season tires, as noted in this string, are a compromise and just do not work very well. To read more on the subject go to the Tire Rack website.
BTW< mine are mounted on an old set of 17" OEM wheels from a V6 Touareg.

 

Have had the Conti Extreme Contact DWS on a 2009 T -Reg and they worked great in the winter as week as on my 2009 CC. My 2013 T-Reg with 20" came with factory Conti Sport pro contact they do not work as well as the DWSs and will put them on when I change out. The DWS tires are the best all season with snow tires being better. See TireRacks review. To sum it up Tires not drive mode is the major factor in winter driving.

 

I'm driving my 2013 TDI with the OEM goodyear all-season tires in Vermont, and we've had a lot of snow this winter. It does fine, no fishtailing at all.

 

It's all about the tires. Period.
I've got the stock 18" wheels on my '04 TDI and I've always put Cooper Discoverer Snows on it. It's has the traction of a tank, accelerating, braking and cornering. I spent the past 10 years driving in the Colorado Rockies to ski areas and such and have had these tires on two different vehicles. I swear by them. We tried Blizzaks on our '09 RAV4 and as soon as they wore out I went back to Cooper (in this case, I believe it's a "Weather Beater"?) The Discoverer is the way to go if they have the size you're looking for (or get yourself a set of 18's).
PS- just moved to Ellensburg, WA, but also spent 10 days in Vail earlier this month.

 

It's all about the tires. Period.

No, it is not "ALL about the tires"! Tires are important, no doubt. However, winter driving skills are equally important. I can guarantee with certainty that a good winter driver will be safer on all-season tires than snow-and-ice newbie on dedicated winter tires – granted all else is equal. It is unfortunate that winter driving skills – at least in the States with real winters (not sure about our neighbors north of the border) are not part of driver education requirements.

Too often I see drivers in front of me when entering icy patch on a highway having the worst reaction possible - pressing brake pedal to the metal and immediately swinging to a ditch. Or a driver approaching intersection and pushing brakes too hard and too late and then… sided by a crossing traffic. Or a guy approaching from behind while I am waiting for a green light who believes that his car can stop on a spot and forcing me to always plan on having 15 or more feet of space between me and car up front so I have a bit of a room to give and avoid collision. Examples are many and most of you can recall more of them… The jewel of a crown in my collection is when cars entering slippery highway from ramps. It is bad enough in summer, but becomes often a close call when it is icy – many drivers are wholeheartedly believe that merging traffic has a right of way and those on highway shall make a gap for them for entering. It just…

 

Tyres are the... ... ... ... "why bother"... ... Every year people ask the same questions about snow tires. Then lots of people comment that they have the best tires possible and they know snow...! I will refrain from any other comments... Enjoy

 

Relax, some people are new to snow and have legit questions. Be happy, your country's team won the hockey gold metal, and now our President has to send a case of beer to Canada (I hope he makes it skunky Budweiser . And we have to keep Justin Beeber! :dance:

 

I'm not going to hawk any particular tire but--I have found switching to actual snow tires to be more valuable than AWD.
And in my 2012 diesel Touareg putting 2-3 70# sandbags in the rear helps, too. There's too much weight up front given the very heavy engine and way too little in the read. That could help with fishtailing. All seasons just can't do as good a job in cold, snow, and ice.

 

The fishtailing you have experienced seems abnormal -even with poor traction, the traction control should be sending power to the tires with the most traction. Unless your right foot is being a bit too aggressive . I would have your dealer check into this further. I have driven mine in all sorts of limited traction conditions with tame and aggressive manners and have never had the back end get loose.

 

Good idea! This is my third winter and my Blizzack's and they are almost 50% worn. I plan on new ones next winter.

 

One tip for all you that do use winter tires (or tyres) - once they have exceeded useful winter driving (your experience will tell you), leave them on through the following summer and get the most wear out of them you can. Then replace them in the fall with a new set of winter tires. This not only gets you the most use out of them, it also saves wear on your summer tires.

 

People need to realize that those responding about their experiences with vehicles OLDER than the 2011 may not be comparing apples with apples. The newer Touaregs (2011 and up) do not have all of the multi-mode traction settings (all they have is on road and off road). The vehicle is also much lighter (which is one of the reasons why it is better on gas now). So it will perform differently than say a 2009.

 

Perhaps, but my comments are made with all settings left at factory presets, nothing turned off or switched beyond 4 high. Most of these other settings have speed limitations. That said, the newer models still have traction control and the haldex 4wd system (AKA 4Motion) and fishtailing should be looked into by the dealer (IMHO)

 

Blizzaks !

Blizzaks on 18" wheels in CT. deep snow and the truck goes like hell !!!! Love my Touareg.

Ive got 20's with Super High Performance Summer tires for better weather.

 

Blizzaks on 18" wheels in CT. deep snow and the truck goes like hell !!!! Love my Touareg.

Ive got 20's with Super High Performance Summer tires for better weather.

Love mine too! No matter what weather, the old ones are great!

BtW I see you may be from the LimeRock area of CT? Drove mt Merc 220b Cabriolet 1951 there once at an MB oldtimers meet; the drive, after the first spin in order of age of the car, was arrested development
I sent the car back to Germany on a pallet in a Lufthansa flight out of JFK to Frankfurt and my brother sold it in the Fatherland so I could keep my 3 boys in private school. It well paid off: I have 3 boys I am very proud off!

 

These will be my next set of winter tires on my 18 inch rims.Nokian WR SUV 3