It has been a hot topic in the enthusiast community, of whether or not you need winter tires. Some folks say all-season tires are just fine for snowy conditions, some call all-season tires “no-season tires.” Ford has decided to take a stand today, and announced that it will be the FIRST COMPANY EVER IN NORTH AMERICA TO OFFER A WINTER TIRE PACKAGE AS A FACTORY OPTION. Sorry about the all caps, I just love Ford.
The best part is, it will be offered with Ford’s hottest hatchback, the fire breathing 350 horsepower, all-wheel-drive Focus RS. Here are the details on the package: it includes Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 tires, 18-inch silver-painted wheels, tire pressure monitoring sensors, and center caps all fully mounted and balanced.
The Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 225/40R18 tires are excellent snow tires, they will be mounted to 18×7.5-inch silver wheels, they have 4.5 stars on Tire Rack’s website, and offer sporty performance and excellent grip in the snow.
This is a big deal because Ford had to go through an extra process of certification to get winter tires as a factory option. Some poor soul had to go to Sweden and Northern Michigan to test the new winter tires on the Focus RS, if that ever happens again please call me.
The winter tire package will only be available in North America and set you back only $1,995. Ford expects the snowbelt Focus RS owners to tick this option off while purchasing, and the Right Foot Down team fully expects to see lots of YouTube videos of owners doing snow drifts.
