Today was the day. I went to Mount Rainier and they required chains for all 2WD cars from a certain point on, so I went there just to prove that I was able to chain up my M2C and get to the highest possible place. I succeeded and I feel so good
.
The pictures are attached. My setup consists of the original 788M wheels with the Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4s, 245/35 front and 265/35 rear of course. The chains are KONIG CG-9 104, which I bought from Amazon
here.
Regarding ease of install, some context first. This is my first time installing chains on a car, ever. I've actually never rode in a car with chains before and I didn't know what to expect. It was actually pretty difficult and at times I just wanted to make a U-turn and go home, but with some patience and staying rational I pulled it off and found out why the first attempts were difficult. One difficulty that doesn't go away is that the clearance between the tire and the fender is small and so you have to do some effort to attach the chain with your hands in that small space. Anyway, after a bit I found out how to work around the difficulties and installing the second chain felt relatively straightforward. Same thing when removing the chains.
Now, regarding driving with the chains, in this case there was not a lot of snow in the ground. There were patches with compressed snow and in those patches the chains were less noisy. But in general they are obviously noisy and going at 30 mph is already uncomfortable because of the vibration. I was doing 20-25 mph most of the time. I predict that with a centimeter of snow it would be reasonably comfortable. Traction was of course good, but obviously one needs to still be a bit careful with ice.
Anyway, I'm extremely happy that I did this and went with the M2C uphill. I felt freaking proud about not making compromises on the car I want to drive and the things I want to be able to do.
Cheers!
