Swapping Out To Winter Tires on my Hunker Junker: Deep tread!

Looks like new
 deep treads.

I swapped out the tires on my trusty “Hunker Junker,” the project car I’ve been nursing along, from summer slicks to winter chompers. I’ve never really been one of those seasonal tire people, but these bad boys came with the car—brand new with deep 4x4-style treads that look ready to climb Mount Everest (wanted to do that once and might think about it again).

Back in the day, our grandparents would faithfully switch tires every season, like clockwork. Nowadays, we rely on “all-weather” tires, which are basically decent at everything and great at nothing. Still, when it’s blizzarding out, a good set of winter tires on a 3,500-pound hunk of metal is the difference between “steady traction” and “figure skating across the intersection.”

Up here, the blizzards and ice don’t mess around, and the salt on the roads can turn a nice car into a rust sculpture by spring. I originally bought this Hunker Junker as a no-worries winter beater—just a $1,000 ride I could bounce around in without losing sleep.

Representing working on old trucks/cars. 
I am keeping my eyes out for
something like this 
for my next project.

But now I kind of love the thing. After putting in some sweat and a few questionable repair decisions, it actually drives great. The engine hums like a boat motor that’s just happy to be here. Right now, I’m priming the body, scraping off rust, and swapping out some bumper fillers. If all goes well, I’ll finish it off with a new radio and sound system—because if I’m sliding into a snowbank, I at least want good tunes playing.

MI-Travel Information for Motorists