Looking to purchase snow tires for 2006 camry
Do I need to replace all 4 tires or can I get by just replacing front set?
Any recommendations?
Thanks in advance
HB

 

You should replace all four as a general rule. I wouldn't bother just buying two as one end of the car is going to be significantly different in the amount of traction it has.
I've also heard that if you are going to put winter tires (or better tread tires) on one end, is to put them on the rear even though the car is FWD. Not quite sure why but I've heard it said.

 

As a rule, you always want all 4.

I went through recently and started doing tons of research on winter tires, and the drawback to them is that you need an extra set of wheels for them to be feasible (Depending on where you live). The compound in the rubber for winter tires is optimized for cooler temperatures. If you run them when the average temp is above 40* F, they will wear out insanely fast. Therefore, you need to be able to swap back to your summer tires in March or April.

That being said, the "cream of the crop" in winter tires is the Bridgestone Blizzak. These get the highest traction ratings from actual owners on sites like 1010Tires.com and TireRack. Tire Rack has the Blizzak WS70 on clearance right now for $82/ea or the WS80 for $96/ea. (Downside to clearance tires is being able to get replacements if one fails for whatever reason)

I recently went through all this for my 1990 Camry AllTrack, a dedicated winter car. I wanted Blizzaks, but most people don't carry them in 14" sizes. Those that do want stupid amounts of money for them (Like $220/ea for my tiny little tires!). The next best model, the Michelin Xi3, was what I had decided on. They also included a mileage warranty, which is not something you see on snow tires and they got great reviews.

Then I saw them in the store, and the siping (grooves) on them is very shallow. I don't think the aggressive siping that gives you the good snow & ice traction would last more than 5-10k miles. Especially if they are used in warmer weather.

Then I found the Michelin Defenders. They get nearly as good of ratings in snow as the Xi3 and Blizzak, and decent ratings on ice. They are an all season tire, meaning you don't have to swap them out in the summer, and they come with a 90,000 mile warranty. My little old Camry handles great with them, even for as narrow as they are. Great traction in the snow, too. I deliberately took off hard when we got a couple inches of snow a few weeks ago, and it gripped incredibly. Granted, I have all wheel drive and narrower tires, but still I highly, highly recommend them.

 

This. Many studies have shown that rear tires effect handling in slides better than front, so you always put new in the rear, or anything you want to control your vehicle better. But yes, good idea to have all four be thew same. And as the other responder states, be prepared to be tire swapping if temps fluctuate.