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very bad idea
three strikes against you in this equation:
tire profile VERY wrong for your car in the winter; tires dynamics mismatched front to back; and tires gripping MUCH DIFFERENTLY front to back, bc of studs.
first of all, 205 60 15 is a joke of a snow tire...even if you are driving a 3700 lb GM sled, theres too much grip sacrificed in such a large contact patch. particularly for a car as light as a c.3000 volvo, this just too wide... and the profile is TOO low! 60 series tires use a harder mix of materials, bc this lower profile is intended for more aggressive driving. softer rubber is what helps in the winter.
i broker volvos and SAABS and some other cars, so i drive cars with tires in all sorts of various conditions all the time. it is not uncommon for dealers who are just wholesaling the cars to throw on any tires they have, mismatching sets frequently.
have you ever drive a car with two different sized tires , front and rear ?
its bad. the car does weird things on curvy roads, over bumps, and at surprising times. and in conditions with pooor road grip, I could easily imagine a situation where the car sends you bad signals about what the front or the back end is doing, so you try to compensate likewise inappro-priately ...short trip from saving a few dollars to being off the road, wrecked, or just dead.
great bargain.
another thing about tire sizes. as a resident of the NE snow belt myself(in S.W. NY state), 205s are not helpful on a car as light as the 240 by current standards. we alwys use 185 on our family fleet of volvos. i have used 175s and even 165s once. very nice extra capability in some circumstances.
one time, someone gave me a set of snows in 195 65 15 when in a poorer financial state. put them on an 82 242 in buffalo. was only a few weeks before i went back to summer tires with fair tread. they were better.
as you must know, more pressure per square inch is what you want in winter tires for better grip and stability on the road. just the opposite of what you want for summer performance tires. that means a smaller contact patch in the winter, which means narrower tires. it has become a contemporary trend for cars which are supposed to be "higher performance cars" to use tires that are just too wide in the winter (no doubt bc its the tire companies suggesting these set ups...just look at a a tire rack ad !)...but these set ups sacrifice GREAT amounts of grip in using the wider tires in the winter. again, having driven many cars with wide and narrow tires in snow and ice, the same car can improve tremendously with just two sizes narrower of tires in the winter.
now, having studs at one end and not the other will ruin the very attribute volvo worked hard to engineer into this car, just for good handling in bad conditions: even-ness front to back. yes, studs on the rear drive wheels might provide some advantage up hills, etc, but that also means that in every other situation, the front of the car has less traction by comparison. front wheels do 80% of the braking and all the steering. is your propulsion more important that your stopping and your steering ? the 240 feels secure and re-assuring, because it is EVEN and balanced. dimishing that will not enhance the handling.
overall this is the advice given in the owner's manual of the car; by any tire center; by the dealer; by ME who has, like you, driven for years in the snow belt in properly shoed volvos and SAABS and peugeots and in extremely improperly shoed cars of all types.
if you are serious about help on the icy hills of ithaca this winter, a set of four mathced snow tires in the right size (185s at the most) is what will really help. studded or not-- but all four the same. we love unstudded gislaveds, but nokias and vredesteins are great too. vredesteins cost less too. (my father adds weight in the trunk, but i think all that does is wear out the rear shocks sooner.) if you dont have the money, look for a set of four on sale that were used a year, but even a set of four cheap new snow tires matched is great!
if you drive ANY volvo with four new, very good snow tires, you will no doubt be SO impressed, you will make that a financial priority whcih you happily pay !
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