Winter tyres - cost effective?

[forddeliveryboy]

I've used them for years, ever since I found how brilliant they are when I splashed out on a set for a venture to very snowy places - back in the days when a remould was a very noisy thing which needed a pound of lead on the rim to keep the steering wheel from entering orbit, the car started handling as if it was Russian and top speed was 82.

 

I've always thought they were a bit of a luxury, but now we're on the internet with access to the European market, I'm not so sure. £120 for four WinterTact 195/65/15s with soft winter treads welded onto Conti, Michelin or Pirelli carcasses. Perhaps £40 for a set of steelies and another ten, twenty or thirty notes for fitting and balancing depending on your choice of tyre fitter. They're almost silent, will cruise at 110+ without wearing fast and grip like welding spatter to glass if snow falls and settles.

 

I used to put winter tyres on when temps dropped low or there was imminent snow, trying to preserve them for ever. Nowadays I'm a bit more realistic - they go on in November and will come off in late March or early April, when road surface temps begin to warm up. No need for compromise Uniroyals (brilliant in the cold and wet, but I find they wear a bit fast in the summer) and the Contis seem to last forever. I seem to be spending less on tyres than ever, not* that I was ever careless enough to slide into kerbs in the snow.

[Honey Badger]

Good quality all season tyres seem to be the most cost effective choice, no need for a spare set of wheels or changing/storage issues. I would never fit remoulds or cheap tyres no matter what carcass they have used.

 

The Bridgestone A001s on my car are relatively quiet and seem to grip well in all conditions, though I can't yet comment on snow as we haven had any since I had them fitted.

 

Once again it depends on how severe your winter weather can be, I'm in Northants so we consider a little bit of frost to be extreme weather.

[wuvvum]

I've bought a pair of part worn snow tyres for the Rover of Doom.  They were about 40 quid for the pair delivered (both decent makes and not remoulds), and have at least 6mm tread.  I have a couple of spare steel rims so I'm going to get them fitted shortly and then keep them to one side unless / until it looks like the weather is going to turn to shit.  My parents live in the Alps so I know how effective a decent set of snow tyres can be.

[mrcitroen]

Winter tyres FTW. I use them on my Alfa between Nov and April. My street has a slope and I live at the bottom. If it snows and becomes hard packed I have no hope in hell in getting up with summers on. With the winters, it just powers up with no drama. Most of my neighbours have the same issue. I splashed out on Vredestein Wintracs and they are fitted to a set of gash wheels that I don't need to bother about over the winter.

[beko1987]

I got part worn winters put on the xm last year mainly cos it needed tyres anyway. And no bastard snow!

 

Not bothering this year yet, my old zx managed OK enough with tyres a lot more worn than I have on it now.

[dollywobbler]

I've had winter tyres for the past two winters. Barely any snow. They still give an advantage in icy conditions though. Can't say I've owned a car long enough for wear rates to be assessed.

 

Wuv - be very careful with just a pair fitted. That's a recipe for OMG DRIFT YO.

[carlo]

I've just put a set of Kleber Quadrax all season tyres on the 405, as I suspected they have improved the ride slightly (if that were possible), and had no adverse effect on the handling or steering.  One thing I have noticed is that the brakes feel a bit softer and need a bit more of a shove, wonder if this is related?

[castros_bro]

I got given free gratis a Panda 4X4 fitted with winter tyres as it had a couple of weeks till it went to the scrappy, only problem it was on a Swiss farm in the winter. So a week driving Alpine roads in winter and a 16 hour drive back home.   A good set of winter tyres transform a car's handling in the wet/snow/ice which is why they are mandatory in the snowier parts, zipped past many a sliding German/Belgium barge on the snow covered Autobahn/route.

 

 

Swiss sheep recommend "Buy winter tyres or I'll eat your door mirror"

 

 

 

 

 

[r.welfare]

OK, perhaps one for the stupid question amnesty but this seems like a good place to ask - any issue with leaving winter tyres on when the temperatures warm up, other than increased wear rate and less grip?

[The Moog]

My 405 has had winters on all through summer. Didn't effect handling or owt, only downside was increased tyre noise.

 

The new wintertrac on civic have definitely helped in the lakes of water on motorway at the moment.

[garbaldy]

I have never tried winter tyres but I will say that in 25 years driveing I have only been stuck twice and that was on our own drive,

I don't put that down to summer tyres though as we had driven out no bother its just the drive is on a hill and the car was of german rwd origin with stoopid wide tyres, it did however manage edinburgh and back so not all that bad.

[derskine]

There's a pair of "Kingpin" mud and snow tyres on the front of the 340, and a pair of balding summer tyres on the back. It makes for a very "interesting" (fun) drive in the snow.

[dollywobbler]

I have never tried winter tyres but I will say that in 25 years driveing I have only been stuck twice and that was on our own drive,

I don't put that down to summer tyres though as we had driven out no bother its just the drive is on a hill and the car was of german rwd origin with stoopid wide tyres, it did however manage edinburgh and back so not all that bad.

 

I'd never got stuck in snow until our first winter in Wales. What scared me more than getting stuck was the horrendous lack of control going down hills though. When engine braking starts causing a skid, you know you're in a spot of bother. A combination of bravery (ie staying away from the brake pedal after a bought of cadence braking) and fortune (there was no-one entering the roundabout at the bottom of a very steep hill) meant I got away with it, but that was properly scary. I was being followed by a BMW 1-Series that I eventually allowed to overtake me once I actually found somewhere I could stop with a reasonable chance of getting going again. I can only assume it was on winters as it looked far more comfortable in the snow. 

 

That was a particularly cold winter - often below minus 10. Summer tyres were hard as plastic in those temperatures. It was staggering how they just couldn't find any grip at all. Mind you, the snow was so bad that I'd had to stop a few times to kick accumulated snow out of the rear arches. It was filling up so much that it started restricting the ability of the rear wheels to rotate! The only time I've driven in such horrendous conditions and to be honest, regardless of tyres, I'd simply avoid going out if I knew it was going to be like that again.

[Micrashed]

I have them on the MicraShed, but only on the driven wheels ( the non driven ones have decent enough radials with plenty of tread).

 

Never had a problem in snow. Generally leave them on until they wear out as they are OK in the wet. Not great, but good enough for me.

[derskine]

Yeah, getting stuck doesn't bother me as much as not being able to stop coming down a hill/at a junction.

[andy18s]

I'm currently wintering in Lapland and me and the Mrs are amazed at the speed and skill of all the drivers over here.

From a grotty 405 (see grin thread) to hgv drawbar units and bendy buses zipping everywhere at a decent speed

All down to the tyres as the roads are hard packed snow and not gritted, just ploughed down each morning so far.

Very few 4x4s to be seen, mainly the few builders and contractors we've seen who obviously need to get to more remote areas

Winter tyres are obligatory here but they don't seem to be anything "special"

Driver skill and lots and lots of practice make the traffic look like it's simply driving on white tarmac

Very impressed

[wuvvum]

Wuv - be very careful with just a pair fitted. That's a recipe for OMG DRIFT YO.

You're saying that like it's a bad thing.

[dollywobbler]

It is if it catches you unawares.

[Junkman]

Winter tyres are superior below 7C no matter what the road conditions are, so they are the sensible choice throughout the cold season.

 

However

 

- I'm the Junkman, thus not sensible.

- This is Autoshite, not britishrally.co.uk.

- The national speed limit is a mere 70 OMGMPH, which I happily drive over rotting jellyfish on Polyglas GTs with exposed nylon cords.

- I just can't be arsed to change tyres twice a year and constantly store a set exactly where? In my hallway?

- In the unlikely event I shall encounter a snowy steep gradient, I have a set of snow chains in the boot.

- I rarely keep a car for an entire year.

 

Furthermore, we are near the time of the year, where a gentleman just doesn't drive.

He rather sits in his armchair next to the fireplace with a good book and a bottle of brandy.

Or he resorts to one of those expensive Alpine ski resorts, you know, that have one of those natural stone mantlepieces

with a log fire crackling in it and a huge animal fur in front, and has sex on that with the girls from the Pirelli calendar.

 

Unless you think changing tyres is the better idea, that is.

[Mr Lobster]

 

Furthermore, we are near the time of the year, where a gentleman just doesn't drive.

He rather sits in his armchair next to the fireplace with a good book and a bottle of brandy.

Or he resorts to one of those expensive Alpine ski resorts, you know, that have one of those natural stone mantlepieces

with a log fire crackling in them and a huge animal fur in front, and has sex on that with the girls from the Pirelli calendar.

 

 

 

This is not the situation in Burnley. I R NOT JUNKMAN. I CAN HAZ A JEALOUS.

 

So I swap wheels in November and swap back in March or April when the birds start tweeting and everything starts getting warm.  When its cold they improve grip no end. In snow they are superb and really do make the difference between getting out or not. Well worth the money.

 

Next year I might treat Mrs_L to a set of winter steels and tyres for her car (and yes, you're right she is one lucky lady)

[Sigmund Fraud]

Two winters ago, there was SNO KAOS here in the south. I had winter tyres, so I was able to drive to work without issue and be at my desk at 08.55. The vast majority of my colleagues didn't, and phoned in to say they were "snowed in". They therefore enjoyed four days at home, roasting marshmallows in the fireplace, while I was at work covering for their absence.

 

Needless to say, I no longer own winter tyres and will not be buying them ever again

[gordonbennet]

I've run them for years on second sets of wheels.

 

I usually buy them in the spring, got 4 x 205/60 x 16 Cooper Weathermasters for the Outback for £50 apiece.   Tyreleader is the dogs bollocks.

 

The set on the old MB means its one of only two 2WD cars that gets out of our road when it snows heavy, the other one (geezer moved out this year) was a decent shiter in a 106 on all seasons, he used to reverse up the hill and made it look a doddle whilst every other bugger with a FWD sits at the bottom and spins.

[forddeliveryboy]

Furthermore, we are near the time of the year, where a gentleman just doesn't drive.

He rather sits in his armchair next to the fireplace with a good book and a bottle of brandy.

Or he resorts to one of those expensive Alpine ski resorts, you know, that have one of those natural stone mantlepieces

with a log fire crackling in it and a huge animal fur in front, and has sex on that with the girls from the Pirelli calendar.

 

Unless you think changing tyres is the better idea, that is.

 

You need to read a good book about a man who rescues a beautiful damsel in distress, caught in a drift amid many fine 4x4 steeds, which are even more stuck. Effortlessly making your way through in a rusty 1985 car - on deep-treaded Colways - carry her to the car, turn down the Simple Minds tape and offer her your brandy. Having delivered her back home, you're treated to a fine dinner and the rest - the crackling on the fire being discarded condoms.

[Minimad5]

Hope we don't get 'SNOW KHAOS' this year, as i'll be in the V70 (can you buy steel wheels for these ?) , or in the 760.
Never experienced an Automatic in snow, but i don't suppose they are as good as the Riva was.

[skattrd]

You can get steels for the volvo MM5, I had 850 steels on my S80 a couple of years back.

Auto's in snow are variable I had to drive a mates auto BMW 525 a few years ago in the snow on summer tyres, it was not fun. My Volvo S80 auto however (with snow tyres on) was gr9 in the snow.

[dieselnutjob]

I never bothered until I got the 607. This has 225 wide tyres which are the widest I have ever had, and that winter they scared the hell out of me.

 

It wasn't moving that was the problem but stopping.

 

Later on a set of 5 alloys came up on ebay for 50 quid so I snaffled them and put 2 winters on the front.  I know it's not considered safe but I much preferred being able to stop with a slidey back end than not stop at all.

 

For a few years I bought part worn with 4 or 5mm tread on, but I have decided that with the cost of getting them fitted and balanced and then only getting about 1/3rd of the life out of them that it isn't worth it.  This year I bagged some on ebay in the summer for not too much which had 7mm tread on them and so I think that these will last a few winters.

 

I think that they are only cost effective if you have some spare rims and somewhere to keep them, but if you do then it effectively costs nothing as the summer ones are not wearing when the winters are on.

[Junkman]

You need to read a good book about a man who rescues a beautiful damsel in distress, caught in a drift amid many fine 4x4 steeds, which are even more stuck. Effortlessly making your way through in a rusty 1985 car - on deep-treaded Colways - carry her to the car, turn down the Simple Minds tape and offer her your brandy. Having delivered her back home, you're treated to a fine dinner and the rest - the crackling on the fire being discarded condoms.

 

Sounds terrific, but could probably do with a few more machine guns. You write the book, I'll read it.

[Tayne]

I got part worn winters put on the xm last year mainly cos it needed tyres anyway. And no bastard snow!

 

They're winter tyres, not snow specific tyres!

 

 

Winter tyres are superior below 7C no matter what the road conditions are, so they are the sensible choice throughout the cold season.

 

[nisfan]

I drive too much shite to be changing wheels round all the time, if i was to buy winters for all my chod it would cost a small fortune, ill just have to hope it stays mild in scotland   and hope my scrappy tyres hold up, or buy a volvo as most scotoshiters do as they seem to 'do' snow.

[Lacquer Peel]

I live near the coast now, so I'm going to live dangerously with rock hard Runways. It's seen a bit of snow, and coped fairly well despite hardly any weight over the rear driven axle.