General Which winter tyres are people going for

[306maxi]

Re: Winter tyres fitted

Just went for a bit of a longer drive. A few things to note. On the road without snow and ice (4 degrees C outside) but with a little bit of water they seem to be every bit if not slightly more grippy than the Potenza's. Road noise is less on smooth roads and possibly a bit worse on more abrasive/noisy roads. Fuel economy seems slightly better looking at instant consumption but I'd need to run a tank or two to really see properly. Car accelerates just that bit better because there's less resistance because of the narrower tyres. Ride is different, I won't say it's comfortable because it's not but rather than being bumpy as it normally is on 16's it's perhaps just bouncy now which is fine.

Now for the snowy (well more slushy and icy) bit. Went on an unadopted road near us which still has a couple of inches of slush and ice still left because it doesn't get sun in the winter as well as not getting much traffic and OMFG the traction is epic! You can still spin the wheels in slush if you're bit hamfisted enough but rather than spinning your wheels and going nowhere as I did with the Potenza's it just keeps on going and going and going.

I accept that you could get by with summer tyres in the snow and not die. But these really are the difference between having an accident and not having one or being stuck in the snow and being able to get home and laugh at the suckers sleeping in their cars that night. I'll certainly be buying a set of winter tyres for the wifes Subaru next year.

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

Any V pattern treaded tyre will make more noise than others.
Dutch Vredestein tyres (summer and winter) are well known to make (a lot) more noise than most other brands.
(I use them on my bicycles only )

 

[panda4x4x4x4]

Re: Winter tyres fitted

staff edit. put stuff for sale in classified, do not sneak it into threads

 

[DraigFlag87]

Here are my tyres , i like the pattern (not much of it left now ) they are not winter tyres but they work just fine

 

[306maxi]

Here are my tyres , i like the pattern (not much of it left now ) they are not winter tyres but they work just fine

Errr this is a thread about winter tyres?

 

[nottsfiat07]

Well its winter and he's using them isn't he?

 

[Murano16v]

Errr this is a thread about winter tyres?

Yes, but he is using them in the winter. Therefore they are his winter tyres

 

[DraigFlag87]

Errr this is a thread about winter tyres?

Really?! Not another one!

Top 3 subjects in the 500 section:

1. Winter tyres
2. Renault Twingos
3. 500 in the snow

 

[DraigFlag87]

Oh and an other point, just checked my tyres, all 4 are illegally bold, even the tread wear indicator has worn down, so why was i fine in the ice and snow? I'll never know Not suggesting winter tyres are a waste of time or anything (although i find it slightly amusing the day after Maxi buys his, the temp rises by +20 degrees, the snow melts and it rains! Typical!) But if these pretty much slick tyres coped in the snow/ice, then i should imagine the majority of Joe Public would have done too...

 

[306maxi]

Not suggesting winter tyres are a waste of time or anything (although i find it slightly amusing the day after Maxi buys his, the temp rises by +20 degrees, the snow melts and it rains! Typical!)

Well my wife who is sceptical on the whole winter tyre thing I might add, came home and said that she could feel a difference and said the car felt more planted on her drive to work and the Potenza's had plenty of tread left. Just remember winter tyres are also better at displacing water than their summer cousins.

If there is significant snowfall again do you want to meet up and see who gets stuck first? I'm certainly up for that.

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

You made a safe decision.

Others rely on luck....it's like playing Russian roulette in traffic.

 

[306maxi]

You made a safe decision.

Others rely on luck....it's like playing Russian roulette in traffic.

Maybe next year I'll run illegal summer tyres instead

 

[dave]

Oh and an other point, just checked my tyres, all 4 are illegally bold, even the tread wear indicator has worn down, so why was i fine in the ice and snow? I'll never know Not suggesting winter tyres are a waste of time or anything (although i find it slightly amusing the day after Maxi buys his, the temp rises by +20 degrees, the snow melts and it rains! Typical!) But if these pretty much slick tyres coped in the snow/ice, then i should imagine the majority of Joe Public would have done too...

are toyo wear indicators set at uk limit or 3mm?

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

All wear indicators are set at 1,6 mm.

 

[Murano16v]

http://www.pneus-4x4-extreme.com/?p=p_15&sName=maxi

 

[dave]

http://www.pneus-4x4-extreme.com/?p=p_15&sName=maxi

not road legal are they?

 

[Andy Monty]

Well I've fitted my winter tyres just in time for the big thaw

Here are the Vredestein Snowtrac 3's

Here's what they're replacing (Bridgestone Potenza RE050A's with about 6.5mm tread all round)

Side by side comparison. As you can see there is a vastly different tread design and they're narrower which is better in snow and ice.

Here's the 500 with winters on the rear and summers on the front

Here it is with winters all round

And here is a shot of the tread on the car, note how it leaves quite a definite tread imprint behind.

First impressions are good. Traction is much better on slush and ice and braking is HUUUUUUUGELY improved. You can still get wheelspin if you want but you have to provoke it whereas before you could get wheelspin pulling off from a stop gingerly. You can still feel the ABS working but the difference in braking is almost like night and day. I've not really tried it out in terms of handling but it didn't want to drift wide like it wanted to on the summer tyres just this morning.

-ve's people will think you're driving a Pop

Told you they were good

Well my wife who is sceptical on the whole winter tyre thing I might add, came home and said that she could feel a difference and said the car felt more planted on her drive to work and the Potenza's had plenty of tread left. Just remember winter tyres are also better at displacing water than their summer cousins.

If there is significant snowfall again do you want to meet up and see who gets stuck first? I'm certainly up for that.

found about the water displacement in the Autumn its almost impossible to get the car to twitch even if you hit a lake size puddle you tired ripping up a grass verge yet :devil:

All wear indicators are set at 1,6 mm.

unless they are winters they have 2 TWI one at 4mm and another at 1.6 to keep the Germans happy

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

not road legal are they?

They probably are.
But they will make a LOT of noise on normal roads.....

 

[Peter Pick-Up]

unless they are winters they have 2 TWI one at 4mm and another at 1.6 to keep the Germans happy

German ADAC (AA) advises to replace wintertyres at 4 mm tread depth to be safe.
All tyres ( summer and winter) worldwide have Tread Wear Indicators set at the legal limit of 1,6mm.
I doubt that there are manufacturers that will use two different TWI's on their tyres, it would be expensive ( for them) and confusing (for the customers) , although there may be a small, local tyre brand that will use two TWI's.
The large brands will certainly not.

 

[rallycinq]

So the End of March beckons, time to think about removing the all seasons tyres, and ....................... its snowing.

Think I'll leave it for another couple of weeks till I put the 17s on.

Cheers

SPD