foxy lady Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I think a problem is the speed rating of winter tyres. I have been unable to get my car out of our driveway for 2 days. It is totally useless on snow and ice. However I doubt that winter tyres are available that could be fitted without voiding the insurance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyrad29 Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I dont get the whole "winter tyre" thing. You must only need them to get off the estate roads and once on a main route its just like driving on a wet "normal" day. Are you saying fit them to get off your road then pull up at the end of the street to put your other tyres back on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxy lady Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I dont get the whole "winter tyre" thing. You must only need them to get off the estate roads and once on a main route its just like driving on a wet "normal" day. Are you saying fit them to get off your road then pull up at the end of the street to put your other tyres back on? How very odd. I could have sworn many of the main roads were snow bound as well. Yesterday a car overturned and blocked the main road in the centre of Holmesfield after sliding into a kerb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyrad29 Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 Its hardly worth it tho for the two or three days a year you would actually benfit from them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beanfeast Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 It's already been said really, there's not much point in adopting the winter tyre approach here for just a few days of snow. The main roads are cleared pretty quickly anyway unless the conditions are really severe. other reasons against: 1) In Sheffield there aren't that many driveways that are flat enough for car owners to jack their wheels up one by one to change all the wheels! 2) In the snow this job would be more difficult and would probably take over an hour - you'd be freezing. 3) 2 days later you'd have to go through the whole process again to put normal tyres back on. Then 2 days later you'd need your winter tyres again! 4) A lot of car owners probably don't even know where their jacks are so they'd have to get to a garage firstly, and secondly pay them to change the tyres every time. 5) You'd need room to store the extra 4 wheels throught the year. I saw a program a while ago about the British weather and you've got to understand we have huge variations in weather in short periods of time, it's just not possible to adapt to every situation every time. I think it was something like 6-8 different weather fronts converge over the UK causing us all sorts of weather issues - unlike many other countries i.e Sweden who can say 'Right, after 1st December we're going to have snow for 2 months' etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
commuter Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I think a problem is the speed rating of winter tyres. I have been unable to get my car out of our driveway for 2 days. It is totally useless on snow and ice. However I doubt that winter tyres are available that could be fitted without voiding the insurance. I got a reduction on my insurance for fitting them and just need to inform the insurance company when I change back to all weather tyres. Why is the speed rating a problem? I think there are some misconceptions about winter tyres. They are not snow tyres they are winter tyres which are composed of a rubber compound which performs better at lower temperatures, contains a higher proportion of silica than all weather or summer tyres this means they are better at temps below 7 degrees and have a larger number of sipes than all weather tyres. In Germany the guidance is to use them from O to O (Oktober to Ostern [Easter]) so they are used for a number of months not just when there is snow on the ground. They do not have spikes or other protrusions on the running surface. The tyres I have on are much quieter than the all weather tyres and provide a greater level of grip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyrad29 Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 They are not worth putting on here anyway as they wear out quicker under normal weather conditions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian123 Posted December 22, 2009 Author Share Posted December 22, 2009 They are not worth putting on here anyway as they wear out quicker under normal weather conditions You take them off after winter and store them. Lots of misconceptions on here! Commuter's comments are by far the most sensible. Winter (in Michelin speak:cold weather) tyres give better performance in cold temperatures. The fact that they make driving in the snow a relative doddle also speaks for them. I can't see why speed rating is a problem. http://www.michelin.co.uk/michelinuk/en/car-4x4-van/advantages/20070314172016.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
singo Posted December 22, 2009 Share Posted December 22, 2009 I run different tyres on my bike depending on the time of year. Obviously if there is ice, then the bike stays locked up but I've found the tyres with a higher silica content work better in cold and wet conditions than the normal sporty tyres. Of course, the tread pattern also plays a huge part in this. If there is a difference on a bike, then that has to translate into a big advantage for something with 4 wheels that simply cannot fall over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Number Six Posted September 28, 2010 Share Posted September 28, 2010 Has anyone fitted winter tyres this year yet? I quite fancy getting some on the family car (needs new tyres anyway) but I don't know where to keep the summer wheels. Would they be ok in my shed, or will the cold kill them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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