spec me some snow chains in prep for the winter
- Thread starter bigjimmyauk
- Start date
No they aren't really. The tyres I have a terrible under around 4-5˚c, as are most summer tyres.
You live on an Island how many times a year does it actually go below 4˚c for you?
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
Yea, night time temps.
I bet it wasn't below 3c for 3 months.
But I forgot this is the world of MikeHiow where everything is different and special
Edit: I have just checked. Average temperature for Isle of Wight:
December 2009: 5.4c (6.3c)
January 2.6c (6.1c)
February 4.7c (6.3c)
So infact only 33% of the time was the average temperature below 3c. And this was an abnormally cold winter, usual averages are shown in brackets.
And remember that 0-6c is the temperature range where Winter and Summer tyres are about equal - ie there is no benefit, yet no disadvantage, of either. Winter tyres become noticeably better below 0c, summer tyres noticeably better above 6c or so.
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Soldato
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I thought that it was below 7C for Winter tyres, not below 4C.
So considering I said most of December, January and Febuary, a few days either end could quite easily push what was otherwise sub 4˚c daily average to 4.7/5.4 as a monthly average.
According to our local tyre specialist, winter tyres start becoming more effective at temperatures of 6˚c or under.
Westyfield, the 4˚c came from me saying my tyres are terrible under 4-5˚c.
According to our local tyre specialist, winter tyres start becoming more effective at temperatures of 6˚c or under.
Westyfield, the 4˚c came from me saying my tyres are terrible under 4-5˚c.
Associate
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What?
How is buying a second set of FOUR tyres costing £100+ each for one week of the year not a waste of money? It's exactly twice as much more expensive (probably more) than owning one set of tyres.
That's like buying professional diving equipment for the one week of the year that you might possibly spend diving in the Bahamas.
It's a waste of money for everyone who doesn't have an above average disposable income i.e. the vast majority.
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how much does it cost when you slide into the arse of a veyron?
true story
well it could be
My uniroyal rainsport tyres on the S2000 were fantastic in the snow we had at the start of the year. No worries around our estate which hadn't been gritted, and no problems with our road that was uphill. Not even a wiggle from the back end
golf carts are generally awesome in the snow you need something with some power to actually encounter a lack of grip
[TW]Fox;17154360 said:This thread appears to be out snow chains, which IMHO are slightly OTT for our country (Not to mention illegal on 99% of roads) not winter tyres.
Mind you if a sentence is now considered a lecture no wonder people think Uni standards are slipping
As I'm sure you are aware they are not illegal but it is illegal to damage the road surface - so impractical and a pain to use - but not illegal if done right.
If that was getting stuck on a high pass over the Pennines then I'm sure you'd agree it would be worth the hassle.
And yes lecture is the wrong word - you nag
Twice as costly half as often is no more expensive.
The right tyre (for there are not just two tyres in the world) will suit our cold wet roads from December to March and help greatly if it does snow.
auto socks were mentioned on the first page. Probably the best option if people want to waste money.
i went on some silly drives to find some very bad roads (3inches deep, almost unable to see where the road was), and even my Goodyear Eagles, with are **** in the snow coped fine. Sure hills were a problem but you just make sure you kept momentum going and it was fine.
I live at the top of a steep hill and it was just a no go to try and get down it for a couple of days when it was bad.
My wife would get up and try and walk down each morning to see what it was like (luckily I had the week off work anyway) and there would always be cars just sliding down and hitting trees/walls down the bottom.
Half the problem is other people, when we did eventually get out and were taking it easy going down you'd always have some numpty way too close behind you for the conditions.
No idea how much having 4wd would help if/when it happens again.
Two sets of tyres last twice as long as one set though. There are extra costs, but they are minimal:
Based on 10k/pa in an E46 in my case these are my extra costs:
Storage - this is free for me
Extra fuel - this is MINIMAL, I never noticed it at all in my audi, but potentially ~1% perhaps an extra £10 pa (only half your mileage pa is on the winter tyres remember)
Rim depreciation - I bought some second hand BMW rims on ebay for £100. If I keep the car another 3 years, I expect to sell those rims for maybe £50. Extra £16.66 pa
Tyres cost ~30% more per set - assuming I can make two sets of tyres last 3 years, that's pretty easy. Summers: £80x4=300, winters: £100x4=400. so £33.44 pa extra over just using two sets of summers.
So in total, I think having winter tyres will cost me about £60 per year extra. To be honest - I think that is worth it for the extra grip you get when its cold/wet and the fact you know if it snows you don't need to worry at all. That's for premium tyres, V rated, 205/55/16. If you have a Golf or something on 195/65/R15 and you only want H rated, your annual cost will probably be about half what mine is.
Soldato
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I couldn't be bothered buying snow tires or chains, I saw the bad weather coming and just bought a Jeep, drove it for 2/3 months in the snow and ice, and sold if for twice what I bought it for without doing anything to it come the end of the poor weather 
Much nicer than messing around in a standard car in the snow and of course you can have great fun saving all the motorists who haven't thought it through and got stuck in various silly places
Much nicer than messing around in a standard car in the snow and of course you can have great fun saving all the motorists who haven't thought it through and got stuck in various silly places
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4wd helps you in a straight line to get traction. Does v.little to help you stop or help you get around the corner. Having said that - given the IMMENSE straight line traction of my A6 Quattro, if I lived somewhere that had snow often, I'd probably stump up the extra cash for 4WD.