Winter tyres?
- Thread starter davidstarkey11
- Start date
I just looked at the reviews and bought one of the winners. Too cold to go out the back and see what they are ;0)
I really like using winter wheels/tyres, it works out well. Overall it saves you money as your summer tyres are not getting used for six months out of the year so they last much longer. Winter tyres have really deep tread so they last for years too.
You're also saving your nice alloys from the salt and crud of winter and, if you use steel winter wheels, you're saving them from pot-holes. Last year I hit a monster which put a big dent in the steel wheel. An alloy would've been wrecked.
I really like using winter wheels/tyres, it works out well. Overall it saves you money as your summer tyres are not getting used for six months out of the year so they last much longer. Winter tyres have really deep tread so they last for years too.
You're also saving your nice alloys from the salt and crud of winter and, if you use steel winter wheels, you're saving them from pot-holes. Last year I hit a monster which put a big dent in the steel wheel. An alloy would've been wrecked.
Great stuff, yeah definitely an investment! Might drop down to 16" or 17" (currently 18" Performance Alloys with ContiSportContact 5's). What size wheels are yours?
Both my alloys and steel wheels are the same 16'' spec although I do have a set of 17'' alloys I'll be putting on in the spring. To be honest, I notice very little difference in feel or performance switching between the summer and winter tyres. The winters are slightly noisier but not much.
I'll have Goodyear Ultragrip Performance Gen1 tyres. LINK They seem fine to me but they're the only winter tyres I've had on this car so... They did survive that pot-hole hit without a scratch, I took the tyre off to check for internal damage but it was fine. Pretty impressive considering how dented the wheel was.
Nice one cheers mate, might give them a whirl. One thing I've learned from buying tyres in the past is that it's definitely worth spending that bit more for the better ones.
I do agree but sometimes you can have expensive tyres that are poor, or the other way around. Years ago I binned four Pirelli tyres because they were so terrible in the wet. Not cheap tyres but I wouldn't use them.
A few weeks ago I swapped the ('orrible) Turanzas for a set of Kleber Krisap HP 3. Seemed to have decent ratings and a reasonable price.
Not a sporty tyre at all but then they're not supposed to be. A few hundred miles worn in and with the cold & wet they seem good.
Treks up north over the holiday period will tell just how good they are, though after last year almost anything is better than the Turanzas
Not a sporty tyre at all but then they're not supposed to be. A few hundred miles worn in and with the cold & wet they seem good.
Treks up north over the holiday period will tell just how good they are, though after last year almost anything is better than the Turanzas
Have done for the last decade. I'm in Bedfordshire so not exactly the mountain ranges, but there are enough gradients around here to cause a serious problem every time the flakes fall.
I've lost count of the number of soft roaders spinning their summer tyres whilst trying to leave their driveways
Sent from my SM-J510F using Tapatalk
I've lost count of the number of soft roaders spinning their summer tyres whilst trying to leave their driveways
Sent from my SM-J510F using Tapatalk
My view is that changing tyres depends upon what the car is shod with and the kind of driving you're doing. I've had my Leon ST for 2 years now, before that I had Subaru estate. Much heavier car, 4WD and good summer tyres were fine - driving was a small mix of town with a much larger proportion of country roads which wouldn't get cleared well or take a long time to clear when it snowed and could be a bit slippy when the temperature dropped plus trips from the SE up to Yorks & Scotland visiting folks. Last year, things weren't brilliant in the Leon which is a much lighter car and the Turanzas didn't do themselves any favours. We had some bouts of very slow progress when up North in the snow and even here in the SE when there were the few heavy snow falls and very low temperatures things weren't as good as I would have thought. So my decision is based upon the mix of driving we'll be doing plus the fact that the summer tyres the car had didn't seem to perform that well.
Even living up North I've never bothered. I work just off the A66 which is notorious (although the worst bit is further west) and I've never got stuck. Last year they were a little slow clearing one of the back roads that I use which has some reasonably steep gradients and it was still no problem. Ultimately it comes down to a personal choice and whether you feel the cost and inconvenience is worth the additional security. Note that winter tyres also perform worse than summer tyres if the temperature is above 7 degrees which has been the case even last week.
Well I live up in a rural part Newcastle, not to far from the Scottish border. There's a lot of B roads I take on a daily basis. In the summer they're fantastic but during the colder months they can get very icy and pretty dangerous, a lot of accidents. Better to be safe than sorry as they say.
Like I said, the interesting discovery for me has been that, provided you keep the car long enough, winter tyres don't really cost you any extra as your summer tyres last twice as long.
I have a set on my 300 in 19in
Imperial Snowdragon 3 235/35 R19 91 V XL
They are about £65 per corner and having done two very snowy alp trips on them, i can say they work well. Not as well perhaps as some £250 per corner conti winter contacts 3 but bloody well for £65.
Imperial Snowdragon 3 235/35 R19 91 V XL
They are about £65 per corner and having done two very snowy alp trips on them, i can say they work well. Not as well perhaps as some £250 per corner conti winter contacts 3 but bloody well for £65.
Have new Nokian WR D4 235/35/19" 91 W. W means max 270 km/h . As you can see on the tread it’s more of a Nordic tyre (without studs), not “mid European” style. I have tested them for couple of days below freezing point. Feels good! Have had them on car for 3 weeks now.
What’s very important is that is also goes well on plain tarmac / rain +5c, very common temperature in southern Sweden. Last week I was in Heidelberg Germany (southern DE). We drove 2000 km on Autobahn, rainy roads 2-6 c over freezing point. Long distances between 170 -200 km/h. No problem, the Cupra went on steady. Winter tires could sometimes be rather sketchy on plain tarmac. These are good.
Winters on the car!
. As you can see on the tread it’s more of a Nordic tyre (without studs), not “mid European” style. I have tested them for couple of days below freezing point. Feels good! Have had them on car for 3 weeks now.What’s very important is that is also goes well on plain tarmac / rain +5c, very common temperature in southern Sweden. Last week I was in Heidelberg Germany (southern DE). We drove 2000 km on Autobahn, rainy roads 2-6 c over freezing point. Long distances between 170 -200 km/h. No problem, the Cupra went on steady. Winter tires could sometimes be rather sketchy on plain tarmac. These are good.
Winters on the car!
Last edited:
I've got Kleber Krisalp HP3's on 17" FR 5 spoke wheels, had them on for almost 1k miles and they're great in the wet compared to the Bridgestone S001's on my summer wheels, 18" FR wheels, haven't had any snow or ice yet to try them out on, been relatively mild where I am in Northern Ireland.
Handling wise they're not as sharp as the S001's, probably because of the slighter higher sidewall and softer compound they're made from, however, they're much more quieter, rated at 68dB I believe and it has transformed the refinement at motorway speeds, fuel economy has gotten slightly better for me too by around 1-2mpg, they're rated at C while the S001's E, overall no regrets just hope I can really test it out on some snow this winter as so far the weather has disappointed!
Handling wise they're not as sharp as the S001's, probably because of the slighter higher sidewall and softer compound they're made from, however, they're much more quieter, rated at 68dB I believe and it has transformed the refinement at motorway speeds, fuel economy has gotten slightly better for me too by around 1-2mpg, they're rated at C while the S001's E, overall no regrets just hope I can really test it out on some snow this winter as so far the weather has disappointed!
Winter tyres don't turn your car into a Abrams tank, they just help, a bit. You slide a bit less but on snow, slush and ice you're still sliding. Care is still very much required. For me the slight improvement is enough as it might be the difference between hitting the car that just pulled out in front of you or just missing it.
Similar threads
