Pepperpot Tyre Size

It has always surprised me how most actual winter tyres don't have a very good wet rating at all which you would think they would have but I must admit I have been a convert to since selling a 4wd vehicle I had that was amazing in the snow and really missed when the next bad winter arrived, after being advised by someone to try winter tyres which I must admit I was sceptical about, having never used them before but they turned the car into a bona-fide 4wd equivalent in the snow as they still continue to do on the A2 👍
I only drove about 15000km on spiked winter tyres last winter in my Superb and another couple of thousand with rentals and trailers and stuff, so feel kind of qualified to comment on this. 20 years of A2 ownership also comes up next April, with the car *always* having had 2 sets of tyres.

All-weathers are always going to be a compromise. The compound has to be soft to get some form of grip in the cold, and the sipes need to be big enough to slough away the water. They also can't have intricate patterns on the top as they'll simply disappear in the warm weather. So for +5 to +20, wet with a tendency towards ice and snow --> this is an excellent compromise.
Once upon a time, we had a 307SW. I drove it to Helsinki a few times in quick succession with the spiked nordic winter tyres on one May when it was really warm (25C+) We lost multiple mm of tread in around 1000km. I don't have the specifics - I do remember being shocked at how quickly they went from one marking to another (like from 8mm to 6mm, they are marked on the Nokians). This is going to be your achilles heel of a softer tyre: you'll wear it fast on rough asphalt in hot weather at high speeds. If you can avoid those, like in the damp, moist highlands, then I see very few downsides. And in the snow, any all-weather is probably going be significantly better than a summer tyre.
I suspect the wet performance will have to do with the way that the tyres are built with softer sidewalls to get better grip in snow, so squidge will happen sooner.

On the subject of 2 sets of tyres: I've always had to do it in Germany and now here and it's just part of life. The question is always when to change, whether to change all cars now or later... and for the first time now, all the tyres are actually in a tyre hotel and I will have someone else put them on. I'm intrigued as to how well that will go. We have rules on when I can put the spikes back on and must take them off.

On the A2 in Winter: IMO, the A2 in winter is OK. It's too light, there's not enough traction, and the ESP is too grabby. The Transits I drove last winter a thousand kms were pretty OK, but they suffer in a similar way; getting power down to the road is difficult, spikes or no. I've written elsewhere on the differences between excellent and good winter tyres. 4x4 makes a huge difference and life much simpler. You simply press the pedal and it (generally) just goes. Doesn't help when braking. Some of the electronic systems do behave unpredictably, which is why on the A2 in winter I'll turn ASR off and in the S-Cross hit "snow" and "lock".
We moved from a Fiesta - which I managed to spin at 10km/h in a car park with no ESP happening... I can explain it but it was incredibly unnerving - to a Swift and it was night and day, even with BF Goodrich spikes on. ESP was beautifully tuned on the Swift and it was an absolute hoot in winter. The S-Cross is similar but ESP isn't quite as insightful, and the Superb is just a train. When that slides, you have a serious problem... which is why I quite like the A2. Because you can fix things, it's too light, and you just have to accept that in winter, your lines are broad brush strokes at best. Accuracy is really hard to achieve with the A2 in winter.

Quick tip on driving with trailers in winter: be prepared for them to try and overtake you, winter tyres or no :D
 
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I only drove about 15000km on spiked winter tyres last winter in my Superb and another couple of thousand with rentals and trailers and stuff, so feel kind of qualified to comment on this. 20 years of A2 ownership also comes up next April, with the car *always* having had 2 sets of tyres.

All-weathers are always going to be a compromise. The compound has to be soft to get some form of grip in the cold, and the sipes need to be big enough to slough away the water. They also can't have intricate patterns on the top as they'll simply disappear in the warm weather. So for +5 to +20, wet with a tendency towards ice and snow --> this is an excellent compromise.
Once upon a time, we had a 307SW. I drove it to Helsinki a few times in quick succession with the spiked nordic winter tyres on one May when it was really warm (25C+) We lost multiple mm of tread in around 1000km. I don't have the specifics - I do remember being shocked at how quickly they went from one marking to another (like from 8mm to 6mm, they are marked on the Nokians). This is going to be your achilles heel of a softer tyre: you'll wear it fast on rough asphalt in hot weather at high speeds. If you can avoid those, like in the damp, moist highlands, then I see very few downsides. And in the snow, any all-weather is probably going be significantly better than a summer tyre.
I suspect the wet performance will have to do with the way that the tyres are built with softer sidewalls to get better grip in snow, so squidge will happen sooner.

On the subject of 2 sets of tyres: I've always had to do it in Germany and now here and it's just part of life. The question is always when to change, whether to change all cars now or later... and for the first time now, all the tyres are actually in a tyre hotel and I will have someone else put them on. I'm intrigued as to how well that will go. We have rules on when I can put the spikes back on and must take them off.

On the A2 in Winter: IMO, the A2 in winter is OK. It's too light, there's not enough traction, and the ESP is too grabby. The Transits I drove last winter a thousand kms were pretty OK, but they suffer in a similar way; getting power down to the road is difficult, spikes or no. I've written elsewhere on the differences between excellent and good winter tyres. 4x4 makes a huge difference and life much simpler. You simply press the pedal and it (generally) just goes. Doesn't help when braking. Some of the electronic systems do behave unpredictably, which is why on the A2 in winter I'll turn ASR off and in the S-Cross hit "snow" and "lock".
We moved from a Fiesta - which I managed to spin at 10km/h in a car park with no ESP happening... I can explain it but it was incredibly unnerving - to a Swift and it was night and day, even with BF Goodrich spikes on. ESP was beautifully tuned on the Swift and it was an absolute hoot in winter. The S-Cross is similar but ESP isn't quite as insightful, and the Superb is just a train. When that slides, you have a serious problem... which is why I quite like the A2. Because you can fix things, it's too light, and you just have to accept that in winter, your lines are broad brush strokes at best. Accuracy is really hard to achieve with the A2 in winter.

Quick tip on driving with trailers in winter: be prepared for them to try and overtake you, winter tyres or no :D
Indeed you are qualified, and certainly far more than I as I don't even believe we had any snow here last year, did we? Well maybe just a covering or two 😂

Completely different level out there in Finland and I promise never to comment on winter tyres ever again!😂

Twenty years of A2 ownership is certainly something too, congratulations!👍
 
Indeed you are qualified, and certainly far more than I as I don't even believe we had any snow here last year, did we? Well maybe just a covering or two 😂

Completely different level out there in Finland and I promise never to comment on winter tyres ever again!😂

Twenty years of A2 ownership is certainly something too, congratulations!👍
^^that wasn't the point :D you're welcome to join us at track and experience it properly!
 
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