Winter Tyres

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rob dixon

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Hi

Last year my wife complained of lack of grip and slipping on snow/ice at reasonable (female) speeds. In past years I've been working in Sweden, Denmark and Germany and have noted that it is quite common to don winter tyres for the winter months. I wondered if anyone had done the same in the UK?

Currently we have an A2 1.6 FSI on a 52 plate with 205/40/R17 with the 9 spoke alloys which come as standard with the sport.

Is it a case of buying alternative wheels and winter tyres as a package or has anyone successfully identified ideal tyres which would fit the alloys we currently have?

Another bonus would be to find some tyres which would protect the rim edge of the alloy as they are so easy to scrape as they are... I might even leave them on all year round !!!

Glad of any help

BR
Rob
 
Tyres: Continental WinterContact TS790

Size: 175/65R15T

Cost: £48

Rims: Same as 175/60R15 tyres use

Benefits: Work much better below 7 degrees centigrade
 
Hi Rob, with regard to tyres that will offer some protection to your wheels, I take it yours are shod with Dunlop tyres which offer very little protection. I have seen the same wheels with Michelin tyres and those looked to be much better in this department as well as looking much better, in that they didn't look 'over stretched' which the Dunlops do.
Hope this helps.

Shaf

Nov 2002 TDi Sport, Silver,Black/grey interior,climate. Replaced previous Mar 2001 TDi SE
 
<warning: long post>
hi,

winter tyres are stunning, and for example in finland or switzerland requirement between nov. + march. Austria too requires sometimes winter tyres + chains + all wheel drive....(!)

winter tyres are essential if you want to be able to drive uphill when it snows. and don't forget to turn the ASR off - you need between 10 and 90% wheelspin to get the best grip. with some practice and a sensitive right foot, you can do most things with FWD (i.e. an A2)provided you have no sheet ice under your snow. and even then, starting and stopping are possible, but not to be recommended...

once upon a time i tried to get some winters in the UK - they looked at me as if i was from another planet.

so, the recommendations go like this:
a) wintertyres are really useful only when you know you're going to get snow (scotland, north england) but also provide much better grip below 7 degrees c
b) this is bought with a higher rate of wear - softer rubber and therefore also less road noise but higher fuel consumption (!)
c) they still have a problem with ice. the best answer is spikes - which is what the finns always have on. (hyva suomi!)
d) your handling is generally not quite so good, as the rubber's softer (yes it does matter, especially when the road is dry or a bloody deer jumps out in front of you again)
e) there are minor differences in the aquaplaning capabilites; but then again, the UK tends to build roads with a camber that means the water runs off, unlike most german autobahns.

important:
if you're going to leave alloys on all winter, it's important to clean them regularly (just plain water will do), so something with few spokes is better than with lots (it takes ages to clean!). autec and artec have both got specific "winter" alloys: Artec's MX and Autec's Arctic. 3-layer paint, nice smooth finish.
i will hopefully be ordering a set in the next couple of weeks (it's frosted here already) with 195/50R15 pirelli W210 Snowsports - they need to be entered in the "logbook" by mr. TUeV (€30 extra!) 'cos they ain't already in there.
apparently there's an OK for:
165/65R15 (impossible to find)
175/60R15 (for the snow drivers)
185/55R15 (kinda expensive)
195/50R15 cool - from 600 upwards
195/55R15
205/50R15 big fat winter tyres; i need snow grip, so these are out
185/50R16 (only from conti + pirelli, so €1000)
195/50R16 (800 (!) or so)
195/45R16
205/40R17 (no winters available)
steel wheels are another option, but they look like steel wheels. :)
if you want to use snow chains, you should be looking at "cheese slicer" 155/65R15s.
reasoning: skinnier tyres = more pressure per square cm (!), therefore better grip....
recommendations:
bridgestone blizzaks, conti TS780/790s, dunlop wintersport M2/3, pirelli W210s, michelin Alpin A2s, Nokian WRs.

all this is from my own thoughts, my own fahrzeugschein, http://www.wheelmaschine2000.de and information i've gathered. please check it before you use it!!

</warning:long post>;)

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2002, Petrol 1.4, 17", sports suspension, OpenSky, leather / alcantara in iceblue
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oh yes, and an extra set of wheels and tyres has one big advantage: you can change them yourself.......

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2002, Petrol 1.4, 17", sports suspension, OpenSky, leather / alcantara in iceblue
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