Thread: xc60 AWD tyres
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Old Oct 23rd, 2017, 12:18   #10
Tannaton
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skyship007 View Post
You need to have a minimum of 4 mm and snow flake rated winter tyres (The mountain symbol ones are better) to be legal in Switzerland and Austria during the winter. The tread depth makes no real difference in ice, but sure does in snow. That's probably why they have wear indicators at 4 mm.
Some all weather tyres are snow flake rated.

Oddly enough a lot of drivers forget that how good the tyres are makes very little difference to a cars performance when cornering, it mostly effects braking distance figures (They relate directly to how good the grip is) and to some extent handling.
Winter tyres are not much better than summer tyres on black ice, although they are better on dry ice (Below about minus 15c). At present there is no EU standard for braking tests on ice, due to the EU failing to define which type of ice should be used.

When selecting tyres, the only manufacturers worth considering are Continental, Dunlop, Goodyear and Michellin. If you use winter tyres, Nokian are also worth checking.
Not much difference between the performance of any of the major brand top of the range tyres, although Michellins seem to last slightly longer and on average Continentals have the best braking distance figures.
The problem with Europe is the rules and recommendations differ so much between countries, it's really hard to tell. Some have more relaxed rules for visitors and in some the rules only apply when it is actually snowing. I think the EU parliament have been too busy banning light bulbs and vacuum cleaners to get around to winter tyres...

https://www.theaa.com/european-break...s-winter-tyres

I would agree that if you carefully select a tyre from the manufacturers you have listed you are assured of reasonable results - but I would not restrict it to just those - FYI with regard to car tyres, Goodyear and Dunlop are the same entity. These days it's really important that people buying tyres check the EU label and keep that in mind when making a selection. Vredestien, Cooper, Yokohama, Bridgestone and Pirelli all have offerings as good as those listed.
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