Wheels/Tyres: Anyone else getting their Winter tyres ready?

[GMad]

Strangely enough I've just managed the whole of winter (including some snow), with standard tyres, in my auto boxed S60!
Not one incident or accident either

[Bill_56]

Originally Posted by GMad

Strangely enough I've just managed the whole of winter (including some snow), with standard tyres, in my auto boxed S60!
Not one incident or accident either

Yesterday I saw a small child run across the road without looking. I feared the worst but there was no traffic about and he survived unscathed. I guess the logical extension of the comparison is that since the child, like those on summer tyres experienced no problems, it is fine to use summer tyres all year and fine to cross the road without looking. Intended with humour, I add, please take it as such


Seriously, I'm in full agreement with Ian21401's general point, that tyres of yesteryear were much less specialised towards outright perormance but, in turn, a better compromise compared to moden rubber when snow falls. Thus many of us have memories of bad winters in 70's and 80's when we got on fine in rwd cars as well as fwd, yet winter tyres were unheard of.

[gjd]

Hello

Agreed, and also, look at the treads on the old tyres on Escorts and Maestros - much more "syping" than on modern tyres with low rolling resistance.

[Ian21401]

Originally Posted by Ian21401

Four months on and the coldest weather is probably over for another year. My Klebers have not been tested in snow because we haven't had any here in the my part of Northumberland but I don't think that we have had many days when ambient temperature was above 7deg.C. except for that weard week in March when it was up in the mid teens. I've done 2,700 miles of general motoring since fitting the tyres. I've become accustomed to the very slight vagueness and very slight understeer on the steering and this does not cause me any concern. During my spring service of the front brakes with the wheels off I checked the tyre condition and measured the tread depth. Wear appears to be even over the full width of the tread, measuring 7.5 mms. of tread. I'll check the wear again after the warmer weather.

As promised last April.
The Kleber Quadraxers have been on all summer. If one can call it summer. It wasn't especially hot up here in Northumberland but it was usually in the low 20's during the day.
The Klebers characteristics did not seem to change with the warmer temperature.
I've just had to replace a track rod end and serviced the front brakes while I had the wheels off. (That is pads out, de-dust, de-scale the disc, re lubricate the relevant surfaces with copper grease and reassemble)
Front tyres have worn evenly across the tread and the tread depth is 7.0 mms.(I run them at 32psi,not 28psi as per the manual ) with 5.5 mms to 6.0 mms on the extreme shoulders. That's only 0.5mm wear since April.
The rear tyres have also worn evenly and are down to 7.0 mms across the tread and 6.0 mms.to 7.0 mms on the extreme shoulders. (I run then at 34 p.s.i.) That's 1.0 mm wear since April. They've all done 5,447 miles since April.
I'm quite satisfied with that rate of wear. That's plenty tread left for this winter and possibly a few more seasons before they are less than 4.0mms.

[gjd]

Hello

My Quadraxers will go one this week, if I can get the car in at my local tyre people.

Over the summer, the car has been on its usual Dunlop Fast Responses. It will also mean a swap from the standard alloys to a set of steel wheels.

It will be interesting to see whether there is an appreciable difference in MPG once I've changed over to the Klebers.

[jaygee]

Originally Posted by gjd

Hello

My Quadraxers will go one this week, if I can get the car in at my local tyre people.

Over the summer, the car has been on its usual Dunlop Fast Responses. It will also mean a swap from the standard alloys to a set of steel wheels.

It will be interesting to see whether there is an appreciable difference in MPG once I've changed over to the Klebers.

Why don't you just keep the Quadraxers on all year, they were designed with this in mind?

I know I keep mine on all year.

[Harvey1512]

Marangoni Meteo HP winters have just gone on. An Italian manufacturer who still makes in Italy, not the Far East. The reviews seem decent so I gave them a go. The weather is hovering just above the 7C mark here but that could change at any moment and I am off to Murrayfield on Sunday for the rugby and the weather is always arctic when I go there.

[jaygee]

Originally Posted by Harvey1512

Marangoni Meteo HP winters have just gone on. An Italian manufacturer who still makes in Italy, not the Far East. The reviews seem decent so I gave them a go. The weather is hovering just above the 7C mark here but that could change at any moment and I am off to Murrayfield on Sunday for the rugby and the weather is always arctic when I go there.

I hope it snows for you to do a proper test.

[Crockers]

Nokians going on on Tuesday. First time on winter tyres.

[RobbieH]

Quadraxers went on for the first time last winter. Ran them from late October to early April, about a total of 6000 miles including a 2000 mile jaunt to the Alps and back over this Easter holiday. Temperatures varied from -10C to +19C, the latter being just south of Geneva . I run tyres at 34psi all round. Measured about 1mm loss in tread depth in that time. Good enough at Easter to tow a laden Merc E320 on summer tyres out of an overnight snow fall and freeze in a car park in Lez Carroz Absolutely no issues driving in snow either in UK at the time or in the Alps. Back in the UK with warmer temperatures at the time and more twistie stuff, I noticed that the car seemed like it was riding on "jellies".

Switched back to the summer Neuton NT5000's (same wheels - Orestes, same pressures - 34psi, same size - 225/45/17). Much more grip when making progress (treadwear rating 340 iirc so the rubber is quite hard).

Noticed over the last couple of weeks with cold, wet, "greasy" roads (leaf litter and general crud on the roads) that I was suffering a bit more wheel spin on take off than usual and corners were getting a bit more exciting so decided it was time to switch back to the Quadraxers as the temps have dropped and we'll be doing some more hacking back and forth over the Pennines plus another jaunt to the Alps is planned for next Easter (and that's earlier again next year so more chance of snow on the roads). No more wheelspin that's for certain (unless I really provoke them )