Swapping tyres...cross climates and summer tyres

[gaby]

I don't push the tyres to extremes either, except in an emergency situation.
It is then that the performance of the tyres shows.
Convenience is nice, but safety is important. I don't drive a car known for its safety features
to compromise on one of the most important aspects to keep it on the road.

[Haldex]

Ofcourse- I understand the convenience part- but there's places which swap and store wheels for you- so in the end, it all comes down to a few extra $$$..

Sorry- I'm not with you on this one- I simply do not compromise with tires. Performance, comfort, fuel consumption, handling, and ultimately- safety of my family and myself- these all depend on what I ride on.

[AndyV7o]

Crossclimate behave very much like any other summer tyre and certainly better than budget summer tyres.
They feel like a summer tyre, not a cold weather tyre.
Sure if you -really- push them hard ypu can differentiate them from the best summer tyres, but the margin is small.
The tyre test posted, you have to remember that the graphs are stretched out a bit to make a visual difference between the tyres which are essentially equal in performance. Also note, whilst talking about handling, that the Bridgestone T005, a dedicated summer-only tyre, is bettered by the crossclimate.
Not only have I driven crossclimates, I have driven the same set on 3 cars, the first time was during a back to back comparison vs the Primacy 3 to evaluate their worth, for an article for Tyrereviews, when they were fresh on the scene. Whilst the primacy have the edge in summer, they didnt get refitted for a while since the crossclimate did not warrant changing during summer.
Im a driver who likes to put my foot down when appropriate and carry speed along twisty roads, driving quite 'sportily' as such I dont buy continental or uniroyal as they are far too woolly and soft which is horrible to drive 'assertively', the crossclimate behave much better and did not make me lose the will to live at all.

So no, they arent crap summer tyres, no they aren't mushy cold weather tyres. They're better than average summer tyres that can 'do snow' and dont get anywhere near as twitchy on frost etc.
There are many reasons to fit them.

If you havent driven them, dont get carried away by assumptions!

As previously said, the only thing to bear in,mind if fitting with dedicated summer tyres is, fit to the rear and dont drive in snow on purpose.

[Haldex]

@AndyV7o, for the most part- I actually agree with you- CrossClimates are okay for what they are- a compromise.

Originally Posted by AndyV7o

Sure if you -really- push them hard ypu can differentiate them from the best summer tyres

That's exactly my point. And by "pushing them hard" I don't mean taking my XC60 for a track day- but rather doing a 1K km trip in a day on 40C+ temperatures, in a fully loaded (family + summer gear) 2-ton SUV at constant 130-160km/h speeds- like we did in July. And again in August. Or travelling regularly trough the Alps (normally 3 trips a year, fully loaded) in frozen/slushy conditions and some country roads fully under powder. If all you do is commute to work and back in moderate British climate- ofcourse, CrossClimates will do.

I swap summer/winter rubber, and if regularly rotated - the two sets last me 4 years (25-30K kms/yr). I have all-seasons on my work car (Allroad A4) and they last maximum 2 years- doing similar mileage. Since I keep the unused wheels in my garage and change them myself- financially there's no difference. And even if there was- I drive a €70K car- the tires for it are under €200/piece = 0.003%, or 0.012% for a set of 4. B&W stereo upgrade is €3K. See my point?

[Ringthane]

And that works for you.

But here, in the south east of England, where snow is a week long inconvenience at most (not counting 2010), swapping to winters, is a pain in the arse.

And if you were to, as gaby put it, not compromise on safety, you would need to swap to a new set of tyres, for wet braking, wet slalom, dry braking e.t.c., for every weather condition, so every set of tyres, summer or winter, is a compromise. You only have to look at the test results to see that.

Don’t get me wrong, I get why you, and others on the forum change winters for summers, and vice versa, I really do. I will be swapping to CrossClimates as soon as I’ve worn out the stock tyres, and I’ll put four on each corner (in respect of the OP).

[ergonomist]

Originally Posted by Ringthane

I will be swapping to CrossClimates as soon as I’ve worn out the stock tyres, and I’ll put four on each corner (in respect of the OP).

Four on each corner seems like overkill to me - in most conditions one on each corner is probably fine...

[Haldex]

Originally Posted by Ringthane

But here, in the south east of England, where snow is a week long inconvenience at most (not counting 2010), swapping to winters, is a pain in the arse.

Agreed. As I said- for those who stick to milder climate- CrossClimates (or allseasons in general..) may make more sense. Even though winters are not merely designed for snow- but rather for optimized traction in cold weather. In dry as well as in snow.

To clarify- I'm by no means bashing CrossClimates here- I just argue against mixing different thread patterns, summer/all-season tires of different age/thread depth..

Should have bought popcorn- this is, after all, turning into a proper tire discussion

[Ringthane]

Originally Posted by ergonomist

Four on each corner seems like overkill to me - in most conditions one on each corner is probably fine...

LOL. I even edited the post...

[AndyV7o]

Originally Posted by Haldex

@AndyV7o, for the most part- I actually agree with you- CrossClimates are okay for what they are- a compromise.



That's exactly my point. And by "pushing them hard" I don't mean taking my XC60 for a track day- but rather doing a 1K km trip in a day on 40C+ temperatures, in a fully loaded (family + summer gear) 2-ton SUV at constant 130-160km/h speeds- like we did in July. And again in August. Or travelling regularly trough the Alps (normally 3 trips a year, fully loaded) in frozen/slushy conditions and some country roads fully under powder. If all you do is commute to work and back in moderate British climate- ofcourse, CrossClimates will do.

I swap summer/winter rubber, and if regularly rotated - the two sets last me 4 years (25-30K kms/yr). I have all-seasons on my work car (Allroad A4) and they last maximum 2 years- doing similar mileage. Since I keep the unused wheels in my garage and change them myself- financially there's no difference. And even if there was- I drive a €70K car- the tires for it are under €200/piece = 0.003%, or 0.012% for a set of 4. B&W stereo upgrade is €3K. See my point?

Oh aye, but that is extreme usage for the CC and will certainly make them work for their lunch!
However, there are dedicated summer tyres that would fare worse, so amongst their peers they are actually right there, just that theyre one of the softer options in certain circumstances.
Fwiw I carted a family of 5 round with associated paraphernalia in a grand scenic on my set.
As it stands Im now using the primacy after the CC have gone to heaven, and have just ordered cold weather tyres to go on a spare set of rims, though quatrac 5 not full winter cos we have so much more dry than snow in uk winters, for me a dry rather than snow bias is more sensible and I cant afford Cc's!

As has been said, all tyres are compromises, its where you want/need the compromise to fall, but Michelin have played a blinder with the CC.
Even its direct competition cannot compete as comprehensively, the conti are better in the wet but softer, the bridgestone better in the dry but worse in snow, and so-on, but the small improvements in any particular area are at the cost of a bigger defecit elsewhere.

There are certainly better tyres in every category for sure.

[anotherv60]

Thanks for all the replies, I decided to change all 4 tyres to the cross climates - 25% off deal through black circles.

Out of interest I enquired about a set of winter wheels for my XC40 from Volvo....18 inch R design wheels with the cheapest winter tyres on.....£2781 (not fitted!!!!!)

wow!