Snow chains - V90 CC - any advice?

[Haldex]

Sorry, can't help you with clearance.. They work with my XC60 (SPA) and have worked on my old V60.. Bear in mind though that any metal chains will need even more clearance than these..

If V90 CC's suspension is anything like the XC60, the tight spot is between the front wheels' top inner side and the suspension upper arm..

[jonnyu]

Originally Posted by Haldex

https://fr.michelin-lifestyle.com/fr...grip-evolution

Exactly these ones as Haldex is recommending.
If you never had to put traditional snow chaines and you dont have experience doing so, forget the traditional ones. With the traditional steel ones, if you really need to put them on, with the cold weather and for the first time, you wont be able to do it by yourself.

With these Michelin easy grip snow "chains" it's super easy to fit in and to remove. I have a pair of these and I live in the alps region. They work very very well.

Whoever recommended you snow socks has no clue what he's talking about. Snow socks are not intended to use with icy roads and I already saw a lot of accidents on the road caused by tourists with snow socks that crashed because they lost the control of the car.

[gaby]

Originally Posted by KurtWallander

So, we are thinking of driving to the Austrian alps next winter for a skiing holiday..

Doesn't Kurt Wallander drive an XC70?

[Reynolds]

Hi all, sorry for reviving an old thread!

I am currently researching options for snow chains for the v90 CC as we will be driving to the French Alps next month. Having read through the replies I have found similar issues to Kurt Wallander that options are very limited due to the clearence behind the wheel!

I just wondered whether you were able to find any other solutions, or whether there were any companies that rented the higher end chains? Similar to yourself I will most likely only use them once so would rather avoid the huge cost unless absolutely necessary!

One option is obviously the autosock route but, as many have pointed out, it is a slightly riskier approach when descending in heavy compacted snow. I will be using the eco contact 5's that came with the car for which supposedly are not the best in snow.

Many thanks

[Reynolds]

Sorry, accidently posted twice.

[KurtWallander]

Originally Posted by Reynolds

Sorry, accidently posted twice.

Hi Reynolds,

I think Roofbox hire out Spikes Spiders: https://www.roofbox.co.uk/scripts/rb...bFay8NCEOgKc3J

Still quite pricey though. I ended up buying some K-Summits on ebay (bought for a good price in May/June so not much demand) as I also wasn't prepared to risk socks.

[Reynolds]

I've been keeping an eye on ebay for a few months but unfortunately no K-Summits came up. I think I'll probably buy a new pair unless some come up in the next couple of weeks.

Thanks for your advice.

[Giles1234]

I keep a set of €30 supermarket snow chains in the boot in case I am forced to put them on by the police. But with AWD and Continental All Season tyres, I don’t need snow chains to drive on snowy roads, up to about 10cm deep. Most major routes are ploughed regularly to keep the snow level below 10cm. If the snow is deeper than 10cm it tends to build up under the floorpan and lift the car off the road surface and you are not going anywhere, even with chains on, until you dig all the cold and hard to reach snow out...usually in the dark too! I have only needed chains to manoeuvre out of a steep carpark or driveway where the snow has melted and refrozen into sheet ice. Snow tyres are no better than Summer tyres in this instance. Even the chains can slip and scrabble away at the ice until you get back on either some nice white fluffy stuff or black tarmac. I will say that the cheap chains (7mm I think) have broken a couple of times but they can easily be repaired with a pair of pliers and the included spares.