Tyres... need expert advice.

leehal

I had major problems in my Audi A4, it is an automatic with no winter button and very low profile tyres, I couldn't even get out of my street safely after the 1st day of snow. Been driving for 22 years, do 20,000 miles a year and never had a problem in winter before this car. So I can sympathise with the original poster, all cars are different so I would be very careful when telling someone to learn to drive in the snow!

neilmcl

AdrianHi wrote: »

An alternative I've seen recently I like the look of is Snobootz http://www.snobootz.com/ but I have not found a UK supplier yet.

Try these instead - http://www.autosock.co.uk/

decsdad

What we do when we can't get up the hill to our drive is just park at the bottom, and walk. Maybe you could park the car on the road, and then not have steep drive issues in the morning.
Of course this wont always be suitable.

Wig

I agree with the "dig it out" & "park at the bottom of the hill" brigade. It's not worth the expense of changing to new tyres. The snow will be gone in a couple of weeks.

Try a snow sock, but I doubt it will help.

But if you really want to change, you've had your answer now someone above has said the tyres you found can be legally fitted, as to how good they will be, no-one can tell you that, because that is down to personal perception and make model of vehicle IMHO.

AdrianHi

I want to be mobile on snow and ice, leaving at the bottom of the hill etc. is not a solution.
Not sure about autosock yet regarding durability and how it deals with ice. Need to do more reading.

Wig

I think a snow sock will rip itself into shreds in no time.

neilmcl

Wig wrote: »

I think a snow sock will rip itself into shreds in no time.

Apparantly they don't. Don't forget they'd be predominantly used on snow/ice and I'd think there'd be a speed limit on their use.

Wig

Yeah, but lets consider their applications, they would be used -lets face it- in situations like the OP finds himself, at the bottom of a hill which has had the snow on it compacted into a slippery mess or a slippery wet semi melted mess. Not pristine clean untouched snow.

My imagination suggests to me, that as the wheel turns on the slippy stuff the fabric will quickly start to "fold/ruffle" up infront of the wheel, and the tyre will keep going causing the fabric to tear open.

focae

I was looking at changing to winter tyres on steel rims for the rest of the winter. This gives better performance below 7 degrees centigrade, no just snow and ice.
However, can anyone explain why Direct Line want £64 because I am modifying my car even though it is an obvious safety improvement.
They also said that this change is effective for the rest of the policy so I would have to pay an additional £15 admin fee when I put my standard alloys back on in the spring.

neilmcl

I would have thought that it would have gone through various extreme tests to get it's TUV certificate, and all the "real-life" reviews I've read recently based in this country have been positive. Even if you only have to use them a couple of times a year, and lets face it this current weather is definitely not the norm, then they sound like a good buy.