"All Season" Tyres - worth it?

SiliconChip

When I lived in Scotland and had to take cross country trips fairly often for work I had two sets of wheels and tyres for my cars, alloys with normal tyres for April - October (ish) and steel rims with winter tyres for November - March, plus a trolley jack to make changing the wheels twice a year easier.

Since moving to Birmingham I had standard tyres on my new car (2015) but was stuck at home for a while when the Beast from the East arrived in 2018, so when I replaced the tyres in the autumn of that year I switched to Michelin Crossclimates. Wouldn't you know it, there hasn't been enough snow since then to cause any significant problem, but I'm hopeful that if there is any I'll be able to get around the local area OK, and they've been fine on wet roads. I haven't noticed any less ability in the dry but there aren't many opportunities for sporty driving these days, and of course for much of 2020 and 2021 I wasn't going any great distance anyway.

mysteryUser

I have the Michelin Crossclimates on my current car and had them on my previous one too. Been using them for years. 

It's not all about the snow, if it's less than around 10c (I think) you should ideally have winter tyres. I think the Michelin Crossclimates are a good option.

Recently bought a van, put Goodyear vector 4 seasons on there.

Only thing that annoys me on birth sets, they can be problematic with a gravel driveway. Depending on the temperature, the gravel can stick and be taken off the drive. 

Chickereeeee

I find they are great for keeping the snow away. Or it could be climate change.

I have had all season tyres (Michelin and Goodyear) for about 8 years now, and find them great for normal use (quieter than normal ones, good wear, grippy). Can't really speak for performance in adverse conditions - I initially bought them partly so I could visit family in Germany in the winter by car, where appropriate tyres are mandated.

mgfvvc

I got my first pair of CrossClimate tyres a few months before "the Beast from the East" and I joked with the fitter that it guaranteed us a mild winter.

At that time I was regularly driving around country lanes, some of which aren't gritted. There is one hill in particular that I had been unable to get more than 100 yards up on Continental summer tyres in a previous bad spell. I'd also had some hairy moments coming down the hill and having difficulty stopping. With CrossClimate tyres, on the front only, I had no issues climbing or descending that hill. There is one particular shaded spot where it's fairly steep and the snow gets compressed into slick ice. I was able to stop and start on that section with no problems. It would have been a nightmare on summer tyres.

Note that just having them on the front like I did initially is not a good idea. I got away with it, but I was very aware that I had a lot less rear grip in the snow and I was very cautious on bends.

In a subsequent snowy spell with CrossClimate all round, I was worried that they were making me over confident.

Tyre wear might be an issue. I have a C-Max which is known for being hard on front tyres. I got 20,000 out of a previous pair on the front. The latest pair lasted less than 15,000 miles. The rear tyres aren't showing much wear. It may have been alignment/tracking issue that caused them to wear so quickly.