500

I fix burst pipes

SiPie

First significant snowfall was the 26th November and more and more fell with us well into the New Year. Hardly a 'few snowy day's up here...

Jobwise..... someone has to becable to get in to the city to flip the burgers at McDonalds

New_scooby_04

iTrader: (4)

500nm is a bit short of mine mate factor in a 2.5 torque curve and a turbo that spools from nothing and you have to be VERY gentle!! My old classic 2.0 with 340/340 was easier, but you still had to be careful.

In any case, mine isn't a commuter car, it's a fun thing and these cars aint inteded to be driven like miss Daisy Driving in snow/ice is just NOT fun - doesn't matter how good you and your car are.... for every competent snow driver with appropriate tyres, then are 10 dickwads with no skill or restraint and summer tyres with tred levels that would be marginal in the summer!

Somewhere deserted however, and then you're talking!

Leslie

That can only be regarded as the perfect answer!

Les

arumdevil

not needed if you want to get moving, but bloody useful for keeping on course and stopping.

AWD is irrelevant when you want to stop.

andy97

iTrader: (1)

My car comes with all terrain lt315 70 r17. Bf Goodrich so snow, slush shouldn't pose too much of a problem

Kieran_Burns

iTrader: (1)

If anyone is interested:

1/2 price snow socks...

http://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/natio...mclick/1328893

zip106

Certainly, using the torque to slow down when you're in 4HLc helps immensely, so certainly not irrelevant.

SiPie

Agree...

Forester in low ratio with winter Tyres last year on our back roads. i was laughing as i was doing close to emergency stops whilst going downhill

euan_r

iTrader: (29)

Much is made of low ratio but dont use it much tbh. Good for limiting speed descending steep icy hill in winter other than that only used manovering heavy trailers.

arumdevil

Yes I'll give you guys that one. I actually had a couple of times last winter where I changed to a lower gear too soon and got some lockup from engine braking alone. However, the benefit of engine breaking through a AWD/4x4 drivetrain, low ratio or otherwise, is not as great as that of switching to winter tyres. Add both together and you're going to do well, but lets not forget that the majority of drivers out there today scarcely understand the concept of engine braking, let alone use it! I'v heard they even teach you not to use it when learning to drive these days

Frosticles

iTrader: (1)

Just bought some of these yesterday for 1/2 price Chuffed.

Bubba po

Tel Imprezas in summer tyres are the WORST - seriously. Scary ****.

500

Anyone know where I can get cheap 275/40 18 winter tyres cheap at the moment, everywhere is on back order!

We need new wheels for Jen's BM so trying to pick up a set of cheap 18's and some winter tyres, found some part worn fronts but struggling with the rears. We'll replace the Alpina 19's come the summer with somthing a little cheaper and ones that don't crack as it's over 3k for a new set of Alpina's and I'm not spending that on wheels that crack when I need a PPG gearbox for the scoob

tony de wonderful

Pride comes before a fall as they say (or crash into a hedge)

markjmd

iTrader: (11)

You might be better off trying for a slightly different size. Generally you want as narrow a tyre as possible for good traction in snow, and a slightly higher-profile fitment would mean the car has better ground clearance, which also isn't a bad thing in snow.

Quick search on mytyres.co.uk found a choice of around a ten in a 265/60 R18 fitment, and just one in 275/60 R18. The Blizzaks, Falkens and Dunlops listed all rate pretty highly in the tests I've seen.

500

265 60 18, there is no way they'd go under the arches, it's an e60 5 series, not an x5! I could drop to a 265 45, maybe 50/ 17 but there is no way she'd have 17"s on the car, getting her to drop to 18's was a hard enough task!

markjmd

iTrader: (11)

What width are the actual rims then, 7.5", 8"?

Anger

iTrader: (4)

450bhp 510lbs/ft... No problem on my vredesteins ultracs tyres

500

8's on the front, 245 40 18
9's on the back 275 35 18

Currently on 245 35 19 and 275 30 19

markjmd

iTrader: (11)

You should be able to get 245s on the rears too, and there's a fair old choice of those showing on Mytyres.co.uk, in 245/40 r18 and 245/45 r18.

arumdevil

It's worth checking lovetyres.com they seem to have good prices for winter tyres. If you're worried about availablity call them and ask to speak to Jonathan, he used to be a member on here and he just sorted me out over on uklegacy forums for a group buy on nokians. very friendly and helpful chap.

davyboy

Money well spent?

stilover

Pleased I never bothered now. That would have been a waste of £1000.

Was always a risk whether to `buy or not to buy`. If we'd had another winter like the last 2, I'd be wishing I'd spent the money.

However, I'm pleased I didn't.

cuprajake

iTrader: (11)

i was told that feb is meant to be quite bad, my £50 per tyre jobbies were ace in the 6" of snow we had before christmas, so im pleased

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

LOL

Depends on your summer tyes IMO.

If its a brand that focuses its 'sports' tyres more on high ambient temps like Bridgestone, Yokohama and Pirelli typically do. Then it would be a benefit to switching tyres when temps are below 10degree combined with a bit of damp, will make some performance summer tyres pants.

Brands from this side of Europe tend to work better in my experience, even if they are summer tyres. As they appear to still work ok at low temps where other brands do not. For example Michelin Primacy HP and Exalto and Contisport contact 3s still appear to work well at this time of year, but RE050s are dreadful (especially RE040s) and most sporty Pirellis.


I think there is a problem with alot of modern tyres now being too focused for warm dry use. Which really there is no place for them in the UK. Back track 20years and most tyres were more 'all weather'. I still have the original factory tyres for our 1982 Jaguar in the garage, these tyres are about 20years old! The tread patterns resemble nothing like what would be seen on a modern 150mph sports car tyre!

I never seem to recall it getting stuck in the snow either in the past...a 1.7ton RWD barge, don't know about these days, as its wearing modern tyres and is banned from salted/wet roads to stop it turning into a pile of rust.

dpb

I got couple of 22x40x18's stuck on the front for winter

john banks

Contisport Contact 3 wouldn't get our GTI to move from stationary in a few inches of snow on a hill in 1st or 2nd gear, with or without handbrake, with or without traction control, with any amount of throttle or various clutch applications. Goodyear winter tyres on the same car on the same hill in the same conditions allowed you to pull away like a normal driver would in the dry and didn't even flash the traction control light, it was as if there was no snow at all. You could also brake as normal coming down which helped. My Legacy in the same conditions on Nokian WRG2 could be floored in 1st gear (auto) and would just shoot up the hill! The Legacy is brilliant in the hard frosts too.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Strange that what my one BMW (estate) wears and that was fine last year and the year before. Just need to use the handbrake trick to stop a wheel spinning up on the diff (no LSD)...obviously that doesn't work on a FWD car.

Did lower them to 15psi though and it is does have more sensible 45 profile tyres, not rubber bands.


Anyhoo, In my previous post I was talking mainly about winter driving, not snow driving....not all summer tyres are the same no matter how expensive - some are not suitable for the UK weather full stop IMO.

john banks

These were 225/40R18 at 36 PSI. We had to get the snow socks out the boot to get home.