Auto Express Tyre Test

[Freshacre]

Good timing, if maybe a few days behind the weather!

Auto Express have conducted a very interesting series of test on all manner of winter tyres and all weather tyres.

It makes a great read, specially given the interest shown on this forum about tyres.

Here's a link, and good reading.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/total_tyre_guide/259582/tyre_test_2010.html?CMP=NLC-Newsletters&uid=c86492cd0b10a47b4edb8c02ca14254f

[jeep]

Interesting that the top performing winter tyres all seem to be unidirectional, perhaps there is less of a compromise in tread design if it only designed to give ultimate grip in one direction.

Edited 2 December, 2010 by jeep

[Agerbundsen]

Interesting that the top performing tyres all seem to be unidirectional, perhaps there is less of a compromise in tread design if it only designed to give ultimate grip in one direction.

It seems quite logical that the unidirectional would do best in traction when trying to move forward. Compare to the traction requirements of a Farm tractor, and they have treads that clear the tyre of mud when driving forward.

You do have the opposite requirement when braking and steering. It is not so clear how the tread patern works ther, exept that the many small sipes provide a sharp edge to the road when the rubber bends a little.

The rubber compound selection does not show up in the patterns, but apparently has a very significant impact too.

It is also gratifying that I am driving around on a brand sibling of the winner, although not exactly the same tyre, the pattern is the same and presumably the compound too. I can testify to the fact that it works well in all the white and not so white stuff we have been having recently.

Edited 2 December, 2010 by Agerbundsen

[Fluffy destroyer of worlds]

It's a little frightening to see the difference between the 'Summer' tyre and the winters performance wise, sobering.

The Yeti feels so secure on my winter tyre of choice that I have given myself a good talking to re being over confident. The laws of physics still applies it just feels like they have been suspended!

Just had an Email from my best mate who lives in Penistone, Yorkshire. He was due to give a lecture to 250 medical students today at Leeds Uni but despite taking his wife's Ssangyong Rexton he only got 50 yards into his estate before giving up. All public transport suspended so he's stuffed.

Of course just on summer tyres - that may be rectified now (providing he can source any winters of course!)

[Trekker]

Reading headlines like "Relentless snow causes travel chaos in Britain" convinces me that we should do as the mainland Europeans do and make Winter tyres compulsory between November and March or force the Insurance Companies to adopt more stringent cover that invlidates policies of people driving on snow with Summer and all-season tyres.

...then....surely....we would not see the British road traffic crawl / clog up etc.

Children would get to school, adults to their jobs and business would be maintained instead the comical incompetence that engulfs our country as soon as some snow falls!

[The Plumber]

Work closed today thank goodness. However I decided to try get my wife to work as the country lanes she travels are now very bad. Took her Fabia II to gauge how it performed (fitted with Conti Premium Contact 2 205/45 R16 W ) We got a mile down the road and I decided it was unsafe to go any further.

Making progress forward was not the problem it was the constant sliding side to side with the ESP going nuts trying to keep it straight. Had snow socks in the boot but felt that they would possible make the rear wheel slide worse. Needless to say she's now getting a set of winter wheels for her Christmas present £343 delivered from mytyres; Semperit 165/70 R14 on steel rims, equivalent to the insurance excess if you look at it another way :yes: Only issue now is the socks are fractionally the wrong size

Regards,

TP

[Yeti_Man]

force the Insurance Companies to adopt more stringent cover that invlidates policies of people driving on snow with Summer and all-season tyres.

...

I wouldnt go that far! Id certainly like the insurance companies to not be allowed to make charges for people putting winter rubber on - that imo is ridiculous! :S

[900000]

Needless to say she's now getting a set of winter wheels for her Christmas present £343 delivered from mytyres; Semperit 165/70 R14 on steel rims, equivalent to the insurance excess if you look at it another way.

I think you are giving her the biggest and most valuable present ever. And if the TP chooses Semperit tyres I'm not so mad at my dealer anymore for picking them without consulting me or only sticking to the list I gave him.

I just wonder how she will explain this present to her friends?!?! It is like that episode of the Simpsons where Homer gives Marge a bowling ball for her birthday and on the ball it said: Homer! Hehehe. Alluring and Christmas tree friendly they are not.

[The Plumber]

Reading headlines like "Relentless snow causes travel chaos in Britain" convinces me that we should do as the mainland Europeans do and make Winter tyres compulsory between November and March or force the Insurance Companies to adopt more stringent cover that invlidates policies of people driving on snow with Summer and all-season tyres.

Hi,

some all season tyres such as the Googyear 4 Season carry the winter Snowflake on a Mountain symbol; thus meet the winter tyre standard in countries were there required. Might not be up with the best winter tyres but will provide reasonable performance.

Regards,

TP

[sausage roll]

The Yeti feels so secure on my winter tyre of choice that I have given myself a good talking to re being over confident. The laws of physics still applies it just feels like they have been suspended!

I feel exactly the same. I have dunlop winter sp 3d's on and I really am having to tell myself to think about what I am doing. It feels just like normal when driving!

The traction control has only come on once so far and bearing in mind I have 400lbs/ft that is something pretty special in my eyes (especially compared to my falken 452's through winter last year!!!). It's my first time with proper winters this year and I will never drive without them again through the cold season.

I thought this quote from the auto express article was so true:

"If every driver could experience a lap on winter tyres, and then one on the summer patterns we tend to use all year round, we’d have a booming market in the UK for the cold weather versions."

[Freshacre]

I think you are giving her the biggest and most valuable present ever. And if the TP chooses Semperit tyres I'm not so mad at my dealer anymore for picking them without consulting me or only sticking to the list I gave him.

I just wonder how she will explain this present to her friends?!?! It is like that episode of the Simpsons where Homer gives Marge a bowling ball for her birthday and on the ball it said: Homer! Hehehe. Alluring and Christmas tree friendly they are not.

Did someone mention the Simpsons?

Edit: Grrrr. no image!

2nd Edit:- Oh yes there is!!

http://www.flickr.co...N04/5226186544/

Edit 3 - WELL - we are talking spare tyres, yes???

Edited 2 December, 2010 by Freshacre

[Fluffy destroyer of worlds]

I feel exactly the same. I have dunlop winter sp 3d's on and I really am having to tell myself to think about what I am doing. It feels just like normal when driving!

The traction control has only come on once so far and bearing in mind I have 400lbs/ft that is something pretty special in my eyes (especially compared to my falken 452's through winter last year!!!). It's my first time with proper winters this year and I will never drive without them again through the cold season.

I thought this quote from the auto express article was so true:

"If every driver could experience a lap on winter tyres, and then one on the summer patterns we tend to use all year round, we’d have a booming market in the UK for the cold weather versions."

My winters (Matador Nordicas - a Conti offshoot) are nowhere near as capable as 3d's - one of the best imho, even so the difference over 'summers' is amazing. Someone has recently done a survey on winter driving, can't for the life of me find it but it said that you were up to 10% MORE likely to have a prang in a 4wd - presumably due to over confidence. Winter tyres just add to the problem, half the battle is being aware of that and driving accordingly.

[jeep]

My winters (Matador Nordicas - a Conti offshoot) are nowhere near as capable as 3d's - one of the best imho, even so the difference over 'summers' is amazing. Someone has recently done a survey on winter driving, can't for the life of me find it but it said that you were up to 10% MORE likely to have a prang in a 4wd - presumably due to over confidence. Winter tyres just add to the problem, half the battle is being aware of that and driving accordingly.

Quite agree, other drivers will always be the biggest hazard as no accounting for the way they drive or the control they have, and avoidance can only go so far. Once hills become blocked with abandoned cars, as in my area last year, not much you can do then either.

[Peter a Proud Yorkshireman]

Just to summarise taken from Autocar Test.

I have Quatrac 3 all season on my Octavia.

We divided the test into three sections – snow, wet and dry, with the latter including cabin noise and fuel economy. Each section was worth a third of the overall score. We added up the percentage scores, then adjusted them so a win in a close fought test was worth the same as one where the performance gap was wider. Cost hasn’t been factored into the results because prices may change as winter gets closer.

Final score

The clear winners here are cold weather tyres, which have a big advantage over the summer patterns used almost exclusively by UK drivers in the winter. In the snow, they offer a huge step up in grip and safety, and in the cold they outperform summer tyres.

But you need plenty of space and cash to take full advantage of winter tyres – which is where an all-season model comes in. We were impressed with Vredestein’s Quatrac, which performed admirably in nearly every category. Goodyear and Continental stood out among the winter patterns, with the Ultragrip 7+ narrowly taking top spot.

Read more: http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/total_tyre_guide/259462/verdict.html#ixzz16x72eZgq

Edited 2 December, 2010 by Maffa

[The Plumber]

But you need plenty of space and cash to take full advantage of winter tyres – which is where an all-season model comes in. We were impressed with Vredestein’s Quatrac, which performed admirably in nearly every category.

Hi,

the problem is finding an all season tyre in some of the strange OEM sizes used by Skoda eg 205/45 R16 :(

Regards,

TP

[survey]

It is interesting to read the tyre test reports but I think they need to be taken with a pinch of salt (excuse the pun for winter tyres!). Reading the auto express test my Nokian's are not up with the very best for snow and traction in snow yet when one reads tests such as those on tyretest.com or tyrereviews.co.uk it is a different story with the Nokians getting a good score. Personally, although I have only had the Nokians a few days, they do seem to be very good. In any event all winter tyres are far, far better than summer tyres!!

Edited 2 December, 2010 by survey

[The Plumber]

Work closed today thank goodness. However I decided to try get my wife to work as the country lanes she travels are now very bad. Took her Fabia II to gauge how it performed (fitted with Conti Premium Contact 2 205/45 R16 W ) We got a mile down the road and I decided it was unsafe to go any further.

Making progress forward was not the problem it was the constant sliding side to side with the ESP going nuts trying to keep it straight. Had snow socks in the boot but felt that they would possible make the rear wheel slide worse. Needless to say she's now getting a set of winter wheels for her Christmas present £343 delivered from mytyres; Semperit 165/70 R14 on steel rims, equivalent to the insurance excess if you look at it another way :yes: Only issue now is the socks are fractionally the wrong size

Regards,

TP

Having to hold off on my order :( after reading the German tyre guide it suggests that this size is not compatible with TPM/TPC equipped vehicles. Size listed on the filler cap mind and in the handhook with no mention of the TPM being an issue :wonder: Mytyres don't know either, so with trepidation I wait to call SUK tommorrow :S

TP

[900000]

http://www.flickr.co...N04/5226186544/

Edit 3 - WELL - we are talking spare tyres, yes???

Oh Freshacre!!!! What a terrible sight!!!!!!! My poor eyes!!!!!!!

[danbarnes]

It's a little frightening to see the difference between the 'Summer' tyre and the winters performance wise, sobering.

The Yeti feels so secure on my winter tyre of choice that I have given myself a good talking to re being over confident. The laws of physics still applies it just feels like they have been suspended!

Just had an Email from my best mate who lives in Penistone, Yorkshire. He was due to give a lecture to 250 medical students today at Leeds Uni but despite taking his wife's Ssangyong Rexton he only got 50 yards into his estate before giving up. All public transport suspended so he's stuffed.

Of course just on summer tyres - that may be rectified now (providing he can source any winters of course!)

I have been driving around Penistone all week on my summer tyres, while the weather has not stopped me I have had a few scary moments while trying to slow down.

I have found the hill decent control absolutely fantastic for keeping the car under control whilst slipping and sliding down hill.

[bahnstormer vrs]

Good timing, if maybe a few days behind the weather!

Auto Express have conducted a very interesting series of test on all manner of winter tyres and all weather tyres.

It makes a great read, specially given the interest shown on this forum about tyres.

Here's a link, and good reading.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/products/total_tyre_guide/259582/tyre_test_2010.html?CMP=NLC-Newsletters&uid=c86492cd0b10a47b4edb8c02ca14254f

Please to see they used the Octavia vRS as the test 'mule' - although clearly this car ain't no donkey!

Interested to see they used Vredestien's Sportrac 3 as opposed to Ultrac Sessanta on the test which is 1) only half way up Vredestein's hierarchy and more importantly 2) is not available in the 225/40 18 as tested! :no:

[Simon Foster]

I got Conti ts810 sport winter tyres fitted two weeks ago and the difference is staggering, not a slipped wheel on 7 inches of snow up a one in three, and the cabin noise is no worse. Well worth the £110 per corner.

[rockhopper]

I got Conti ts810 sport winter tyres fitted two weeks ago and the difference is staggering, not a slipped wheel on 7 inches of snow up a one in three, and the cabin noise is no worse. Well worth the £110 per corner.

Thats what I have waiting to be fitted to my monster when it arrives.

Mike