I'm hoping for some advice from owners of 2WD Yetis in E and S spec. please.  As standard you have the smaller rim wheels with 215/60/16 tyres, the same size as my Elegance which at my request came with Moon alloys (and standard Continental tyres; now thinking at ordering I should also have specified all season tyres but you live and learn).

 

My understanding is that wide, low profile tyres are particularly bad in snow and this was my experience with my previous car. But all my cars before that were manageable in snow on their "ordinary" tyres (bearing in mind on the South Coast anything over a couple of inches is considered a snowdrift and therefore a reason not to leave the house) and I'm not sure whether this was because they weren't on noticeably low profile tyres or because it was an older tyre technology.

 

I'm considering buying a set of steel wheels with winter tyres but storage of the second set of wheels, the (minor) hassle of changing back and forth twice a year and the apparent rapid ageing of winter tyres (meaning they could deteriorate beyond safe limits with significant tread left, bearing in mind down here we have short winters) all need to be balanced against virtually all my out-of-summer driving being along the South Coast with its mild climate .

 

Before making a decision would be very interested to hear how members with 2WD Yetis on 16" wheels with the higher profile Summer tyres have found coping with snow. Any thoughts please?

The profile should not make that much of a difference, it is more about the width and thread of the tyre. (wide tyre "floating" over the snow when narrower sinks through)

.... (wide tyre "floating" over the snow when narrower sinks through)

True in theory, of course.  In practice, though, there's not a lot of difference between 225 and 215 - say 5% up or down in very round figures.  Surely, far greater differences are in the tread design and the rubber composition.

I can't speak from experience with a Yeti, (until tomorrow ) but I have done lots of winter and snow driving. For the last 6 or 7 years I've done the winter tyre shuffle thing on all of my cars: going taller / narrower with a tyre is definitely advantageous as the car will tend to cut through slush to gain grip much better than a lower profile hoop. My Abarth uses 205/40r17 rubber in the summer. On the slightest bit of snow it's utterly useless, so in the winter it gets re-shod with 195/45r16 Michelin Alpines. The difference is night and day: you can occasionally hear the abs pump spin up to work the TTC e-diff, but not nearly as much as I could when the summer wheels were on.

 

I've never noticed winters "go off" over time & think this a bit of an urban myth. Sure after 5 years I could forsee them not being so sticky, but I'd expect to reboot each wheel every three years at least & you'll have exactly the same performance drop-off with any tyre

 

On top of good snow grip, winters deliver generally better braking and handling below about 7C. There's loads of videos on-line showing the reduced braking distances of winters on dry, cold tarmac when compared to summer tyres.

 

Storage and re-fitting is a PITA if I'm honest. I've got 8 winter wheels lurking about the place now: 4 in the abarth crate in the loft, and the 4 for the yeti, locked to a ground anchor outside. The yeti's are HUGE. I can do the swap on the abarth in about 20 minutes, the difficult bit is cleaning them before storage & explaining to the o/h why there's tyres in the bathroom.

 

Bet you did that when the Wife wasn,t in!!!!!

Tony

Like the OP I also have a "special order" Elegance with 16" Moons.

Last winter I put some winters on a set of Audi A3 Alloys and was very pleased. In fact we only drove the car for a week on the "summers" before swapping to winters, going back the other way in the spring was quite a shock.

 

We also live in the sunny south, but around here only the major roads get gritted and the least bit of snow soon gets hard packed and lethal.

Last year we had no problems at all getting up the steep hill that leads to our house. Generally it quickly turns into an ice rink and there is usually a small car park at the bottom comprising all the people who have tried to get up the hill and could not.

 

Our "off vehicle" set sit on a wheel tree, so the amount of floor space required is the size of one wheel laid flat.

Snow tyres are a waste of money.

Snow tyres are a waste of money.

 

Care to elaborate your reasoning here?

Snow tyres are a waste of money.

If I thought you knew what you are talking about I'd agree. Snow tyres (usually studded) are a waste of money in the UK but pretty vital close to the arctic circle. I suspect you are talking about winter tyres and I disagree.

I can't speak from experience with a Yeti, (until tomorrow ) but I have done lots of winter and snow driving. For the last 6 or 7 years I've done the winter tyre shuffle thing on all of my cars: going taller / narrower with a tyre is definitely advantageous as the car will tend to cut through slush to gain grip much better than a lower profile hoop. My Abarth uses 205/40r17 rubber in the summer. On the slightest bit of snow it's utterly useless, so in the winter it gets re-shod with 195/45r16 Michelin Alpines. The difference is night and day: you can occasionally hear the abs pump spin up to work the TTC e-diff, but not nearly as much as I could when the summer wheels were on.

 

I've never noticed winters "go off" over time & think this a bit of an urban myth. Sure after 5 years I could forsee them not being so sticky, but I'd expect to reboot each wheel every three years at least & you'll have exactly the same performance drop-off with any tyre

 

On top of good snow grip, winters deliver generally better braking and handling below about 7C. There's loads of videos on-line showing the reduced braking distances of winters on dry, cold tarmac when compared to summer tyres.

 

Storage and re-fitting is a PITA if I'm honest. I've got 8 winter wheels lurking about the place now: 4 in the abarth crate in the loft, and the 4 for the yeti, locked to a ground anchor outside. The yeti's are HUGE. I can do the swap on the abarth in about 20 minutes, the difficult bit is cleaning them before storage & explaining to the o/h why there's tyres in the bathroom.

 

He he - Nice choice of cars !

I've just put 4x 205/40-17 Pirelli winters on my Abarth 595 (bought a second set of alloys) - not had a problems with 205 width winters on my last Abarth 500 :-)

I have a full set of 215/60-16 Vredestein Wintrac Extremes to go on our Elegance 170 - probably at the weekend. Makes the Yeti like a mini Landie !

As long as you keep the tyres dry and out of UV light, you'll get many years out of a set - up here, our combination of winters and poor road clearing justifies the spend on keeping on the road.

Have to say, I like your EsseEsse alloys :-)

Snow tyres are a waste of money.

 

Where do You live, if I may ask - Costa Rica?

Snow tyres certainly arent a waste of money where I stay they are essential.We are in the grampian mountains and iv taken our 4x4 yeti through some deep drifts. Our 1st yeti was 2wd and my wife got stuck on a hill when the traffic came to a standstill due to a jack knived arctic lorry. That prompted another lorry to blast its airhorns at her which gave her quite a scare so we got a set of all seasons tyres and that changed the car completely passing stuck 4x4 x5s wit normal tyres. We have dunlop 4ds on the yeti. Iv ran 2 winters on my past 4 vans working at tomintoul near the ski centre sailing through drifts! Not just in the snow even better in damp cold conditions. Plus it saves wearing out your summer tyres!

Snow tyres certainly arent a waste of money where I stay they are essential.We are in the grampian mountains and iv taken our 4x4 yeti through some deep drifts. Our 1st yeti was 2wd and my wife got stuck on a hill when the traffic came to a standstill due to a jack knived arctic lorry. That prompted another lorry to blast its airhorns at her which gave her quite a scare so we got a set of all seasons tyres and that changed the car completely passing stuck 4x4 x5s wit normal tyres. We have dunlop 4ds on the yeti. Iv ran 2 winters on my past 4 vans working at tomintoul near the ski centre sailing through drifts! Not just in the snow even better in damp cold conditions. Plus it saves wearing out your summer tyres!

 

How appropriate!

What you need is a nice set of cross plys

Snow tyres certainly arent a waste of money where I stay they are essential.We are in the grampian mountains and iv taken our 4x4 yeti through some deep drifts. Our 1st yeti was 2wd and my wife got stuck on a hill when the traffic came to a standstill due to a jack knived arctic lorry. That prompted another lorry to blast its airhorns at her which gave her quite a scare so we got a set of all seasons tyres and that changed the car completely passing stuck 4x4 x5s wit normal tyres. We have dunlop 4ds on the yeti. Iv ran 2 winters on my past 4 vans working at tomintoul near the ski centre sailing through drifts! Not just in the snow even better in damp cold conditions. Plus it saves wearing out your summer tyres!

 

Thanks Andy, this is the sort of practical experience of "WD and ordinary tyres I was hoping for. (Thanks also the 4x4 owners for their thoughts - just hope you are around if/when I need a tow!)

Is there something "offnote" about this thread?

You mean:

Is there something "offnote" about this thread?

I suspect there is.

What I can't get my head around is what satisfaction he gets from posting such drivel - perhaps his feeling of inadequency and insignificance and his yearning for recognition has led him to being provocative to the extreme.

Being a magnaminous forum we should feel sorry for him and his attempts to be noticed.

My winter tyres are now 3 years old and are soon to be fitted to my Land Rover Freelander. They have not gone off and after 20,000 miles have 6mm left all round despite using them lots when the weather improved.

 

We can't get snow tyres in the UK........They take studs and they are illegal over here. We can barely get winter tyres over here..... 

Is there something "offnote" about this thread?

  

I suspect there is.

What I can't get my head around is what satisfaction he gets from posting such drivel - perhaps his feeling of inadequency and insignificance and his yearning for recognition has led him to being provocative to the extreme.

Being a magnaminous forum we should feel sorry for him and his attempts to be noticed.

My thoughts exactly.

Reported to mods.

I'm sure you know this....

Winter tyres are not only for snow

I've yet to actually drive the yeti on winters but as a passenger I felt they gave excellent grip in snow.

Never felt any slip.

Very sure footed in the wet and cold too.

Snow tyres are a waste of money.

 

Certainly are if you live in London.  Never snows properly there.

Certainly are if you live in London. Never snows properly there.

Properly for us is about 5mm........ :lol:

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Trolls apart, 

I live in Italy and, definitively, it snows!

I have a set of 215/60 Nokian wrd3 on alloy mak wheels (the annapurna stay at the tyreman during winter). I was able to climb a ramp in FULL snow. Not a garage ramp, but a multi-store parking facility. And just with a 2wd yeti. So, I can only recommend 215 on 16. 

Winters now on - 1/2 hr to do the swap, but lots of other "faffing" that comes with a sunday in the garage meant I took about 2 hrs to do the complete swap, clean summer alloys, tidy the huge number of leaves lying around, checking tyre pressures.

Nice feeling of getting prepared for the winter.

Still waiting for temps to fall before fitting appropriate tyres for this time of year; winters  

 

 

TP