Winter tyres off

[blueR36]

 

This may be obvious, but wind chill is irrelevant for tyres. Humans feel wind chill, innanimate objects don't. See e.g.:

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_chill

It does if you cycle 12 miles each way to work!

[philbes]

I should perhaps add that I agree with you here, and no I don't regularly find myself doing emergency stops! I've triggered the ABS in my car once in the three years I have had it, and I freely admit that this occasion was not an example of good driving on my part.

 

I view good tyres as an important safety feature of a car, like ABS, or even airbags. I hope never to have to take full advantage of them, but in case I do I want tyres capable of stopping me as quicky as possible. This was a reason that I bought winter tyres.

 

I also view good wet and dry braking test results as the best guide I have for general longitudinal grip performance, but I accept this is a slightly different argument.

We seem to be differing to agree (rather than agreeing to differ)!  16C here today.  Next few days forecast to be dry & 6-13C forecast for the times of day/evening that I usually drive.  As soon as I have given my summer wheels a good clean and polish they will be back on my car.  So expect heavy snow and ice soon!

[stever750]

17 degrees in Cardiff this afternoon, plus the addition of an uprated RARB means I'm going to opt for more dry grip, as the winters don't have a huge amount.

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[Stuarted]

I hope you are all grateful to me - following my statement that I intended to keep my winter tyres on for quite a while yet, we have (of course) just enjoyed a gloriously sunny week-end.

[domhnall]

I hope you are all grateful to me - following my statement that I intended to keep my winter tyres on for quite a while yet, we have (of course) just enjoyed a gloriously sunny week-end.

 

maxed out at 7 yesterday, wet all weekend, 1 degree this morning and glorious sunshine (typical now we're back to work)

[jawsnpaws]

A dear old lady once told me of the old English adage " Spring begins in March , and Winter ends in June " .

[Gti Jazz Blue]

Well my Summers went back on the vRS on Saturday - much nicer looking with the alloys back on.

 

So I guess it will Snow now - brace yourselves - LOL.

[domhnall]

Well my Summers went back on the vRS on Saturday - much nicer looking with the alloys back on.

 

So I guess it will Snow now - brace yourselves - LOL.

 

wouldn't be susprised, it snowed on Friday (As well as that we had sunshine, hail, sleet and rain) 

[jrw]

Changed mine yesterday and gave my car an 8 hour detail to boot!

 

 

[stever750]

Well my Summers went back on the vRS on Saturday - much nicer looking with the alloys back on.

So I guess it will Snow now - brace yourselves - LOL.

I put winters and summers on the same rims. £40 to do the lot with a mobile tyre fitter but it's worth it.

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[trundlenut]

Probably do my two at the weekend assuming I can get the new tyres for swmbo's car and get fitted on the rims before then.

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[Fellwalker]

I'm sticking with winters for a little longer. Forget the braking, they grip better when accelerating.  With summer tyres, the fronts spin and rely on the automatic whatever its fancy name is.  With the winter tyres, they don't spin anything like as much.  I would expect that braking performance is similar.  Laast spring I changed when I could feel the sidewalls flexing round corners - still cold in the early morning but warm roads and warm air in the day.

[Stuarted]

Don't think I'd bother with summer / winter tyres if I had to have all my tyres re-fitted and re-balanced twice a year.

If I can get a half-decent set of new alloys for £50 each or less, it will be far easier just to swap wheels round.  I could even swap back quickly and easily if the weather does something really extraordinary.  And you only have to buy wheels once.

Edited 10 March, 2014 by Stuarted

[Stuarted]

Be fair - if grip is poor (due to ice / wet or greasy roads or even just unsuitable summer tyres on damp, cold tarmac) you are likely to get a bit of wheelspin sometimes when starting off, specially when pulling out of a side road, especially if it is uphill - unless you drive like a complete granny.  That's how you know that it is slippery, and this is better than finding out, too late, only when you might have to stop quickly in an emergency.

Driving irresponsibly is when you continue to drive normally even after you've realised that conditions are slippery

 

[stever750]

Is lift off oversteer on a big empty RAB irresponsible driving? Discuss...

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[fairlight5]

That's a bit harsh.

Making progress needn't mean you are driving irresponsibly.

WOT blasts from 30mph to national speed limit on a clear empty road can hardly be considered irresponsible. The same can be said for spirited starts from junctions and out of roundabouts. No harm as long as there is nobody else to inconvenience.

Obviously I don't advocate driving over the speed limit or acting like a complete tool smoking your tyres everywhere like a sad little boy racer, but using a cars potential within the speed limit is not an issue, especially when on the correct rubber for the conditions.

Those of us who enjoy our cars can manage it safely and within the law.

There are far too many on economy drive chugging along clogging the roads up.

For what its worth our little puma has been epic on its hankook icept rs tyres this winter. Not seen a flake of snow but had some great drives in the wet that wouldn't have been possible on summer rubber.

Haven't used the Octavia so much as ny Mrs is expecting and finds it easier to drive than the little Ford at the mo, but the times I have had it it too has been great to drive quickly with the correct rubber on.

[fairlight5]

But you can't make a statement like that sitting at a computer, fair enough if you have been sat in passenger seat evaluating his driving.

I can fully understand where he is coming from both in terms of traction and sidewall flex.

The Octavia is on 195/65/15 instead of summer 205/55/16, you can feel the difference in handling when the temperature rises to a point where winter tyres are the wrong rubber to be on, you don't have to be driving like you are doing a lap of the ring to feel the change.

we are not quite at the point where temps and surface conditions have changed to the point where I am on the wrong rubber, but like the lad you are rounding on I will be able to judge with my hands feet and bum rather than a calender and a thermometer

Edited 10 March, 2014 by fairlight5

[fairlight5]

So because you never drove like that why should it stop anyone else?

As I said before, you cant possibly comment on how and where this person is driving unless you have been a passenger with them.

You may have a good idea of you and your cars capability but to transfer that to every other person owning an Octavia is stretching it a bit.

[fairlight5]

We are going to have to agree to differ here.

Being on the correct rubber keeps you within the limits of the performance envelope. FWIW, I prefer my 4x4 with the TCS off, much more involving drive than the nanny interference. Shame I can't knock the EPS off too ;-)

Anyone that fits the correct rubber to their car must have more care and interest in their car and driving then the rest of the Muppets that drive round on summer rubber near to the legal limit in the depths of winter. Snow or not!

:-)

[fairlight5]

Nice chatting with you,

Safe and enjoyable motoring, whatever that may be! :-)

Gaz

[Stuarted]

I am not really very clear how a driver who claims that he would never drive in a way which would cause his wheels to lose grip would ever manage to determine how much grip his wheels had, or how slippery the road surface was!  If you never go anywhere near the limit of adhesion, how can you know what that limit is or how close you are to it?

[fairlight5]

EPS - Elite Player Squad, English rugby.

I of course meant ESP .....

[MattHunt]

Was going to take ours off this weekend but it is still nippy for the school run. Otherwise they will be off at month end probably.

Then that is it for the steels as I found set of pyxis alloys on eBay for £160

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[stever750]

Well I figure if want alloys at least as good looking as the std, and in all likelihood if I was going to buy another set of 4 I'd buy some better looking summers. So, £80 a year it will be, and the savings will now be spent on some H&R competition springs. Plus some of the cost of swapping tyres is absorbed in the process of buying new anyway as I'm doing 35k a year.

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Edited 11 March, 2014 by stever750

[blueR36]

I cannot use alternative alloys as my Brakes are too big !  so like Steve have to swap them. New Summer Tyres coming from Camskill today , but will have them fitted later ( maybe a few weeks) As winter in Darkness and  nearly Summer temps in Daylight  but seen as most of my journeys are at night____