Winter tyres off

[mikey vrs]

Must admit I didn't realise there had been snow as far south as York recently!

That pic isnt in york(i think its up north where silver works).........we have had no snow at all here in york,couple of frosty mornings & thats all.  

[Stuarted]

Although that video shows that at 10 degrees the summer tyres offer better braking in the wet, even at that relatively mild temperature the winter tyres are better in the wet than the summer tyres when cornering.  As the test driver said, "The car is just much easier to drive and more controllable".

My winter tyres are staying on until at least the end of March - possibly until the end of April. 

Edited 7 March, 2014 by Stuarted

[neil_f]

Drove through a couple of blizzards near Perth today and frost forecast tonight and also next week so definitely keeping winters on just now.

[Ultrasonic]

Although that video shows that at 10 degrees the summer tyres offer better braking in the wet, even at that relatively mild temperature the winter tyres are better in the wet than the summer tyres when cornering.  As the test driver said, "The car is just much easier to drive and more controllable".

 

Yes, but on a surface acknowlwedged to be more like an icy road than a wet road. Obviously different people will take different views, but for me I think the straight line braking test is likely to be more representative of situations I'd likely face.

[philbes]

Yes, but on a surface acknowlwedged to be more like an icy road than a wet road. Obviously different people will take different views, but for me I think the straight line braking test is likely to be more representative of situations I'd likely face.

So how many full-on emergency stops do you expect to need before now and the end of March?  I can't remember the last time I found it necessary to carry out an emergency stop - I find good observation means I can stop without the need for full-on braking.  Perhaps I shouldn't have said that - tomorrow will now require an emergency stop!

[andyoctavia]

I live in Kent, and the forecast for the next week, shows from 14C to 16C, hardly Winter tyre temperatures. The Skoda has been on Barums since I bought it back in March 2012, and they seem to be good in all weathers.

[silver1011]

That pic isnt in york(i think its up north where silver works).........we have had no snow at all here in york,couple of frosty mornings & thats all.  

 

Yep, this was in Spennymoor near Durham.

 

About 30 seconds later it had all melted!

[philbes]

I live in Kent, and the forecast for the next week, shows from 14C to 16C, hardly Winter tyre temperatures. The Skoda has been on Barums since I bought it back in March 2012, and they seem to be good in all weathers.

I've just looked at the Met Office long range forecast (30 days) and it seems one job for Sunday is to change back from my winters to the summer wheels/tyres!

[stever750]

Winters on until mid April. By then the front will be around 2mm so ready to throw away after 2 full winters and around 20k miles. Easily the best wearing tyres, despite stage 1 torque and lots of it. I'm not looking forward to putting the ultracs back on... :/

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[Ultrasonic]

So how many full-on emergency stops do you expect to need before now and the end of March?  I can't remember the last time I found it necessary to carry out an emergency stop - I find good observation means I can stop without the need for full-on braking.  Perhaps I shouldn't have said that - tomorrow will now require an emergency stop!

 

I look at it this way. The issues with summer tyres on the lateral grip test I have never experieneced, whereas braking quickly in a straight line I have. Also, no matter how good the driver, having tyres that enable you to stop quicker will always be safer. To be honest I don't think there is any argument over the fact that summer tyres are safer at 10°C, what surprised me when I first came across that video was how big the difference was, even in the wet.

 

What matters right now of course is what temperatures are like on average. This will determine whether winter or summer tyres are best overall.

[Stuarted]

I look at it this way. The issues with summer tyres on the lateral grip test I have never experieneced, whereas braking quickly in a straight line I have. Also, no matter how good the driver, having tyres that enable you to stop quicker will always be safer. To be honest I don't think there is any argument over the fact that summer tyres are safer at 10°C, what surprised me when I first came across that video was how big the difference was, even in the wet.

 

What matters right now of course is what temperatures are like on average. This will determine whether winter or summer tyres are best overall.

.

You make a fair point.  However, on average, I am not making an emergency stop.

You very sensibly are choosing tyres for a rare but crucial situation.  So am I - I regard getting to my destination (or home) when there is ice or snow as an unusual but crucial situation.

Winter tyres may not be quite as good as the best summer tyres in emergency, straight-line braking, but they're not bad.  You'll stop OK.

But on ice or snow, even the best summer tyres may not be much use at all and could leave you stranded.  Even on wet, low temperature roads they may not be very good at keeping you pointed in the right direction - summer tyres may be poorer at doing that, than winter tyres will be at doing emergency stops in a straight line.

[ChrisRs]

Taking Wayne's off tomorrow for him and refitting the Alloys

Spring is here!!

[ChrisRs]

11C here Mike

[Ultrasonic]

You very sensibly are choosing tyres for a rare but crucial situation.  So am I - I regard getting to my destination (or home) when there is ice or snow as an unusual but crucial situation.

Right now, for me, the likelihood of needing to stop quickly far exceeds the chance of struggling to get home on ice or snow, hence the switch.

 

When choosing between different summer tyres I consider a 10% difference in stopping distance to be significant and so would buy the better ones. Others may of course not consider this a large enough difference to care. In practice it comes down to whether anything you want to avoid is in that final 10%.

 

I bought winter tyres for safety. At the point that they are no longer the safer option then switching back is the sensble plan. For me this seems to be about now. If I did a lot of driving at 3am, or lived in Scotland, it probably wouldn't be.

Edited 8 March, 2014 by Ultrasonic

[john999boy]

Taking Wayne's off tomorrow for him and refitting the Alloys

I didn't realise that Wayne's car had 'Anti Wayne' wheel bolts fitted?

 

I hope he's supplying plenty of caffeine style lubrication to help the job along Chris!

[trundlenut]

I didn't realise that Wayne's car had 'Anti Wayne' wheel bolts fitted?

I hope he's supplying plenty of caffeine style lubrication to help the job along Chris!

No, he's scared he'll get it dirty.

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[ChrisRs]

He's coming here John

[blueR36]

Was 2 degrees this morning. Warm daylight hours and cold mornings . As mike says with windchill a lot colder. If they grit the roads then you need winter tyres. Lrave till the end off the month for me

[paddypaws]

1st set of winters. They've done two skiing holidays and they were amazing in the snowy alps. 16 degrees in London this afternoon and 15 degrees driving home at 11pm. They're off!

[Ultrasonic]

Was 2 degrees this morning. Warm daylight hours and cold mornings . As mike says with windchill a lot colder. If they grit the roads then you need winter tyres. Lrave till the end off the month for me

 

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

[philbes]

Right now, for me, the likelihood of needing to stop quickly far exceeds the chance of struggling to get home on ice or snow, hence the switch.

 

When choosing between different summer tyres I consider a 10% difference in stopping distance to be significant and so would buy the better ones. Others may of course not consider this a large enough difference to care. In practice it comes down to whether anything you want to avoid is in that final 10%.

 

I bought winter tyres for safety. At the point that they are no longer the safer option then switching back is the sensble plan. For me this seems to be about now. If I did a lot of driving at 3am, or lived in Scotland, it probably wouldn't be.

Your first sentence seems to assume that the only advantage of winter tyres is on snow or ice.  Winter tyres are designed for lower temperatures not just for snow and ice.

 

But the 10% shorter stopping distance is only at (or very near) maximum braking.  If you are regularly using maximum braking on a public road it's your driving style and observation/concentration that needs changing not your tyres!  On a recent trip on very wet roads at 11C it was obvious that my winter tyres gave more security than would my summer tyres, but then my driving style did not require full-bore emergency braking.

 

I agree that it is sensible to switch from winter tyres when the prevailing temperatures are more suited to summer tyres.  However, in my opinion (and driving style) maximum braking is not the over-riding factor in when to change.

[john999boy]

I'm sure that what we can all agree on is that it's getting very close to the time when summer tyres will indeed win out over winter ones.

The weather forecast for my location says it will be winter tyre 'mornings' and summer tyre 'days' for the next week so it really depends upon when you'll be using your vehicle I suppose.

At least I've cleaned/clayed/sealed my wheels in preparation for the changeover. It'll also be nice to have some better looking wheels to look at.

[Ultrasonic]

Your first sentence seems to assume that the only advantage of winter tyres is on snow or ice.  Winter tyres are designed for lower temperatures not just for snow and ice.

I was just responding to a specific point from Stuarted. Of course the benefit of winter tyres is not restricted to snow and ice, I wouldn't have bought any otherwise .

 

 

 

But the 10% shorter stopping distance is only at (or very near) maximum braking.

 

I take braking distance performance as a guide of longitudinal grip under all circumstances, which i think is entirely reasonable. I see no reason why all braking will not be better, not just maximal braking. (Please explain if you know otherwise.) It also tells me about traction for acceleration as well as braking. What I really took from that video though was the extent to which winter tyres are sub-optimal relative to summer tyres even in the wet at relatively mild temperatures. The difference in the dry (which it is most of the time) is also relevant and will likely be greater (in % terms). Oh, and not sure why I started saying 10%, the difference in the test was 14%.

 

 

 

On a recent trip on very wet roads at 11C it was obvious that my winter tyres gave more security than would my summer tyres, but then my driving style did not require full-bore emergency braking.

 

The trouble is, it is incredibly hard for you to assess this accurately. I could similarly say that since swapping to my summer tyres my car feels like it grips much better (it does) but this is purely subjective, and I can't in all honesty say it is not a placebo effect. That's why tests like the one I linked to are useful. I also note that in the video the female presenter said she thought that the winter tyres stopped quicker, presumably because she expected them to.

 

This thread also highlights the weather variations across the UK - it's 16°C here today, and nice and sunny  .

Edited 9 March, 2014 by Ultrasonic

[Ultrasonic]

  If you are regularly using maximum braking on a public road it's your driving style and observation/concentration that needs changing not your tyres!

 

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.

[Spaced99]

Mine came off yesterday. Back on the PS3s, been on the motorway today and it feels much better at 70 mph than on the winters.