I have the 220 Superb too having come from a 220 Octi VRS.

 

I just ordered steel wheels tonight for this winter and will put cross climates on them.

 

Andy

Edited 15 November, 20196 yr by AndyBNotts

Thanks again everyone. Aside from the winter weather, do people who own the 220 find it a handful anyway? I bloody loved the test drive and from some of the comments it's sounds like great fun 🙈🙈🥳🥳. I'm probably quite reserved in my driving style so I don't think I'm heading for a ditch just intrigued. 

I find the front wheels spin easily compared to my old vrs when I kick down, probably the extra weight... 

On 15/11/2019 at 20:33, AndyBNotts said:

I have the 220 Superb too having come from a 220 Octi VRS.

 

I just ordered steel wheels tonight for this winter and will put cross climates on them.

 

Andy

Why would you do that?

 

If you are buying specific wheels for winter why not put on specific tyres for winter?

 

If you are sticking with the OE alloys then cross climates as a year round fit might be most cost effective but otherwise.

36 minutes ago, Bud said:

Why would you do that?

 

If you are buying specific wheels for winter why not put on specific tyres for winter?

 

If you are sticking with the OE alloys then cross climates as a year round fit might be most cost effective but otherwise.

Well, last time I checked, I'm free to do as I like with my own money?

36 minutes ago, Bud said:

 

 

Edited 16 November, 20196 yr by AndyBNotts

From my experience. I had the 220TSI sportline for 2 months from January this year for 2 months and got tired very quickly of excessive wheel spin in the wet. On the way home from work i have to negotiate a steep incline up to some traffic lights and i found myself at a standstill a number of times in wet conditions. The car is too heavy for front wheel drive IMHO. i went back to the dealer and replaced it at extra cost to a 272 sportline plus but it is worth it. It is like driving a completely different car. No more spin and confidence at busy junctions. Trade off is fuel economy going from 33mpg to 28mpg on my daily trip to work of 12 miles.

On 16/11/2019 at 22:49, AndyBNotts said:

Well, last time I checked, I'm free to do as I like with my own money?

 

I think that @Bud said, (disregard the next link, put in error and unable to edit it out) @AndyBNotts is trying to alert you to the fact that, whilst all season tyres are better than summer tyres, winter tyres will give you much more grip.

The clue is in the name. All seasons are a compromise between summer and winter.

But as you say, it's your money so throw it away if you want.

Edited 18 November, 20196 yr by facet edge
Name link cannot be removed!

2 hours ago, facet edge said:

I think that @Bud said, (disregard the next link, put in error and unable to edit it out) @AndyBNotts is trying to alert you to the fact that, whilst all season tyres are better than summer tyres, winter tyres will give you much more grip.

The clue is in the name. All seasons are a compromise between summer and winter.

But as you say, it's your money so throw it away if you want.

How many times do you go out at 5am when its minus numbers and then drive home at 3pm when its over 7 degrees.  IMO in the UK All Season make much more sense.

1 hour ago, AndyBNotts said:

How many times do you go out at 5am when its minus numbers and then drive home at 3pm when its over 7 degrees.  IMO in the UK All Season make much more sense.

I think it's horses for courses here. If, going by your username, you're in a part of the country where it isn't too wild in the winter, buy what best suits you, your use and the likely conditions you'll encounter.

 

I'm a shift worker in the north of Scotland. A second set of wheels with winter tyres makes the most sense for me as I'm driving at unsocial hours when the roads often haven't been treated. 

 

My only advice is buy the best that you can afford. Tyres are something I hate to scrimp on! 

On 16/11/2019 at 22:13, Bud said:

Why would you do that?

 

If you are buying specific wheels for winter why not put on specific tyres for winter?

 

If you are sticking with the OE alloys then cross climates as a year round fit might be most cost effective but otherwise.

In the UK I can understand actually using cross climates for winter. You'll actually be using the capabilities of the tyre more than a winter tyre since it doesn't snow that much. Just cold and wet mostly which the CC excels. 

20 hours ago, AndyBNotts said:

How many times do you go out at 5am when its minus numbers and then drive home at 3pm when its over 7 degrees.  IMO in the UK All Season make much more sense.

 

13 minutes ago, KeteCantek said:

In the UK I can understand actually using cross climates for winter. You'll actually be using the capabilities of the tyre more than a winter tyre since it doesn't snow that much. Just cold and wet mostly which the CC excels. 

Yeah, but the whole idea of cross climate/ all season tyres is that you put them on your car and leave them on 365 not just for winter.

 

16 minutes ago, KeteCantek said:

In the UK I can understand actually using cross climates for winter. You'll actually be using the capabilities of the tyre more than a winter tyre since it doesn't snow that much. Just cold and wet mostly which the CC excels. 

Maybe you don’t get much snow but I can assure you the rest of us in the UK do actually get snow.

3 minutes ago, Kenny R said:

 

Yeah, but the whole idea of cross climate/ all season tyres is that you put them on your car and leave them on 365 not just for winter.

 

235/40/19 ?

8 minutes ago, Kenny R said:

Maybe you don’t get much snow but I can assure you the rest of us in the UK do actually get snow.

🙂  I get about, 40,000 a year roughly, ran x climate on my VRS for 3 years in the Winter and never got stuck in snow, even in Scotland.

 

However, in the summer, they were crap, wheels would spin in 3rd and 4th.

Edited 19 November, 20196 yr by AndyBNotts

43 minutes ago, Kenny R said:

Maybe you don’t get much snow but I can assure you the rest of us in the UK do actually get snow.

I am assuming most people won't be getting much snow in the UK. Yes it will snow but it won't be very frequent. For the minority who live in a place where it will mostly have snow then proper winters are the way to go. 

 

Otherwise for the most appropriate tyre for climate, it will be summer tyres in summer, good all season in winter for most in the UK. It's not rare to have mild weather above 7deg in winter here and that is where winters will suffer. 

I'm away up near John o groats. I use all seasons for all seasons. Sometimes we can have a very harsh winter, sometimes quite mild. 

Did used to swap winter to summer tyres. Can't really be bothered with that now or storing the extra wheels and or tyres. Typically find the all seasons do very well all year round. If you want to be chasing the absolute limit of adhesion in the summer then yes a good summer tyre will be better in that situation. 

I'm strongly in favour of the winter and all season tyres but...

At the end of the day the UK has no laws saying certain tyres are to be used in winter so use what ever you want after all its your car and your money. 

@AndyBNotts

Spinning the tyres in 4th gear? Really??

Wet, dry? 

Trying to make the car spin? 

Or just of the throttle?

Edited 19 November, 20196 yr by Gmac983

2 hours ago, AndyBNotts said:

235/40/19 ?

Somewhat lacking in choice for that size. Quatrac 5's good and what I have used most recently but no stock. Pirelli Cinturatos are eye wateringly pricey! 

Just leaving Maxxis ap2, don't know anything about them though. 

2 minutes ago, Gmac983 said:

Somewhat lacking in choice for that size. Quatrac 5's good and what I have used most recently but no stock. Pirelli Cinturatos are eye wateringly pricey! 

Just leaving Maxxis ap2, don't know anything about them though. 

Yeah, that's the problem and hence getting the 17" steels.

 

I ran steels on my old Octavia L&K, never bothered me what it looked like and the ride was so much softer with a big side wall

 

Andy

1 hour ago, Gmac983 said:

I'm away up near John o groats. I use all seasons for all seasons. Sometimes we can have a very harsh winter, sometimes quite mild. 

Did used to swap winter to summer tyres. Can't really be bothered with that now or storing the extra wheels and or tyres. Typically find the all seasons do very well all year round. If you want to be chasing the absolute limit of adhesion in the summer then yes a good summer tyre will be better in that situation. 

I'm strongly in favour of the winter and all season tyres but...

At the end of the day the UK has no laws saying certain tyres are to be used in winter so use what ever you want after all its your car and your money. 

@AndyBNotts

Spinning the tyres in 4th gear? Really??

Wet, dry? 

Trying to make the car spin? 

Or just of the throttle?

In damp conditions I found the x climate lacked grip even in the summer, although the Superb is bad on summers in the damp on a warm day.....

 

Wish I had gone for another Octavia, but I only keep cars for 2-3 years as my mileage is so high.

16 minutes ago, AndyBNotts said:

Yeah, that's the problem and hence getting the 17" steels.

 

I ran steels on my old Octavia L&K, never bothered me what it looked like and the ride was so much softer with a big side wall

 

Andy

In defence of the Quatrac 5's they are still cheaper than most mid-high end Summer tyres and from experience the wear rate is shockingly good.  My set has 5-6mm of tread remaining and they've covered ~21K miles, making them even better value IMO.  Another thing, as a Summer tyre they perform very well and are only marginally off the pace of a sorted Winter tyre (drawing comparison to the Goodyear Ultragrip 9) 

Edited 19 November, 20196 yr by penguin17

Thanks everyone, really appreciate the input. I picked it up on Sat afternoon and really enjoyed the drive home, even though it's petrol I got better mpg than in my Outlander on the way down there. I'm going to need a bloody good swatting up session as its got a lot of kit on there I've not even considered yet.

 

Think I'm leaning towards a set of all season tyres. I'm in Tring, Herts, and whilst we are on the edge of the Chiltern Hills, we don't get bagloads of snow each winter, but we do get slippy roads through frosts and mud. 

 

So, slightly cheeky question but if I put all season tyres on my 19's, does anyone want to buy a set on P7's that have done less than 3000 miles?

 

Hope I don't get too much abuse for asking. Bear in mind I'm new to the forum and if this is the wrong place apologies, but a tyre discussion thread with a bias to sportline owners seemed a good place to ask.

 

Thanks

I put 250 miles on my new Quatrac 5s this weekend. The one time I gave the car the beans on a wet road pulling into traffic, the tyres showed no sign of slipping, so I'm pleased about that. On the down side, they give a noticeably rougher ride than the P7s.

 

I wrote to Vredestein to ask what they recommended for tyre pressures, thinking a lower pressure would give a smoother ride. They wrote back:

 

"For the correct tyre pressure, please refer to the pressure indicated in the instruction hand book of the car, sometimes also found inside the car door frame or inside the fuel lid. Please take in to account the Normal Load pressures and Heavy Load pressure. The tyre pressure Apollo Vredestein advise on our web site is maximum load. It is normal for a tyre to lose a bit of pressure after a while. Our experience is that people do not regularly check their tyre pressure. 
   Apollo Vredestein advise a higher pressure, using a too low pressure can cause irreparable damage to the tyres, be responsible for more tyre wear and can cause unnecessary fuel consumption. With a bit of extra pressure (Heavy load pressure in hand book for example) all these negative aspects will be avoided, the only thing is that the vehicle may feel less comfortable but in practice this comes out marginal."

 

When the fitter mounted my tyres, I asked him to put 36 psi. He said that was too much pressure and recommended 32 psi. I think Vredestein would disagree with that advice. I think I'll try 34 psi for awhile, which is at the low end of two passengers with luggage and see how it rides. As suggested by Vredestein, I'm willing to put up with a rougher ride for the additional year round safety.