Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

In Germany it's customary to own two sets of wheels and tyres; you store the 'other' set at the tyre shop and they swap them over when necessary..

My Dad worked out there for a couple of years recently (besides being stationed out there many years ago) and watched a guy turn up to the tyre place and have one set of 20" alloys taken off his nearly new Mercedes to be replaced with another set of 20" alloys (identical, of course) with winter tyres, his summer wheels being stored in a locked cage at the tyre shop.

Alright if you can afford a few thousand on a second set of wheels..

My point entirely.

[tunnie]

Bit cheaper for Omegas, I got the full set of Winters with 6mm tread on CD alloys for £130 all in.

Rip off compared to my Kumo 31's also with 6mm tread all around, on unmarked CDX alloys. 100 notes for all 4!

Got to love OOF 

Really makes you appreciate it when a colleague was looking at £300+ per tyre for his £24k A6 

[aaronjb]

Yeah - cheaper for the Omega.. I picked up a set of steel wheels (thanks to OOF) and even a brand new set of winters wasn't eye watering compared to ~£1000 for a set of tyres on the M3 ..

[chrisgixer]

Oh Opti....  Opti. Opti. Opti. We were doing so well this year.

 

Bothered?

[chrisgixer]

Oh Opti....  Opti. Opti. Opti. We were doing so well this year.

 

Bothered?

Damn. That shuld of said bovered obviously.

[Kevin Wood]

I really wish someone had forced me into buying winter tyres. All this 10 degrees C and gallons of standing water malarkey is really sub-optimal for my bog standard tyres.

[Sir Tigger KC]

In many parts of Europe it's the law. And if the EU has it's way, it wouldn't surprise me if it became law here in Blighty.

I'm sure the tyre manufacturers are lobbying hard in Brussels for this to happen. 

I expect there's a few brown envelopes flying around!   

[cem_devecioglu]

here its been more than a month since last snow .. but this week every morning was frosty..  and roads were icy so I couldnt hammer as usual..

[sjr47]

Running Michelin pilot alpins  all round since all this H2O arrived several weeks now and not only a bonus in snow but found less liable to aquaplaning hit some standing water on a few occasions recently which on summer tyres would have had the sphincter twitching but no problems with the Alpins .

[cem_devecioglu]

conti ts850 ok.. but really noisy

[MR MISTER]

In many parts of Europe it's the law. And if the EU has it's way, it wouldn't surprise me if it became law here in Blighty.

I'm sure the tyre manufacturers are lobbying hard in Brussels for this to happen. 

I expect there's a few brown envelopes flying around!   

You've hit the nail on the head there, Tigger. Only last year, Michelin were crying poverty and we're told by the EU to hang tight, they were going to legislate soon.

[sjr47]

So Spain, Greece ,Southern Italy all running round on winter boots at 20oC think not will only be us mugs daft enough to accept it

[LC0112G]

If you hire a car in Germany, Austria or Swizerland between October and May, the hire care company will charge you extra for the privilege of Winter tyres - and it's not optional. Local laws apparantly. I've no idea why they aren't included in the price since they won't let you have the car without them.

I've driven to the (French) Alps for the past 4 winters in the Omega on Summer tyres. I do have snow chains, and without them there is no way we would have got there on 2 occasions, or back on 3 occasions.  The locals consider us (Brits) mad to even attempt it on summer tyres.

I think next time I'm going to take their advice and get some cheap steel rims with winter tyres on. Traveling down hill with chains on the back, and summer tyres on the front can get effing scary. You daren't touch the brakes cos the fronts will just lock up and then you're a passenger heading straight to the scene of the accident. I found the best way was to put the car in neutral and use the hand brake to control the speed, and then just pray that the front tyres have enough grip to have some influence on the direction of travel. One of the few occasions when a FWD car is an advantage IMHO.

[Sir Tigger KC]

I found the best way was to put the car in neutral and use the hand brake to control the speed, and then just pray that the front tyres have enough grip to have some influence on the direction of travel.

 

Let me know when you next go to the Alps, and I'll go to the Pyrenees instead!!   

[chrisgixer]

There's no doubting winters have their uses, heading up to the Alps on summer tyres is well dodgy on summers. Sc3's on would be lunacy.


But here in the uk. No!