Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

[Angry Cat]

http://conversation.which.co.uk/tran...rth-the-money/

[Caspar]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

I had a set when I lived in a very remote area and they were brilliant, but I kept them on a complete different set of wheels and just changed the wheels over when things were bad - not a long job with a decent trolley jack and compressor to undo / tighten wheel nuts.

However, for the ordinary motorist living in a normal area, to be honest it would be more economical to go out and buy an old 4x4 then sell it again. you can pick a good one up for 5-800 pounds nowadays and get most of your money back, and if lucky make a bit of a profit!

[pompeyfaith]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

The weather here as regards to snow is still a hit and miss affair and not a regular occurrence so that I believe outweighs the cost of the tyres and maybe rims too.

If you was living in the Scottish highlands then that's a different matter, but lower England a no.

Indeed the money would be better spent on an advanced driving course with skid pan as I believe our tyres are up to the job but us are not.

[EXC]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

I don't think winter tyres are worth it myself.

Not least because of the extra insurance considerations BBC News - Insurance companies

You can achieve most of what winter tyres do by reducing your tyre pressure. With modern tyres you can safely run them with 50% less air which roughly doubles the footprint of the tyre and effectively makes the compound softer.

[Angry Cat]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

Looks like, you cannot buy winter tyres at the moment; none to be had, they are all sold out!

However, tyre socks could be of benefit:
http://www.which.co.uk/news/2010/11/...-tyres-238011/

[Caspar]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

Looks like, you cannot buy winter tyres at the moment; none to be had, they are all sold out!

However, tyre socks could be of benefit:
http://www.which.co.uk/news/2010/11/...-tyres-238011/

a lot of people spent money unwisely then!

[EXC]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

I've heard that the hot set up is to use tyre wires or cables. They're like tyre chains but are much easier to fit - especially on your own - and use the same principle as chains but instead of being made of chain links, it uses relatively thin metal cable. The main advantage is that you can drive with them in normal road conditions as well as in ice & snow - unlike chains.

[Angry Cat]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

I've heard that the hot set up is to use tyre wires or cables. They're like tyre chains but are much easier to fit - especially on your own - and use the same principle as chains but instead of being made of chain links, it uses relatively thin metal cable. The main advantage is that you can drive with them in normal road conditions as well as in ice & snow - unlike chains.

That's interesting!

Thanks EXC, where can you buy these?:snowbal:

[BigK]

Re: Winter Tyres. Are they worth buying?

Agree with St Bernard - Anything you do with a car which changes the specification from that of the vehicle manufacturer must be reported to the Insurer or the policy is void. That could be very costly indeed. Simply informing them could also cost more on the premium.

Anything other than the manufacturers tyre size AND TYPE is a change, as is for instance fitting alloy wheels. And the latter applies even if another spec (LX, SX etc) of the same model has alloy wheels. You would have to notify changes each time you changed to winter tyres AND back again.

Fitting grip aids though is not a change to the specification, nor are studded tyres, provided they are merely studded and otherwise the same size and type.

Never take chances with Insurance - of any kind. They employ loss adjusters to minimise their outlay on claims. 'Adjusting' your claim to £zero is an ultimate for them!