Winter tyres vol 2
Discussion
For anybody who doesn't know, a tyre described as 'new' at point of sale must be less than two years old. This is how the 'DOT**' notes come about on Tyreleader- i.e. if the tyre was made three years ago it'd say DOT2012.
Obviously used tyres are often sold with no such information, and I often see 'used' tyres for sale on eBay etc which are 15+ years old.
Obviously used tyres are often sold with no such information, and I often see 'used' tyres for sale on eBay etc which are 15+ years old.
OH NO! - I have a set of Michelin Alpin 4s! But they are making Alpin 5s now!
Do I need to burn mine or dunk them in the nearest lake (as they are Wichelins) and see if they float?
Seriously though, with temperatures mostly above 10 degrees Celsius I probably don't need them at all, but WTF!
It would be -10 if I hadn't bought them!
Do I need to burn mine or dunk them in the nearest lake (as they are Wichelins) and see if they float?
Seriously though, with temperatures mostly above 10 degrees Celsius I probably don't need them at all, but WTF!
It would be -10 if I hadn't bought them!
Mr Tidy said:
OH NO! - I have a set of Michelin Alpin 4s! But they are making Alpin 5s now!
Do I need to burn mine or dunk them in the nearest lake (as they are Wichelins) and see if they float?
Seriously though, with temperatures mostly above 10 degrees Celsius I probably don't need them at all, but WTF!
It would be -10 if I hadn't bought them!
I've had my Alpin 4's on since last winter and they've worked fine.Do I need to burn mine or dunk them in the nearest lake (as they are Wichelins) and see if they float?
Seriously though, with temperatures mostly above 10 degrees Celsius I probably don't need them at all, but WTF!
It would be -10 if I hadn't bought them!
Farlig said:
nickfrog said:
I think you ladies are judging me by your own standards. I am not too bothered about richer/smarter, just wanted to help as a few years back I bought winters that were 5 years old as I didn't realise that the high silica content of winter compound meant that their life expectancy was about 5 years irrespective of mileage. Needless to say, they offered less traction than my summers. I am sure it won't be the case though. Apologies if I have hurt anyone's feelings by being altruist, it's easily done on PH. Quite a few susceptible egos here it would seem.
I'll lend you some support old chap - I've been living in Norway now for 18 years and the general consensus here is bin them after three seasons, four at a push.. They are very soft tyres, and the heat cycling kills them. They will go off and you will notice a marked drop off in winter performance. Now, if they're unused, and been shelved / stored properly then I'm out of my 'hands on personal experience' zone and cannot comment 
SlimJim16v said:
Where does this leave the smartarses that leave their winters on all year?
Not an issue these days surely. If someone wants to run proper winters they have two sets, when they're down to 5mm or after the 4th or 5th winter just leave them on into the spring.If someone wants to have just one set year in year out then they can always use one of the new breed of all-season / all-weather types.
Easy, not complicated, not smart arse, not in the slightest, just being practical.
FiF said:
SlimJim16v said:
Where does this leave the smartarses that leave their winters on all year?
Not an issue these days surely. If someone wants to run proper winters they have two sets, when they're down to 5mm or after the 4th or 5th winter just leave them on into the spring.If someone wants to have just one set year in year out then they can always use one of the new breed of all-season / all-weather types.
Easy, not complicated, not smart arse, not in the slightest, just being practical.
'Practical' suggests winters aren't needed.
Oh here we go again, some sarferner thinks that everywhere is the same as Surrey.
Statistically UK has 15 days with snow on the ground. Last winter, the North and Scotland had 30 days, the South had two. The north of Scotland had more than 30 days.
So the answer is that it all depends, being practical means making a decision based on individual needs and circumstances and proper information.
Statistically UK has 15 days with snow on the ground. Last winter, the North and Scotland had 30 days, the South had two. The north of Scotland had more than 30 days.
So the answer is that it all depends, being practical means making a decision based on individual needs and circumstances and proper information.
I do hope you're not being shirty, mine was just a casual comment that I heard on the radio this morning. They were discussing the higher than average temperatures south of the Scottish border. Seems cold weather tyres are a bit pointless at the moment. Still, don't let that put you off your winter tyre fetish. 
FiF said:
Not an issue these days surely. If someone wants to run proper winters they have two sets, when they're down to 5mm or after the 4th or 5th winter just leave them on into the spring.
If someone wants to have just one set year in year out then they can always use one of the new breed of all-season / all-weather types.
Easy, not complicated, not smart arse, not in the slightest, just being practical.
OK, I've quoted the relevant part again - "They are very soft tyres, and the heat cycling kills them."If someone wants to have just one set year in year out then they can always use one of the new breed of all-season / all-weather types.
Easy, not complicated, not smart arse, not in the slightest, just being practical.
I know this is the UK, but maybe they'll get too hot being used in the summer and be borked?
popeyewhite said:
I do hope you're not being shirty, mine was just a casual comment that I heard on the radio this morning. They were discussing the higher than average temperatures south of the Scottish border. Seems cold weather tyres are a bit pointless at the moment. Still, don't let that put you off your winter tyre fetish.
Casual smiley for the "this isn't passive aggressive, honest" vibe 
I have run winters all year round with no issues at all. In fact for our very wet climate they are better than eco tyres with low rolling resistance. My very basic understanding of physics would have me question how can low rolling resistance equate to good grip? Maybe slicks on tar in the dry but day to day wet muddy roads?
For the UK climate after running winter tyres for 13+ years now I have come to the conclusion that decent all season tyres (with mountain/Snowflake symbol). Such as Quatrac, Weatherproof, Bridgestone A001 or Cross Climate. Quatracs were the first and far out performed Avon Ice Touring in one very harsh winter.
The biggest issue is the ridiculously low min legal tread depth of 1.6mm. On modern day wide tyres that is asking for trouble in the uk climate.
I do about 20000m per year on very rural roads.
As for people in mild areas of the UK watching the temperatures daily and obsessing about winters on, winters off and getting really hung up about it you really need to get out more.
For the UK climate after running winter tyres for 13+ years now I have come to the conclusion that decent all season tyres (with mountain/Snowflake symbol). Such as Quatrac, Weatherproof, Bridgestone A001 or Cross Climate. Quatracs were the first and far out performed Avon Ice Touring in one very harsh winter.
The biggest issue is the ridiculously low min legal tread depth of 1.6mm. On modern day wide tyres that is asking for trouble in the uk climate.
I do about 20000m per year on very rural roads.
As for people in mild areas of the UK watching the temperatures daily and obsessing about winters on, winters off and getting really hung up about it you really need to get out more.
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