Stupid 997 question from a newbie...
Discussion
Greetings all..!
Now here's a really stupid question as my first post: Don't laugh... here we go.. Does anyone know of any decent alternatives to snow chains for a 997 (305/30/19in)??
- Can't fit snow chains (even to the 18in wheels according to OPC)
- Set of proper winter tyres and temporary 18in wheels is £2k...!! Erm.. no thanks..
- AutoSock don't manufacture for 19in wheels
The only alternative I've found is Spikes Spiders who supply Aston, Bentley, etc. They don't have the exact size but reckon that their 295/25/20 should fit - anyone tried these?? Do they work??
Off on my ski holidays in two weeks and instead of flying crappyJet to Geneva and then sharing a 1960s coach to the resort I thought it would be a good idea to put some miles on my beloved 997. Plan is to cruise down to Dijon for a naughty weekend with the missus before driving up to Meribel to meet with friends. Never had problems getting up there but there's always a first time and I could do without falling off the mountain...
Contingency is already in place in case this doesn't work out - we leave the Pork in Albertville and pick up a crappy French rental and haul that up the mountain instead.
So, any ideas?
PS - Only got to know about PH through the Hammond appeal. Good job fellas.
Now here's a really stupid question as my first post: Don't laugh... here we go.. Does anyone know of any decent alternatives to snow chains for a 997 (305/30/19in)??
- Can't fit snow chains (even to the 18in wheels according to OPC)
- Set of proper winter tyres and temporary 18in wheels is £2k...!! Erm.. no thanks..
- AutoSock don't manufacture for 19in wheels
The only alternative I've found is Spikes Spiders who supply Aston, Bentley, etc. They don't have the exact size but reckon that their 295/25/20 should fit - anyone tried these?? Do they work??
Off on my ski holidays in two weeks and instead of flying crappyJet to Geneva and then sharing a 1960s coach to the resort I thought it would be a good idea to put some miles on my beloved 997. Plan is to cruise down to Dijon for a naughty weekend with the missus before driving up to Meribel to meet with friends. Never had problems getting up there but there's always a first time and I could do without falling off the mountain...
Contingency is already in place in case this doesn't work out - we leave the Pork in Albertville and pick up a crappy French rental and haul that up the mountain instead.
So, any ideas?
PS - Only got to know about PH through the Hammond appeal. Good job fellas.
Even if you get the snow chains I'd be careful. Switzerland and IIRC Germany have a legal requirement to use winter tyres. Once you have an accident, even if it's objectively not your fault, you will carry a hefty share of the damage. Not worth playing around. A
lso your Summer tyres are cr*p on snow even if you use chains on the back. No way your car will properly steer let a alone brake. Better invest into the winter tyres. Don't see the issue with the cost. Whilst you drive them during the winter your Summer tyres won't get used...
lso your Summer tyres are cr*p on snow even if you use chains on the back. No way your car will properly steer let a alone brake. Better invest into the winter tyres. Don't see the issue with the cost. Whilst you drive them during the winter your Summer tyres won't get used...
Cheers guys. DrS - I'm based in London so £2k is a bit excessive when I'd only use them once a year for a week..! As far as I know its not illegal to have summer tyres in France but you have to at least carry chains or equivalent on certain mountain roads.
I think the rental from Albertville is looking like the best option.
I think the rental from Albertville is looking like the best option.
Cheers guys. DrS - I'm based in London so £2k is a bit excessive when I'd only use them once a year for a week..! As far as I know its not illegal to have summer tyres in France but you have to at least carry chains or equivalent on certain mountain roads.
I think the rental from Albertville is looking like the best option.
I think the rental from Albertville is looking like the best option.
In france, legal requirement is to have chains or winter tyres and the such like when you pass those little signs (conveniently, a tyre with a chain). Certainly no requirement to have snow tyres.
On a snowy day around resort, the old gendarmes normally tell you which cars should and should not stick the winter kit on
Oh, and on the way into moutiers, watch out for Pussy, and also for speed cameras just after the tunnel into Moutiers
www.radarsfixes.com/carte.asp?a=rf&s=&h=16&v=15&c=3&l=3&m=FR
On a snowy day around resort, the old gendarmes normally tell you which cars should and should not stick the winter kit on
Oh, and on the way into moutiers, watch out for Pussy, and also for speed cameras just after the tunnel into Moutiers
www.radarsfixes.com/carte.asp?a=rf&s=&h=16&v=15&c=3&l=3&m=FR
AlexHancock said:
PorkScratching said:
Cheers guys. DrS - I'm based in London so £2k is a bit excessive when I'd only use them once a year for a week..!
But they'd also work a lot better in England whenever the temperature is below 7 C.
The 7C is a bit of a myth as there are pro's and con's and differences in the dry vs. wet. However, you can use the wintertyres for a few months even if you live in London.
I was in the Alps in March this year at Tignes and in preparation for the journey I got Spikes Spiders from our leading supplier of rented chains and roof boxes in this country. I wasn't in the Porsche but a Merc 280 CD Sport with 18in wheels, so the arches are pretty full and preclude the use of normal chains. The rental company assured me that Spikes would do the job giving me the necessary clearance so I paid up and off we went.
Unfortunately, after all those years risking it without chains and not having to use them this year was a bad one. The road from Bourg St Maurice up to the resort was atrocious and we needed to apply the Spikes. So guess what ? With people and luggage in the car it was a physical impossibility and there was no way you could have these things on the wheels. We eventually dumped the car at Bourg and got a taxi up and on return I demanded a refund from the rental company which was of course met with stony silence.
The message here is don't trust the rental company about what can actually be used on the car and if you do get some then try them on the car before you go with it loaded as you expect to be running it on the journey.
Unfortunately, after all those years risking it without chains and not having to use them this year was a bad one. The road from Bourg St Maurice up to the resort was atrocious and we needed to apply the Spikes. So guess what ? With people and luggage in the car it was a physical impossibility and there was no way you could have these things on the wheels. We eventually dumped the car at Bourg and got a taxi up and on return I demanded a refund from the rental company which was of course met with stony silence.
The message here is don't trust the rental company about what can actually be used on the car and if you do get some then try them on the car before you go with it loaded as you expect to be running it on the journey.
Even if you go for the wintertyres there is another problem (which i discovered this week-end). All suitable wintertyres for the Porsche 18" Carrera standard alloy are on backorder and according to the OPC it will take at least 1 month before they get them.
Do not attemt to go to the Alps without proper tyres and chains. When it starts snowing you are seriously compromised and you risk having to leave the car in the resort unless you want to wait until the roads are clear again. I have tried it and it sucks. It took me 3 days to get from Klosters to Munich once and even on the German motorways you just could not get any grip after the lorrys had flattened the snow.
Do not attemt to go to the Alps without proper tyres and chains. When it starts snowing you are seriously compromised and you risk having to leave the car in the resort unless you want to wait until the roads are clear again. I have tried it and it sucks. It took me 3 days to get from Klosters to Munich once and even on the German motorways you just could not get any grip after the lorrys had flattened the snow.
bermyandy said:
Pussy - small town just before you get to moutiers
Always made me giggle
Always made me giggle
I'm driving to Meribel tomorrow. I'll keep an eye out for Pussy on the way. Well... I usually do this anyway, but I'm seldom so specific as to look for one in particular.
Actually, that makes me sound gross. Which I'm not. Much.
Edited by loach on Friday 12th January 17:09
Gassing Station | Porsche General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff