Driving to Méribel advice
Discussion
In relation to the snow chains / summer tyres / winter tyres debate - winter tyres are superb and transform driving in the snow. Summer tyres are lethal. You might get going but you wont be able to stop. The year before last I stuffed a 4x4 BMW into a hedge whilst on the way to get my winter tyres fitted (a slight hill which I had to go down and had zero control).
On winters I can go everywhere even whilst driving the new BMW with rear wheel drive only and loads of torque (340i).
I have never used, owned or needed chains. I have also never been asked for them despite spending all winter in Morzine for the last few years. The gendarmes have stopped me and looked for the winter symbol on the tyres though.
Basically OP you might be lucky and not have snow in which case summer tyres might be OK. If the car is with you a while though buying winters means you aren't using your summers so don't really cost you much if anything over a few years of use. On the BMWs I found it much cheaper to get thinner, higher profile tyres on new wheels than direct replacements for the OEM spec tyres.
On winters I can go everywhere even whilst driving the new BMW with rear wheel drive only and loads of torque (340i).
I have never used, owned or needed chains. I have also never been asked for them despite spending all winter in Morzine for the last few years. The gendarmes have stopped me and looked for the winter symbol on the tyres though.
Basically OP you might be lucky and not have snow in which case summer tyres might be OK. If the car is with you a while though buying winters means you aren't using your summers so don't really cost you much if anything over a few years of use. On the BMWs I found it much cheaper to get thinner, higher profile tyres on new wheels than direct replacements for the OEM spec tyres.
NorthDave said:
In relation to the snow chains / summer tyres / winter tyres debate - winter tyres are superb and transform driving in the snow. Summer tyres are lethal. You might get going but you wont be able to stop. The year before last I stuffed a 4x4 BMW into a hedge whilst on the way to get my winter tyres fitted (a slight hill which I had to go down and had zero control).
On winters I can go everywhere even whilst driving the new BMW with rear wheel drive only and loads of torque (340i).
I have never used, owned or needed chains. I have also never been asked for them despite spending all winter in Morzine for the last few years. The gendarmes have stopped me and looked for the winter symbol on the tyres though.
Basically OP you might be lucky and not have snow in which case summer tyres might be OK. If the car is with you a while though buying winters means you aren't using your summers so don't really cost you much if anything over a few years of use. On the BMWs I found it much cheaper to get thinner, higher profile tyres on new wheels than direct replacements for the OEM spec tyres.
good infoOn winters I can go everywhere even whilst driving the new BMW with rear wheel drive only and loads of torque (340i).
I have never used, owned or needed chains. I have also never been asked for them despite spending all winter in Morzine for the last few years. The gendarmes have stopped me and looked for the winter symbol on the tyres though.
Basically OP you might be lucky and not have snow in which case summer tyres might be OK. If the car is with you a while though buying winters means you aren't using your summers so don't really cost you much if anything over a few years of use. On the BMWs I found it much cheaper to get thinner, higher profile tyres on new wheels than direct replacements for the OEM spec tyres.
how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
housen said:
good info
how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
Sounds to me like you're being too aggressive, when I went on my "Driver induction" (yes I was one of those Minibus drivers) they said, don't do anything suddenly accelerate, brake or turn. When you brake think about not trying to stop the bus just slow it down until it eventually is so slow it is stationary, on hairpins don't think of them as brake to corner, turn, clip apex accelerate out keep the pace even all the way up the mountain so you can just roll round the corners at the pace you've been going and then all you're doing is using the engine to maintain the pace! how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
On the 2 wheel drive versus 4 wheel drive and Winter versus Summer debate I'm sure everyone has seen this before but worth posting again;
http://youtube.com/v/mfuE00qdhLA
http://youtube.com/v/mfuE00qdhLA
housen said:
good info
how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
Slow and steady is the best way, soft sounds good. Take as much speed out before the corner as you can and then just drive round. It is very rare on winters for the back end to twitch on mine. You could obviously give it some welly to force the issue (fun in car parks!) but generally there should be no problem.how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
I find 4 x 4 easier to get going from a stop but it doesn't seem to make much difference to cornering or stopping - that seems to be all about the tyres. I've done three years on my winters (and kept them on over summer this year) so it will be interesting to see how they perform this winter as I guess the tread will be getting a little low and as I understand it you need lots of tread for winters to work properly.
Cheib said:
The other thing to mention re school holidays is you need to plan the return journey home carefully....if you get to Calais at 5pm on the return Saturday in half term week expect to spend an awfully long time stuck in traffic. Couple of mates have....we're talking several hours of delays. You need to be leaving the Alps at 4am if you're doing it in one hit.
Sage advice. I can concur that this is a predictable delay. I've queued for 5 hours at the Chunnel terminal. Also an early start beats the queue out of the Alps, which can also take 5 hours from say Tignes.I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
Jarcy said:
Sage advice. I can concur that this is a predictable delay. I've queued for 5 hours at the Chunnel terminal. Also an early start beats the queue out of the Alps, which can also take 5 hours from say Tignes.
I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
there may even be a back service road from the local non autoroute roads that pops you out just before the booths I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
Marcellus said:
Jarcy said:
Sage advice. I can concur that this is a predictable delay. I've queued for 5 hours at the Chunnel terminal. Also an early start beats the queue out of the Alps, which can also take 5 hours from say Tignes.
I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
there may even be a back service road from the local non autoroute roads that pops you out just before the booths I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
Jarcy said:
Cheib said:
The other thing to mention re school holidays is you need to plan the return journey home carefully....if you get to Calais at 5pm on the return Saturday in half term week expect to spend an awfully long time stuck in traffic. Couple of mates have....we're talking several hours of delays. You need to be leaving the Alps at 4am if you're doing it in one hit.
Sage advice. I can concur that this is a predictable delay. I've queued for 5 hours at the Chunnel terminal. Also an early start beats the queue out of the Alps, which can also take 5 hours from say Tignes.I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
Jarcy said:
I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
Yes, by accident though! Went past the line of cars waiting on the motorway and did exactly as you suggest. From memory we found a way in off the next junction and didn't have to go back. It must have been obvious as otherwise with my lot we'd still be there! If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
housen said:
good info
how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
A couple of years back, I tried a set of winters (Falken) on the little MGZR I use for road rallying. Similar car issues being front wheel drive and a bit peaky with revs.how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
Never tried them before so took it out for a play and was astonished at what they could do. I went for the narrowest section that would fit on the rim (185) and had a blast albeit not quite in Alpine snow levels but no one else made it up there! I tried fast, a disaster! Physics takes over at that point. Gently was no problem, steep uphill being the biggest surprise as it just clawed its way up with lowish revs.
I'm a convert now and use them on all my road cars.
feef said:
Jarcy said:
Cheib said:
The other thing to mention re school holidays is you need to plan the return journey home carefully....if you get to Calais at 5pm on the return Saturday in half term week expect to spend an awfully long time stuck in traffic. Couple of mates have....we're talking several hours of delays. You need to be leaving the Alps at 4am if you're doing it in one hit.
Sage advice. I can concur that this is a predictable delay. I've queued for 5 hours at the Chunnel terminal. Also an early start beats the queue out of the Alps, which can also take 5 hours from say Tignes.I did have an idea as to how to jump the queue, possibly saving the first hour..
If the queue is backed up onto the motorway, you have to queue over the bridge to get to the terminal south side of the motorwway. This will hold you up, even if you have a Flexi/Priority ticket as you can even get to the terminal.
It struck me (whilst sitting in said queue) that if you're approaching on the normal westbound carriageway, try missing the terminal exit and drive on to the next junction, turn around & double back, and exit to the terminal from the east bound direction. There seems to be no queue from this direction because very few would be traveling from Boulogne direction as opposed to from Paris direction.
I've not tried this as it's too late once you're stuck in the queue. Does anyone know if this works?
BenjiA said:
Done it loads, it's easy and much more relaxing than flying (especially with the kids) You will probably want to be there Saturday for the changeover day,so leave after work friday, get the tunnel and do the two hours to Reims where there are loads of hotels just off the Autoroute. Then get up early, have a coffee and croissant 9in the car and you'll be there for a late lunch.
On the way back, I've done it both ways, depends if your room/chalet is paid for for the Friday night. Leaving straight after skiing and getting to a lovely little Hotel in Beze near Dijon before having a cracking dinner is a good way to finish the holiday. http://www.le-bourguignon.com/en/
HTH.
That hotel looks perfect for the purpose! Just booked it for my return drive from Courmayeur!On the way back, I've done it both ways, depends if your room/chalet is paid for for the Friday night. Leaving straight after skiing and getting to a lovely little Hotel in Beze near Dijon before having a cracking dinner is a good way to finish the holiday. http://www.le-bourguignon.com/en/
HTH.
Thanks!
LFB531 said:
housen said:
good info
how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
A couple of years back, I tried a set of winters (Falken) on the little MGZR I use for road rallying. Similar car issues being front wheel drive and a bit peaky with revs.how do I drive a up a mountain with good winters on on a clio sport?
my front wheels lose traction very easily and when I turn on a hairpin I go sideways .
all this at 15mph .
is it because the car is too low ? and the engine is too rev happy ?
or is it because im too soft in my driving style u think ?
Never tried them before so took it out for a play and was astonished at what they could do. I went for the narrowest section that would fit on the rim (185) and had a blast albeit not quite in Alpine snow levels but no one else made it up there! I tried fast, a disaster! Physics takes over at that point. Gently was no problem, steep uphill being the biggest surprise as it just clawed its way up with lowish revs.
I'm a convert now and use them on all my road cars.
maybe I should practice in the car park
when im on the mountain there is no forgiveness
as in ill die if I get it wrong
id love to see how a rally driver would play it though
fredt said:
BenjiA said:
Done it loads, it's easy and much more relaxing than flying (especially with the kids) You will probably want to be there Saturday for the changeover day,so leave after work friday, get the tunnel and do the two hours to Reims where there are loads of hotels just off the Autoroute. Then get up early, have a coffee and croissant 9in the car and you'll be there for a late lunch.
On the way back, I've done it both ways, depends if your room/chalet is paid for for the Friday night. Leaving straight after skiing and getting to a lovely little Hotel in Beze near Dijon before having a cracking dinner is a good way to finish the holiday. http://www.le-bourguignon.com/en/
.
HTH.
That hotel looks perfect for the purpose! Just booked it for my return drive from Courmayeur!On the way back, I've done it both ways, depends if your room/chalet is paid for for the Friday night. Leaving straight after skiing and getting to a lovely little Hotel in Beze near Dijon before having a cracking dinner is a good way to finish the holiday. http://www.le-bourguignon.com/en/
.
HTH.
Thanks!
Not sure on the idea of stopping over though, it's very relaxing to break it up and just drive a few hours per day, but I think next year we go back to powering through and get that extra day at home.
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