Snow chains - rear only?
Discussion
In last years snow my wife's X5 wasn't bad but wasn't great either. I've looked at winter tyres and wheels but BMW quoted £4k which is a touch more than I wanted to pay. I decided on a set of snow chains and was all set to buy two pairs assuming that they would be required on both sets of wheels. However reading the owners manual for the car it says that snow chains should only be fitted to the rear wheels. Seems odd to me. However is it right that on a 4x4 you fit snow chains only to the rear wheels?
goldblum said:
Snow chains should be fitted to the driven wheels on 2wd cars.On 4x4 it should be the front.Why BMW specify the rear I don't know.
Decent new ones between £100 - £150.
BMW would even on their 4x4s have most of the power going to the rears I guess. Other manufacturers would send more power to the fronts. Decent new ones between £100 - £150.
Pannywagon said:
goldblum said:
Snow chains should be fitted to the driven wheels on 2wd cars.On 4x4 it should be the front.Why BMW specify the rear I don't know.
Decent new ones between £100 - £150.
BMW would even on their 4x4s have most of the power going to the rears I guess. Other manufacturers would send more power to the fronts. Decent new ones between £100 - £150.
They get fitted to the driven wheels only. Not sure why BMW have chosen the rear wheels on a 4x4 only - maybe the chains will foul a suspension component or confuse an asr sensor if fitted to the front wheels.
As others have posted, snow chains don't make much sense in the UK unless you are in the Highlands. They can also chew alloy wheels, which is why most folk in the Alps switch to steel wheels for winter.
Winter tyres don't cost anything like £4k - have a look at mytyres in your tyre size. Your BMW dealer sensed a major profit opportunity.
As others have posted, snow chains don't make much sense in the UK unless you are in the Highlands. They can also chew alloy wheels, which is why most folk in the Alps switch to steel wheels for winter.
Winter tyres don't cost anything like £4k - have a look at mytyres in your tyre size. Your BMW dealer sensed a major profit opportunity.
http://www.skidrive.co.uk/snow-chains/snow_chains_...
How many snow chains do I need?
* Front wheel drive - 1 pair of snow chains fitted to front wheels
* Rear wheel drive - See note below
* 4 wheel drive:
o Permanent 4 wheel drive: 2 sets of chains.
o Manually selectable 4 wheel drive:
+ Moderate conditions: Engage 2wd mode, 1 set of chains. If vehicle becomes stuck in snow, 4wd may be engaged, but should immediately be disengaged once vehicle can be moved freely in order to avoid risk of damage to drivetrain due to differing wheel rolling circumferences.
+ Extreme conditions: Engage 4wd mode, 2 sets of chains.
o Electronically controlled 4wd: 2 sets of chains.
o Land Rover Freelander 1 (including 04 on facelift): 2 sets of chains. If 1 set of chains has to be used, these must be fitted to the rear wheels. Fitting chains to the front wheels only may result in damage to the VCU and/or IRD.
All vehicles will benefit from snow chains fitted to all wheels to gain lateral grip, to either reduce understeer on rear wheel drive vehicles or to reduce oversteer on front wheel drive and 4 x 4 vehicles.
My vehicle is rear wheel drive, should I fit them on the steering or driving wheels?
With rear wheel drive cars, there are basically two options.
1. The safer (but more expensive) option would be to run chains all round. This obviously gives consistent grip at both ends of the vehicle, and maximum resilience against harsh conditions.
2. The alternative is to run chains just on the driven rear wheels. This ensures that the vehicle keeps moving forwards, but leaves you with reduced grip on the front of the vehicle. As a result, the vehicle will have an inherent tendancy to understeer. Conventional wisdom says that if a car is going to either under or oversteer, understeer is the safer option, as most competant drivers can easily assess the available grip, and any loss of control can normally be controlled easily by simply removing any throttle and brake that's being applied until steering is regained.
How many snow chains do I need?
* Front wheel drive - 1 pair of snow chains fitted to front wheels
* Rear wheel drive - See note below
* 4 wheel drive:
o Permanent 4 wheel drive: 2 sets of chains.
o Manually selectable 4 wheel drive:
+ Moderate conditions: Engage 2wd mode, 1 set of chains. If vehicle becomes stuck in snow, 4wd may be engaged, but should immediately be disengaged once vehicle can be moved freely in order to avoid risk of damage to drivetrain due to differing wheel rolling circumferences.
+ Extreme conditions: Engage 4wd mode, 2 sets of chains.
o Electronically controlled 4wd: 2 sets of chains.
o Land Rover Freelander 1 (including 04 on facelift): 2 sets of chains. If 1 set of chains has to be used, these must be fitted to the rear wheels. Fitting chains to the front wheels only may result in damage to the VCU and/or IRD.
All vehicles will benefit from snow chains fitted to all wheels to gain lateral grip, to either reduce understeer on rear wheel drive vehicles or to reduce oversteer on front wheel drive and 4 x 4 vehicles.
My vehicle is rear wheel drive, should I fit them on the steering or driving wheels?
With rear wheel drive cars, there are basically two options.
1. The safer (but more expensive) option would be to run chains all round. This obviously gives consistent grip at both ends of the vehicle, and maximum resilience against harsh conditions.
2. The alternative is to run chains just on the driven rear wheels. This ensures that the vehicle keeps moving forwards, but leaves you with reduced grip on the front of the vehicle. As a result, the vehicle will have an inherent tendancy to understeer. Conventional wisdom says that if a car is going to either under or oversteer, understeer is the safer option, as most competant drivers can easily assess the available grip, and any loss of control can normally be controlled easily by simply removing any throttle and brake that's being applied until steering is regained.
Edited by y2blade on Monday 1st November 13:22
djohnson said:
Petrolhead_Rich said:
Have you considered going somewhere other than BMW for snow tyres??
I have. It's just I wanted wheels and tyres rather than just changing the tyres. Hence the £4k quote. Bluebarge said:
djohnson said:
Petrolhead_Rich said:
Have you considered going somewhere other than BMW for snow tyres??
I have. It's just I wanted wheels and tyres rather than just changing the tyres. Hence the £4k quote. Bluebarge said:
djohnson said:
Petrolhead_Rich said:
Have you considered going somewhere other than BMW for snow tyres??
I have. It's just I wanted wheels and tyres rather than just changing the tyres. Hence the £4k quote. I pay £5-£10 all in to get 4 corners changed over and balanced depending on which guy is working that day.
Efbe said:
Bluebarge said:
djohnson said:
Petrolhead_Rich said:
Have you considered going somewhere other than BMW for snow tyres??
I have. It's just I wanted wheels and tyres rather than just changing the tyres. Hence the £4k quote. I pay £5-£10 all in to get 4 corners changed over and balanced depending on which guy is working that day.
Efbe said:
Bluebarge said:
djohnson said:
Petrolhead_Rich said:
Have you considered going somewhere other than BMW for snow tyres??
I have. It's just I wanted wheels and tyres rather than just changing the tyres. Hence the £4k quote. I pay £5-£10 all in to get 4 corners changed over and balanced depending on which guy is working that day.
I get mine done for pittance too (car and bike tyres)
djohnson said:
Petrolhead_Rich said:
Have you considered going somewhere other than BMW for snow tyres??
I have. It's just I wanted wheels and tyres rather than just changing the tyres. Hence the £4k quote. djohnson said:
I was told by BMW (although perhaps wrongly) that taking run flat tyres off and on again a couple of times wasn't recommended and hence I'd be better buying new wheels and tyres.
Bid on thisBuy a set of these
Maximum Ebay Bid £1454.80 + (£126.30*4=505.20) + fitting £40? = Snow Wheels + tyres for UNDER £2k
Edited by Petrolhead_Rich on Monday 1st November 13:15
Gassing Station | General Gassing [Archive] | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff