winter driving for dummies

[jacksparrow11]

before i start , i know how good winter tyres are , I've seen the videos , but i also know they are a luxury for most people. IMO the price cannot be justified for the small number of days that they actually prove their worth. Whenever i watch the news on a snow day , the "experts" all seem to spout the same old same old , about not driving when you don't need to , and staying indoors , so i thought i would dedicate this post to giving free rational advice to those who do not wish to purchase winter tyres but still need to drive in said bad conditions. I feel telling people HOW to drive in such conditions would benefit them more than telling them to avoid them.

[scottlotus111r]

bks

Buy winter tyres. They are not a luxury. People seem to forget the cost is minimal because they are not wearing out summer tyres.

[f1nn]

I'd argue that a set of winter tyres are a luxury for 95% of the driving public, as The amount of decent cars I see on tyres that I've never heard of suggest that decent tyres are a luxury.

Spending 400 quid plus on winter tyres that most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference on is just not going to happen.

I'm aware of the benefits of course, but the vast majority of the motoring public are not and wouldn't care even if they did.

I've been driving for 18 years, normally covering between 20-30k a year in front or rear wheel drive cars and have never once been stuck or not been able to complete my journey, even in the coldest North Eastern winter. The key is to change your driving style to the conditions and plan ahead accordingly and be as smooth as possible.

The amount of people I see who struggle with controlling a car in summer...you could fit caterpillar tracks to their cars and they would still crash when it snowed!

[scottlotus111r]

f1nn said:

I'd argue that a set of winter tyres are a luxury for 95% of the driving public, as The amount of decent cars I see on tyres that I've never heard of suggest that decent tyres are a luxury.

Spending 400 quid plus on winter tyres that most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference on is just not going to happen.

I'm aware of the benefits of course, but the vast majority of the motoring public are not and wouldn't care even if they did.

I've been driving for 18 years, normally covering between 20-30k a year in front or rear wheel drive cars and have never once been stuck or not been able to complete my journey, even in the coldest North Eastern winter. The key is to change your driving style to the conditions and plan ahead accordingly and be as smooth as possible.

The amount of people I see who struggle with controlling a car in summer...you could fit caterpillar tracks to their cars and they would still crash when it snowed!

If you can't tell the difference with winter tyres you shouldn't have a license.

[Zed 44]

I'm always intrigued by where people store the 4 tyres they're not using. In the front room, next to the telly?

[scottlotus111r]

Zed 44 said:

I'm always intrigued by where people store the 4 tyres they're not using. In the front room, next to the telly?

Lots of garages offer this for a nominal fee. The other likely popular place would be your own garage

[8potdave]

scottlotus111r said:

Zed 44 said:

I'm always intrigued by where people store the 4 tyres they're not using. In the front room, next to the telly?

Lots of garages offer this for a nominal fee. The other likely popular place would be your own garage

So based on the assumption that everyone doesn't have a garage and £400 spare on the run up to Christmas, I think the OP is asking what to do WITHOUT winter tyres. I've never had them and got by fine! I'm one of the few that prefers RWD in snow as you have a better idea what the car is doing and when it will break traction. Use as high a gear as possible and give yourself 3 times as much room as you think you will need to stop, then a bit more. My main issue in snow is other drivers stopping on hills, driving too closely etc. My biggest challenge is trying to guess what people are doing in order to make the smoothest route possible.

[McWigglebum4th]

I'd love to know the answer as i'm sick and tyred of changing wheels every winter

We are 6 miles from the nearest road that gets gritted and we end up with sheet ice on the roads due to compacted snow

[mike9009]

McWigglebum4th said:

I'd love to know the answer as i'm sick and tyred of changing wheels every winter

We are 6 miles from the nearest road that gets gritted and we end up with sheet ice on the roads due to compacted snow

Easy...just get something RWD.

[scottlotus111r]

8potdave said:

So based on the assumption that everyone doesn't have a garage and £400 spare on the run up to Christmas, I think the OP is asking what to do WITHOUT winter tyres. I've never had them and got by fine! I'm one of the few that prefers RWD in snow as you have a better idea what the car is doing and when it will break traction. Use as high a gear as possible and give yourself 3 times as much room as you think you will need to stop, then a bit more. My main issue in snow is other drivers stopping on hills, driving too closely etc. My biggest challenge is trying to guess what people are doing in order to make the smoothest route possible.

Forget the garage bit, the tyre shops will store them for you for pennies.

I know what he is asking bit it's a little trivial isn't it.

400pound spare? When I put 15inch winters on they were only 50-60each. Lots of people have 200odd quid to spare over the course of the year. Thats a few nights out for a LOT of folk.

[anonymous-user]

8potdave said:

scottlotus111r said:

Zed 44 said:

I'm always intrigued by where people store the 4 tyres they're not using. In the front room, next to the telly?

Lots of garages offer this for a nominal fee. The other likely popular place would be your own garage

So based on the assumption that everyone doesn't have a garage and £400 spare on the run up to Christmas, I think the OP is asking what to do WITHOUT winter tyres. I've never had them and got by fine! I'm one of the few that prefers RWD in snow as you have a better idea what the car is doing and when it will break traction. Use as high a gear as possible and give yourself 3 times as much room as you think you will need to stop, then a bit more. My main issue in snow is other drivers stopping on hills, driving too closely etc. My biggest challenge is trying to guess what people are doing in order to make the smoothest route possible.

The winter tyre mob will be along soon to tell you how a) wrong you are and b) a 'driving God'

[scottlotus111r]

St John Smythe said:

The winter tyre mob will be along soon to tell you how a) wrong you are and b) a 'driving God'

There are lots of places in UK that would of not been possible to drive without winter tyres no matter what a driving god you are.

[Bill]

jacksparrow11 said:

Whenever i watch the news on a snow day , the "experts" all seem to spout the same old same old , about not driving when you don't need to , and staying indoors , so i thought i would dedicate this post to giving free rational advice to those who do not wish to purchase winter tyres but still need to drive in said bad conditions. I feel telling people HOW to drive in such conditions would benefit them more than telling them to avoid them.

Most people have no interest in driving and the only advice you can give is not to drive because they won't pay any attention to learning new techniques.

[McClure]

Ok, I have a "dummy" question. This is my first winter on Quattro and DSG - when it's snowy should I switch off traction control? How about ESP? And am I OK leaving DSG in auto, or is it best to take control and use the paddles?

Cheers.

[anonymous-user]

scottlotus111r said:

St John Smythe said:

The winter tyre mob will be along soon to tell you how a) wrong you are and b) a 'driving God'

There are lots of places in UK that would of not been possible to drive without winter tyres no matter what a driving god you are.

Agreed. Far North and Scotland they are a great idea and if I lived there I'd have a set. But that would be because they are actually needed year on year. Down here in the South they aren't. My point about the driving god comment is it's always used if anyone mentions they have got by ok without winters

[scottlotus111r]

McClure said:

Ok, I have a "dummy" question. This is my first winter on Quattro and DSG - when it's snowy should I switch off traction control? How about ESP? And am I OK leaving DSG in auto, or is it best to take control and use the paddles?

Cheers.

If you take control it will allow you to take off in a higher gear for a starter.

[Finlandia]

Zed 44 said:

I'm always intrigued by where people store the 4 tyres they're not using. In the front room, next to the telly?

Have done in the past

Cleaned them thoroughly and put a glass top over them, voilà, a coffee table nearly as PH as a stripped out engine.

[paps]

McClure said:

Ok, I have a "dummy" question. This is my first winter on Quattro and DSG - when it's snowy should I switch off traction control? How about ESP? And am I OK leaving DSG in auto, or is it best to take control and use the paddles?

Cheers.

The manual on my A3 Quattro (manual 'box) suggests you turn off TC in slippery conditions when setting off. I presume it's best to turn it back on once you've got going.
It does depend on what model you've got; the A3 has a Haldex based system which sends power to the rears when it's senses tyre slip at the front. The A4s and (and models above that) have a Torsen based system which works differently.

I have been using winter tyres for the past couple of years, and as suggested above; a set of 15" or 16" steel wheels with mid range winters costs less than the 17" summer tyres that I would normally have to buy. In the longer term, you find your expensive summer tyres last longer and you have the right tyres for the conditions for more of the time.
(Quite why I bother to type this when so much has been written and argued about previously, I don't know!)

[Krikkit]

scottlotus111r said:

400pound spare? When I put 15inch winters on they were only 50-60each. Lots of people have 200odd quid to spare over the course of the year. Thats a few nights out for a LOT of folk.

Not even that - I put a set of still good (6mm) part-worn Dunlop winters on a Subaru for £140 this year.

[paps]

Krikkit said:

Not even that - I put a set of still good (6mm) part-worn Dunlop winters on a Subaru for £140 this year.

Set of 4 no mark re-moulds off gumtree for £60!

The point made earlier about planning ahead and leaving lots of room and being smooth on throttle and brakes, is all valid, but the problem is we don't drive in isolation. We drive along with lots of other cars on the road. The majority of drivers don't bother to adapt their driving styles until they're sliding down the road, or through a junction. The winter tyre brigade have the advantage of being able to avoid some of these issues by having more control over they're own car.