Winter Tyre Advice
Discussion
It's my first time driving to the French Alps for a ski trip in a few days and I've just fitted some 2nd hand winter wheels & tyres to the car. They have done a couple of trips prior to this one, but they seem to have a decent amount of life left in them.
Now, looking at the weather forecast for the trip down there, I don't think temperatures will ever really be in the 'operating window' for winter tyres, i.e. 7°C or lower. The trip is going to be ~1600 miles to Morzine and back.
For people with experience - would you advise against using these winter tyres and reverting back to my original wheels on PilotSport 5 tyres & taking snow chains instead? I've picked up some chains as a back up already. Are these winter tyres (Hankook Winter I*cepts) going to be destroyed if there used in temps around 8-13°C?
Thanks for any advice
Now, looking at the weather forecast for the trip down there, I don't think temperatures will ever really be in the 'operating window' for winter tyres, i.e. 7°C or lower. The trip is going to be ~1600 miles to Morzine and back.
For people with experience - would you advise against using these winter tyres and reverting back to my original wheels on PilotSport 5 tyres & taking snow chains instead? I've picked up some chains as a back up already. Are these winter tyres (Hankook Winter I*cepts) going to be destroyed if there used in temps around 8-13°C?
Thanks for any advice
Edited by MervJnr on Monday 23 February 12:48
If you have already fitted them I would leave them on for trip. The weather in the Alps can change and a set of winter tyres outside of their 'operating window' will still perform better than a set of summer tyres in snow or ice.
Have you ever driven on snowchains. Fitting them is a pain and you need quite heavy snow for them to effective.
Have you ever driven on snowchains. Fitting them is a pain and you need quite heavy snow for them to effective.
Definitely leave winter tyres on. Weather forecasts in the alps are very unreliable so hard to predict what exact conditions you will get. The winter tyres won't give you quite as good grip if the weather is warmer, but will still be absolutely fine for normal driving. Personally I would also take snow chains too (regardless of having winter tyres).
RedWhiteMonkey said:
If you have already fitted them I would leave them on for trip. The weather in the Alps can change and a set of winter tyres outside of their 'operating window' will still perform better than a set of summer tyres in snow or ice.
Have you ever driven on snowchains. Fitting them is a pain and you need quite heavy snow for them to effective.
Thanks for your reply Have you ever driven on snowchains. Fitting them is a pain and you need quite heavy snow for them to effective.
No I've never driven with snowchains fitted and thus not had any experience of the difficulty of fitting them!
I'm fairly certain I would have no need for them - roads to Morzine have always been well cleared and maintained when using airport transfers in the past.Don't forget that in most of France, Winter Tyres are a legal requirement at this time of year. I'm not sure how (or if) they apply this rule to tourists with non-French vehicles, but I think it tells you what you should be driving on while you're over there.
As an aside, I've seen loads of cars in Geneva with winters fitted in July. The law requires winters at specified times of year - there is no similar requirement for summers outside those times. Winters in hot weather are a much better situation than summers on snow / ice / very cold roads.
As an aside, I've seen loads of cars in Geneva with winters fitted in July. The law requires winters at specified times of year - there is no similar requirement for summers outside those times. Winters in hot weather are a much better situation than summers on snow / ice / very cold roads.
Magnum 475 said:
Don't forget that in most of France, Winter Tyres are a legal requirement at this time of year. I'm not sure how (or if) they apply this rule to tourists with non-French vehicles, but I think it tells you what you should be driving on while you're over there.
As an aside, I've seen loads of cars in Geneva with winters fitted in July. The law requires winters at specified times of year - there is no similar requirement for summers outside those times. Winters in hot weather are a much better situation than summers on snow / ice / very cold roads.
Indeed. Conti winters are reportedly one of the best for carrying on into the warmer months As an aside, I've seen loads of cars in Geneva with winters fitted in July. The law requires winters at specified times of year - there is no similar requirement for summers outside those times. Winters in hot weather are a much better situation than summers on snow / ice / very cold roads.
Magnum 475 said:
Don't forget that in most of France, Winter Tyres are a legal requirement at this time of year. I'm not sure how (or if) they apply this rule to tourists with non-French vehicles, but I think it tells you what you should be driving on while you're over there.
As an aside, I've seen loads of cars in Geneva with winters fitted in July. The law requires winters at specified times of year - there is no similar requirement for summers outside those times. Winters in hot weather are a much better situation than summers on snow / ice / very cold roads.
Yep got these as I know it's a legal requirement to have designated winter tyres fitted or at least have snow chains available to fit.As an aside, I've seen loads of cars in Geneva with winters fitted in July. The law requires winters at specified times of year - there is no similar requirement for summers outside those times. Winters in hot weather are a much better situation than summers on snow / ice / very cold roads.
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