E39 - Snow & Snowsocks

Your owners manual should indicate which tire sizes on your car are suitable for chains. The snow socks look interesting, so let us know how they work if you decide to go that route.

Tom K.

The snow socks look like a joke. The first time you reach some dry pavement they would shred and be useless. Plus the hassle of having to put them on and take them off... No thanks.

What I would do is buy a complete set of 4 wheels in an appropriate size (red NOT 235/45x17) and get them mounted with some nice winter tires. Owning a RWD car and driving in snow (even if only occasionally) means you NEED winter tires. It's a matter of safety.

The winter wheels and tires will extend how long your summer tires last and when you no longer need them they are easy to resell as a set.

As a temporary winter aid for vehicles they work quite well, from what I have heard from people that have used them. The key phrase here being temporary.

They are not meant to be driven on hard surfaces as asphalt etc., but on snow or ice. Also obviously there are certain restrictions on how fast one can drive with these.

They are not designed for driving on dry pavement, but they hold up on small patches of dry pavement. From the Autosock FAQ:

"During the approval test by TÜV, AutoSock passed the distance and durability requirement of the snow chain norm (ÖNorm 5117). Nevertheless asphalt & concrete driving is not recommended as it increases fabric wear considerably."

I'll agree with that.