New tyres And Winter Tyres

John gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

I've had Pilot Prims on the Saab until recently - now got Conti PremiumContact (rather than SportContact), because the Prims were discontinued in my size.

They're good, but they're not as good as the Michs - nor do they look like they're going to last anywhere near as long, so the cost per mile is probably going to turn out higher than for the nominally more expensive tyres.

I do. My commute's mainly back lanes through the countryside, with some quite exposed bits of road that frequently get heavily frosted over and very tippy-toe. There's also very little traffic on them through winter, with the main road alternatives being much more congested and prone to closure through collisions.

The difference winter tyres make on those roads is night & day. They'll go on when the weather starts to get cold, and come off when spring starts to show it's face.

The change-over point in behaviour is about 5degC - it's quite easy to feel.

Winter tyres tend to be cheaper than summer tyres, although they wear a bit more quickly, so the cost per mile is about the same - don't forget that your summer tyres aren't wearing whilst the winters are on. Get a cheap second set of wheels in a smaller diameter, and use narrower tyres

- there'll be a range of sizes specified by the manufacturer, and you've probably got semi-pimp-rims by the sound of those 17" tyres.

NO. You're far more likely to stuff it. ALL FOUR THE SAME.

There's three basic types of tyre. "Summer tyres" (which is what the UK tends to use all year round), "All Season tyres" (which is what other countries often use all year round if they get stiff winters but can't be arsed to swap) and "Winter tyres".

All Seasons are a bit of a compromise, being worse than summers in summer and worse than winters in winter. Cheap off-brand tyres tend to be all- seasons, with an M+S rating.

If you think tyres "expensive", work out their cost per mile, then work out the total cost per mile of fuel, insurance, depreciation, maintenance etc. Tyres are _dirt_ cheap.

Thanks. I may just buy a whole set of tyres then for this winter. Are there any particular ones you'd recommend? What prices am I going to be looking at per piece for winter tyres? Would I be able to fit narrower tyres to my car? And how narrow can you go? Does this give better grip from the extra weight and less surface contact?

Also if anyone else has any recommendations as well on the following summer tyres or alternatives please let me know:

Good Year Optigrip Nokian V Continental Sport Contact 2, 3, Premium Contact Bridgestone Turanza ER300

John gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

I'm using Vredestein SnowTracs - and am happy with them - but have no other Winter tyre experience to compare them to.

I got mine from camskill.co.uk - who seem to be the specialists for 'em.

Have a look in your handbook.

The surface area varies according to tyre pressure - it'll lengthen as width goes down, but remain the same area. That longer contact patch allows the tread to do a better job, though.

I'm very happy with the Conti SC3s on my Leon- a revelation compared to the cheap s**te that it came with, but they are a summer tyre and

I have just ordered my winter tyres, and will fit them in November, maybe October. When it's cold enough, basically. I think the use of winter tyres has become more prevalant as more cars have high-performance summer tyres as OE.

I'd rather not have one end grip and the other not, si I'm fitting 4. Cheap set of slightly scabby OE alloys from Ebay.

Yes. An all-season tyre is a compromise and will be OK at all times.

Have a look at blackcircles or mytyres.co.uk for suggestions.

I've had a 2008 Touran from new with 205/55/16 94V.

Original Conti Sport Contact 3s lasted 23,000 on the front. I switched to Bridgestone Turanza ER300 and got 32,000 from the fronts over identical journeys. No difference in grip wet or dry that I can feel. Now got ER300 all round. Hoping to get far more than the 40k I got from the rear Contis - now at 62k and the ER300s are like new.

Thanks guys. I considered the Turanza, Nokian V's as well as Conti SP2's and 3's but in the end went for the Good Year Opti Grip.

I've been pleased with the Michelin's that I have and have got great life from them but they are quite expensive.

I think the Turanzas are better in dry conditions but I figured I see plenty of wet and mixed conditions so I went for the Opti Grips.

I am seriously thinking about getting some Winter tyres now though and popping them on in November for six months.

I've done a little research and I am hearing good things about Vredestein Winter tyres as well as Nokian but I think they're a tad too expensive so may go with some Falken Eurowinter HS439. These seem to be a lot better value without compromising on quality.

If I am spending all this money on tyres though, which I do need to do, I need to think about having one of the sets compatible with any next car I buy to replace my current one. So I am thinking Winter tyres will have to be compatible with my next car, else I will have to make my next car compatible with the size of my winter tyres ;)

Do you need to tell your ins co?

"Scion" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

Not if you're fitting a size listed as a suitable fit for your car in the handbook.

Adrian gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

Should add... to standard/OEM rims...

That's why I'm sticking to OEM 17" alloys- plus the fact that a setcame up on ebay. Just to be sure, I asked my insurance co as the speed rating may be lower- they don't care.

if the speed rating is not a suitable one for your vehicle then it may be illegal to use the vehicle with them on, stranger things have come up when being stopped by a zealous policeman. unlikely, but not impossible.

They'll be HR or better. The car has a warning function that can be set at the speed limit for winter tyres, so I can't see it being a problem- the handbook advises about use of winter tyres with a lower rating than the OE. I don't *think* the car is able to exceed 130 anyway.

Chris Bartram gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

Look in the handbook. It will give a number of approved tyre sizes & ratings, which may well include some specifically for winter tyres.

I can't find any specific statements, apart from for other models- which may have smaller brakes for example. Most VAG cars that have different sizes fitted have the sizes and pressures listed in the fuel filler, and mine doesn't.

What the book *does* say is that it's OK to use lower speed ratings (or rather, it warns that you must not exceed the rating of the tyres if you fit lower ones) and describes how to set the warning.

As it is, I got OE alloys (exactly like the ones on it, but tattier), so the only change will be (maybe) speed rating.