Snow Tyres & 2Wd

[MantaRay]

A lot of people buy a 4wd vehicle purely so they have a better chance of getting about when we get snow, which makes sense, particularly for those living in remote areas. However, although we hear about winter tyres being available, how good are proper snow tyres [the ones with studs] & are they good enough to transform the grip of a 2wd vehicle up to that of a 4wd on regular tyres?

[TWR]

My Daughter partner had a Merc, she slid Once paid a £1000 for a set of so called snow tyres, they had done under 800 miles if that, I just sold them for £120, In my own opinion a waste of time, Snow is as bad as the person driving the car, too may revs you loose traction, take your time in a higher gear more often than not you will win, depends what car you have, that car I am selling is a E36 BMW rear wheel Drive, these cars are noted for sliding, I never had trouble! why? I just took my time, the cars today are Front Wheel Drive, but again the traction is as good as the person driving the thing.

[MantaRay]

So, studded snow tyres are no substitute for 4WD then? I agree the driving style is most important in any adverse weather conditions.

[TWR]

You have a 4W/D, In my opinion you do not need Snow tyres, the traction is met by the driver's ability, I have never in my years of driving HGVs / Cars had problems, you drive to the weather conditions Manta, just because a 4 W/D has traction at the front & rear, it can still get stuck depending on the thought & ability of the driver, a lot think that a 4W/D will go anywhere, but I have seen a lot get stuck with "Thought"

[woofgang]

Snow is not so much of an issue as ice. Once the snow has compacted and frozen again its lethal unless your tyres are sufficiently studded to bite through the ice. Unfortunately these tyres are also sufficiently studded to damage the road surface.
http://www.tirerack.com/winter/tech/techpage.jsp?techid=151

[TWR]

Good Link that Woolf, as you know it's not the Ice that causes bumps / crashes it's the way people drive.

[woofgang]

or the fact that they are driving at all.......

[Graham-W]

These look like a good idea. I've never used them and can't find a price in the UK. In the USA they're about $25 a set of 20 ( 5 per wheel).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gXFNZZTEGA

[woofgang]

Hmm, point one how does she get them around the tyres and keep her hands so clean? I am not sure I believe that ad.

[Hopkirk]

Just buy some snow socks

http://www.racshop.co.uk/travel-touring/winter-driving/snow-socks.html

[EDDIE51]

Snow tyres are only any use in deep snow.No use at all in 1 or 2 inch's where the tyre 'bites' through the snow and reaches the road . We so seldom get the conditions for snow tyres that it is not worth it.
In places like Canada most cars have 2 sets of tyres , normal and snow. Once the snow starts they change over then back again in spring.
'Winter' tyres are almost as useless ! the rubber compound they are made from is made to be soft and 'grippy' in very cold conditions like -15C and lower. At normal temperatures the rubber overheats and loses grip, they will also wear out in just a few hundred miles.

[EDDIE51]

Studded tyres will be torn to shreds inside a few miles if you ever drive with them fitted without snow, they are actually dangerous on normal roads and their use is illegal when there is no snow!

[stocksman]

The only places where studded tyres are used(apart from rallying etc) is Sweden and other Scandinavian places. I believe that in Germany it is compulsory to have summer and winter tyres.

[TWR]

Mantaray, just a simple / cheap /snow driving tip, lower the tyre pressure's. " It does work"

[MantaRay]

What sort of pressures, if normal pressure is, say, 2.2 bar?

[TWR]

Have you got an Electric Tyre Inflator? If so drop to 18psi when ( If) the snow clears, inflate to your tyres requirements,

[MantaRay]

Thanks for that TWR, I've often heard the "lower your tyre pressures" advice, but never the important bit!

[espookid]

Well a fair bit ofguessing going on here
We have two sets here in Finland and it for the ice not the snow ,as said before .It is normal to lower the pressure for the winter tyres .Where people get the idea that their driving is all that is needed is crazy ,it is the conditions that dictate not your ability .If it is just sheet ice then all your ability is hypothetical because you have NO grip just friction
Ice driving is part of the driving test here as it should everywhere -the first time you drive in those conditions shouldn't be at 60 mph and -5
We also have a 4wd and anyone saying it makes no difference on both normal and icy roads is talking through their hat
and just for the sake of TWR the idea here using these tyres is so the traffic maintains a reasonable speed ,not needing to reduce to the crawl that causes further problems due to frustration and taking chances
And for EDDIE51 they do NOT heat up and shred after a few miles ,what would happen in a brief spell when the snow/ice melts before the next snowfall?