If you tyres are so bad why have you stuck with them so long? Odd decision, I wouldnt drive a 1.6 Impreza on tyres I didnt like for 2 weeks let alone a WRX for 2 yearsQuote:
Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior
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If you tyres are so bad why have you stuck with them so long? Odd decision, I wouldnt drive a 1.6 Impreza on tyres I didnt like for 2 weeks let alone a WRX for 2 yearsQuote:
Originally Posted by Jag_Warrior
I'm finding this discussion educational. In Britain we don't generally have winter conditions severe enough to merit changing to special tyres so I've no idea what the merits and demerits are. For a starter, is there a difference between a "winter tyre" and a "snow tyre". And are studded tyres different again?
Yes. Winter tyres have a compound such that they give superior grip a temperatures below 7C. So they will find grip in icy conditions which summer tyres will not.
Snow tyres are usually the types with studs and illegal in the UK. It doesn't help that people often call Winter tyres Snow tyres.
Winter tyres, snow tyres, call them what you want. There is no legal definition so they don't exist :p
Any tyre can be marked M+S (mud and snow), it doesn't mean anything. Tyres with a snowflake symbol have a guaranteed minimum snow performance as measured against a 14" Standard Reference Tyre, but that doesn't necessarily mean much either.
Studs are good for ice, but have no advantage over friction winter tyres on snow.
The main characteristics of a winter tyre are that it's tread rubber undergoes the glass transition at lower temperatures (whereas a high performance summer compound can already "freeze" around 5-10C), and that it's tread pattern is heavily siped for better grip on slippery surfaces.
7C is a rule of thumb, it's not like 8C is ok for a "summer" tyre and for 6C you need a "winter" tyre. By the way, it's not only grip that is affected by the temperature, but also tyre wear.
In Germany another rule of thumb is winter tyres from O(ctober) to O(stern) -Easter.
I'll be switching within the next a couple of weeks. :)
It took roughly a month for me to discover that it was the tires and not my suspension settings or alignment. The car has a full aftermarket, tuned suspension, so I figured that going to a different brand/type of tire may have affected the handling vs. the tires that were on it when I had the suspension tuned. That wasn't it. Once I confirmed that it was the tires, I tried to sell them but no one would buy them - my mechanic tried, but to no avail. And I wasn't inclined to flush $400 plus mounting & balancing down the toilet. The car is a daily driver, not a competition car. So I simply moderated my driving habits. As I collect birthdays, the need and desire to drive at 8/10th's + has lessened. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Nornbugger
In Sweden its mandatory by law of use winter tyres for the period of December 1st to March 31st if there are winter conditions.Quote:
Originally Posted by D-Type
Studded tires are allowed from October 1st to April 15th. Exceptions if the weather/road conditions requires it.
However the city of Stockholm came up with the really bright idea to ban studded tires but only on one single street
in the entire city. The street is Hornsgatan at Södermalm.
Vinterdäck - Wikipedia
I am not sure if I will get winter tyres as it'd mean either going back to my 13" steel wheels, or buy another set of alloys.
Might put it off another year....
Well, today was the first -1C day in souther Finland, roads were dry in my commute, but we took a trip up to Tampere and it was quite slippery in some places. It's nice how some modern cars are so quiet, I could barely hear the studs scraping asfalt on my co-workers Audi. compared to my old civic there's probably 20 decibel difference at 120kph. :)
In Chicago today it's 23C. Insanity, I know. 1000 miles to the west and a little to the south it's -2 where my parents live. The temperature here will be dropping all afternoon to about 4 by midnight. I can't wait!
Cheaper to do it with your steelies jamie :) Plus winter is when you're more likely to hit kerbs and steel wheels are far better for that :)Quote:
Originally Posted by J4MIE