Newbie- Winter Tyre Advice

R

Rax

Member
Hi All,

What are your thoughts on Winter tyres in the UK?

First time I'll be driving a rear wheel drive car in Winter, I live in Hull (East Yorkshire) so never really get more than a couple of weeks of snow but is it still worth switching to Winter tyres for the season? I drive 5 miles a day during the week on the main roads which includes multiple roundabouts on the way to work and usually venture out to other cities on the weekend to explore.

Currently fitted with Bridgestone Potenza RE050A1 Runflats...
In the middle of buying a new house with my girlfriend so any reason not to spend over £600 on new tyres right now is fine!!

Thanks for your help.

Rakin
 
If it snows get a taxi it will be a lot less then £600 for the few days a year we get snow? Or set of an hour earlier and walk to work 😁
 
Chippie said:
If it snows get a taxi it will be a lot less then £600 for the few days a year we get snow? Or set of an hour earlier and walk to work 😁
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That's a very fair point :D

Thank you!
 
If it is your only car I'd definitely recommend getting some - RWD BMWs are hopeless in snow on Summer tyres.

I've been putting them on my 3 Series for the last 4 years and to be fair didn't really need them, until last year when the Beast from the East arrived!

They were just fantastic.

And they needn't be expensive:- https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=118018
 
As Chippie says - save your money.
IMO Not worth it for the odd day you may get
 
I use winter tyres not because of snow but because they grip so much better than summer tyres in damp/wet/cold conditions.

Winter tyres are not one version but a range that trade off the various winter parameters...

Some, like the Finnish brands are optimised for snow / deep snow..

Some like the Continentals are optimised for high speed/ handling/ rain/damp/frost.

As others posted the cost of maintaining a set of winter tyres if you don’t plan to keep your car for a long period is expensive but it depends on your cost/performance/safety trade off..

The TS860 Continental I use on the E89 offers fantastic wet/cold/damp/frost conditions..but they are expensive

If it’s your primary car and it’s a keeper then you should look at this option IMHO, if you have other options/don’t plan to keep it then it’s an expensive in..

Once you’ve tried winter tyres you don’t go back if you can possibly avoid it..

That’s why I have a garage full of wheels/tyres.. :driving:
 
obewan said:
As Chippie says - save your money.
IMO Not worth it for the odd day you may get
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Mmm, I'm not so sure.

If there is ever an occasion when you might have to get somewhere they are a bargain IMHO.

My E46 needed 2 new tyres when I bought it. Then I bought the winter tyres on wheels on here for £180. Because I was only using one set at a time I never had to buy another tyre for it, and I sold the winters on here for £120.

£60 for 3 years and 23,000 miles seemed dirt cheap to me!
 
Basically what Pbondar says. i totally concur.
I was sceptical about investing in winter tyres until about 10 years ago when I couldn't get up a shallow slope into a carpark in the snow and caused a tailback. Awks.

My first pair were from Finnish brand Nokian. They know a thing or two about driving in snow and ice and they were fantastic.
The zed now has a set of Kumho I'zen's for winter and they're just as good.
They go on in November and come off in Feb/March and they inspire confidence in cold, wet, icy and snowy conditions, especially snow.

You could look at it as saving 4-5 months wear on your summers when temps are 7 or below, as well as the potential safety benefits of having a set of winters.

I utilised a set of old 16 inch rims from a previous bimmer and plastidipped them black. They do look a bit titchy and the tyres are a bit squashy but as I don't do much spirited driving during the winter months it's no biggie and actually the higher profile makes the ride much softer. Fringe benefits.

IMG_20190123_133118.jpg
 
Hi Rakin,

Fairly new myself but I would risk it. I used to run winter tyres on my RS Clio in the winter time simply because I had semi-slicks for the summer and I moved down to 15's so they were cheap enough to warrant it. I appreciate its front real drive but I could get about on main roads without taking liberties in the winter.

The amount of times that I really needed them were few and far between. The only benefit was the the semi-slicks just didn't get warm enough on the road to be of any real use in the winter. If the weather is that bad then no one is making it into work anyway... Do you really want to shell out on some new shoes to risk it going into work to be sat on your own?

I might be completely wrong but on the all weather tyres on my Z I have to drive like a bit of a prick in the rain to worry myself at all. Yet to see any snow (but when it does you will probably find me in an unsalted car park) :rofl:
 
I forgot to add that I managed to get new wheels with winter tyres for 130 quid off ebay for my clio. For sure it will be more expensive for the Z but it might be worth keeping an eye out for a bargain rubbish wheels with the tyres you want and then just changing over your wheels when the weather is bad (if you are not to proud).
 
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