BlueSimon

Hi Guys,

Ive been looking for winter tyres to put on my car next month, i dont want to have to come on this site telling everyone about the smash ive just had due to aquaplaneing with the RE70's.

A question first, if i get my RE70 taken off, is there any problem putting them back on next spring / summer?

Here is a list of tyres and pricing from mytres (ive only choosen tyres that also have a good snow rating)

Pirelli W 240 Sottozero 235/45 R17 97V XL £150 (1.2)
Goodyear EAGLE ULTRA GRIP GW-3 225/45 R17 94V XL £115 (1.7)
Toyo SNOWPROX S 952 235/45 R17 97V RF £105 (1.7)
Kumho KW17 235/45 R17 94V £95 (2.0)
Maxxis MAW1 225/45 R17 94V RF £75 (1.7)
Nankang SV-1 Winter Plus 235/45 R17 97V XL £61 (no test)

If you were me would you go all out and buy the Pirelli's and hope they last 2 or 3 winters? or would you go for the cheapest option?

Whatever desision i make i'll come back here with a review and after winter a summary of how they went.

Any advice/comment are welcome.

Simon

PS the number in the bracket is the rating from tyretest (lower is better)

andythejock01wrx

Toyos and Goodyears are best in the wet, but no Low profile is ideal for snow.

BlueSimon

Yep, i realise that, thats why i specifically choose the above 5 (+1 without a rating but says its a good snow tyre), i think most of these tyres have come from the german market. just need something that i know wont aqua and because i work out in the sticks, i need a good cold/ice/snow capable tyre.

Simon

v8voodoo

I'm whacking a set of Colway winter tyres on mine this year on some spare 16" rims.

I did have a set of Falken Espias which were very good in snow, but someone other than myself drove too far on a flat and wrecked it. Can't get a replacement now as they only seem to be on imports.

Anyone got any experience of Colways..? If they were good enough for McRae to start out his rallying career on, then I'm sure they're good enough for me..!!

BlueSimon

No experience on the colways, but looking at there site, id see no problem in trying them (dont have my size though)

What sort of money we looking at for them?

Simon

richiewong

Got a set of Toyo's Snowprox had them on the last 3 winters, still got a ton of tread left ready for this winter.

The design of them, like all winter tyres with a load of sipes cut in, means they really grip in snowy conditions.
Obviously don't expect summer tyre cornering speeds.
Most are only rated to 'H' and occasionally 'V' rated depending on size.

v8voodoo

Tyres Direct - Car Winter

I've no experience of the Colways, but I know that my old Falkens were like driving on jelly when it was warm and needed some care, but then it made for fun driving..!!

Brit_in_Japan

Do a search, has been covered before.

When in Japan I really rated my Michelin DRICE tyres, now replaced there by the X-ICE. In Europe look for the Michelin Alpin II, second generation. Never had any problems with the DRICE in snow and when new the grip on sheet ice was remarkable. I remember once towing a car out of a ditch uphill on sheet ice, no problem.

AJBasedBloke liked his Pirellis and people have previously raved about Nokians.

Good winter tyres, even low profile, are sooooo much better than any summer tyre, full stop.

hoskib

iTrader: (1)

not sure where you live mate, but do you really need a full on winter tyre?

at worst we'll get 2 weeks of snow. the rest will be cold,wet shatty conditions.

i'm in the same boat as you (run REO70's) and i've got a spare set of alloys with Michellin PS2 on for the winter, i'm expecting these to deal with most of the winter weather hopefully!

store your tyres in a cool, dry location and they should be fine come next summer

boardracer

Yeh I agree, if you live in the UK I wouldnt be too worried about the snow rating, how many days do you actually drive in snow? Any of these will be better than a summer tyre in snow but you are still going to have to take it fairly easy as they are not full on snow tyres.
What these tyres will give you is much better grip / braking when its cold be it wet or dry. In cold conditions (below 5C) braking distance can be over 25% better with winter tyres.
My choice is the Michelin Pilot Alpin, I am a Michelin fan but its also no1 winter tyre at tyretest.com
A lot of my friends in Europe use Vredesteins if you want something cheaper.

BlueSimon

Thanks for all the reply's guys, this thread wasnt about the merits or use of winter tyres, which is what mainly came up in searches. I was after the answers of two questions really:

1. could i safely reuse the RE70's next spring/summer? (answered)

2. Do i spend a lot on winter tyres or the bare minimum?

Simon

DJ140

Snow tyres, where do you all live, the Cairngorms?! Not driven on snow for years, despite driving 40K miles a year.

When I first started driving, several years ago, there were snowfalls all winter, no need for snow tyres these days, in England at least.

boardracer

Simon to answer question 2 if you are going to get winter tyres then you may as well get some decent ones. These should last several winters (how many miles a month do you do?). If they are going to last several years then you should be looking at getting a second set of wheels (cheap second hand?). This will save having to pay someone twice a year to move the tyres between rims. Also means you do not have to run your good rims in salty conditions. More of an outlay now but definately a good investment in the long run.
Mike.