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17" Zs Wheels Rubbish On Snow And Ice


withaplomb
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Sorry if this has been brought up before but I had a quick search and couldn't find anything.

I've got the S1600 and since the bad weather started a few weeks ago it's loosing grip and weaving about the road at the slightest hint of snow or ice. Last winter I had a Mk7 1.25 Zetec with the stock 15" wheels and it handled fine. Is anyone else having this problem with the 17" wheels on the ZS/S1600 or have I just forgotten how to drive?

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Simple science buddy.... Larger surface area making the grip terrible, like you say, skinny poverty spec wheels are better in snow.

Check out the wheels on wrc motors on snow events

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I was going to make a thread just like this myself! My Zetec-S with the same 17" wheels as yours is just as bad. The car park at work has as slight incline to get out, which my old 2001 Fiesta managed fine, but the new car just can't do it. The first day after heavy snow I drove into the sliproad entrance and decided not to go fully in, so was going to drive up the slight incline and go park in a multistorey. Tried to set off, just got wheelspin. Tried 2nd gear, just the same. Turned traction control off, just the same. In the end I had to reverse out the sliproad entrance onto a 40mph dual carrigeway (luckily it wasn't busy!). Following day I went all the way in, then struggled to get out - despite being on the move the moment I reached the slope it lost grip at the front and started spinning. I tried a few times to get going then gave up and went out the entrance again (forwards this time though). Yesterday it looked clearer coming out (could see tarmac) and actually made progress - I made it halfway up then got stuck. There was enough grip to hold the car on the clutch but any more power to the wheels and it just spun. A mate from work and someone else gave me a push in the end! Then today I actually made it out on my own. Funny thing is, noone else I've watched leaving has had a problem on any of the days - they must think I can't drive either!

Though on the plus side, braking/abs works well and I can stop fairly quickly with minimal skidding. You can probably get much better tyres of the same size that can cope - another 2cm of width compared to my old car really can't make that much difference.

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Seems to be an issue with big wheels & tyres, unfortunately!

Best car which I had for snow & ice was a 1993 Corsa with skinny "poverty spec" 145/80 R13 tyres. Didn't corner well in the dry though!

That was replaced by a 2002 Astra with 195/60 R15 tyres - & pretty useless in snow. My Fiesta (with optional ESP & "Traction Control..") has 195/45 R16 tyres & it's - absolutely - hopeless!

Incidentally it's been so cold, for so long, here in Sheffield that our concrete driveway - laid in 1963 - has risen presumably due to frozen ground beneath; with the result that our "up & over" garage door can't now be closed as it's fouling on the concrete. This problem developed very quickly over a 24 hour period & has never, ever occurred before.

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Nothing to do with this particual wheel or Alloy, large low profile wheels just suck in these conditions, hence winter tires being thin to cut in better and have high walls with a deeper chunkier tread.

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We have got

a 1.6 Zetec S with ESP and 17" alloys

and

a 1.25 Zetec no ESP and 15" alloys

The Zetec S is much better in the snow with or without the ESP switched on. The Zetec S has Continentals and the Zetec has Michelins.

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ditched me 17's brought two 15 inch steels from ford fitted some £80 winter tyres and it pulls like a train in the snow no more wheel spin for me yipee :P

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I've got the Zetec S 16s and had to resort to starting off in 3rd gear to get anywhere on several inches of snow and ice the other day.....although that definately did the trick!

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to be honest, I really don`t understand why you people do not buy real winter tires. I do not want to hear bla bla because it is not needed for 10 days of snow in a year. If I want to drive safely and get wherever I`m going to I will invest 300€ into tyres. If I`m using winter ones I`m saving summer tyres so at the end I`m not loosing anything (maybe just price of steelies and storage place), I`m just getting more safety during whole year. With my winter tyres I`m not having a problem to drive through Alps in 10 centimeters of new snow, or even on icy road it is not such a problem as with summer tyres where it is impossible to steer and brake. Winter tyres are much better when in is below 4°C than summer tyres even on little bit wet road. Just compare below 2 tyre threads and imagine what will handle better in snow...

- also one really good comparison video

continental-premiumcontact-2.jpg-464x442.jpgsnowsport01.jpg

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to be honest, I really don`t understand why you people do not buy real winter tires. I do not want to hear bla bla because it is not needed for 10 days of snow in a year. If I want to drive safely and get wherever I`m going to I will invest 300€ into tyres. If I`m using winter ones I`m saving summer tyres so at the end I`m not loosing anything (maybe just price of steelies and storage place), I`m just getting more safety during whole year. With my winter tyres I`m not having a problem to drive through Alps in 10 centimeters of new snow, or even on icy road it is not such a problem as with summer tyres where it is impossible to steer and brake. Winter tyres are much better when in is below 4°C than summer tyres even on little bit wet road. Just compare below 2 tyre threads and imagine what will handle better in snow...

i don't need to, i know how to drive :)

i commute and do town driving for misc reasons and clock up between 300 and 400 miles a week total, not once in that time have i thought 'i need snow/winter speciality tires'.

if you've got enough money to swap tires and wheels fair play, but all season tires do the job fine here in the UK, its just the people behind the wheel that cause problems

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My titanium came with the standard 16" million and one spoke wheels, and were rubbish in snow, I didn't like them, so bought the 17" 5 spoke which are £695 (but incidently, on my new ZS with the street pack with tinted windows are only £300) but these are also rubbish!!

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My titanium came with the standard 16" million and one spoke wheels, and were rubbish in snow, I didn't like them, so bought the 17" 5 spoke which are £695 (but incidently, on my new ZS with the street pack with tinted windows are only £300) but these are also rubbish!!

Not gonna be the alloys that are rubbish, will be the wide, low-profile summer tyres.

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I am not offending you mikester, just people that cry that something is not working are driving me crazy sometimes, but the thing they are complaining about was not even projected for purpose they are using it (summer tires in snow) . I understand your point that winter tyres are not always needed in UK, but if I lack ability to drive on snow I can always help myself with some hardware that will help me to do what I want.

hough :)

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i don't need to, i know how to drive :)

i commute and do town driving for misc reasons and clock up between 300 and 400 miles a week total, not once in that time have i thought 'i need snow/winter speciality tires'.

if you've got enough money to swap tires and wheels fair play, but all season tires do the job fine here in the UK, its just the people behind the wheel that cause problems

Umm what?...you know something that no one else does, you have found someway to bend th laws of phsyics, please do explain how you have managed to get you factory fitted summer tire compounds to work on snow and black ice, id be facinated to read the results of this.

So would the millions in other snow affected countries that buy winter tires.

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Yeah exactly, I think it would be fine if it was front wheel drive, as I only have 3 major problems

1) Parked on it and need to set off, takes awhile of shunting back and forth

2) Pulling from snowey side street on to gritted main road, it spins a bit before I can get going to jump in to traffic

3) slopes, there is only one I need to go up, but last winter no chance, this winter the scouts had slightly cleared it and a little speed after turning off main road and straight up it, and a lot of wheel spinning, it went up.

But winter tyres are a little like screenwash, they say it's going to be cold, but sometimes it freezes, sometimes it doesn't, they say it's going to snow, sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't!

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But winter tyres are a little like screenwash, they say it's going to be cold, but sometimes it freezes, sometimes it doesn't, they say it's going to snow, sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't!

Winter tyres are better [than summer + all-season tyres] in conditions below +7C, of which it has been everyday for a least a month here! They are winter tyres not snow tyres, ie. for use all through winter and not just in extreme snow!

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Yeah exactly, I think it would be fine if it was front wheel drive, as I only have 3 major problems

Fine if what was front wheel drive?

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to be honest, I really don`t understand why you people do not buy real winter tires.

Me neither ! :huh:

People complaining here, that their "summer tires wont work in winter conditions", makes me astonished.

I mean, "Guys what did you expect" :rolleyes:

Are there no stats in the UK, of "how many accidents could have been avoided, if people would have driven with winter tires"? :huh:

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Umm what?...you know something that no one else does, you have found someway to bend th laws of phsyics, please do explain how you have managed to get you factory fitted summer tire compounds to work on snow and black ice, id be facinated to read the results of this.

So would the millions in other snow affected countries that buy winter tires.

cos mine are not thefactory fitted tires, mine are in comparison poverty spec yokos that are all season like most tires people buy thesedays. the trick is drive sensibely using more than ample antipation of 'what if', ie what if i need to stop there, what if this car at the side junction pulls out etc

simple fact is, i do a fair amount of miles on all road types and never once have i thought i really need winter tires to do the same thing. :)

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cos mine are not thefactory fitted tires, mine are in comparison poverty spec yokos that are all season like most tires people buy thesedays. the trick is drive sensibely using more than ample antipation of 'what if', ie what if i need to stop there, what if this car at the side junction pulls out etc

simple fact is, i do a fair amount of miles on all road types and never once have i thought i really need winter tires to do the same thing. :)

Having spoken to you about your driving style and [amazing] mpg I believe that you would be a very careful driver in this weather.

Like you said, it's all about anticipation.

However, I do 25,000 miles a year and it never hurts to have a little hardware to back you up ;) Once you've tried them you will be amazed at the difference.

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To be honest, in the 10 years I've been driving, it's only 2009 and this november/dec where I've driven in snow, and only twice on main roads, when it unexpectedly snows, the friday before christmas 2009, and 1st december this year when we had half a snow day, while we could get home.

IMG_0923-30.jpg

bear in mind that was after 12, and at 7:30 it was clear

(yes I was driving, but about 10 mile and hour)

Apart from those two occasions, once I'm out of our road, and the estate at work, I'm on gritted roads so fine, and I only do 12 mile each way to work, and don't go much else when it's snowing.

Plus, the cheapest I've found steel wheels is 70 each on eBay, and then tyres, some of us can't afford that.

Apart from getting stuck on moving, I've never had a problem on moving along a road!

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Having spoken to you about your driving style and [amazing] mpg I believe that you would be a very careful driver in this weather.

Like you said, it's all about anticipation.

However, I do 25,000 miles a year and it never hurts to have a little hardware to back you up ;) Once you've tried them you will be amazed at the difference.

not so amazing at the moment, i'd assumed colder denser air would be excellent for fuel economy but not so :(

as pere usual people have jumped on me cos they didn't read the post i was quoting...

see;

"I really don`t understand why you people do not buy real winter tires" <- this is what my comment was aimed at, simple fact is you do not need winter tires if you already drive sensibly and can implement perception and anticipation which unfortuinately not many people do, they leave braking to the last minute, hog lanes on motorways cos 'i'm not moving, i was here first' etc, that kind of thing all the time not just in the winter.

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"if you've got enough money to swap tires and wheels fair play, but all season tires do the job fine here in the UK, its just the people behind the wheel that cause problems"

If you think about it you have implied that everyone who is struggling with all season tyres is incapable of driving properly.

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