Hi Everyone,

since in Italy is mandatory after November 15 to have snowchain on board or having snow tires mounted, I started to wonder about how to prepare my car ( MK8 ST Line) for winter:

Do you think it's better to have a double set of rims for winter tires and doing the change at home ( I have all the stuff needed to do that) or it's just a false economy?

90% I'll  get an ST Fiesta after this one, so having a double set of 17 inches ( I'd like to keep the same rims design also for winter) will be better so I can avoid paying 1K for 4 18inch snow tires ( they're so expensive over there).

Plus, a smaller rims will drive better in the snow.

 

On the other hand, changing only the tires on the same set of rims will be cheaper, so I'll need to do some math in a proper way.

So, please share with me what would you do if you were in my shoes/ how do you prepare your car for winter/snow driving?

 

Thanks everyone in advance!

 

Ive allways gone for two sets of wheels 17" for summer 16" for winter the smaller narroer tyres give better grip in snow and wet.

At the moment I have a set of 205/45 17 Kumho Wintercraft WP71’s for my winter tyres and only one set of rims.

i did look into some rims to fit the winter tyres but decided that for the potential saving in the next few years, it wouldn’t be worth the cost up front

On 10/31/2019 at 10:13 PM, DG97 said:

At the moment I have a set of 205/45 17 Kumho Wintercraft WP71’s for my winter tyres and only one set of rims.

i did look into some rims to fit the winter tyres but decided that for the potential saving in the next few years, it wouldn’t be worth the cost up front

I was wondering about to get a used set of  same design 17inches 4 rims, as the ones I have now, but they're 217 euro each new by Ford.

I found some of them spared on different ebays at 80-100 euros each, but I'm not fully convinced on creating a set with 4 different purchases...

I came up with the idea of keep using them when I'll upgrade to ST in a few years, but who know what will happen next!

 

I have a set of winter tyres for my SMax, if you do not use the same alloys you will need to check your insurance doesn't treat this as a mod. If it is a one-off trip you'll be better off hiring a car if you need to travel around, if regular, get a spare set as your summer tyres will last much longer as most "normal" wear is in the colder months (December to February). It is not a case of snow chains or winter tyres, summer tyres will harden in the cold and not grip the snow and on the motorways the locals will maintain a decent speed (60ish) in the snow and as your tyres will slip you will hold up traffic. In a lots of EU you can drive a UK registered car as long as it complies with UK laws however you cannot drive on roads that state snow tyres/chains required (mountain passes), where you will get hit is if your vehicle is not fit for the current conditions. So expect a hugh fine and tow charges if you hold up/block traffic on a motorway or mountains because your tyres are slipping. I get my tyres from mytyres.com and the prices vary a lot depending on how close to the winter months you are and then my preferred brands (Vredstein, Continential and Semper) go out of stock quick.

Other stuff should include, travel spade, head-fitted light, something to kneel on when you fit the snowchains (the good brands have fitting instructions on a large plastic sheet for this purpose), ice grips to go on your shoes and 5 litres of good quality -15C screenwash.

51 minutes ago, brains_t said:

I have a set of winter tyres for my SMax, if you do not use the same alloys you will need to check your insurance doesn't treat this as a mod. If it is a one-off trip you'll be better off hiring a car if you need to travel around, if regular, get a spare set as your summer tyres will last much longer as most "normal" wear is in the colder months (December to February). It is not a case of snow chains or winter tyres, summer tyres will harden in the cold and not grip the snow and on the motorways the locals will maintain a decent speed (60ish) in the snow and as your tyres will slip you will hold up traffic. In a lots of EU you can drive a UK registered car as long as it complies with UK laws however you cannot drive on roads that state snow tyres/chains required (mountain passes), where you will get hit is if your vehicle is not fit for the current conditions. So expect a hugh fine and tow charges if you hold up/block traffic on a motorway or mountains because your tyres are slipping. I get my tyres from mytyres.com and the prices vary a lot depending on how close to the winter months you are and then my preferred brands (Vredstein, Continential and Semper) go out of stock quick.

Other stuff should include, travel spade, head-fitted light, something to kneel on when you fit the snowchains (the good brands have fitting instructions on a large plastic sheet for this purpose), ice grips to go on your shoes and 5 litres of good quality -15C screenwash.

One correction would be that your car must meet the laws of the country you are driving in rather than the UKs. As we are (still) in the EU, the laws are fairly universal. However in some countries you need a lot more equipment on board. Even things like a fire extinguisher (in Poland). 
Also, winter tyres are compulsory in some countries and regions from around the 1st November. 
 

Saying all that (and despite having a set of winter tyres myself), in the current UK climate, winter tyres aren’t really needed. The temperature rarely drops below 0 and snowfall is quite rare and if it happens, it’ll usually be gone in a day or two. 

3 hours ago, DG97 said:

One correction would be that your car must meet the laws of the country you are driving in rather than the UKs. As we are (still) in the EU, the laws are fairly universal. However in some countries you need a lot more equipment on board. Even things like a fire extinguisher (in Poland). 
Also, winter tyres are compulsory in some countries and regions from around the 1st November. 
 

Saying all that (and despite having a set of winter tyres myself), in the current UK climate, winter tyres aren’t really needed. The temperature rarely drops below 0 and snowfall is quite rare and if it happens, it’ll usually be gone in a day or two. 

True but specific to my example, in many countries the law only requires use of winter tires when conditions are icy. There is a good website for this - I know the AA used to link to it for the EU emissions zone badges you now require to drive in certain towns in Europe. It lists the additional requirements for each country as there is a lot of nonsense published especially by the ferry companies.

Winter tyres aren't required here in the UK but I usually travel December and February so put them on in December keep them on until March. I would be very weary of using them in snow here as it is unlikely the car behind would be able to avoid me if I stopped suddenly. However there was one year where only European cars and myself made it down the A2 to Dover for the early ferry.

I have a set of Pirelli Sottozero 2's but at anything above ice being abundent on the road they absolutely destroy the handling of my Mk7.5 ST Line. The std Contisport Contacts have brilliant grip right down to icey conditions. Given the instances of sheet ice and snow are relatively rare in the UK I took them off and put the Continentals back on all last winter. I'll only be putting them back on if heavy snow is forecast.