How many miles have you done with the winter tyres Dave? I guess they come with the usual warning about the tyres needing 300 miles to bed in.

About 1800 miles on my last car

I have winter tyres for my ZS 2010.. should they fit the ST-3?

I have winter tyres for my ZS 2010.. should they fit the ST-3?

I think they use the same tyre sizes, so if your tyres are 205/40 R17 then yes.

I have winter tyres for my ZS 2010.. should they fit the ST-3?

I had the 2013 ZS and that had 195/45/R16 tyres, hence I have had to get spare rims for the ST.

Update on the vibration at 60-70mph: I have no clue about these things so had a quick chat with my cousin's other half who is a traffic cop. He said it was typical balancing symptoms.

He said that even with the aggressive tread pattern and the low suspension of the ST, there should not be any vibrations like that. I will get it checked at a garage soon.

Just to update on my thoughts of the ST on winter tyres after a first proper drive today, I'd say unusual.

Perfectly normal up to 50mph. At motorway speeds there is more play in the steering and it feels like running on knobbly off road tyres. Slight vibration through the steering wheel.

Never had that on the ZS so perhaps the smaller wheels and setup of the ST show it up.

Vibration does sound like balancing, usually kicks in around 50mph and 80mph. I'm a bit more concerned about the way its handling sounds like the car doesn't like these tyres last thing you want is vague steering.

Keep us updated Dave.

To be honest Phil, I think the two are connected. The slight give in the steering occurs alongside the vibration so perhaps the balancing or lack thereof, is upsetting the steering.

At low to moderate speeds, even in tight turns, it feels absolutely fine and has given me no cause for concern. The garage I intend to use has laser equipment for all this balancing business, so they should be able to get it bang on. (I used a mobile tyre fitter who won't have the same level of equipment in his van obviously.)

The garage I intend to use has laser equipment for all this balancing business

Isn't the laser equipment only for alignment? If that needs adjusting it could cause handling issues I guess, but then that would be the case before you changed the tyres, so maybe not.

A tyre place I used before let you watch while they do the balancing, and they just put the wheel on some machine that spins it and tells them where to stick the weights. I would think a mobile tyre fitter would have that kind of thing in his van.

It's still very warm for winter tyres, plus combine that with a very stiff suspension set up, I'm not too surprised that the soft winter tyres feel strange at higher speeds. Does sound like a balance issue could be the main culprit though.

Further update: A set of wheel weights were discovered on the drive this morning so have obviously fallen off!

The tyre fitter is returning tomorrow at 4:30pm to re-balance. It was hammering it down with rain when he fitted them so with the wheels soaked, it may have had an effect on it sticking properly.

Sounds like a result Dave.

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Further update: The fitter has been back and sorted it. All ok now.

Cool, maybe we'll eventually get cold enough weather for them to make a difference, it's barely into single figures lol.

When you get steel wheels from tyreleader, do they come with appropriate fixings? Am I right in thinking the alloy bolts aren't suitable?

Guys will my Zetec S 2010 winter tyres fit onto my ST-3

Sizes are 175 / 65 R 14

Thanks,

No the original wheels are too small, simply won't go on. Get some uniroyal rainsports, £60each in ST fitment but no better wet tyre around.

Where did you get yours for £60? Lowest price I've found is £70 per tyre!

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Where did you get yours for £60? Lowest price I've found is £70 per tyre!

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Scrap that. Found some at the same price!

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Guys will my Zetec S 2010 winter tyres fit onto my ST-3

Sizes are 175 / 65 R 14

Thanks,

No, you need a rim size of at least 15 inches due to the larger calipers on the front brakes.

Camskill in case anyone wondered. Pikey website but quality service and prices.

Now we do not know how this person was driving on these icy and snowy roads in Derbyshire this week but in these conditions, winter tyres can make the difference between a damaged Focus and a perfect Focus that evaded or braked with ease.

If something occured here beyond the drivers control and he or she braked or swerved resulting in this, how much will this cost vs buying winter tyres? Not to mention the grief that goes with it.

Bought 4x Nokian WR-A3 205/55 R16 91H for £48 a tyre and all four fitted for £30 incl balancing.

£220 for peace of mind in Winter, definitely worth it.

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what tyres did you eventually go for phil?

I didn't bother getting any, maybe next year though. I'll be tempted to do it properly and get some alloys which are narrower than standard, specifically for winter tyres, and some good mud flaps too if I don't have to drill holes in the car to fit them lol.

I'd recommend winter tyres to anyone who drives (and who can afford to).

In the cold they respond really well, feel like normal tyres.

Snow (and some frozen, compacted snow) I've just been driving on as normal, no esp activations at all.

Not wheelspun once with these tyres, even when its been cold/icy/wet/snowy.

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