I am wondering if, at the root of all this stramash, is a statement made by the Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond, to the effect that the use of winter tyres was "not appropriate". He intimated that winter tyres would damage roads, and cause potholes. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is our transport minister!
It is suspected that he was confusing winter and studded tyres.
Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!
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Started by Finn in Ski Chatter 09-Dec-2010 - 41 Replies
Dave Mac
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
Trencher
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
Dave Mac wrote:I am wondering if, at the root of all this stramash, is a statement made by the Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond, to the effect that the use of winter tyres was "not appropriate". He intimated that winter tyres would damage roads, and cause potholes. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is our transport minister!
It is suspected that he was confusing winter and studded tyres.
The old school tie is much more important than knowing what the &*%# you are talking about. That was what made Obama so different, actually appointing the best people for the job, whatever their political persuasion.
because I'm so inclined .....
Tony_H
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
My bet is that he doesnt even know what either are, and had been told what studded tyres were, and shot from the hip before engaging his brain. Unusual that for a politician.Dave Mac wrote:I am wondering if, at the root of all this stramash, is a statement made by the Transport Secretary, Philip Hammond, to the effect that the use of winter tyres was "not appropriate". He intimated that winter tyres would damage roads, and cause potholes. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is our transport minister!
It is suspected that he was confusing winter and studded tyres.
www
New and improved me
EmmaEvs
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
Quick question...
Is there a downside to changing to winter tyres in the UK? There's no doubt that they're an advantage in snow or ice, but this would only apply for a portion of the winter season. Would the times when the roads are clear wreck the tyres before the end of the season? Or, are our winter temps sufficiently low anyway to keep the tyres within their 'comfort zone'?
Interested in your thoughts...
Is there a downside to changing to winter tyres in the UK? There's no doubt that they're an advantage in snow or ice, but this would only apply for a portion of the winter season. Would the times when the roads are clear wreck the tyres before the end of the season? Or, are our winter temps sufficiently low anyway to keep the tyres within their 'comfort zone'?
Interested in your thoughts...
I wish I could meet the person who first decided to strap 2 planks to their feet and throw themselves down a mountain
Finn
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
Emma
I run Verdestein Wrintrax Extreme winter tyres on our vehicle which is a VW Passat AW drive estate. I leave the tyres on all year round & usually get 28000+ miles from each set of tyres. I have never experienced & adverse effects when driving in summer. Go as far as to say during the very heavy deluged rain we seem to experience in summer the tyres were excellent.
I run Verdestein Wrintrax Extreme winter tyres on our vehicle which is a VW Passat AW drive estate. I leave the tyres on all year round & usually get 28000+ miles from each set of tyres. I have never experienced & adverse effects when driving in summer. Go as far as to say during the very heavy deluged rain we seem to experience in summer the tyres were excellent.
Finn
EmmaEvs
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
Wow, thanks Finn. I wasn't expecting them to be that good at adapting to different temperatures. On saying that my only reference point for different tyre grades is watching motorbike racing, where their wet tyres degrade within a lap or two if it turns out to be dry. A little extreme perhaps! :)
I wish I could meet the person who first decided to strap 2 planks to their feet and throw themselves down a mountain
Admin
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
EmmaEvs wrote:are our winter temps sufficiently low anyway to keep the tyres within their 'comfort zone'?
In a word, yes.
As Finn has said, modern winter tyres are pretty good in all but the hottest of UK weather - and they have a grip (braking) advantage over summer tyres that starts around 7 degrees C.
In cold, wet weather winter tyres work much better than summer ones. On snow the difference is huge.
AutoExpress had a group test last month of a bunch of winter tyres, and they included a summer tyre to compare. One of the tests was braking from 25mph on packed snow - the winter tyres stopped in around 19 metres; summer tyres took over 40m IIRC. That's five car lengths difference from just 25mph. :shock:
The Admin Man
EmmaEvs
reply to 'Contact your car insurer if you are thinking about fitting winter tyres!' posted Dec-2010
Thanks Admin.
Hmmm... it's looking like there are no downsides really...
Hmmm... it's looking like there are no downsides really...
I wish I could meet the person who first decided to strap 2 planks to their feet and throw themselves down a mountain
Topic last updated on 16-December-2010 at 22:27