I've been driving in the UK for over 20 years and always drove on all-season tyres (or tires for those across the pond ;)). Then three years ago we had a particularly bad winter and there was this snow covered hill I couldn't get up. Several times I made it halfway then gradually slowed as I lost traction. I ended up turning back and doing a 10-mile detour, every day for a week. So I bit the bullet and bought a set of winter tyres. My... God... what a difference! Straight up the snowy hill like I was on tarmac! I was dubious before but as soon as I tried them... wow!! Now I may be a skilled driver, or I may not, but common sense tells me that anything that helps me stick to the road is a VERY good thing. So why are some people so against winter tyres, even after watching the compelling evidence in this video? 1. They haven't tested them for themselves (ignorance); and/or 2. They believe they're so skillful that nothing can improve their driving (over confidence).
in Quebec Canada the Law 42 was instituted 2007, which requires all motorists to install four winter tires on their vehicle from December 15 to March 15. As of December 15, 2014, all winter tires must be marked with the symbol of a snowflake and mountain on the sidewall. if you get pulled over and don't have the snowflake on sidewall it is 400$ ticket per tire. Best law ever passed if you ask me.
Yes, that makes a big difference. The German O-O is a recommendation, so you can drive in December on summer tyres, as long as the road isn't icy or snowy. But if you get caught out and it snows, before you fit winter tyres, it is very expensive. So the O-O is a good guideline to stick to.
@@Ueberdoziz That is complete B.S. I rented a car in Germany from Hertz and had summer tires. I didn't check thinking it had winter. I almost got killed driving from Frankfurt to Stuttgart and back. Also in Germany no one cleans the roads and many cars speeding are seen on the side of the road recked. I thought Germany was the best place in the world to drive but Switzerland is dacades ahead of the game.
I paid $630, I've never driven my all seasons in the winter, so I can't really compare them to my winters, but I've never crashed and I'm a pretty shit driver so there's that.
Other option is buy some cheap rims so if you have 19in get 17in rim and size the tires up and go with a higher series. For example, 245 40 19 in 17 can be 245 50 17 or the cheapest version 225 55 17
As someone who works for a major tyre company; winter tyres are worth the money when it comes to this time of year, especially here in Scotland. They are not designed solely for snow; as the video shows, they are also intended for any slippery surface including wet. The impact on fuel economy is barely noticeable and as long as you drive responsibly then they will last a decent amount of time. The only reason they are so expensive is because the rubber we use is somewhat difficult to manufacture and the process is slightly different- this is not really something that is likely to change I'm afraid, but come one, those extra few metres of stopping space might save someone's life; you can't put a price on that!
Tell me about it. We lose out on so much instinctive information because the UK half arsed the metric system. Buy petrol in litres but use mpg to describe economy... etc.
Many Cars inculding ours show the Fuel Consumption in 'Real Time' in " Litres per 100 Kilometer's" and Countdown in Kilometers left in the Tank the next top up at Service Station...
When I was young I used to try to do it on the cheap and go through winter with my all seasons up here in Canada. It was my father-in-law who finally convinced me of the wisdom of springing for proper winter tires, when he reflected, "the cost of buying winter tires is pretty cheap compared to the cost of an accident". That pretty much did it for me, and I have dutifully switched to winter tires every November since that conversation many years ago. And I NEVER run with worn tires. Good tires are like good shoes: you can go "cheap" on many other aspects of life, but there are some things you just cannot compromise on. And that, my son, is my advice to you...
I was actually impressed that in my country (Bulgaria) changing tires during winter/summer is a typical thing but for other countries like US/UK is something rather unusual.
+Marush “Luci” Denchev I know, I'm spend a lot of time in Sofia and come end of November, the Winter tyres go on. I suppose the UK doesn't get enough snow to justify the added expense.
+Martin Jones Winter tires are not only for snowy conditions but when the temperature of the road is below 7 degrees celsius for a long period of time. That's what I know. The compound used to create the summer tire react differently with the road when the temp is below 7 and above 7.
Marush Denchev The problem is most British Winters are now around 7 degrees, it's just not cold enough. It hardly ever snows in the UK too, that's why 2cm of snow can shut down the country for a week. Last year was crazy in the Balkans. I drove to Belgrade, it was -24 and ½ m of snow on the side roads. It lasted for a long time too. Thankfully I had winter tyres on my car and had a 4x4 as well in the troupe.
it suprises me that there is no law in britain which makes it mandatory to have winter tires in the winter. I mean... there is a reason why winter tires and summer tires have their specific name....
+Sicklehead88 In Britain we have a very unpredictable climate, which is why many don't bother changing tyres. If it doesn't snow, then they will feel their money was wasted. It's also why there isn't legislation about it.
+Auto Express thanks for the reply! Despite that, I would assume that between December and February, the temperatures are nevertheless generally quite low, especially at night. If the temerature is constantly below 7°C, winter tires are the safer option, it does not need to be snowing for that. That's why I originally assumed that there was a law concerning your tires. Personally i rather spend money on the tires and be on the safe side, than playing the poker game and hoping that my summer tires will be sufficient. Basically the same reason why you have certain insurances (although since I'm German, I don't know too much about what kind of insurances are mandatory in Britain and which are not).
Puyo Chichkovitechervenotikvenichkovcheta no one ever said that winter tires are better in wet conditions. everyone knows that summer tires are better in wet contions. but we're talking here about real winter conditions with snow and ice, not 10°C and rain. on snow and ice there is just nothing better than winter tires
+Sicklehead88 ''no one ever said that winter tires are better in wet conditions" - actually nearly every journalist says that winter tires are better in wet conditions under +7 C, including those writing for Auto Express and that contradicts the test results published by the very same media they are working for. Example: Winter tyres They're not just for snow and ice - winter tyres hold an advantage over summer or all-season tyres in any weather once the temperature is below seven degrees Celsius. The rubber they’re made of is better adapted to work in the cold and the tread pattern helps shift water quickly, so the tyre can grip the road. pages.citebite.com/g4k7d5v8n8tps pages.citebite.com/a4p7k5h8f3kok It is all about quality of journalism not what you say.
Actually they hardly cost anything. When you have winter tires your summer tires wear out slower. So you practically save what you spend on winter tires on summer tires.
+aibel99 they are made of a softer rubber that doesn't last as long as summer tires compound. Let's say in winter the tires get 2000 miles. But in summer due to higher temps the rubber degrades faster leading to say 1500 miles. More money less distance. It's best to switch them or if it's a vehicle that doesn't drive much all year you can leave them on year round or get a all season tires. It's a compromise of both. Not best in either but better then the summer in winter conditions.
@Steven Stringer Winter tired don't handle better than summer tires at summer. When the temperature gets over 10 degrees celsius the winter tire compound becomes too soft. Also winter tires water dispersing abilities are much worse than summer tires because the thread pattern on winter tires is designed to grip on snow.
Very well done video. I have been an auto accident investigator for many years. Tires can make all the difference between beiing in an accident and avoiding one. Of course you must also leave proper distance between you and the car in front of you, a good rule of thumb is a car length for every 10 mph you are going until you get to higher speeds such as freeway speeds, then more room is needed.
Wow, I just cannot comprehend you people complaining about winter tyres? Let me ask you this, you have a child, who gets out of your vehicle and drops a ball and steps out to get it without thinking as kids tend to do. A driver coming one direction stops because they have winter tyres, a car coming the other direction cannot stop or steer and plows into your kid killing the child.... now tell me how much those tyres are worth? I live in Canada specifically in BC where I carry chains for all four tyres and run an extremely siped snow tread myself. I cannot imagine running on summer treads in the winter! NOT EVER... If not for me...for someone else!
If someone still believes that summer tyres will do just fine in winter if roads are dry, you should try riding a streetbike when the temperature drops below 7 degrees Celsius. The effect of a thread pattern on these is pretty much non-existent naturally, since there almost aren't any threads. The summer tyres compound turns into something that resembles a hockey puck when it's cold, just try leaning into the curve and see for yourself how confident you feel! I think that the only reason why so many car drivers don't notice the difference is because modern cars can compensate for the lower traction with various ride stabilization systems (and of course because cars are inherently more stable than bikes from the very beginning). But when an emergency situation comes and they have to push it to the tyres limit, it's already too late.
Have used winter and summer tyres on rotation on my BMW since living in Germany for several years. For £140 I still do now I am back in the UK. Undoubtedly safer in colder and wetter conditions from Nov to Mar and proper rotation helps the tyres to last longer. Summer tyres will degrade more quickly if there is a consistently cold spell. Well worth the investment in the long run.
In my country (the Netherlands) there is hardly any snow and the temperature in winter rarely gets very far below freezing. If there is snow, the roads are salted. Combined with the fact that winter tyres perfom worse without snow than summer tyres (in wet and dry), the conclusion is here: no winter tyres here for me.
+Ronald de Rooij hello my dear neighbor ;-) here in germany winter tires are a must have since a couple of years. before that, it was not a must have but if you caused an accident in snowy conditions while having summer tires fitted to your car, your insurance would not cover anything and you might also get legal trouble. Personally i think when the temperature falls constantly under 7°C, it is way safer to have winter tires fitted to your car.
+Sicklehead88 OK, I just repeat the test of a Dutch car magazine. I do not have first hand experience. It is up to you who to believe, of course. I know about the German court ruling saying that people must have tyres "fit for the conditions". However, last year I was in Bonn, it was freezing and snowing, and half the cars were on summer tyres. It was very amusing. Many could not even get up the hills. So, I think even the Germans do not all see the need to obey, haha. Ah well, I don't want to get into German internal affairs, of course...
Ronald de Rooij well, the law says you have to have tires fit for the conditions, that's correct. most people change to winter tires at the end of october or beginning of november. and yeah, sometimes the temperatures can drop quite fast and unexpected. just happenend 4 weeks ago, i also didn't have my winter tires fitted, yet. situations like that are rare, but they happen. i personally don't know anyone who doesn't change tires for the winter. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule. but the people i know also did it before the law existed.
+Ronald de Rooij The same in the UK.People won't go and spend the money on wintertyres.Climate is similar to the Netherlands.I used to drive a old VW Beetle on remoulds still got me everywhere in snow just drive to the conditions.
+Sicklehead88 Yeah, but it was february and really I think half of the people in Bonn did not have tyres "fit for the conditions". Fortunately I was driven around in a four wheel drive Skoda Octavia with winter tyres. No problem.
With respect Sniktun1, I don't know where you have spent the last 3 winters ! I first fitted winter tyres to a Golf Estate and just the fact that the car will actually stop in the snow and slush is good enough for me.
Bring on the snow! My winter wheels and tyres arrived today. That's all good and well, but I can't help thinking I'm now gonna get rear ended at by a plonker on summer tyres
i was skeptic about winter tire because tire was just tire to me, but when i bought a set of 4 winter tire this year.... i am a believer. driving a rear wheel sports car in the winter with winter tire is like driving an all wheel drive in the winter except it is 2x better then an all wheel drive because i can just floor the car and speed in the snow like it was nothing. out speeding all the all wheel drive car people and when turning on a corner, your car wont even do a 360 spin out because the winter tire grip on the snow is so good it wont even let your car spin. it makes winter driven so much fun. Winter tire is highly recommended for rear wheel drive in the winter if its your only car all year round and winter tire does not kick all the snow up into your car and form a big chunk of ice under your car in between the wheels like *All season tire* do.
I've gone 6 years on a set of winter tires so at 75 dollars per tire you get your moneys worth. They never lose there tread and most times have to be replaced due to weather cracking. That's my experience here in Canada. Obviously if you spin the hell out of them and drift and do burn outs you will be lucky to get a year out of them. Summer tires last about 3 years with normal wear.
+The440plymouth it all depends on how much you drive, if your winter tires survive 6 years you probably don't drive that much. For someone like me, who drives 70,000 km per year.. the tires gets worn pretty fast.
+The440plymouth You don't really want to use winter tires for more than 4 maybe 5 seasons. Even if the tire isn't cracking yet the rubber has still hardened and lost much of its effectiveness. Most winter tires make it to around the 40,000 mile mark. Summer tires last much longer up to 90,000 miles and up to 6-7 years and the tire's softness does not have as much of an effect to its performance. All season tires are in between and are good year round especially if your car is AWD.
My 2 cents on the matter: I used All-Season tires on my 2006 Ford Taurus, no A.B.S., no traction control, and, of course, no E.S.C. Long story short, the car was extremely difficult to drive. I tried adjusting the tire pressures and it was always a major compromise. One winter in Salt Lake City (at Bountiful) taught me the hard way. I ran past 3 intersections, got stuck countless of times, and had over three uncontrolled slides onto incomming traffic. Now, in Ohio, I purchased a set of wheels with winter tires. It is nothing short of amazing the difference it has made. Most shocking is when stopping. The investment was well worth every single cent I sank into and more. Besides, my life is worth more than wheels and tires, and, also the life of those around me. Now, also my 2012 Fusion Sport AWD (which does have A.B.S., E.S.C., & Traction Control) is shod with winter tires. Safety first!
Winter tires are for under +6'C. Than are beter on wet snow and dry than a summer tire. If temp is over +6'C than a allweather or summer tires are beter on wet and dry.
Very good and informative video. Potential test alternative: If a car with summer tires takes 85m to come to a full stop, instead of a drag race to see who gets to 35 miles per hour from a stop, you/they should do a race to see how many seconds it takes to clear out 85m from a stop... ...If you have stopped on an icy intersection and see an incoming car behind you sliding fast and sideways in your rear view mirror, the last thing you want is your tires spinning in the snow and staying there (brace for impact captain!). I can tell you, each fraction of a second it takes to move forward seams like an eternity.
Everyone (bar a few) uses summer tyres because they're the cheapest. Period. This is the best test out there. Wake up people and stop complaining when you're involved in an accident in winter conditions. Chances are, the person who hit you are using the exact same tyres they had on when it was 80° in July. It should be part of the MOT test to have the correct tyres in the winter.
Here in Romania we have a big fine for not using winter tyres, so pretty much everybody has them and things are great, there's only a handful of accidents related to winter (except for a few maniacs that go way too fast even for winter tyres).
I grew up driving a '66 Chevrolet PU with a 250 inline 6 with a 3 speed. First drove it at 11 years old in '78 by myself on the public road lol. Still got it, but it needs work and I don't drive it anymore. Will restore it one day because it was my Daddy's and I was with him and remember the day well that he bought it in 1976 from a Ford dealership. He was the 2nd owner. Have had lots of hotrods over the years and still have a few, but at 45, the racing days are close to being behind me.
I drive my M135i on Michelin Pilot Super Sport during the summer and on Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 during the winter. The best tires in their categories, believe me, well worth the investment. Where I live temperatures are about 8-14ºC between November and February and there's some rain but no snow - can't tell you how good the A4 are on colder climates, but here they work a treat. During the summer we have temperatures of around 25-30ºC and the PSS are brilliant.
Bridgestone A001's for me-where I live we have mildish winters and the Bridgestones perform brilliantly- first things I do to a car are bridgeys,nightbreakers,rain-x and valeo wipers...then worry about the small stuff
I have Goodyear Eaglestar Asymetric on my Subaru Legacy R Spec B, really great performance and ride balance. Looked at the Michelins but decided to go for the slightly cheaper Goodyears as my car is 4wd and wears the tires pretty evenly. Can be costly replacing 4 all the time. I found the Bridgestones were way to hard on British roads, the stiff side walls i think, the Goodyears feel more grippy and comfortable for my driving style (quick), i get awesome wet weather performance in my sporty estate, thing never comes unstuck (no VDC either as it's a 6MT)
I'm now using Continental ContiWinterContact TS 850 instead of the Alpin 4. They're marginally better. Nothing beats tge PSS during summer and spring, though...
I participated in a time attack at a local track last spring. Light rain, wet track, no more than 5°C outside. I just arrived on my daily 150hp 2 liter BMW, nothing special about it, and had my "all season" tires on (what these guys would call winter tires). The tires made such an amazing difference, it was unbelievable really. Another guy got there on is M3, same model, almost 200 more hp. He had some racing performance tires on. The end result was he managed a 0.7 second faster lap time on a ca 1.10 minute long track than I did. I just had grip all the time, and he couldn't get the power down at all.
No it is the rubber compound that is a big difference. The metal studs is what they are actually called. Those are mainly for ice but they "can" be illegal depending upon where you live because they destroy the road.
The tread design is also different. It's shaped to be able to grasp snow and ice better (more rugged design compared to the smoother design of non-winter tires)
All season tires really should be renamed to no season tires. They generally perform worse than summer tires in warm temps and nowhere near as good as winter tires during the cold seasons especially on snow and ice.
Rogue Racing sorry, but it's bullshit. Did you ever had all seasons tires on your car? Sure I woudn't use them for my pretty fast bmw, but they are doing great all year and in all conditions on my renault, used generally in the city and not agressive.
glad we don't have winter tyre issue in Aus, but we do have offroad tyres that for a lot are required but most just usually have offroad tyres as a year round set if they go offroad. If you do a lot of driving it is highly recommended to have two sets of tyres, it doesn't work out any more expensive, if you store your tyres out of sunlight they will last a while.
Why aren't they comparing All Season vs Winter Tires, seems like a better comparison. It would be pretty stupid to expect summer tires to perform in winter.
Sam Robichaud - because most (probably 99%) of drivers have summer tyres and that is the standard option a fitter like Halfords or Kwikfit will offer (these are UK generic non-dealer car repairs/tyre sales companies). I just whacked my car details into an online provider of tyres but the 3 recommended tyres that come up are all summer from £114.99 to £148.99 with ratings from A-C (from a scale of A-G) for wet grip even though it's December. You have to choose a separate option for the winter tyres - which come in at £153.99 a pop
Gobtik Here in America, at least in the Northeast, all-season are the standard tire. Decent winter tires probably start at £85 per. If you go into a tire store this time of year, the front of the store is all winter tires. But most people still run all-seasons and then slide around all winter thinking it's normal.
StalePhish Not sure whether the UK separates "all season" and "summer" - they just have to meet a certain tread depth and shops don't sell them as such, just normal and winter. My car has wide low profile tyres (came with, wasn't chosen :) ) hence the cost being higher - if we got enough bad weather to make it worth it, I would get winter tyres but it's simply not worth it here
Gobtik Summer has less tread depth but is better on dry or wet pavement in the warmer weather. The downside is that they don't last as long as all-season and are pretty terrible in snow. All-season is like the "jack of all trades, master of none". Low profiles are probably summer, but I'm not sure. I don't really know many people that have summer tires in this part of the USA.
On the continent they use metric mainly but in the UK we use a mixture of metric and imperial (US) measurements. If we're talking about car speed we say miles per hour, if we go for a run we're doing a 5k but would equally as often say we're doing a 4 mile walk. Weights are stones and pounds rather than just pounds but we also use KGs! I could go on all night but let's just say that we're a complex bunch :)
Timothy Germann I live in northern alberta Canada, believe me, winter tires are necessary. There is no comparison between all seasons and winter tires. Its common knowledge in Canada friend.
Russ Fleming Yeah I use winter tires too, but most cars where I live come with all-seasons and most people never change them. Summer tires will be slick as hell in the winter even on dry pavement because they are so hard. on snow they are useless. But trying to convince the average user of all seasons to upgrade to winter is trickier because AS tires work decently enough for typical mild lower 48 winters (unless you live in the mountains or Vermont/Maine etc.)
+Igor K The problem is in rubber compound. Standard "all season" tires today are often Low Rolling Resistance designs with harder rubber. This isn't an issue in warmer weather and often returns great tire life and improved gas mileage. However, when the temperature drops to below freezing, these tires become harder and give less grip. It won't matter in everyday driving, but in emergency situations or panic stops grip is everything, especially if you add snow and ice to the mix. AWD doesn't help much for stability in the winter. AWD with "all season" tires and an overconfident driver is asking for trouble. Tires play a far more important role in braking and cornering than any AWD. All seasons could work for milder winters with little snow, but in places such as Colorado where the winters are brutal, snow tires are a must.
winter tires make no sense in a palce that snows maybe a month or 2 if lucky. all season is what most people have here because it is pointless to change tires when the show is going to be gone as soon as you do. they plow roads a lot faster now too so you have to be real lucky to drive on a road with snow on it still. i actually kinda like driving on snow sometimes. this test should have been done with all season tires instead of summer. i don't know many people that use summer instead of all season.
If you can't afford winter tires for your car, buy a cheaper car. Otherwise you are basically just risking your safety as well as whoever is in/operating your car. Not to mention whatever vehicles you plow into.
well i concur,i can tell by that reply you are a driving god who is so good your car actually floats along the road with little clouds under each tyre.xxx
sweet1j You can buy all-weather tyres, but switching to summer tyres for the warmer months is still important: the extra contact the rubber has with a dry road increases grip by a significant amount.
+purrability ...All seasons are utter garbage in winter and slippery as teflon on ice...fact, it is criminal to call them winter tires, they will kill you just like totally bald tires.
+sweet1j they cost more. with them you use much much more fuel and get worse performance. in summer winter tires also get used very fast so they wouldnt hold for very long. thats why at least i recommend to use winter during colder/winter times and summer during warmer times. and fuck the all season tires srsly
+sweet1j Rubber compound matters almost as much as, if not more than tread pattern. All season rubber that lasts long in the summer won't be compliant enough in low temperatures. The compromise would mean lower mileage overall which people would complain about, without much gain in terms of winter traction. Not to mention the added noise that results from having a snow tire pattern. Most people won't know the difference a set of snow tires makes, but after directly comparing snow vs "all season" in sub zero temperatures I can definitely say the snow tires give far superior grip.
Winter tyres are needed for harsh climates for sure, but I'm old enough to see how we are getting conned here in the UK with this winter tyre nonsense. Until recently most tyres sold in the UK were "all season". This is fine here as we don't get extreme weather, you can count on one hand almost the number of days a year we get snow. We also only get a few dozen days a year when it's actually under zero celcius, and then it's usually only just under. But now, most tyres are "summer" and we are expected to buy another "winter set", doubling costs for a few days of slushy weather when we could all just drive a bit more cautiously, it's ridiculous....
Copley in northumberland averages 56 snow days a year. scotland averages 20 snow days on the cost and 110 inland, the south east averages 5 snow days, the midlands around 20, south wales 20, north wales 50 and so on. also the softer rubber is better in temps below 7c. I have high performance road tyres on my car (they are summer) since november I have noticed a lack of grip in corners where they would normally be very confidence inspiring. everywhere in the uk gets below 7c from around october till april most days by the evening at least in october and april, november to march most places don't get above 7c
I do have a question for you Brits, do you guys just call all season tires summer tires or do you really try to drive on summer tires in the winter? The reason I ask is because it seems to me like all seasons would be all but a requirement anywhere that gets a reasonable amount of snow.
Fair question, yes Summer tires are the same as All Season effectively. Winter tires are solely the specialist tires shown in this video. Most people in Britain never change theirs in the Winter, and then complain that the roads are un-driveable. It's dumb i know. To make it law probably wouldn't work (we don't tend to accept new laws with much grace here), but perhaps insurance providers could lower your costs slightly if you can prove you are using winter tires in the colder months. Not sure how that could be be kept legit but it's just an idea. Hope that answers your question :-)
But all season tires are just a bad compromise, at least her in Sweden were we have both hot summers and really cold and snowy winters. Ah all season tire is to soft for the summer and to hard for the winter.
***** you wouldn't have to prove it... if you didn't change your tyres in snowy conditions and you had an accident they could refused to pay out if you agreed that you would use winter tyres in the winter! if insurers gave the option which would "Lower the cost" they'd probably save allot of money because allot of people never change there tyres for the bad conditions and they'd have a reason to deny there claims!
***** Good point :-) Let's hope they introduce that, i would relish getting the Subaru on some winter tires and seeing what;'s what when the other folks can't go out :-)
There's no legal requirement to change to winter tyres in the UK. In the last 20 years (living south of London) it has only snowed about 5 times. But when it does snow the roads are total chaos with lots of accidents. Living in Lithuania now and winter tyres are mandatory from 1st Nov to 1st April. Temperatures are down to -25C and it snows all the time. Only problem is the natives are kamikaze drivers so even with the winter tyres its more dangerous here in winter than in the UK on summer tyres!
It is a big scare if you're unsure how to handle it for sure. just a small tip from an experienced winter driver from Alaska, try it some time if you want to test it in a parking lot. Front wheel drive, if you start sliding through a turn, turn your tires the direction of the turn and pull your ebrake, it'll cause the back end to slide around the corner, then release the ebrake and turn the front the direction you want to go, and give it gas. it then goes from an emergency, to a drift.
I have worked in field service for over thirty years and I also love to ski, I drive all over New England in crazy weather either for work or play and I am a big fan of studded snow tires. I think its the way to go.
You're leaving out the fact the summer tires would beat or equal the winter tires in the second test if the road was dry at the same temperatures. So are they really better for the entire winter? No not really, only when it's wet. To be honest the winter tires have a larger lead over the summer tires in the wet, then the summer tires have over the winter tires in the dry.
Proof? I don't think that's true. At colder temerpartures the winter tyre rubber will be softer than that of summer tyres, and therefore grip better even in the dry.
You are correct. Winter tires arent just for snow. It's about the temperature as well. If its colder out they perform better regardless if its dry out.
Ash Scott this isnt true and why winter tires should be called cold air tires. It has nothing to do with the roads being dry and everything to do with temperature.
Ryan No Thanks Actually, it IS true. They are made from softer rubber. When the road is dry, they wear out faster than "summer" tyres, no matter how cold it is.
I've known for a long time that winter tires are massively better in snow and ice. I did NOT know they were better in the wet in the cold. That's useful information and makes me less irritated when I'm wearing my winters and the stupid weather refuses to snow.
Well, you're gonna check your mirrors before stopping quickly, but of course, in situations where you have to stop really quickly to avoid an situation you have to stop anyway. The guy behind should know that he uses shitty tires and therefore should keep enough distance to the car in front to stop if anything happens. In the summer there is the 3 second rule. If a car in front of you passes and object, it should be three seconds before you pass that same object after the first car. In the winter more seconds should be applied and if you got shitty tires, well, then add more seconds on top of that.
Most Americans in the northern states run all season radial tires. If you drive a high performance car with summer tires you keep your car garaged until springtime. In the southern part of the US you can drive with either of course.
thats the first time i really noticed that - you guys in the UK use miles per houre for the speed, but the metric system for the distance? how unlogic is that? ;)
@@moosejaw50 It is not confusing for us Brits. There is nothing wrong with imperial measurements and imo have only started mentioning metric measurements for the benefit of others. Imperial has been perfectly OK throughout all of my 58 years on the planet.
Why not test on a tarmac road in cold temperature? That is more relevant to the UK where only a small percentage of time in winter there is snow on a few roads.
FSXgta Does WINTER mean the roads are automatically covered in snow and ice my friend? :) Like I said, more relevant to the UK is wet, cold tarmac, because in most areas it doesn't snow much, if at all. Winter tyres are also designed to be used on dry tarmac in temperatures below 7 degree Celsius due to the softer rubber compound, not just on snow.
I drive on michelin super sport and if it is -10 degree celsius i have way more grip then anyone with alle seasons, but when it starts snowing the grip is gone.
Siping is what is important to winter and mud and snow tires. Siping is a process of cutting thin slits across a rubber surface to improve traction in wet or icy conditions. As is often the case, there are compromises. Winter tires, and "mud and snow" tires, may have thousands of sipes and give good traction. But, they may feel "squirmy" on a warm, dry road.
An all season vs winter tires would be a better comparison. Who has summer tires other than expensive sport cars. Majority of cars come with all season tires.
all season tires (M+S in the US) are for Mud + Sand mostly which means they're similar to normal summer tires except with much deeper grooves and much more offroadlike patterns. For traction on gravel and in sand mostly. On asphalt they're worse than regular summer tires. There is no comparing "All season" tires (offroad summer tires) and winter tires because of rubber softness. All seasons are still much too hard to perform on snow/ice during cold temperatures and you'll skid regardless. Winter tires are soft, hence the grip on cold surfaces and in cold temperatures. I'm from sweden and in sweden "all terrain M+S" tires are illegal during winter because they aren't winter tires or even close. :/ We have to use softer blends of rubber, iow special winter tires, by law.
Toni Radanov Pretty sure mike was talking about the poor comparison in the video and wasn't asking for any definitions. Its pretty obvious in the video that the "summer tire" in the video is not made for anything but dry pavement. To me it looks more like a high performance tire. I agree with mike and think comparing an all season to a winter tire would be best. So the tread patterns are similar and it would be a test of rubber softness. I live in Minnesota and an all season does do better in snow than a touring tire or "summer tire". Also... All season is not an "offroadlike" tire. You are speaking of all terrain tires possibly. All season is just a tire optimized for year round usage and have tread that works well in more than one category.
Roger Skagerström When making comparisons you should use "than" not "then". THEN your comment might sound a little less redundant THAN it already does. Because they work great in all seasons Roger. People don't want to switch out tires twice a year. They are expensive as well.
No they don't. They give crappy grip in the summer and crappy grip in the winter. They are to soft to give good performance when warm, and they miss the special tread that gives traction in the snow. I'm from Sweden, here wintertyres are mandatory from december to the end of march. Why? Because it saves lives. All seasons are allowed but everyone knows they're crap. People don't want to do alot, even if it saves their life. You spread the miles over the tire sets so its not that much more expensive. Especially if you concider the added wear of the soft compund all season tyres in the warm summer.
don't forget the UK has wet snow mainly, which is far more slippery, not dry like northern areas. any winter tyre would help but the best advice is to have new tyres in the late autumn so that you have plenty of tread depth when needed through the worst weather
Summer tiers are great in the summer. Bad at winter. Winter tiers are great in the winter. Bad at summer. All season tiers are decentish... all year. Not good at anything but not bad at anything either.
All seasons are "meh" all year round. I'd rather spend a couple hundred Euros and have tyres which are very good in summer and another set of tyres which is very good in winter. "Meh" can be the difference between crashing into something or not, and when you do, it will cost more than a couple hundred Euros.
All seasons are good, because even during summer it can be cold with heavy rain. I would even argue that All season is a solid choise for Western Europe(UK, Netherlands, Belgium and Danmark.) That area. If there is actual snow and ice on the road you should be aware of that and don't get over confident. Also the test here was all about profile, wich the all seasons have just the same as the winter. So in this test on snow results would be the same I imagine. On a cold road winter are prob the best. I doubt the all seasons are being outperformed on a hot summer day(wich is rare were I live) if you drive normal.
Michelin Cross Climates are quite simply - the BEST all year round tyre I have ever bought. Greater handling, Braking and stopping in the wet, plus max grip in snow. I dont think ill buy another make again. Was blown away with the difference after getting them fitted last year.
Winter tyres pick up snow in the groves to create friction initially. then when the rotational force increases it "spits" the snow out, the groves are sloped to the rear to help this. ^^ very clever engineering. it works like the tracks on a tank just in a smaller scale.
I live in Norway and used to think that having two sets of tires was twice as expensive, but it isn't of course: Having two sets (one of which is the Nokian Hakka studded version) just means that I distribute tire wear over the two sets so they both last longer than a set of "All Season" would. Here in Norway the question is mostly moot: If you try to drive on summer tires in winter conditions the police will take your license plates on the spot, and using the studded winter tires after the spring cutoff date leads to a heavy fine.
All season tires are damn slippery on wet if worn even a little. I was impressed at the wet braking of winter tires though, they should test the difference on +15c conditions where the summer compound is softer than at +5c The biggest difference with summer vs all year is the tyre composition. Summer tyres are almost like rock hard plastic when it gets cold but winter tyres are like silicone which doesnt get much stiffer in cold :) You could make winter tyre material slicks and still get better traction than new summer tyres :D
My girlfriends volvo has all season tyres on it, I always laugh how people say FWD has better grip on ice and snow. Its bullshit and only down to tyres. Then I get walked by BMW's and mercs all day when trying to pull from the icy traffic lights :D Its all about the tyres.
In Romania it is mandatory by law to have winter tyres if there is snow or heavy mud on the road (even if you are in august and travelling in a mountain area). It is also recomended to have them installed if the
because it doesn't generally get cold enough to freeze, generally a few weeks out of the year is it under freezing all day. Like the pacific northwest in the US, mostly rain(or, freeze at night, thaw during day)
Short and simple explanation in difference: Winter tires are much softer, Summer tires harder, in their blend of rubber. Also Winter tires have a smaller surface area than summer tires due to deeper grooves and different pattern. What does this mean? Winter tires handle worse (turning) on anything but snow/ice as long as it's not cold because the rubber is so soft and they also wear out faster on all surfaces and in all temperatures. Summer tires have much more rubber-to-road contact and last longer, much harder material, and don't go soft in summer heat like winter tires do. They do however go extremely hard in the cold (temp like in vid or below) and become utterly useless. They do however last longer, assuming save car + driver + driving style. Winter tires mostly wear out fast if the person tends to turn corners and crossings aggressively which wears soft winter tires down fast. You can save a thousand miles of lifetime by just going easy on wet/dry asphalt with winter tyres when it gets bendy / crossings. That's about it. / Swede who runs real winter tires in real winter and real summer tires during real summer (-25 winter, +30 summer - centigrades) :p
in norway the police can take your licenseplates if you dont drive with good wintertires.. and you have to be pretty fucking stupid to drive on summertires in the snow.. :P
I live in Wisconsin, USA and run snow tires all year 'round. I don't drive aggressively in the summer and the tires wear just fine. Also work well on dirt/gravel roads. :^]
how stupid driver can you be, to not make any difference between winter and summer tires? If you can not feel/see/make the difference, i can not Imagine how are you handling with more strict laws... Jesus, now i am scared for driving in Winter, because someone might crash with summer tires and try blaming the other people... i saw a lot of comments i this video and its sad to watch
I am first time driver, and also first time driving in winter climate this year. And I learnt my driving in Singapore, which is summer all year round. So this knowledge is not really used there. So I find this information extremely useful.
then you should not be allowed to drive in traffic anywhere else where snow and ice is present. You should be obligated to complete a x number of tests.
one of the best ways of improving grip for bad conditions is to simply air down the tyre to a much lower psi, this gives a wider tread pattern and a more pliable tyre that grips much better, and of course a reduction in speed helps considerably as well.
The morons in my area spaz out & haven't figured out that a lower gear = better control & traction, even in an automatic. I have a road rocket & have driven past dipshits in behemoth SUVs. So remember wingnuts & dingleberries, no matter what tires you have, drop into a lower gear (1st for 0-15 mph, 2nd for 15-35, etc.) & if possible, shut off the overdrive! P.S. Put down the farkin' phone too!
I've always used all season tires on my cars until this year when I bought snow and ice tires for the winter. I have to say, there is no comparison between the two. All season tires are a little better than summer tires, but they don't even begin to compare to winter tires. I have yet to get stuck with my winter tires, and I'm even selling my all wheel drive car that I kept for driving in the winter because they're so much better. And I always bought the best all season tires available, not just whatever was cheap. It's a staggering difference switching from one to the other.
babybirdhome i agree snow tires are better. but for my driving style all seasons work just fine. we get 150-200 inches a year but only 6-8 inches at a time so all seasons will work. now for someone who isnt used to driving in snow for 6 months a year they should have winter tires.
Yeah, experience is more important than tires. People who rarely drive on snow suck on snow, people with plenty of experience do just fine in snow that would put other people in the ditch. That's a fair point. :)
babybirdhome true people that drive in snow for a total of a few hundered miles a year are not experienced. the bad thing is here where i live we drive the speed limit which is 70mph and people with less experience see us going that fast and think they can also. and most times they find out the hard way.
Winter tyres are far superior compared to summer tyres when its cold. I live in rural Scotland and we get quite a bit of snow. I drive a 4x4, on summer tyres in the snow I will get more traction than a 2 wheel drive car, but due to the car being heavier it is much harder to stop. The compound used in summer tyres does not allow the warm up correctly on cold roads so it stays hard. Winter tyres use a softer compound which allows it to grip better. I prefer to use an all season all terrain tyre
The metric system is just confusing. I weight a stone. Depending on the mood, a little rock or a mountain. I'm must be 2 feet tail, as I have 2 legs. I'm not sure, but the unit of velocity in imperial units is measured in pints? And even that is not constant around the world. Correct me if I'm wrong. Ounces of greetings, but prefer winter tires and metric system.
But there is absolutely no point in buying winter tyres in southern England... snow only settles on the ground once or twice a year, maybe 3 times if you're lucky, and it's normally cleared the next day because everyone who has driven over the snow has just turned it into horrible black slush. Just get yourself a decent set of Continentals or Bridgestones and you'll have good grip all year round, especially in summer, and they'll last you bloody ages.
You floored it on the acceleration test with the summer tires. Of course your not going any where. Also the summer tire driver either sucks or this video is just trying to make a point (which is what i'm betting). You know what is unsafe? Bad drivers not knowing the limitations of their vehicles.
I ran Bridgestone Blizzaks on my Chevy Express AWD for more than a year in WV and have nothing but great things to say about the benefits of snow tires in normal conditions. The only downside is that the soft rubber compounds leads to early treadwear and less than optimal mileage between tire replacement. BTW, when I say "normal conditions" I mean for a WV winter on roads exceeding 8% grades and offroad travel where required....Which is often.
if you use them as intended, for cold driving and snow, they last alright. but if you use them on dry tarmac in temperatures above let's say 10-12 C, you'll wear them down. also you can get winter tyres with a slightly harder rubbercompund that's more suited for mild winters.
January 15th (today) 9 degrees, January 16th may be 6 degrees. Some days above 7 degrees when the same nights are below. You can't predict which days will be below 7 degrees in UK. The answer is to use cross-climates unless you propose changing tyres daily!
I agree it should be mandatory for everybody. We do not have it in every province here in Canada but we are moving in that direction. We definitely need it here
Agreed, same with here in Alaska. Summer tires in the winter, here in Alaska, you can't even get down the street most of the time in the winter months.
Winter tyres should be mandatory in the winter season in every country or region where temperatures are often bellow 7 deg C. Here in continental Europe I don't know the country (apart from the Mediterranian regions) where winter tyres are not law regulated. Apart from the winter tyres requirement on all 4 wheels they also must have at least 4mm tread and are suggested that are changed after 4-5 years as rubber slowly lose its grip over time (getting harder).
In Denmark the weather is mostly moist, and temperatures for most of the year are on the low side. Only a month during the summer temperature is at 20+ daytime, and during the winter there's maybe some snow for a month as well. That's why i prefer multi-seasonal tires because they don't wear out as much as winter tires do during summer and have better grip then summer tires when its snow.
Yeah, no. I live in Denmark too (Capital area), and as soon as it starts snowing, I'll see a few crashed cars on my way to work - Usually replaced by new crashed ones within the coming weeks. And even though it lasts only a month or two for the snow, with snow follows ice, and they still help in the rain - And if you ever slide into me just because you cheaped out on your tires and couldn't handle your car, I'll dedicate a few years to personally make your life a living hell. All season tires won't help you in sub-zero temperatures.
I don't live in capital area, its legal to have all year tires on all year, and if i ever slide into you my insurance company will pay and it will be the end of that. So to sum it all up, no, no and no!
It's up to you to decide how hard to press the brake pedal. If you're a good driver, then you'll check your mirror regularly, and account for that. Winter tyres give you the option of stopping quickly, if for example, a child runs into the road. Just as importantly, because of their increased grip in those conditions, they turn massively better too, so you don't understeer off a corner into a hedge or an oncoming truck.
Exactly why this should become UK law. If you get rear-ended by someone in winter and they're using summer tyres, you should not lose your No Claims Bonus and their insurance policy should be forfeit. I put Uniroyal winters on for much of the past 12 months and they saved my ass several times when the weather got bad. With all the crap weather we've had recently they also came in very useful. We should be like the rest of Europe and enact this in law, it's such an obvious safety principle.
I have winter tyres and happy with the performance and handling, also secure in mind that I'll stop in time in an emergency (hopefully). However, as most of the UK don't fit them, my concern is that I'll get rear-ended with someone on summer tyres due to the fact I can feasible stop quicker then them!! Hopefully in time it will become law to fit winter tyres as part of our campaign here in the UK to make our roads safer. The newer cars have amazing safety features, camera, radar braking aids etc, why put them on summer tyres in the winter, doesn't make any sense. I understand the initial outlay for the tyres, extra rims and possible storage difficulties etc, but come-on, life is got to be worth more than £400-500 and the tyres on the car will last twice as long. I got a good deal from a german company with agents over here, at least 40% off with delivery & £20 for fitting at my local garage on £100 for 4 rims off ebay. Go for it, what have you to loose, might save lives :)
Oh look, a young Mat Watson! Still as cool as he is today 😂
Didn't expect that at all!
I've been driving in the UK for over 20 years and always drove on all-season tyres (or tires for those across the pond ;)). Then three years ago we had a particularly bad winter and there was this snow covered hill I couldn't get up. Several times I made it halfway then gradually slowed as I lost traction. I ended up turning back and doing a 10-mile detour, every day for a week.
So I bit the bullet and bought a set of winter tyres. My... God... what a difference! Straight up the snowy hill like I was on tarmac! I was dubious before but as soon as I tried them... wow!!
Now I may be a skilled driver, or I may not, but common sense tells me that anything that helps me stick to the road is a VERY good thing. So why are some people so against winter tyres, even after watching the compelling evidence in this video?
1. They haven't tested them for themselves (ignorance); and/or
2. They believe they're so skillful that nothing can improve their driving (over confidence).
in Quebec Canada the Law 42 was instituted 2007, which requires all motorists to install four winter tires on their vehicle from December 15 to March 15. As of December 15, 2014, all winter tires must be marked with the symbol of a snowflake and mountain on the sidewall. if you get pulled over and don't have the snowflake on sidewall it is 400$ ticket per tire. Best law ever passed if you ask me.
Yes, that makes a big difference. The German O-O is a recommendation, so you can drive in December on summer tyres, as long as the road isn't icy or snowy. But if you get caught out and it snows, before you fit winter tyres, it is very expensive. So the O-O is a good guideline to stick to.
Bald Vulture kinda hoping Ontario does the same.
That's a very high priced fine.
@@Ueberdoziz That is complete B.S. I rented a car in Germany from Hertz and had summer tires. I didn't check thinking it had winter. I almost got killed driving from Frankfurt to Stuttgart and back. Also in Germany no one cleans the roads and many cars speeding are seen on the side of the road recked. I thought Germany was the best place in the world to drive but Switzerland is dacades ahead of the game.
I just spent $550 for new winter tires... that price tag hurts. This video makes me feel better about it
Have you had the opportunity to test your tires in the rain or snow yet? I am contemplating getting winter tires...
I paid $630, I've never driven my all seasons in the winter, so I can't really compare them to my winters, but I've never crashed and I'm a pretty shit driver so there's that.
$550 is nothing, Tires for my Mercedes cost $1200!
Alex A all depends on what you buy
Other option is buy some cheap rims so if you have 19in get 17in rim and size the tires up and go with a higher series. For example, 245 40 19 in 17 can be 245 50 17 or the cheapest version 225 55 17
As someone who works for a major tyre company; winter tyres are worth the money when it comes to this time of year, especially here in Scotland. They are not designed solely for snow; as the video shows, they are also intended for any slippery surface including wet. The impact on fuel economy is barely noticeable and as long as you drive responsibly then they will last a decent amount of time. The only reason they are so expensive is because the rubber we use is somewhat difficult to manufacture and the process is slightly different- this is not really something that is likely to change I'm afraid, but come one, those extra few metres of stopping space might save someone's life; you can't put a price on that!
I don't think that chemistry is the main factor in higher prices. I think it's due to more complicated molds.
Casually saying the braking distance in meter while talking about the speed in miles per hour. Thanks imperial system!
Tell me about it. We lose out on so much instinctive information because the UK half arsed the metric system.
Buy petrol in litres but use mpg to describe economy... etc.
Many Cars inculding ours show the Fuel Consumption in 'Real Time' in " Litres per 100 Kilometer's" and Countdown in Kilometers left in the Tank the next top up at Service Station...
jonnenne thank the Germans then the Americans for keeping it.
Dodge ft in snow
Ryan Sargent well it’s because your so ingrained with the American system that you haven’t full heartedly gotten rid of it
When I was young I used to try to do it on the cheap and go through winter with my all seasons up here in Canada. It was my father-in-law who finally convinced me of the wisdom of springing for proper winter tires, when he reflected, "the cost of buying winter tires is pretty cheap compared to the cost of an accident". That pretty much did it for me, and I have dutifully switched to winter tires every November since that conversation many years ago. And I NEVER run with worn tires. Good tires are like good shoes: you can go "cheap" on many other aspects of life, but there are some things you just cannot compromise on. And that, my son, is my advice to you...
My philosophy is don't cheap out on anything that comes between you and the ground... so tyres, shoes, beds, seats etc...
I was actually impressed that in my country (Bulgaria) changing tires during winter/summer is a typical thing but for other countries like US/UK is something rather unusual.
+Marush “Luci” Denchev да така е
+Marush “Luci” Denchev It's something I'd do if they weren't so expensive by comparison.
+Marush “Luci” Denchev I know, I'm spend a lot of time in Sofia and come end of November, the Winter tyres go on. I suppose the UK doesn't get enough snow to justify the added expense.
+Martin Jones Winter tires are not only for snowy conditions but when the temperature of the road is below 7 degrees celsius for a long period of time. That's what I know. The compound used to create the summer tire react differently with the road when the temp is below 7 and above 7.
Marush Denchev The problem is most British Winters are now around 7 degrees, it's just not cold enough. It hardly ever snows in the UK too, that's why 2cm of snow can shut down the country for a week. Last year was crazy in the Balkans. I drove to Belgrade, it was -24 and ½ m of snow on the side roads. It lasted for a long time too. Thankfully I had winter tyres on my car and had a 4x4 as well in the troupe.
This test is not fair the red car goes faster than the white car because red is a fast color
red is Ferrari!
lexafied3d But its winter and white is more privileged in winter, hence its faster.
Red wunz go faster
Only if you add stripes
it suprises me that there is no law in britain which makes it mandatory to have winter tires in the winter. I mean... there is a reason why winter tires and summer tires have their specific name....
+Sicklehead88 In Britain we have a very unpredictable climate, which is why many don't bother changing tyres. If it doesn't snow, then they will feel their money was wasted. It's also why there isn't legislation about it.
+Auto Express thanks for the reply! Despite that, I would assume that between December and February, the temperatures are nevertheless generally quite low, especially at night. If the temerature is constantly below 7°C, winter tires are the safer option, it does not need to be snowing for that. That's why I originally assumed that there was a law concerning your tires.
Personally i rather spend money on the tires and be on the safe side, than playing the poker game and hoping that my summer tires will be sufficient. Basically the same reason why you have certain insurances (although since I'm German, I don't know too much about what kind of insurances are mandatory in Britain and which are not).
+Auto Express And also... some people are on minimum wage.
Puyo Chichkovitechervenotikvenichkovcheta
no one ever said that winter tires are better in wet conditions. everyone knows that summer tires are better in wet contions. but we're talking here about real winter conditions with snow and ice, not 10°C and rain. on snow and ice there is just nothing better than winter tires
+Sicklehead88
''no one ever said that winter tires are better in wet conditions" - actually nearly every journalist says that winter tires are better in wet conditions under +7 C, including those writing for Auto Express and that contradicts the test results published by the very same media they are working for.
Example:
Winter tyres
They're not just for snow and ice - winter tyres hold an
advantage over summer or all-season tyres in any weather once the
temperature is below seven degrees Celsius. The rubber they’re
made of is better adapted to work in the cold and the tread pattern
helps shift water quickly, so the tyre can grip the road.
pages.citebite.com/g4k7d5v8n8tps
pages.citebite.com/a4p7k5h8f3kok
It is all about quality of journalism not what you say.
A set of winter tyres will still be cheaper than your no claims bonus and policy excess. They should be mandatory over here in the UK.
Actually they hardly cost anything. When you have winter tires your summer tires wear out slower. So you practically save what you spend on winter tires on summer tires.
jjfkm
Agree.I run Bridgestone A001's on both our cars as they are a great compromise.have done for years now and swear by them
twe enyss
i don't know about winter tyres really being mandatory on UK roads...it snows maybe a few times a year and even then it really is nothing
Getting them this weekend. Almost had a scary accident today. Maaaaan my heart was pumping faster than a man running away from child support.
Could have shown us the Winter Tyres in the summer for comparison.
+Michael Kennedy Why? You should definitely not use them in the summer.
why?
+aibel99 they are made of a softer rubber that doesn't last as long as summer tires compound. Let's say in winter the tires get 2000 miles. But in summer due to higher temps the rubber degrades faster leading to say 1500 miles. More money less distance. It's best to switch them or if it's a vehicle that doesn't drive much all year you can leave them on year round or get a all season tires. It's a compromise of both. Not best in either but better then the summer in winter conditions.
they handle better all around. ut they'll feel squishier and wear out exponentially faster.
They will also over time slowly suck away fuel economy.
@Steven Stringer Winter tired don't handle better than summer tires at summer. When the temperature gets over 10 degrees celsius the winter tire compound becomes too soft. Also winter tires water dispersing abilities are much worse than summer tires because the thread pattern on winter tires is designed to grip on snow.
Very well done video. I have been an auto accident investigator for many years. Tires can make all the difference between beiing in an accident and avoiding one. Of course you must also leave proper distance between you and the car in front of you, a good rule of thumb is a car length for every 10 mph you are going until you get to higher speeds such as freeway speeds, then more room is needed.
Wow, I just cannot comprehend you people complaining about winter tyres?
Let me ask you this, you have a child, who gets out of your vehicle and drops a ball and steps out to get it without thinking as kids tend to do. A driver coming one direction stops because they have winter tyres, a car coming the other direction cannot stop or steer and plows into your kid killing the child....
now tell me how much those tyres are worth?
I live in Canada specifically in BC where I carry chains for all four tyres and run an extremely siped snow tread myself. I cannot imagine running on summer treads in the winter! NOT EVER...
If not for me...for someone else!
Al McCormick Some people just come over here to argue.
Common sense is not for everyone, ya know...
Sounds like they got rid of an expensive parasite for me.
If someone still believes that summer tyres will do just fine in winter if roads are dry, you should try riding a streetbike when the temperature drops below 7 degrees Celsius. The effect of a thread pattern on these is pretty much non-existent naturally, since there almost aren't any threads. The summer tyres compound turns into something that resembles a hockey puck when it's cold, just try leaning into the curve and see for yourself how confident you feel!
I think that the only reason why so many car drivers don't notice the difference is because modern cars can compensate for the lower traction with various ride stabilization systems (and of course because cars are inherently more stable than bikes from the very beginning). But when an emergency situation comes and they have to push it to the tyres limit, it's already too late.
Have used winter and summer tyres on rotation on my BMW since living in Germany for several years. For £140 I still do now I am back in the UK.
Undoubtedly safer in colder and wetter conditions from Nov to Mar and proper rotation helps the tyres to last longer. Summer tyres will degrade more quickly if there is a consistently cold spell. Well worth the investment in the long run.
Snow tires don't help much if the people around you don't have them. That's why videos like this are IMPORTANT!
In my country (the Netherlands) there is hardly any snow and the temperature in winter rarely gets very far below freezing. If there is snow, the roads are salted. Combined with the fact that winter tyres perfom worse without snow than summer tyres (in wet and dry), the conclusion is here: no winter tyres here for me.
+Ronald de Rooij hello my dear neighbor ;-) here in germany winter tires are a must have since a couple of years. before that, it was not a must have but if you caused an accident in snowy conditions while having summer tires fitted to your car, your insurance would not cover anything and you might also get legal trouble. Personally i think when the temperature falls constantly under 7°C, it is way safer to have winter tires fitted to your car.
+Sicklehead88 OK, I just repeat the test of a Dutch car magazine. I do not have first hand experience. It is up to you who to believe, of course. I know about the German court ruling saying that people must have tyres "fit for the conditions". However, last year I was in Bonn, it was freezing and snowing, and half the cars were on summer tyres. It was very amusing. Many could not even get up the hills. So, I think even the Germans do not all see the need to obey, haha. Ah well, I don't want to get into German internal affairs, of course...
Ronald de Rooij
well, the law says you have to have tires fit for the conditions, that's correct. most people change to winter tires at the end of october or beginning of november. and yeah, sometimes the temperatures can drop quite fast and unexpected. just happenend 4 weeks ago, i also didn't have my winter tires fitted, yet. situations like that are rare, but they happen. i personally don't know anyone who doesn't change tires for the winter. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule. but the people i know also did it before the law existed.
+Ronald de Rooij The same in the UK.People won't go and spend the money on wintertyres.Climate is similar to the Netherlands.I used to drive a old VW Beetle on remoulds still got me everywhere in snow just drive to the conditions.
+Sicklehead88 Yeah, but it was february and really I think half of the people in Bonn did not have tyres "fit for the conditions". Fortunately I was driven around in a four wheel drive Skoda Octavia with winter tyres. No problem.
With respect Sniktun1, I don't know where you have spent the last 3 winters ! I first fitted winter tyres to a Golf Estate and just the fact that the car will actually stop in the snow and slush is good enough for me.
Bring on the snow! My winter wheels and tyres arrived today. That's all good and well, but I can't help thinking I'm now gonna get rear ended at by a plonker on summer tyres
your the dummy buying winter tyres mate, just drive slow like everyone else
Brad Stead Try driving an Automatic rear wheel drive on summer tyres in the snow, and you'll soon see who's the dummy!
i was skeptic about winter tire because tire was just tire to me, but when i bought a set of 4 winter tire this year.... i am a believer. driving a rear wheel sports car in the winter with winter tire is like driving an all wheel drive in the winter except it is 2x better then an all wheel drive because i can just floor the car and speed in the snow like it was nothing. out speeding all the all wheel drive car people and when turning on a corner, your car wont even do a 360 spin out because the winter tire grip on the snow is so good it wont even let your car spin. it makes winter driven so much fun. Winter tire is highly recommended for rear wheel drive in the winter if its your only car all year round and winter tire does not kick all the snow up into your car and form a big chunk of ice under your car in between the wheels like *All season tire* do.
I've gone 6 years on a set of winter tires so at 75 dollars per tire you get your moneys worth. They never lose there tread and most times have to be replaced due to weather cracking. That's my experience here in Canada. Obviously if you spin the hell out of them and drift and do burn outs you will be lucky to get a year out of them. Summer tires last about 3 years with normal wear.
+The440plymouth it all depends on how much you drive, if your winter tires survive 6 years you probably don't drive that much.
For someone like me, who drives 70,000 km per year.. the tires gets worn pretty fast.
+The440plymouth You don't really want to use winter tires for more than 4 maybe 5 seasons. Even if the tire isn't cracking yet the rubber has still hardened and lost much of its effectiveness. Most winter tires make it to around the 40,000 mile mark. Summer tires last much longer up to 90,000 miles and up to 6-7 years and the tire's softness does not have as much of an effect to its performance. All season tires are in between and are good year round especially if your car is AWD.
Adam Miller hhip
wow I really didn't realise there was that much improvement with winter tyres!
I'd like you to do the opposite test, how safe are summer there over winter ones on normal dry road.
My 2 cents on the matter:
I used All-Season tires on my 2006 Ford Taurus, no A.B.S., no traction control, and, of course, no E.S.C. Long story short, the car was extremely difficult to drive. I tried adjusting the tire pressures and it was always a major compromise. One winter in Salt Lake City (at Bountiful) taught me the hard way. I ran past 3 intersections, got stuck countless of times, and had over three uncontrolled slides onto incomming traffic.
Now, in Ohio, I purchased a set of wheels with winter tires. It is nothing short of amazing the difference it has made. Most shocking is when stopping. The investment was well worth every single cent I sank into and more. Besides, my life is worth more than wheels and tires, and, also the life of those around me.
Now, also my 2012 Fusion Sport AWD (which does have A.B.S., E.S.C., & Traction Control) is shod with winter tires. Safety first!
Winter tires are for under +6'C. Than are beter on wet snow and dry than a summer tire.
If temp is over +6'C than a allweather or summer tires are beter on wet and dry.
Very good and informative video.
Potential test alternative:
If a car with summer tires takes 85m to come to a full stop, instead of a drag race to see who gets to 35 miles per hour from a stop, you/they should do a race to see how many seconds it takes to clear out 85m from a stop... ...If you have stopped on an icy intersection and see an incoming car behind you sliding fast and sideways in your rear view mirror, the last thing you want is your tires spinning in the snow and staying there (brace for impact captain!). I can tell you, each fraction of a second it takes to move forward seams like an eternity.
0:48 When our drivers reach THIS CONE they will do a full abs emergency stop...
Everyone (bar a few) uses summer tyres because they're the cheapest. Period.
This is the best test out there. Wake up people and stop complaining when you're involved in an accident in winter conditions. Chances are, the person who hit you are using the exact same tyres they had on when it was 80° in July. It should be part of the MOT test to have the correct tyres in the winter.
Here in Romania we have a big fine for not using winter tyres, so pretty much everybody has them and things are great, there's only a handful of accidents related to winter (except for a few maniacs that go way too fast even for winter tyres).
Now do one in the summer time with winter and summer tires.
I grew up driving a '66 Chevrolet PU with a 250 inline 6 with a 3 speed. First drove it at 11 years old in '78 by myself on the public road lol. Still got it, but it needs work and I don't drive it anymore. Will restore it one day because it was my Daddy's and I was with him and remember the day well that he bought it in 1976 from a Ford dealership. He was the 2nd owner. Have had lots of hotrods over the years and still have a few, but at 45, the racing days are close to being behind me.
did anyone catch him saying 85 meters when the video measured 58 meters at 1:14?
58 meters is the distance between the two cars after they had each stopped.
but he says it takes 85 meters to stop. so.. which is it?
its both, car 2 took 85M to stop which is 58M more than car 1
I drive my M135i on Michelin Pilot Super Sport during the summer and on Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 during the winter. The best tires in their categories, believe me, well worth the investment. Where I live temperatures are about 8-14ºC between November and February and there's some rain but no snow - can't tell you how good the A4 are on colder climates, but here they work a treat. During the summer we have temperatures of around 25-30ºC and the PSS are brilliant.
Bridgestone A001's for me-where I live we have mildish winters and the Bridgestones perform brilliantly- first things I do to a car are bridgeys,nightbreakers,rain-x and valeo wipers...then worry about the small stuff
I have Goodyear Eaglestar Asymetric on my Subaru Legacy R Spec B, really great performance and ride balance. Looked at the Michelins but decided to go for the slightly cheaper Goodyears as my car is 4wd and wears the tires pretty evenly. Can be costly replacing 4 all the time. I found the Bridgestones were way to hard on British roads, the stiff side walls i think, the Goodyears feel more grippy and comfortable for my driving style (quick), i get awesome wet weather performance in my sporty estate, thing never comes unstuck (no VDC either as it's a 6MT)
I'm now using Continental ContiWinterContact TS 850 instead of the Alpin 4. They're marginally better. Nothing beats tge PSS during summer and spring, though...
I participated in a time attack at a local track last spring. Light rain, wet track, no more than 5°C outside. I just arrived on my daily 150hp 2 liter BMW, nothing special about it, and had my "all season" tires on (what these guys would call winter tires). The tires made such an amazing difference, it was unbelievable really. Another guy got there on is M3, same model, almost 200 more hp. He had some racing performance tires on. The end result was he managed a 0.7 second faster lap time on a ca 1.10 minute long track than I did. I just had grip all the time, and he couldn't get the power down at all.
All season and winter tires are two different things.
Dr. Jay Nothing special at all!
Was this before allweather tyres came in?
Try all season tires vs winter tires
isnt all season tires just winter tires without those metal spikes?
No it is the rubber compound that is a big difference. The metal studs is what they are actually called. Those are mainly for ice but they "can" be illegal depending upon where you live because they destroy the road.
The tread design is also different. It's shaped to be able to grasp snow and ice better (more rugged design compared to the smoother design of non-winter tires)
All season tires really should be renamed to no season tires. They generally perform worse than summer tires in warm temps and nowhere near as good as winter tires during the cold seasons especially on snow and ice.
Rogue Racing sorry, but it's bullshit. Did you ever had all seasons tires on your car? Sure I woudn't use them for my pretty fast bmw, but they are doing great all year and in all conditions on my renault, used generally in the city and not agressive.
glad we don't have winter tyre issue in Aus, but we do have offroad tyres that for a lot are required but most just usually have offroad tyres as a year round set if they go offroad. If you do a lot of driving it is highly recommended to have two sets of tyres, it doesn't work out any more expensive, if you store your tyres out of sunlight they will last a while.
Why aren't they comparing All Season vs Winter Tires, seems like a better comparison. It would be pretty stupid to expect summer tires to perform in winter.
Agreed. I wish someone would do this same test with those conditions.
Sam Robichaud - because most (probably 99%) of drivers have summer tyres and that is the standard option a fitter like Halfords or Kwikfit will offer (these are UK generic non-dealer car repairs/tyre sales companies).
I just whacked my car details into an online provider of tyres but the 3 recommended tyres that come up are all summer from £114.99 to £148.99 with ratings from A-C (from a scale of A-G) for wet grip even though it's December. You have to choose a separate option for the winter tyres - which come in at £153.99 a pop
Gobtik Here in America, at least in the Northeast, all-season are the standard tire. Decent winter tires probably start at £85 per. If you go into a tire store this time of year, the front of the store is all winter tires. But most people still run all-seasons and then slide around all winter thinking it's normal.
StalePhish
Not sure whether the UK separates "all season" and "summer" - they just have to meet a certain tread depth and shops don't sell them as such, just normal and winter.
My car has wide low profile tyres (came with, wasn't chosen :) ) hence the cost being higher - if we got enough bad weather to make it worth it, I would get winter tyres but it's simply not worth it here
Gobtik Summer has less tread depth but is better on dry or wet pavement in the warmer weather. The downside is that they don't last as long as all-season and are pretty terrible in snow. All-season is like the "jack of all trades, master of none". Low profiles are probably summer, but I'm not sure. I don't really know many people that have summer tires in this part of the USA.
On the continent they use metric mainly but in the UK we use a mixture of metric and imperial (US) measurements. If we're talking about car speed we say miles per hour, if we go for a run we're doing a 5k but would equally as often say we're doing a 4 mile walk. Weights are stones and pounds rather than just pounds but we also use KGs! I could go on all night but let's just say that we're a complex bunch :)
A better comparison would be winter tires vs. all seasons. Almost all tires sold are all-seasons not summer or winter.
That depends on where u live.
Timothy Germann I live in northern alberta Canada, believe me, winter tires are necessary. There is no comparison between all seasons and winter tires. Its common knowledge in Canada friend.
Russ Fleming Yeah I use winter tires too, but most cars where I live come with all-seasons and most people never change them. Summer tires will be slick as hell in the winter even on dry pavement because they are so hard. on snow they are useless. But trying to convince the average user of all seasons to upgrade to winter is trickier because AS tires work decently enough for typical mild lower 48 winters (unless you live in the mountains or Vermont/Maine etc.)
+Igor K The problem is in rubber compound. Standard "all season" tires today are often Low Rolling Resistance designs with harder rubber. This isn't an issue in warmer weather and often returns great tire life and improved gas mileage. However, when the temperature drops to below freezing, these tires become harder and give less grip. It won't matter in everyday driving, but in emergency situations or panic stops grip is everything, especially if you add snow and ice to the mix. AWD doesn't help much for stability in the winter. AWD with "all season" tires and an overconfident driver is asking for trouble. Tires play a far more important role in braking and cornering than any AWD. All seasons could work for milder winters with little snow, but in places such as Colorado where the winters are brutal, snow tires are a must.
winter tires make no sense in a palce that snows maybe a month or 2 if lucky. all season is what most people have here because it is pointless to change tires when the show is going to be gone as soon as you do. they plow roads a lot faster now too so you have to be real lucky to drive on a road with snow on it still. i actually kinda like driving on snow sometimes.
this test should have been done with all season tires instead of summer. i don't know many people that use summer instead of all season.
If you can't afford winter tires for your car, buy a cheaper car. Otherwise you are basically just risking your safety as well as whoever is in/operating your car. Not to mention whatever vehicles you plow into.
well i concur,i can tell by that reply you are a driving god who is so good your car actually floats along the road with little clouds under each tyre.xxx
why not just make all tires with the extra tread pattern it would save alot of time.
sweet1j You can buy all-weather tyres, but switching to summer tyres for the warmer months is still important: the extra contact the rubber has with a dry road increases grip by a significant amount.
Auto Express which are rubbish during summer and even worse during winter. Top gear top tip: AVOID!
+purrability ...All seasons are utter garbage in winter and slippery as teflon on ice...fact, it is criminal to call them winter tires, they will kill you just like totally bald tires.
+sweet1j they cost more. with them you use much much more fuel and get worse performance. in summer winter tires also get used very fast so they wouldnt hold for very long. thats why at least i recommend to use winter during colder/winter times and summer during warmer times. and fuck the all season tires srsly
+sweet1j Rubber compound matters almost as much as, if not more than tread pattern. All season rubber that lasts long in the summer won't be compliant enough in low temperatures. The compromise would mean lower mileage overall which people would complain about, without much gain in terms of winter traction. Not to mention the added noise that results from having a snow tire pattern. Most people won't know the difference a set of snow tires makes, but after directly comparing snow vs "all season" in sub zero temperatures I can definitely say the snow tires give far superior grip.
Winter tyres are needed for harsh climates for sure, but I'm old enough to see how we are getting conned here in the UK with this winter tyre nonsense. Until recently most tyres sold in the UK were "all season". This is fine here as we don't get extreme weather, you can count on one hand almost the number of days a year we get snow. We also only get a few dozen days a year when it's actually under zero celcius, and then it's usually only just under. But now, most tyres are "summer" and we are expected to buy another "winter set", doubling costs for a few days of slushy weather when we could all just drive a bit more cautiously, it's ridiculous....
Copley in northumberland averages 56 snow days a year. scotland averages 20 snow days on the cost and 110 inland, the south east averages 5 snow days, the midlands around 20, south wales 20, north wales 50 and so on. also the softer rubber is better in temps below 7c. I have high performance road tyres on my car (they are summer) since november I have noticed a lack of grip in corners where they would normally be very confidence inspiring. everywhere in the uk gets below 7c from around october till april most days by the evening at least in october and april, november to march most places don't get above 7c
I do have a question for you Brits, do you guys just call all season tires summer tires or do you really try to drive on summer tires in the winter? The reason I ask is because it seems to me like all seasons would be all but a requirement anywhere that gets a reasonable amount of snow.
Fair question, yes Summer tires are the same as All Season effectively. Winter tires are solely the specialist tires shown in this video. Most people in Britain never change theirs in the Winter, and then complain that the roads are un-driveable. It's dumb i know. To make it law probably wouldn't work (we don't tend to accept new laws with much grace here), but perhaps insurance providers could lower your costs slightly if you can prove you are using winter tires in the colder months. Not sure how that could be be kept legit but it's just an idea. Hope that answers your question :-)
But all season tires are just a bad compromise, at least her in Sweden were we have both hot summers and really cold and snowy winters. Ah all season tire is to soft for the summer and to hard for the winter.
***** you wouldn't have to prove it... if you didn't change your tyres in snowy conditions and you had an accident they could refused to pay out if you agreed that you would use winter tyres in the winter! if insurers gave the option which would "Lower the cost" they'd probably save allot of money because allot of people never change there tyres for the bad conditions and they'd have a reason to deny there claims!
***** Good point :-) Let's hope they introduce that, i would relish getting the Subaru on some winter tires and seeing what;'s what when the other folks can't go out :-)
There's no legal requirement to change to winter tyres in the UK. In the last 20 years (living south of London) it has only snowed about 5 times. But when it does snow the roads are total chaos with lots of accidents. Living in Lithuania now and winter tyres are mandatory from 1st Nov to 1st April. Temperatures are down to -25C and it snows all the time. Only problem is the natives are kamikaze drivers so even with the winter tyres its more dangerous here in winter than in the UK on summer tyres!
It is a big scare if you're unsure how to handle it for sure. just a small tip from an experienced winter driver from Alaska, try it some time if you want to test it in a parking lot.
Front wheel drive, if you start sliding through a turn, turn your tires the direction of the turn and pull your ebrake, it'll cause the back end to slide around the corner, then release the ebrake and turn the front the direction you want to go, and give it gas. it then goes from an emergency, to a drift.
Oi! Sweden isn't freezing cold! ... At least not most of the time... *desperately tries to forget last winter's -34 C*
Toronto got to -45 (with wind chill) 2 years ago.
I have worked in field service for over thirty years and I also love to ski, I drive all over New England in crazy weather either for work or play and I am a big fan of studded snow tires. I think its the way to go.
You're leaving out the fact the summer tires would beat or equal the winter tires in the second test if the road was dry at the same temperatures. So are they really better for the entire winter? No not really, only when it's wet. To be honest the winter tires have a larger lead over the summer tires in the wet, then the summer tires have over the winter tires in the dry.
Proof? I don't think that's true. At colder temerpartures the winter tyre rubber will be softer than that of summer tyres, and therefore grip better even in the dry.
You are correct. Winter tires arent just for snow. It's about the temperature as well. If its colder out they perform better regardless if its dry out.
You're forgetting how fast winter tyres wear out on dry roads. There's more to life than lap times
Ash Scott this isnt true and why winter tires should be called cold air tires. It has nothing to do with the roads being dry and everything to do with temperature.
Ryan No Thanks
Actually, it IS true. They are made from softer rubber. When the road is dry, they wear out faster than "summer" tyres, no matter how cold it is.
I've known for a long time that winter tires are massively better in snow and ice. I did NOT know they were better in the wet in the cold. That's useful information and makes me less irritated when I'm wearing my winters and the stupid weather refuses to snow.
Umm...This a good idea, especially for stopping quicker...but what about the guy behind you and his half-used under inflated summer tyres??
Well, you're gonna check your mirrors before stopping quickly, but of course, in situations where you have to stop really quickly to avoid an situation you have to stop anyway. The guy behind should know that he uses shitty tires and therefore should keep enough distance to the car in front to stop if anything happens. In the summer there is the 3 second rule. If a car in front of you passes and object, it should be three seconds before you pass that same object after the first car. In the winter more seconds should be applied and if you got shitty tires, well, then add more seconds on top of that.
I'd rather get rear ended because that means it's the other guy's fault and his insurance is the one that pays out, not mine.
It's better to be rear-ended at a lower speed than to crash into something at a higher speed.
@@dchawk81 your no claims would be scraped then
@@steve00alt70 Indeed it would but it's certainly the lesser of two evils, especially since I'm not at fault.
Most Americans in the northern states run all season radial tires. If you drive a high performance car with summer tires you keep your car garaged until springtime. In the southern part of the US you can drive with either of course.
thats the first time i really noticed that - you guys in the UK use miles per houre for the speed, but the metric system for the distance? how unlogic is that? ;)
+Digi20 When I was there in the 90's I noticed they also used miles on the highway signage too. Talk about confusing.
@@moosejaw50 It is not confusing for us Brits. There is nothing wrong with imperial measurements and imo have only started mentioning metric measurements for the benefit of others.
Imperial has been perfectly OK throughout all of my 58 years on the planet.
Well lets just hope you never have to avoid an accident in the winter then. Good luck to you, and whoever shares the road with you.
in texas there is no such thing as winter.
Bullmonster23-RBLX and More! I’m not sure if it snowed where you live but it sure did with me
They are great. I use them here in NEPA and never had a problem on these twisty, sometimes unplowed mountain roads.
Why not test on a tarmac road in cold temperature? That is more relevant to the UK where only a small percentage of time in winter there is snow on a few roads.
+stubones they are called WINTER tires for a reason my friend
FSXgta
Does WINTER mean the roads are automatically covered in snow and ice my friend? :) Like I said, more relevant to the UK is wet, cold tarmac, because in most areas it doesn't snow much, if at all. Winter tyres are also designed to be used on dry tarmac in temperatures below 7 degree Celsius due to the softer rubber compound, not just on snow.
Did you even watch the second half of the video...
Clearly not snooker147.
I drive on michelin super sport and if it is -10 degree celsius i have way more grip then anyone with alle seasons, but when it starts snowing the grip is gone.
Randomly finding young Matt Watson has got to be the most unexpected thing😂😂😂😂😂😂
but how many days there is snow on the streets? where I live maybe two days a year, so I would rather take a bus on that day then spend 600 $ on tyres
But winter tyres aren't just for snow...
Siping is what is important to winter and mud and snow tires. Siping is a process of cutting thin slits across a rubber surface to improve traction in wet or icy conditions. As is often the case, there are compromises. Winter tires, and "mud and snow" tires, may have thousands of sipes and give good traction. But, they may feel "squirmy" on a warm, dry road.
An all season vs winter tires would be a better comparison. Who has summer tires other than expensive sport cars. Majority of cars come with all season tires.
all season tires (M+S in the US) are for Mud + Sand mostly which means they're similar to normal summer tires except with much deeper grooves and much more offroadlike patterns. For traction on gravel and in sand mostly. On asphalt they're worse than regular summer tires. There is no comparing "All season" tires (offroad summer tires) and winter tires because of rubber softness. All seasons are still much too hard to perform on snow/ice during cold temperatures and you'll skid regardless. Winter tires are soft, hence the grip on cold surfaces and in cold temperatures. I'm from sweden and in sweden "all terrain M+S" tires are illegal during winter because they aren't winter tires or even close. :/ We have to use softer blends of rubber, iow special winter tires, by law.
Toni Radanov Pretty sure mike was talking about the poor comparison in the video and wasn't asking for any definitions. Its pretty obvious in the video that the "summer tire" in the video is not made for anything but dry pavement. To me it looks more like a high performance tire. I agree with mike and think comparing an all season to a winter tire would be best. So the tread patterns are similar and it would be a test of rubber softness. I live in Minnesota and an all season does do better in snow than a touring tire or "summer tire".
Also... All season is not an "offroadlike" tire. You are speaking of all terrain tires possibly. All season is just a tire optimized for year round usage and have tread that works well in more than one category.
All season tires are worse then summer tires in the summer and worse then winter tires in the winter. Why do people use them?
Roger Skagerström When making comparisons you should use "than" not "then". THEN your comment might sound a little less redundant THAN it already does.
Because they work great in all seasons Roger. People don't want to switch out tires twice a year. They are expensive as well.
No they don't. They give crappy grip in the summer and crappy grip in the winter. They are to soft to give good performance when warm, and they miss the special tread that gives traction in the snow.
I'm from Sweden, here wintertyres are mandatory from december to the end of march. Why? Because it saves lives. All seasons are allowed but everyone knows they're crap.
People don't want to do alot, even if it saves their life.
You spread the miles over the tire sets so its not that much more expensive. Especially if you concider the added wear of the soft compund all season tyres in the warm summer.
don't forget the UK has wet snow mainly, which is far more slippery, not dry like northern areas. any winter tyre would help but the best advice is to have new tyres in the late autumn so that you have plenty of tread depth when needed through the worst weather
Um better review would be High rated all seasons vs dedicated winter tires.
Bardia Ghajari the results would be the same
Summer tiers are great in the summer. Bad at winter.
Winter tiers are great in the winter. Bad at summer.
All season tiers are decentish... all year. Not good at anything but not bad at anything either.
This is comparable to shoes: do you have any shoes that are good both in summer and in winter?
All seasons are "meh" all year round. I'd rather spend a couple hundred Euros and have tyres which are very good in summer and another set of tyres which is very good in winter. "Meh" can be the difference between crashing into something or not, and when you do, it will cost more than a couple hundred Euros.
All seasons are good, because even during summer it can be cold with heavy rain. I would even argue that All season is a solid choise for Western Europe(UK, Netherlands, Belgium and Danmark.) That area. If there is actual snow and ice on the road you should be aware of that and don't get over confident.
Also the test here was all about profile, wich the all seasons have just the same as the winter. So in this test on snow results would be the same I imagine. On a cold road winter are prob the best. I doubt the all seasons are being outperformed on a hot summer day(wich is rare were I live) if you drive normal.
Michelin Cross Climates are quite simply - the BEST all year round tyre I have ever bought. Greater handling, Braking and stopping in the wet, plus max grip in snow. I dont think ill buy another make again. Was blown away with the difference after getting them fitted last year.
massive difference
Winter tyres pick up snow in the groves to create friction initially. then when the rotational force increases it "spits" the snow out, the groves are sloped to the rear to help this. ^^ very clever engineering. it works like the tracks on a tank just in a smaller scale.
Your "summer" tires are performance racing slicks. Normal car summer tires have much more blocks in the profile.
No they are not. They are regular summer tires, looks like the Conti EcoContact3.
They are "normal" tyres, but the tread pattern is optimised for dispersing water quickly than for gripping on to snow or ice.
I live in Norway and used to think that having two sets of tires was twice as expensive, but it isn't of course:
Having two sets (one of which is the Nokian Hakka studded version) just means that I distribute tire wear over the two sets so they both last longer than a set of "All Season" would.
Here in Norway the question is mostly moot: If you try to drive on summer tires in winter conditions the police will take your license plates on the spot, and using the studded winter tires after the spring cutoff date leads to a heavy fine.
Why summer tires vs winter? Why not ALL SEASONS tires? All most everyone uses all winter tires and barely anyone uses summer tires during winter.
I was going to say the same thing. Seems very biased.
All season tires are damn slippery on wet if worn even a little. I was impressed at the wet braking of winter tires though, they should test the difference on +15c conditions where the summer compound is softer than at +5c
The biggest difference with summer vs all year is the tyre composition. Summer tyres are almost like rock hard plastic when it gets cold but winter tyres are like silicone which doesnt get much stiffer in cold :)
You could make winter tyre material slicks and still get better traction than new summer tyres :D
All seasons are no replacement for winter tires. I live in Ontario and I almost got into an accident with all seasons, the grip is still awful.
My girlfriends volvo has all season tyres on it, I always laugh how people say FWD has better grip on ice and snow. Its bullshit and only down to tyres.
Then I get walked by BMW's and mercs all day when trying to pull from the icy traffic lights :D Its all about the tyres.
eamh2002 would still take BMW
In Romania it is mandatory by law to have winter tyres if there is snow or heavy mud on the road (even if you are in august and travelling in a mountain area).
It is also recomended to have them installed if the
Be nice to know if any tire companies/organisations paid for this?? Hmmmmmm?
because it doesn't generally get cold enough to freeze, generally a few weeks out of the year is it under freezing all day. Like the pacific northwest in the US, mostly rain(or, freeze at night, thaw during day)
Americans: THERE ARE WINTER TIRES???
Short and simple explanation in difference: Winter tires are much softer, Summer tires harder, in their blend of rubber. Also Winter tires have a smaller surface area than summer tires due to deeper grooves and different pattern. What does this mean? Winter tires handle worse (turning) on anything but snow/ice as long as it's not cold because the rubber is so soft and they also wear out faster on all surfaces and in all temperatures. Summer tires have much more rubber-to-road contact and last longer, much harder material, and don't go soft in summer heat like winter tires do. They do however go extremely hard in the cold (temp like in vid or below) and become utterly useless. They do however last longer, assuming save car + driver + driving style. Winter tires mostly wear out fast if the person tends to turn corners and crossings aggressively which wears soft winter tires down fast. You can save a thousand miles of lifetime by just going easy on wet/dry asphalt with winter tyres when it gets bendy / crossings. That's about it. / Swede who runs real winter tires in real winter and real summer tires during real summer (-25 winter, +30 summer - centigrades) :p
in norway the police can take your licenseplates if you dont drive with good wintertires.. and you have to be pretty fucking stupid to drive on summertires in the snow.. :P
I live in Wisconsin, USA and run snow tires all year 'round. I don't drive aggressively in the summer and the tires wear just fine. Also work well on dirt/gravel roads. :^]
how stupid driver can you be, to not make any difference between winter and summer tires? If you can not feel/see/make the difference, i can not Imagine how are you handling with more strict laws... Jesus, now i am scared for driving in Winter, because someone might crash with summer tires and try blaming the other people... i saw a lot of comments i this video and its sad to watch
I am first time driver, and also first time driving in winter climate this year. And I learnt my driving in Singapore, which is summer all year round. So this knowledge is not really used there. So I find this information extremely useful.
YR You I understand. But on your license test, The teachers should have teached you about this, no matter in which country you are.
then you should not be allowed to drive in traffic anywhere else where snow and ice is present. You should be obligated to complete a x number of tests.
one of the best ways of improving grip for bad conditions is to simply air down the tyre to a much lower psi, this gives a wider tread pattern and a more pliable tyre that grips much better, and of course a reduction in speed helps considerably as well.
learn to drive in the winter. and use all seasons all year.
The morons in my area spaz out & haven't figured out that a lower gear = better control & traction, even in an automatic. I have a road rocket & have driven past dipshits in behemoth SUVs. So remember wingnuts & dingleberries, no matter what tires you have, drop into a lower gear (1st for 0-15 mph, 2nd for 15-35, etc.) & if possible, shut off the overdrive! P.S. Put down the farkin' phone too!
I've always used all season tires on my cars until this year when I bought snow and ice tires for the winter. I have to say, there is no comparison between the two. All season tires are a little better than summer tires, but they don't even begin to compare to winter tires. I have yet to get stuck with my winter tires, and I'm even selling my all wheel drive car that I kept for driving in the winter because they're so much better. And I always bought the best all season tires available, not just whatever was cheap. It's a staggering difference switching from one to the other.
babybirdhome i agree snow tires are better. but for my driving style all seasons work just fine. we get 150-200 inches a year but only 6-8 inches at a time so all seasons will work. now for someone who isnt used to driving in snow for 6 months a year they should have winter tires.
Yeah, experience is more important than tires. People who rarely drive on snow suck on snow, people with plenty of experience do just fine in snow that would put other people in the ditch. That's a fair point. :)
babybirdhome true people that drive in snow for a total of a few hundered miles a year are not experienced. the bad thing is here where i live we drive the speed limit which is 70mph and people with less experience see us going that fast and think they can also. and most times they find out the hard way.
Winter tyres are far superior compared to summer tyres when its cold. I live in rural Scotland and we get quite a bit of snow. I drive a 4x4, on summer tyres in the snow I will get more traction than a 2 wheel drive car, but due to the car being heavier it is much harder to stop. The compound used in summer tyres does not allow the warm up correctly on cold roads so it stays hard. Winter tyres use a softer compound which allows it to grip better. I prefer to use an all season all terrain tyre
Whats with the "miles per hour" ?!?!?! I thought you Brits were using the metric system?
that is the only thing we do not use it for
Bruce Lee that must be confusing. if you at least used swedish/norwegian "miles"* :D
(*1mil = 10km)
The metric system is just confusing. I weight a stone. Depending on the mood, a little rock or a mountain. I'm must be 2 feet tail, as I have 2 legs. I'm not sure, but the unit of velocity in imperial units is measured in pints? And even that is not constant around the world. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Ounces of greetings, but prefer winter tires and metric system.
yetanothermotherf
I don't think stones and feet are part of the metric system?
He Ka uk uses miles
But there is absolutely no point in buying winter tyres in southern England... snow only settles on the ground once or twice a year, maybe 3 times if you're lucky, and it's normally cleared the next day because everyone who has driven over the snow has just turned it into horrible black slush. Just get yourself a decent set of Continentals or Bridgestones and you'll have good grip all year round, especially in summer, and they'll last you bloody ages.
You floored it on the acceleration test with the summer tires. Of course your not going any where. Also the summer tire driver either sucks or this video is just trying to make a point (which is what i'm betting). You know what is unsafe? Bad drivers not knowing the limitations of their vehicles.
I ran Bridgestone Blizzaks on my Chevy Express AWD for more than a year in WV and have nothing but great things to say about the benefits of snow tires in normal conditions. The only downside is that the soft rubber compounds leads to early treadwear and less than optimal mileage between tire replacement.
BTW, when I say "normal conditions" I mean for a WV winter on roads exceeding 8% grades and offroad travel where required....Which is often.
Did Continental pay for this video? Of course they did!
if you use them as intended, for cold driving and snow, they last alright. but if you use them on dry tarmac in temperatures above let's say 10-12 C, you'll wear them down.
also you can get winter tyres with a slightly harder rubbercompund that's more suited for mild winters.
January 15th (today) 9 degrees, January 16th may be 6 degrees. Some days above 7 degrees when the same nights are below. You can't predict which days will be below 7 degrees in UK. The answer is to use cross-climates unless you propose changing tyres daily!
Woah! Been a Carwow subscriber for so long and now TH-cam recommends this video. Matt is as good as always!
I agree it should be mandatory for everybody. We do not have it in every province here in Canada but we are moving in that direction. We definitely need it here
Agreed, same with here in Alaska. Summer tires in the winter, here in Alaska, you can't even get down the street most of the time in the winter months.
I just watched the carwow snow drag. I clicked to this video to see a different perspective. Oh well, hello again, Matt! :D
In Austria (OK, we are covered in Alpine Mountains) winter tires are mandatory from Nov 1 to April 15
Same herein Montreal
hossguitar in Sweden winter Tires are mandatory from December 1 and March 31 but everyone put it on like mid November depending on the weather
we got the first snow on the roads today, Nov 12.
What about universal ??
they are allowed but they are shit in Summer and Winter
Winter tyres should be mandatory in the winter season in every country or region where temperatures are often bellow 7 deg C. Here in continental Europe I don't know the country (apart from the Mediterranian regions) where winter tyres are not law regulated. Apart from the winter tyres requirement on all 4 wheels they also must have at least 4mm tread and are suggested that are changed after 4-5 years as rubber slowly lose its grip over time (getting harder).
In Denmark the weather is mostly moist, and temperatures for most of the year are on the low side. Only a month during the summer temperature is at 20+ daytime, and during the winter there's maybe some snow for a month as well. That's why i prefer multi-seasonal tires because they don't wear out as much as winter tires do during summer and have better grip then summer tires when its snow.
Yeah, no. I live in Denmark too (Capital area), and as soon as it starts snowing, I'll see a few crashed cars on my way to work - Usually replaced by new crashed ones within the coming weeks. And even though it lasts only a month or two for the snow, with snow follows ice, and they still help in the rain - And if you ever slide into me just because you cheaped out on your tires and couldn't handle your car, I'll dedicate a few years to personally make your life a living hell. All season tires won't help you in sub-zero temperatures.
I don't live in capital area, its legal to have all year tires on all year, and if i ever slide into you my insurance company will pay and it will be the end of that. So to sum it all up, no, no and no!
I just added winter tires/ all season tires on my Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited.......TOYO Celsius WSC......love them
It's up to you to decide how hard to press the brake pedal.
If you're a good driver, then you'll check your mirror regularly, and account for that.
Winter tyres give you the option of stopping quickly, if for example, a child runs into the road.
Just as importantly, because of their increased grip in those conditions, they turn massively better too, so you don't understeer off a corner into a hedge or an oncoming truck.
Exactly why this should become UK law. If you get rear-ended by someone in winter and they're using summer tyres, you should not lose your No Claims Bonus and their insurance policy should be forfeit. I put Uniroyal winters on for much of the past 12 months and they saved my ass several times when the weather got bad. With all the crap weather we've had recently they also came in very useful. We should be like the rest of Europe and enact this in law, it's such an obvious safety principle.
I have winter tyres and happy with the performance and handling, also secure in mind that I'll stop in time in an emergency (hopefully). However, as most of the UK don't fit them, my concern is that I'll get rear-ended with someone on summer tyres due to the fact I can feasible stop quicker then them!! Hopefully in time it will become law to fit winter tyres as part of our campaign here in the UK to make our roads safer. The newer cars have amazing safety features, camera, radar braking aids etc, why put them on summer tyres in the winter, doesn't make any sense. I understand the initial outlay for the tyres, extra rims and possible storage difficulties etc, but come-on, life is got to be worth more than £400-500 and the tyres on the car will last twice as long. I got a good deal from a german company with agents over here, at least 40% off with delivery & £20 for fitting at my local garage on £100 for 4 rims off ebay. Go for it, what have you to loose, might save lives :)