First drive in the GTI on Snow and Ice...not good

[Sootchucker]

Well, we had our first downpour of snow overnight (about 3 inches), and my drive to work this morning in the GTI was, well shall we say entertaining. The main roads had been gritted by our council, but on our estate and the non major ones weren't, and my 19" Alloys with Pirelli P Zeros didn't like it one bit. Many times when trying to start off with as light a throttle as possible (DSG box in Manual), the wheels just spun and the nose of car went from side to side before it gained a bit of traction. The Pirelli's certainly don't like ice one little bit.

It also amazed me how fast some other road users were travelling at when it was clear to see the road underneath us was sheet ice.

I now definitely see the advantages of having a set of winter wheels and tyres for the car, and need to investigate urgent if this weather continues (but of course this is the wrong time of the year (price wise) to but winter wheels/ tyres) !

[scanesare]

First time? I thought you guys were getting a bit of snow and ice regularly, or at least regularly enough that a winter tire set would be considered standard (this might be as little as once/twice per season provided you also get 5deg C max for a longer period). I spent 4 years much more down to the south, near the Franco-Swiss border, where I believe temps should be a bit higher on average than the UK and still, the norm for practically all cars was to run on winter tires from Dec to March.

It was then and there that I discovered what a winter tire was and how much of a night n day difference it made in these conditions, even though it looked like a standard tire with simply more tread cuts (winter ones but not studded). Since then I wouldn't even consider driving a car, any car, without winters wherever snow or ice is a possibility. Too foolish risk to take.

Can't say I'm surprised at the GTI behaviour though. And it wouldn't be any different on any other car with summers. Maybe the fast road users were running on winters? After your own shock probably your "safety" limits were lowered (in terms of speed) considerably. Or they could have been just standard idiots 

[Jim_mk7.5]

Summer tyres don't work in freezing temperatures with snow and ice? I'm, shocked!

[mcmaddy]

I'd be going with a cross climate instead of a full winter. We have more cold weather with wet conditions than snow so a full winter isn't really necessary (that's in the North East of England anyway).

[dubber36]

I'd be going with a cross climate instead of a full winter. We have more cold weather with wet conditions than snow so a full winter isn't really necessary (that's in the North East of England anyway).

It's been said a million times before, winter tyres are not just for snow. They perform really well when it's cold, wet and greasy too. Where they do loose out is when it warms up over 7 degrees, they get a bit squirmy. I know lots of people that leave their winters on all year round, so I guess the Jack of all trades cross climates negate for people that do that.

Both my Amarok and Tig have been on winters since November and they'll probably stay on until well into April.

[Sootchucker]

Just to clarify from the bit of a snide comment above ( ), I wasn't expecting summer tyres to be good in snow and ice, but it really surprised me how bad the Pirelli's actually were - not just on the snow and ice, but slush as well, with the ESP and ABS flickering on in all conditions. Oh Fred, I also had the acc warning that the front sensor was obscured as well.

[Daz Auto]

On my recommendation - my parents have just had a set of Michelin Cross Climate Plus tyres fitted to their Mercedes C Class. It is an all weather tyre which is summer biased and has relatively weak snow and ice performance. But the snow and ice performance is still much better than any summer tyre.

However, I have chosen to fit summer and winter tyres. This is still the best/safest option.

I didn't buy a second set of alloys. I just pay to get them swapped over. Tyre storage bags with carry handles keep me and the car clean. My wife uses this method too.

[simonj67]

Fitted these to my R Estate a coupe of weeks ago, Revo RV018 and Continental TS850P, offer loads of confidence and grip compared to Pretorias and P Zero tyres when the temps drop.

[mcmaddy]

The Bridgestone All weather is a certified snow tyre so will be more than capable of handling the current weather conditions. I also wasn't saying in my previous post that a winter tyre is just for snow I was pointing out that an all weather tyre such as above will be more than capable fit the weather we have. Totally different story if you're in the Highlands or get regular snow.

[fredgroves]

Oh Fred, I also had the acc warning that the front sensor was obscured as well.

Thanks! Grrr bloody thing!

Mind you, if you were spinning up, I'd not be using ACC... in fact, I think if the TC/ESP kicks in, ACC comes off -I've had it when I've hit a big puddle on the motorway at 70mph...