Tyres - winter and summer - or not. A review.

[jaapv]

I had Michelin Cross-Climates fitted - They drive incredibly well - and then I found this review. Now I'm even more happy And 75.000 miles? These things are really cheap in the long run.

https://www.greencarguide.co.uk/features/michelin-crossclimate-all-season-tyre-review/

 

[littlescrote]

Sounds good if it is a genuine independent review. He doesn't say that he paid for the tyres himself.

 

[ThudnBlundr]

I've used CCs on all our recent cars, and they've been a revelation. Originally I bought winter tyres to get us up the unploughed lane and round a sharp bend onto our long, steep shared drive when I got sick of walking the last ½ mile home. They were great in winter, but I didn't enjoy the time or expense of swapping them twice a year. So we've used CCs on all subsequent 2WD cars, and we've never failed to get home in the Yorkshire snow. We fitted them to our Zoe 18 months ago and we've seen an improvement in comfort and handling compared to EV tyres, but no noticeable drop in range. We fitted them the PHEV after its last MOT in March, so we've not had a chance to test them in poor conditions yet, but I expect that they'll behave as well as the previous 4 cars.

 

[jaapv]

Sounds good if it is a genuine independent review. He doesn't say that he paid for the tyres himself.

These tyres get good reviews in general.

 

[FrancoPHEV]

Great provided that you don’t have a geometry problem. I fitted Michelin CCs just over 2 years ago after getting 49,500 miles from the original Toyos. I have been generally quite happy with their performance and handling appart from, in my opinion, them being a bit noisier. However, I brought the beast to the dealer for its 6Y service this morning and asked them to check the tyres as there has been an occasional light “chuffing” noise for the last month or so. The manager has just shown me a photo of the inside edges of both rear tyres: shot to the point of certainly not passing next month’s Contrôle Technique. I had hoped for more than 32k miles. However, I guess the lesson is to get balance and alignment checked more regularly.

 

[ThudnBlundr]

I had something similar at the last service, just before lockdown. I got CCs fitted all round, as I've used them on all our recent cars. I also got them to do a 4-wheel alignment, but I guess I'll have to do that regularly to stop it happening again.

I've just had a slow puncture fixed: it was caused by a nail in the edge of the tread, so was irreparable. The local ATS wanted £185 to fit a replacement CC; blackcircles.com wanted £145 for it to be fitted at the same ATS garage :roll: Costco wanted £135. Guess which one I chose

Tyre Reviews have recently done their review of All Season tyres for 2020. The current CC didn't fare that well. Of course this test was done on a Golf, so it may well be different for our PHEV:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHph1mDtCbQ

 

[jaapv]

I had Crosscimates fitted last year and could not be happier. The car. feels softer without losing stability too.

 

[EssexBoy]

I can't comment on all-season tyres but I have had my winter tyres mounted on a set of OEM wheels I acquired from a breaker for a couple of years now. Just remounted them the other day - noticeably quieter than my now worn out old Toyos on the summer wheels. If I go to the colder bits of the UK in winter or the weather turns proper cold in the midlands I am very content to be on winter tyres. Wont ever revert to only using 'summer' tyres year round. I might be tempted by all season, but why if summer tyres are cheaper, quieter and wear better given I have my winters waiting for the colder months. It has been discussed elsewhere on the forum but switching tyres (wheels) works well for me. I can see that the benefits of doing so are directly related to your latitude though. If I lived in Surrey and never visited Glencoe or Chamonix in winter CCs might be just the job.

 

[ThudnBlundr]

The same Tyre Review channel asked if CCs could cope with a wet London and a snowy Alp:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YO0zyQh2l3M

Answer - yes!

Plus it's far cheaper than having 2 sets of tyres and wheels, which you than have to dispose of at a loss when you sell the car

 

[EssexBoy]

"... it's far cheaper than having 2 sets of tyres..."
Well perhaps a bit cheaper. And perhaps not. Granted I had to find the wedge for the wheels/extra tyres but I can only be wearing out one set of tyres at a time. Also the extra wheels are perhaps the one bit of my car that wont depreciate with time. I am very confident I will get my money back on those.
Comparing tyres is clearly a bit of a black art but those CCs are a fair bit more money than my current winters and are not rated so highly in the 'industry reviews'. The key metric that might swing it in favour of one approach or the other is wear - I would expect winters to last fewer miles than all-season and all-season fewer than summer tyres. If most of my miles are on summers (perhaps 60% for me) and comparable quality summers costing somewhat less than all-season or winter, the additional cost of winters over summers is offset a bit. As a generalisation summers might have better fuel economy than all-season or winters too.

I expect we can agree that a premium tyre with winter credentials is a noticeably better driving experience in poor conditions than the original Toyos.

 

[ThudnBlundr]

I had winters on a previous car, and they were a revelation in the snow, but a PITA having to swap them over twie a year, especially if you don't buy extra wheels. While you may get money back on the wheels, secondhand tyres are almost worthless. Unless you happen to sell the car when both sets are heavily worn, you'll take a big hit on one set. So we went for all-weather tyres - while you may get better absolute performance from a set of winters, CCs have never failed to get us up the steep unploughed road with a sharp turn onto the longish shared drive to our house, which is why we have them. It means we don't have to walk the last 500m home!

Obviously I'm not saying one way is better than another for everyone, but CCs definitely work better for us. YMMV

 

[littlescrote]

The real cost of tyres is when you crash because you can't stop when you have the wrong ones. For that reason alone, I'll stick with proper winters, thanks.

 

[EssexBoy]

"...secondhand tyres are almost worthless."
In my pauper days I only bought second hand tyres and on an appropriate vehicle (any ICE with a high tax band) I would now.

I got 30K miles out of the Toyos on my extra set of wheels.

Top tip for owners in the UK who get a "...nail in the edge of the tread, so was irreparable" -which all the usual suspects tell you cannot be repaired is make a visit to Ledbury in the West Dimlands if you are passing. Here be an Olde Worlde tyre repairist who can and will do a proper (legal) job on those pesky repairs (pm for details) [caveat: not all repairs declined by Kwik Cash can be repaired anywhere], [caveat2: there are other tyre places that can fix a tyre - I just do know where they are ].

I might get some all-seasons (perhaps two) for the other car as I have to get up before the sparrows a few times a year and drive my SO to work but being a rear wheel drive auto that car might be better off left on the drive (or just reversed to work like I told her) - what do we think? :evil:

 

[greendwarf]

Having only used my Winters once in anger to get me off a snow bound French motorway which was jammed with stranded locals, I would never want to use anything else at this time of year. Frankly having paid almost £30k for a car, a few hundred extra for additional wheels & tyres is neither here nor there. I realise for second hand buyers on a budget the figures are more difficult, so I hope they steer clear of me (literally) :lol:

 

[littlescrote]

Having only used my Winters once in anger to get me off a snow bound French motorway which was jammed with stranded locals, I would never want to use anything else at this time of year. Frankly having paid almost £30k for a car, a few hundred extra for additional wheels & tyres is neither here nor there. I realise for second hand buyers on a budget the figures are more difficult, so I hope they steer clear of me (literally) :lol:

Totally agree, but even having spent say £10k on a used car, I'd rather not risk that value plus potential injury from not having winter tyres on in winter for the sake of a few hundred quid. As stated already on this thread, you're not wearing out your summer tyres when you have your winter ones on and vice versa, so really the additional cost is only for the winter rims which will be cheaper alloys or steel wheels rather than OE alloys anyway.

 

[ChrisMiller]

Obviously, if you're planning to drive in Scandinavia or over Alpine passes during winter, proper winter tyres are a must (and legally required, too). But for those, like me, in the south of England (say), who see snow once every five years, they're overkill. I just need something that will get me 200 yards up the 15% hill I live on, to the main road, which will be gritted and snow-free. In unexpected snowfalls that occur while you're away from home, tyres are almost irrelevant, as the roads are soon blocked by all the idiots who have no idea how to cope.

 

[mellobob]

Someone mentioned braking ... my experience is that braking is unaffected by snow/allseason/summer tires. You slide no matter what.

However, going uphill ... there is a huge difference.

I also think there is better grip with winters when you hit slush at high speed. Without winter tires I have a greater problem staying in my lane.

 

[greendwarf]

Although the on-line videos clearly show shorter stopping on winters, it is with control that they real score - you can actually turn whilst sliding. But also the extra grip kicks in at around 7c. The criteria is temp and wet not snow & ice.