Snow Socks rule ok!!

[x332race]

Had sets of these in the boot of my car and my wifes (both mercs) for emergency "get you home" use for several years....have not used them to date but good to hear some positive feedback.

I see them as a safety item useful for short distances and to get you out of trouble....agree no subsitute for winter tyres, but then who has winter tyres fitted in England?

 

[Dieselman]

These are the exact points where I got stuck with fitting and removal of the socks.

You can see why she got stuck..it's because she hadn't put her orange gloves on..


Seriously, it's because she didn't put the first half on properly and ran over the sock when reversing. It needs to go on nice and tight otherwise there isn't enough slack to stretch over the rest of the tyre.

Only a woman could get it wrong....

 

[jeremytaylor]

....agree no subsitute for winter tyres, but then who has winter tyres fitted in England?

Er, me, actually, at the moment

 

[x332race]

Just tried to fit a pair of Autosocks on the rear wheels of my C270cdi estate. I have sport package with 245/40/17 tyres.

I must admit that I found it impossible to fit them, mainly due to the width of the tyres and the limited clearance between the tyres and the bodywork...eventually I gave up and fitted a set of Trak chains instead that took me about 30 seconds each side with no fuss.

I could probably got the socks by jacking the car up to give me more clearance but that rather defeats the object.

The Trak chains were fantastic.....gave me better traction than a lot of the 4x4s round here!

 

[Sp!ke]

The track chains cost the same as a pair of winter tyres though

I know what I'd rather have fitted.

 

[x332race]

The track chains cost the same as a pair of winter tyres though

I know what I'd rather have fitted.

I know.....I would rather have a set of winter tyres, but as I don't and as I have a set of Trak chains which have been sitting in my garage for several years now unused (bought them to use on various skiing trips to the alps but never needed them), fitting them in the current conditions made sense and has enabled me to get around safely.

 

[Spinal]

I was looking at buying a pair a few years ago... I ended up buying M&S Winter tyres... don't regret it one bit! 2 or 3 years on, I still have plenty of thread and they've driven me to the alps once a year.

Oh, and this white stuff I've been seeing a bit of lately is no issue either
M.

 

[johnsco]

....agree no subsitute for winter tyres, but then who has winter tyres fitted in England?

Me too -
Wouldn't have been without them this week.

Johnsco

 

[fabes]

Re the socks

When you get to a salted road, do you have to take them off - I take it they will wear through quite quickly on 'clear' tarmac?

 

[lil.smartie]

Looked at them before but got chains as we were doing a trip to Geneva & we needed them, not so sure that socks would have been man enough for the job. I'd imagine they would work well here today though we had ESP & Traction control kicking in for a large part of the journey & saw a fair few cars that didn't make it!

Kate

 

[crockers]

Have a set in the boot -- but have yet to use them (in fact have yet to use the car in this weather)....Find wife's CRV better... (and have a set of chains in the boot of that - just in case)

 

[wemorgan]

Does anybody know the maximum speed the car can travel with the snow socks on?

 

[x332race]

Re the socks

When you get to a salted road, do you have to take them off - I take it they will wear through quite quickly on 'clear' tarmac?

It is always best to remove both Autosocks and conventional chains once you reach "clear" tarmac......both will wear out if not on snow.

 

[x332race]

Does anybody know the maximum speed the car can travel with the snow socks on?

I think it is 50 kph

 

[Brian WH]

Looks interesting, if we had a lot more snow they might be a good item to keep in the boot.

http://www.roofbox.co.uk/autosock/?gclid=CJOCu8fioZcCFc0a3godFzNVJA
http://www.toys4cars.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=13341

Nobody makes them for my rear tyres.

275/35/R18

Unless someone knows better of course?

 

[Wild Woods]

Just to confirm that the snow socks worked really well. I purchased a set of ebay for £41 inc postage for my C220CDI with sportspack. They were a bit of a fiddle to get on due to the lowered suspension and 245 tyres but it still only took a few minutes.

The day I used them 4 cars couldn't get out of my road but I just drove passed them all!!

I had put £10 of rock salt on the road the day before the socks arrived and still struggled to get my car out of my cul de sac so in theory they will pay for themselves over 4 days of snow or ice. This might take 18 years but at least I have them just in case

 

[x332race]

Glad to hear your could get them on 245 tyres with sports pack....I really struggled and eventually gave up....that said, I fitted them on my wifes CLK convertible with 205 tyres with not problems at all

 

[SimonsMerc]

Thing is,

If your the only one with them surely everyone around is stuck so where can you go?

A few years ago, it took me 14 hours to get home (to north-west London) from Peterborough. I wouldn't have gotten home at all, if it wasn't for the fact that I had some chains in the boot (we had recently come home from Poland and they were still there). I spent six hours on the A1(M) to get to a junction, then I got off the motorway, pulled over and put the chains on, and had my GPS lead me down some B and C roads where the chains were the only thing making it possible for me to drive.

I did have some scares - one where I went down this tiny country lane and the snow was getting deeper and deeper until I saw some lights in front of me, and as I got closer I realised it was a snow-plough stuck in the snow. I got out and walked over to the guys and tried to help them dig their way out (for which they shared hot coffee from a thermos), but we had to give up. I had no way of turning around, so I put the car in reverse, closed my eyes and let the deep tracks I had left in the snow guide me out backwards ;-) But fundamentally there is no way I would have made it home without the chains (people were sleeping on the A1(M) that night, with the police distributing blankets and emergency fuel to keep folk warm).

Auto socks are every bit as good as snow chains, and I found them much easier to fit (used last year). For occasional use in the UK when needed, it's a great idea to have a set in the boot.

This year however we're still on Winter tyres (and happy that we are so far!).

-simon