Winter part worn tyres

[Beardz]

I am in the market for a set of winter tyres for my spare wheels and have noticed that there are a load of part worns available on the Internet. A full set of continental/Dunlop etc. can be had for just £120.00. But are they worth the money? Adverts suggest at least 5mm tread (new are only 8mm). What are your thoughts? Have you bought any or had any experience of them?
Cheers

 

[markjay]

Not a professional opinion as such, but I am very careful not to hit the pavement with my tyres, my worry when buying used tyres will always be for hidden damage due to careless use. The number of cars I see parked with the kerb wedged into the rubber is one reason for this. On another ocassion I have seen a car with a front tyre with an odd bulge the size of a small orange. Careful inspection may not reveal the internal structural damage that can cause this.

Not everyone will think this way though ...

 

[Egbert Nobacon]

I have read that Winter Tyres lose alot of their "grip" once tread depth falls below 4mm.

Below is a quoted answer to a similar question asked on another forum :-

"4mm is more or less where they are on their last legs for use as a winter tyre.

Some govt organisations here specify that no vehicle shall be used where winter tyre tread depth is less than 4mm. Eg Vagverket equivalent to UK highways agency have this rule, just mentioned as it is on their website in English.

If somebody is trying to sell you winter tyres with 4mm of tread as part worn they are trying it on. Do NOT waste your money, unless the price is such that you are prepared to pay that for the rims and treat the tyres as free.

The reason why 4mm is critical is because in snow they grip in a different way, and once worn down this far the small sipes and grooves don't have the depth and flexibility to work properly. They still work ok on cold wet and dry roads, but on snow they are pretty much kanckered"

 

[joneduk]

Have a look at a website called "camskil".

I get my tyres from there. The point of winter tyres is having the grip and tread, I see no point in buying part used ones.

 

[Beardz]

Thanks for all your advice
I didn't know about the 4mm thing for winters.
I'll check out the tyre website as I really wanted new tyres, I should have known £120 for four was too good to be true

 

[bedwards1966]

I considered it once, but when I thought about it on snow it seems daft to buy a tyre that's had the best, most effective part used by the previous owner. I reckon the 3 mill between 8-5 is probably worth much more than the remaining 5 on snow.

 

[hotrodder]

As said once down to around 4mm of tread M&S tyres aren't really considered to be M&S tyres anymore mostly because of the sipes. This is a bigger deal if you live or travel in countries that require the use of M&S tyres in winter than it is in the UK. If you've got a spare set of wheels and are thinking of swapping wheels for winter to make it easier to keep your shiney ones shiney and/or as a 'just in case' type thing then a set of part worn winters can make more sense than summer tyres...
1. While past their best they can still work better than some summer tyre tread designs with more tread depth
2. Snow is not a given thing in many parts of the UK, especially heavy snow and especially snow that lingers around for more than a few days
3. If you don't do a massive mileage then premium part worns* can make more sense than new tyres, especially new ditchfinders. If you clock up the miles then part worns rarely make sense and putting on part worns at the beginning of winter makes even less sense
4. Having said that the last couple of winters have pushed the prices up as people seem to think that winter tyres are some sort of magic solution
5. Don't forget that tyres off the interweb often (but not always with new tyres) means plus carriage and/or plus fitting...

* Obviously there's the hidden/invisble damage aspect to consider... always fun to ask anyone that brings this up if they automatically replace all the tyres on any used car they buy [/tongue in cheek]