winter tyre disappoinment

[daveenty]

Could always put chains on it: -



Spot the deliberate mistake?

 

[markjay]

Could always put chains on it: -

View attachment 88928

Spot the deliberate mistake?

No chains on the powered wheels...

 

[markjay]

...I've left 4x4's for dead from traffic lights in 6" of snow in a rear wheel drive CLK with winters...

Admittedly I have only limited experience of driving in deep snow, but the situation you describe above does not sound plausible... unless the 6" of snow was on the kerbside. In which case there would have been only little or shallow snow on the road surface itself?

4x4 come into their own when driving in deep snow, mud, or sand. But on the 'beaten path' winter tyres will win every time.

 

[Deletedmember130310]

Could always put chains on it: -

View attachment 88928

Spot the deliberate mistake?

Will be correct for the new 1 series....

 

[MercedesDriver]

It depends on multiple factors really how much of a progress one can make on a snow; type of tyres, TC on/off, how heavy your right foot is etc.
I have some driving experience on snow covered roads and MB’s are definitely not the best cars for snow.
With light right foot on loud pedal, TC off and good winter tyres even MB can make good progress on snow. These are the screen shots of a video I made in December ‘17 on snow covered steep hill road in France and I didn’t expect that E class estate will reach the top, but it did, without any trouble at all.

 

[rf065]

Admittedly I have only limited experience of driving in deep snow, but the situation you describe above does not sound plausible... unless the 6" of snow was on the kerbside. In which case there would have been only little or shallow snow on the road surface itself?

4x4 come into their own when driving in deep snow, mud, or sand. But on the 'beaten path' winter tyres will win every time.

Freshly laid snow, no tyre tracks, standing start from traffic lights on an upward gradient. How would a 4x4 on summer tyres have any advantage against winter tyres designed for these conditions?
Scandanavians have far worse snow than us, their mantra is "winter tyres first, 4 wheel drive second".

 

[MrRight]

to be honest, the winter just gone was the first one that I used winter tyres. 5k miles done on them (Michelin alpin PA4) and they were very competent indeed in the snow when it settled for a few days but for the most part they were also brilliant in sub zero icy conditions.


somewhat like OP , I have a steep hill to navigate and roads with no gritting sometimes . also worth noting getting semi stuck at the bottom of the hill when I first got the car which hadn't yet been run in and would just spin its tyres and go nowhere on cold summer tyres in Feb / March 18. luckily I also got to experience snow on summer tyres in the same car.


I drove for the most part, albeit v slowly and in comfort mode (its only use lol). the difference between MPSS and PA4 is night and day . I never had to worry too much about much wheel spin and drove at decent pace .
sadly snow only comes for a couple of weeks per winter where I am and it is slightly overkill using winter tyres except they also seem to improve wet grip.

one real downside is dry braking distances in the dry are far longer on the winter tyres and I had to significantly change driving style on the motorway to compensate.

I think other than extreme conditions , a winter tyre will show its class vs a comparable summer tyre in wintery conditions and the MPSS vs PA4 is a great showcase. Sadly living down souff , temps keep dipping and rising into the proper operating temps of each type of tyre which means quite often, a winter tyre is more of a hindrance than help .

my car before this was AWD and front biased and I enjoyed some record cold temps in late 2016 temps but not a huge amount of snow. still even with AWD, the car didnt get driven too much in the white stuff because it simply couldn't grip the road well enough . luckily the roads were generally well gritted for the most part so snail paced travelling was possible. But rwd with good winter tyres >> awd with good summer tyres

 

[Flyinspanner]

What make/model tyres were they?- some of the Chinese ones are very poor.

 

[Dryce]

Admittedly I have only limited experience of driving in deep snow, but the situation you describe above does not sound plausible... unless the 6" of snow was on the kerbside. In which case there would have been only little or shallow snow on the road surface itself?

4x4 come into their own when driving in deep snow, mud, or sand. But on the 'beaten path' winter tyres will win every time.

I've been in a W211 in snow and ice and had minimal issues and watched a 4x4 struggle. And the W211 was on 'summer' tyres (with decent tread).

So what does that useless little anecdote tell you?

There's too much variation in car setups to know for sure. Somebody on a particular brand of tyres with decent tread might well do better than a 4x4 on wide low profile rubber bands. And driving styles and ability vary.

I think winter tyres are a compromise - in the UK even in January and February if it's mild they may well start to get out of their optimal window in dry coditions.

My solution to this is MIchelin Crossclimates - seem fine in hot conditions - have a 3PMSF marking - and are quiet. I think this sort of product is a reasonable compromise as a general purpose tyres for the UK winter and they work reasonably all year. Though they come at a premium..

 

[zipdip]

Well I take my hat off to you guys who get the big falls of snow,but where I live we get very little rain and a small amount of snow every 3/4 years,and when that happens I stay indoors,I know soft southerner,I would if anywhere near the bleak wintered north invest in a 4x4,most of the problems that occur driving in snow is that drivers seem intent on proving their car can go faster than anyone eleses,when what you need to do is look far ahead looking for the idiot who is about to give everybody a problem,I had to smile at the BMW with it's driven wheels without the chains,it just about sums the brain power of some drivers.
I have driven trucks years ago where you needed to chain up heavy double chains,dragged out the chain locker,all that now seems to be a thing of the past,the good news was that everybody in the alps and in Sweden knew what to do and when to do it,made for safer driving in those conditions.

 

[m80]

a small amount of snow every 3/4 years,and when that happens I stay indoors,

I've learnt from experience that it doesn't matter how well prepared my mo mo is if the pillock up front tries to get through on rubbish tyres I'll be stuck behind him.
I've seen the Cat & Fiddle blocked by students in a Ranault, we all sterted to dig them out.
I then realised I had travelled close on a mle up snow tracks, so single lane. If another car comes up behind and then I can't go either way.
I reversed the Gr Cherokee back and out before any one else came.

Up here it's more often the wagons that block the roads. They slow on a hill for a bend, and don't go any further. Next wagon goes to overtake (we get loads of up here for the quarries) and that's the road closed.

 

[stubax]

I presume the tyre were fitted with the correct direction of rotation? My winter tyres indicated on the sidewalk correct rotation.