JimboV6

Don't forget, studded tyres aren't allowed in some areas.

Winter tyres are a must for me, I'll stick 'em on most likely end Oct or early Nov.

mandymoochops

I think he might only need new tpm's if he's having winter rims as well as tires. If he's just changing tires the exisitng ones in the wheel should be good. If he's having it done at a Honda dealership, likely they have a special on those tires at the mo - so it should all be plain sailing

Secam

First off, the real advantage of snows is that they are made of soft rubber, unlike all seasons which become hockey pucks when it gets cold. Tests show that on a dry surface, you'll stop 15 to 20 feet shorter at -10c. So I buy them for stopping, not for going.

Second, your tires are only good for so many km. Typically the new car you buy comes with all seasons or summers. If I buy an additional set of winters, I've purchased about 100,000 km of tire (summers on the car + winters I buy). Point being if you plan on keeping your vehicle until 100,000 km, you're going to need a second set of tires anyway, so why not make it a set of snow tires?

cheeky_monkey

i lived through 4 Edmonton winters and used to drive out to places like Jasper and Edson...i have never had winter tyres and very few people i worked with up there had them either it tended to be just the women. I wont be getting any this year either.

iaink

Dont know about Calgary, I put mine on here mid NOvember usually, before it gets too cold to fiddle with my nuts

Yes, they make a difference. Even on city roads that are more likely not snow covered they can make a big difference on cold days when all season rubber get too hard to grip well. Most of the time you might not notice it, but when you really need to stop they can make the difference between an insurance claim or none. Also I get 5 or 10% off my insurance premiums for fitting them, so that makes a difference. Financially its a significant outlay, but overall its not that bad as you get more years from your all seasons before they have to be replaced. If you have the space to store a spare set of wheels then you can change them over yourself at not cost in less than an hour.

Generally the people saying it makes no difference are the ones who havent been nagged into it by a Canadian significant other and actually experienced the very real difference on the bad days. All those traction and stability controls and your ABS are entirely dependent on the amount of grip the 4 small patches of rubber in contact with the road can generate.

Can you get by without them, yes, certainly, but that doesn't mean that there is no difference.

iaink

It can probably be plugged for $30 or so, but if you need new tires for your truck some truck tires are basically year round snow tires... my boss swears by Goodyear Forteras on his F150 year round, and he has winters on his subaru.

iaink

And regarding block heaters, winter tires, AWD, and the rest, the winter driving wiki is a handy one stop resource...

http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Winter_Driving

Almost Canadian

I'd hazard a guess that you have never been saved from plummeting through your windscreen by your seatbelt, but I bet you still wear one

I accept that they are not absolutely necessary but, after driving with and without them, I would not choose to drive in winter without them again.

I appreciate that, in your eyes, that may make me a woman.

cheeky_monkey

no your just a patronising do good know it all...as you state they aren't entirely necessary the same as i pointed out using my own experience. Its my choice if i wanna have winter tyres or not...i like having choices..thanks!!

bats

"tended to be the women" hahaha- was that cos the men were more worried about appearing to be wimps than injuring themselves and others? Snow tires do make a significant difference and if you drive where there are unploughed and salted roads then they are needed. Do you use any other safety features or are they just for women too?? Seatbelts? ABS? traction control, airbags, headrests??

iaink

As we know, opinions are like arseholes, so here are some independently gathered facts.

"Emergency braking is what really matters when things go sideways. In February with the temperature at minus-14 C and no sun on the pavement, a panic stop from 80 km/h produced stopping distances of 49 metres for the summer Eagle GT, 39 metres for the Allegra all-season, and 34 metres for the CTC/Goodyear Nordic Winter tire."

http://www.wheels.ca/news/its-time-t...-winter-tires/

"When the sunny skies of March heated the pavement and the air temperature was minus-6 C, we tried the same panic stop. The Eagle GT improved to a stunning 27.3 metres. That shows how much sun can affect tire performance. The Allegra stopped in 19.3 metres and the Nordic Winter still beat that at 16.6 metres."


The thing this illustrates for me is that A: Winter tires work best in winter, and B: The drop off in performance with the temperature is huge, even with winter tires. The tread pattern in snow and ice works well, but the performance benefit of the different rubber compounds is huge, even on clear dry roads.

dbd33

How far is that in distance?

bats

Enough to cause a whiplash injury.

bats

http://m.theglobeandmail.com/globe-d...service=mobile

iaink

Enough to push dbds premiums up into "small pacific island GDP" levels

Of course, if the numpty behind you doesnt have winter rubber on then you may get rear ended anyway, but although insurance is "no fault" the police tend to take a dim view of hitting people from behind.