[mickp]

Can anybody recommend winter tyres? I'm going to just keep the same size and put the on the standard alloys. It's already round about 0 degrees here in the morning already and won't be long before the snow comes.

 

[mickp]

Oh and I forgot looking to spend around £400.

 

[Guest]

See my post here: click.

 

[Rarerims]

We are able to help with these

I would suggest whichever you go for - do so quickly. If the weather actually gets bad they tend to sell out everywhere in an instant

 

[ob1kxb]

isn't 400 a bit on the low side? not sure, but i think a 17" will easily break 500, even if not going for an A-brand

 

[Rarerims]

A budget winter driven sensibly is going to be leagues ahead of a summer tyre in the icey and cold conditions in terms of grip and safety.

Because winter tyres have so much movement and are so soft they dont tend to be great for actual handling or fun driving, but that's sort of the point, if the conditions justify winter tyres you're meant to be taking it easy anyway.

For the best results a good brand like Yokohama or Michelin etc is going to be the way to get the best performance from your winter tyres, but as a stop gap to get you safely through the winter while driving carefully a cheaper winter tyre will be a safer option that a summer tyre.

The year before last I had summer tyres on the back of a 200SX, and in the snow the camber of the road was enough to drop the back end into the kerb, repeatedly. I had previously never understood all the fuss, as I had never had proper sporty tyres in snowy conditions that had so little give due to tiny sidewalls, and they simply didn't work. Switching to proper tyres meant I could actually get around, and round here with all the hills the difference was huge!

 

[ob1kxb]

The year before last I had summer tyres on the back of a 200SX, and in the snow the camber of the road was enough to drop the back end into the kerb, repeatedly.

same happened to me when i took my rx-8 for a small (read: miniscule) outing. just wanted to keep the battery alive since i already had the evo and hadn't sold the rx yet. so set off, all well since car was outside so could set off on a snow/ice-free patch. but as soon as i turned around 200 metres on, trouble started. 3-point turn. point 1: no problems until i hit the gutter. point 2: stuck in the gutter so had to try to rock it out, which eventually worked, then point 3: kept sliding the back in that same gutter so it took me about 15 minutes to get back safely to my house.
moral of the story: GET WINTER TYRES FITTED

 

[mickp]

Ok cheers will speak to my garage tomorrow to see what price they can do as its already pretty cold in rural Scotland already so think I could drop to about -25ish this year. Hit -3 last week in the morning so defiantly putting winter tyres on.

 

[Targ86]

http://www.gt86ownersclub.co.uk/forum/gt86-and-the-coming-winter_topic1014_page9.html

Try the discussion at the above forum site. Including the pics.

Oh and I had my winter tyres fitted on Monday. Just in time as well as the temp dropped down to freezing most of last night and is currently 1degC at 7pm as I write this tonight.

I fitted Vredestein Wintrac Xtreme. Mainly as I've used them before and they're good. Also thought about Continentals.

 

[Nick Graves]

The Prelude was fine driving on snow on summer tyres with 4WS and stuff.<div id="LCS_336D0C35_8A85_403a_B9D2_65C292C39087_communicationDiv">


Until I left it parked for an hour; the snow compacted to ice under its mass & it did the same & wouldn't move.

 

[Nig]

same happened to me when i took my rx-8 for a small (read: miniscule) outing. just wanted to keep the battery alive since i already had the evo and hadn't sold the rx yet. so set off, all well since car was outside so could set off on a snow/ice-free patch. but as soon as i turned around 200 metres on, trouble started. 3-point turn. point 1: no problems until i hit the gutter. point 2: stuck in the gutter so had to try to rock it out, which eventually worked, then point 3: kept sliding the back in that same gutter so it took me about 15 minutes to get back safely to my house.
moral of the story: GET WINTER TYRES FITTED

Got similar memories of snowy times in my Rex, but the most embarrasing one was the car park at work, which had a short ramp at the exit, about 10ft long and a rise of about 6 inches. Just couldn't get the thing up it. Instant wheelspin, no matter what I tried. After about 15-20 mins, I was about to abandon it to try and find some grit, or a push, when someone suggested trying the entrance as it had less snow on it and I managed to crawl up that.

No, not much fun at all:-(

 

[Targ86]

One of the most fun things of course with winter tyres on your car, especially something like a GT86, is the puzzled looks from the uneducated when you cruise past with ease and safety. While they're either struggling to get grip (starting or stopping) or absolutely petrified as their car or 4WD won't go in a straight line.

They just can't figure out how you can, and that it's simply down to the right type of tyres.Edited by: Targ86

 

[keelerad]

Just got hold of my winter wheels, 16x7 from an Impreza (53 rather than 48 offset, but that's less than a 1/4 of an inch difference).

4 alloys without tyres for a grand total of £38 courtesy of e-bay (a massive £9.50 a corner).

I did have to go to Liverpool to get them (had a quick drive round the neighbourhood and didn't see a Scoobie up on bricks!)

Tried one on the front and checked caliper and steering link clearance, photos below

Scoobie hub centre 56mm

same as original wheels

Senna, is this the sort of clip on balance weight you saw

Original alloys 17x7 48mm offset

Scoobie wheel 16x7 53mm offset

Next step to get some tyres

Alec


Edited by: keelerad

 

[MikaelSE]

Any fitter using clip on weihts on alloys should be dragged out the back and shot in the head... Comming from a profesionals point of view..

 

[keelerad]

Ordered these wheel offset spacers from e-bay, so that should make the offset exactly the same I think

Alec

Edited by: keelerad

 

[Nick Graves]

Check that with your insurance company - some get a bit ££ey if you mention spacers.<div id="LCS_336D0C35_8A85_403a_B9D2_65C292C39087_communicationDiv">


Dunno whether that's crap quality parts, or uneducated idiots committing engineering crimes. Or simply a reason to rape more dough out of you...

 

[yahtzee]

nice one alec ive got some tyres but need some wheels when i get round to it

 

[keelerad]

nice one alec ive got some tyres but need some wheels when i get round to it

Scoobie wheels seem a good option as plentiful and cheap on ebay. Make sure they are 5 x 100 though as I saw some advertised that said they were a bigger PCD (114?mm). Offset seems to be stamped on back of wheel spokes along with the size, 48 is what the original wheels are

Alec

 

[Ianw]

Despite all the publicity and hype I found it really difficult getting hold of a decent set of winter tyres. I rang several companies who start of asking you what type you want and then tell you how difficult it is to get hold of them. The latest tyres they don't seem to be able to get at all, ie winter contacts, ultragrip 8, Alpin A4 and the prices for the ones they can get vary wildly, I have had 3 quotes from different companies for Yokohama W-Drives ranging from £125- £238 each


Has anyone any experience with Hankook W310's as I've read good reviews and have actually tracked down a set.

 

[Rarerims]

Winter tyres are only just starting to arrive with most places now, and stocks are somewhat random due to the hugely variable demand, stocks year on year tend to vary a lot.

Any Impreza wheel from 2005 or earlier will be 5x100, later model STis have 5x114 and are the ones to be careful of if that's of help?