My 2009 A6 Avant 3.0T has 19in 255/35 Continental tyres on it from new. After 13000 miles these are down to 4mm tread and are hopeless in the snow - given you can't get any winter tyres for love nor money across the UK, can anyone suggest decent tyres to get some traction?!
Useful Tyres in this Snow!
- Thread starter Ali Mac
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The auto socks only work on compacted snow and they will get destroyed in no time on slush covered tarmac. Buy a set of winter tyres and you will be amased at how good the car will be. You can also buy new all season tyres but the braking distance wont be nowhere near that of the winters but you will still make good progress ! Avoid cheap/budget tyres like Nankang, Fullrun or Wanly as they just rubbish in snow or wet tarmac.
If you have an Allroad with 17" rims (or can pick a set up) then the Pirelli P6 Allroad tyre, that was designed for the car, is probably a good bet.
They're not too expensive either: PIRELLI TYRES / CAR / PIRELLI P6 ALLROAD PIRELLI P6 ALL ROAD - 225/55R17 97W TL :: £133.00 :: Car Tyres - MPV Tyres - People Carrier Tyres - 17" :: R17" - 225/55/17, 225/55 R 17 :: (and they're also out of stock with that supplier; surprise, surprise).
They're not too expensive either: PIRELLI TYRES / CAR / PIRELLI P6 ALLROAD PIRELLI P6 ALL ROAD - 225/55R17 97W TL :: £133.00 :: Car Tyres - MPV Tyres - People Carrier Tyres - 17" :: R17" - 225/55/17, 225/55 R 17 :: (and they're also out of stock with that supplier; surprise, surprise).
I've got these tyres on my work van. they work a treat. HANKOOK TYRES / CAR / HANKOOK K105 VENTUS PRIME HANKOOK K 105 - 225/55R17 101W XL TL :: £99.20 :: Car Tyres - MPV Tyres - People Carrier Tyres - 17" :: R17" - 225/55/17, 225/55 R 17 ::
Im not saying they are winter tyres but they have the same tread pattern as many winter tyres (the outside is the longituidal tread good for cornering - the inside is swept good for displacing water/slush/snow/mud)
Im not saying they are winter tyres but they have the same tread pattern as many winter tyres (the outside is the longituidal tread good for cornering - the inside is swept good for displacing water/slush/snow/mud)
Though both recommendations require 17" rims of course.
However, you can probably pick up a set of those (perhaps even with usable tyres) from an online auction site / breaker for sensible money.
However, you can probably pick up a set of those (perhaps even with usable tyres) from an online auction site / breaker for sensible money.
reggieroo
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The Wanli budget tyres are what was fitted to our allroad when we picked it up, the chap fitted a set brand new for us & the allroad has been great in the snow so I imagine it would be amazing with winter tyres. I wouldn't have chose that tyre myself but as they were brand new seems a bit silly changing them with so much life left on them. I've wondered what tyres I will replace with though as I'm planning on just having the 17" standard alloys as winter wheels & having some larger alloys for the rest of the 9 months of the year.
The Wanly and Fullrun tyres do split-up on the inside of the tyre where you cannot see-them unless you take the wheel off- been pointed to me at the last Mot when i had said tyres on missus car. They were perfectly fine threadwise but scary in the wet !
reggieroo
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I can believe it, I've tried all types of budget tyres in the past with 99% of them having problems. Either splitting/cracking before they have anywhere near worn out or they wear unevenly to the point they make the car shake & also hum like a wheel bearing has gone. The only budget tyre that I found to be any good is Falcons but they didn't last 5 mins but grippy as hell.
As soon as funds allow & we get a few more miles out of these crappy Wanli's I'll be changing them for something a little better.
Cappadocius
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As I'm from Norway I have plenty of experience on all kinds of winter conditions (ice, snow, slushy tarmac). Go with expensive ones, like Nokian or Continental. They're worth the extra £'s and will last you longer. It's surprising how cheap winter tyres' performance will degrade over a relatively short amount of time. Unless the snowy season is less than a month and the sunny season is rather cold you should under no condition use the so called "all season tyres". The rubber compound (?) will be equally bad for cold winters as for warm summers.
