Winter Tyres On Quattro

Djwoody

Djwoody

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Hi.
I have a 3.0 TDI with the standard 18" s line wheels on. All tyres are due to be replaced soon.
I am wanting to upgrade to some 19" wheels but then I had a thought yesterday - should I just fit some winter tyres to my 18"s and then purchase my 19"s next year with summer tyres?

Yes it means buying two sets of tyres but I'd only be using them for half the year so should get twice the wear, and also keeps my 19"s off the salt filled roads.

Has anyone fitted winter tyres to their Quattro? Is Quattro with summer tyres just as bad as 2WD?

Chris
 
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I've a set of 17" six spoke rims with Hankook IceBear 300 in the garage for this purpose. This is the third winter they will be in proper use. Probably done 10K on them and there is plenty of tread left. Extended the life of my 19's immensely

Remember that winter tyres are intended for use below 7degC so they're not just for icy/snowy weather. I run mine from November to April or until the avg daytime temp gets back above 8 degC
Quattro with winters should be unstoppable... I like your thinking.
 
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Vredestein Wintrac Xtream on BOTH my RS3 and 2.0 TT.

Both quattro. Both BRILLIANT on snow and ice - traction AND braking.

Winter tyres used late November to mid March generally, and then back to summer tyres.

I'd make the fitting of cold weather/winter tyres compulsory.

Not on summer tyres, obviously:

RS3 5 Snow
 
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Thanks for your replies.
I've been looking at the Nokian WR A3 in 245/40/18, has very good reviews and a pretty good price on tyreleader.
 
I wanted the Nokian but couldn't get them locally. Great reviews. The Hankooks and Vreds are great too.
 
Ive never really understood this winter tyres thing - i know that the manufacturers say they operate better at lower temps, but in my 20 years of driving i have never used them and never needed them.

I have a quattro now, and if its cold and slippy i just drive slower and leave more space between me and the next car.
My previous car was a RWD with 355BHP going through them, and i have never had a problem with that either in the cold and snow, in fact was suprisingly good in the snow!

So my personally opinion is that we should just stick to regular tyres and drive more carefully (i know i will prob get abuse for saying that)....but each to their own.
 
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trick971 said:
Ive never really understood this winter tyres thing - i know that the manufacturers say they operate better at lower temps, but in my 20 years of driving i have never used them and never needed them.

I have a quattro now, and if its cold and slippy i just drive slower and leave more space between me and the next car.
My previous car was a RWD with 355BHP going through them, and i have never had a problem with that either in the cold and snow, in fact was suprisingly good in the snow!

So my personally opinion is that we should just stick to regular tyres and drive more carefully (i know i will prob get abuse for saying that)....but each to their own.
Click to expand...

The issue is years gone by tyres used to resemble a modern all session tyre, however now tyres have been developed for better fuel consumption and honed towards dry and wet warm weather.

After the winter of 2010 and sliding backwards with all four wheels locked, we now travel to the Alps for Christmas so they are now a must on the S4. I have a set of winter tyres for both my cars, it doesn't cost me any more to have them and I have the space to store them.

While Quattro will get you going it won't help you to stop on snow and ice!
 
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Trouble with the B8 is I cant figure out how to turn off ABS for better stopping in really deep snow. You need to lock up and build a lump of snow in front of the wheels, ABS stops the wheels locking and the tyres ride on top of the snow, increasing stopping distance.

Shallow snow, slush or just cold wet roads, Winter tyres and ABS reduces stopping distance dramatically compared to Summer tyres.
 
I had a BMW e92 with Bodgestone runflat tyres. In the 2010 freeze, I couldn't get to more than 20mph on the permafrost covered clear roads, they just didn't grip. The tyres were as hard a bricks. Winter tyres transformed the car to the point where I could drive the same snowy places as MRs S in her Nissan Pathfinder which was on all weather tyres. That convinced me of the benefit. One set of tyres has done me three winters and there is still lots of life in them, so, average it out and it's not a costly option.

Just my experience..
 
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Zafi said:
Trouble with the B8 is I cant figure out how to turn off ABS for better stopping in really deep snow. You need to lock up and build a lump of snow in front of the wheels, ABS stops the wheels locking and the tyres ride on top of the snow, increasing stopping distance.

Shallow snow, slush or just cold wet roads, Winter tyres and ABS reduces stopping distance dramatically compared to Summer tyres.
Click to expand...

Is there not a button on the dash to do this? Car with squiggly lines and the word OFF?
 
The button on the B8 on mine anyway does two things. Press it and it turns the ASR off which is the Anti Slip Regulator , which is like an Electronic differential lock . Hold the button for longer and it turns off the ESP, Electronic Stability Program off. This does seem to disable ABS and allows you to lock the brakes up.
 
Nothing sticks to snow like snow, and that's what winter/snow tyres are designed to do, HOLD snow.

Evidence in the winter is clear on rooftops where thick snow just hangs over the edge eventually falling in a block.

For me, with steep hills every which way to my home, winter tyres provide both traction and braking when the white stuff is beautifully thick on the ground: BLUEY and me just can't wait to get out and play in it....
 
lemonslap said:
The issue is years gone by tyres used to resemble a modern all session tyre, however now tyres have been developed for better fuel consumption and honed towards dry and wet warm weather.

After the winter of 2010 and sliding backwards with all four wheels locked, we now travel to the Alps for Christmas so they are now a must on the S4. I have a set of winter tyres for both my cars, it doesn't cost me any more to have them and I have the space to store them.

While Quattro will get you going it won't help you to stop on snow and ice!
Click to expand...

I can't see a wrong word there! Edit, maybe you missed out "steering" from the last sentence!

To the OP, yes very good idea, get some winter tyres on your 18" and start looking for some 19" for summer. I've fitted the size quoted on the door sticker, maybe not as narrow as would be ideal, but in this country that size is good for late Autumn to early Spring, I thought the Nokian tyres were best for "super cold and deep snow" which is not what we normally experience in UK, I favour Michelin Alpin Pilots for grip and wear in cold/rain/snow/ice.
 
I have a winter wheel and tyre set up for my S8.

never used to see the point of winter tyres, but after spending a lot of time working in Sweden over winters, I can see how much better they are in cold temperatures... it's doesn't have to be snowing.

I think there are still a lot of people in the UK that don't grasp that fact.

I tested my old S4 on summer tyres against the S8 with winters and the difference is massive.
 
I had winter wheels / tyres for my S3 and I've already bought a set of winter wheels / tyres for my forthcoming S4.

Personally i don't think its worth buying winter tyres for cold / damp conditions - a set of summer tyres in good condition will be perfectly fine though maybe not as good. But they are OUTSTANDING in the snow. I live in rural Aberdeenshire where the snow can get quite thick. One winter I had to stop on a 1:10 hill with hard packed snow on it because three other cars were struggling to get up the hill. After watching them for a while i just did a hill start in 1st with and passed them with no drama at all.

So if you live in an area likely to have significant snow they are a must IMO.
 
Don't forget, when its winter tyre temps, decent winter tyres enable you to stop much quicker in the damp & wet etc. It's not all about being able to get traction in snow, "of course" that is mighty useful too ;-)
 
Well i've gone for it - Bought a set of Nokia WR-A3s in 245/40/18 to go on my existing wheels.
Then next year I'll look into getting some 19"s.
I know I shouldn't be saying this but bring on the snow! :)
 
Well if your preparing for the worst means that this year will mainly be "snow free" - I thank you, it is easier driving around on winter tyres and no snow than being one of the few with winter tyres and lots of folk trying to stay lucky and snow!
 
Does anyone know how I can find recommended tyre pressures for winter tyres?
Are they different to summer tyres?
For 245/40/18 the recommended pressures are 41PSI front and 36PSI rear for summer tyres.
 
Typically the pressures should be the same, but usually they are quoted as being slightly higher, due to the wheels/tyres being "assembled" in a workshop at 20C - whereas they will typically get used at about 0C - that is my interpretation of that backed up by something I read "elsewhere" in relation to "winter tyre pressures" - 5PSI higher rings a bell!

Edit:- I think that some of that came from common sense (fool!) and some from intertinterwebnet "knowledge base" and some from looking at proper tyre places/manufacturers blogs - maybe same as previous place!
 
Would you say 42PSI all round would be a good figure?
Don't want to go too high.
 
I've noted 40psi front and 36psi rear from the Michelin website, I tend to run about 34.5psi front and 31.5psi rear in summer when on the 19" wheels/P ZERO ROSSO. All these figures are for lightly loaded. I've also noted that winter pressures suggested on door frame are +3psi for winter time, so my +5psi might have been wrong or someone else's idea of what was required.

The summer pressures seem a bit low, but that will be for local journeys only, they get lifted by maybe 5psi for long distance light loaded travelling.
 
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I checked the Michlin website when I got mine and like said above it does indeed state 40F - 36R so that's what I ran last winter on the 245 18"s, no surprise then, the car felt perfect.
I think winters are a bit higher presssure because of the softer supporting rubber.

My summer 19's are running 36F - 33R on 255's and they have worn evenly, again I'm running the pressures suggested by the tyre maker and its right.
 
Audi.Quattro said:
My summer 19's are running 36F - 33R on 255's and they have worn evenly, again I'm running the pressures suggested by the tyre maker and its right.
Click to expand...

Hum, the "list of important things" that I made up to keep pinned up in the garage, had the pressures above quoted on it for the summer wheels/tyres, I don't know why I've chosen to drop 1.5psi off that - but maybe I'm very light (oh, I should be taking into account the stuff in the boot!!).

Edit:- No, just remembered, my car is quite basic trim so quite light!
 
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