Winter driving questions & weather report?

On 31 Jan 2005 15:20:21 -0000, (Adrian D. Shaw) wrote:

Felly sgrifennodd Marco Cattaneo :
use winter tyres in winter (even in
the UK) and summer tyres in summer, and you summer tyres will magically last
twice as long.

But there must be some disadvantage, otherwise we'd use them all the year
round. Do they wear out quicker on ordinary tarmac? Do they drive as well?
Why are they illegal in Norway and Sweden [1] after mid April (though
compulsory before)?

You're confusing snow tyres with studded tyres.
--
Champ

On 31 Jan 2005 15:20:21 -0000, (Adrian D. Shaw) wrote:

winter tyres

But there must be some disadvantage, otherwise we'd use them all the year
round. Do they wear out quicker on ordinary tarmac?

Not noticeably, no - my Volvo XC wears them all winter and they seem
to last for around 20 000km on the front, 30 000 on the back. About
the same, or slightly more, than summer ones (although TBH I don't
really note how long they've lasted, just that I bought the winter
ones four seasons ago and had to replace two of them last year).

Do they drive as well?

They're really not bad, but uiltimately don't offer quite the level of
feel and grip of good summer tyres. Most people over here, like me,
have a spare set of steel wheels, which are often smaller than the
standard alloys, so the winter tyres also have a higher profile than
the summer ones, giving a slightly softer ride as well.

Why are they illegal in Norway and Sweden [1] after mid April (though
compulsory before)?

Presumably, as others suggest, that refers to studded tyres. These are
actually illegal on most roads even in the winter - it's only for
permanantly snowbound areas that they're allowed, AFAIK.

--
Ace (brucedotrogers a.t rochedotcom)
Ski Club of Great Britain - http://www.skiclub.co.uk
All opinions expressed are personal and in no way represent those of the Ski Club.

(Mark Jordan) wrote:

I will be driving through Switzerland, parts of northern Italy,
Austria and southern Germany in late February / early March this year
in my Volvo 850 T5.

I have driven in snowy conditions before and have a set of
snow-chains.

Is it essential for me to have winter-tyres for this trip? I can get
hold of a set of winter wheels with Vredestien SnowTracs for a good
price if I need to.

What kind of weather can I expect this time of year in the regions I
will be visiting? I would like to stay in the south-east part of
Switzerland if possible. Any recomendations for places to stay?

What other equipment would you advise I take with me?


Chains and a plastic shovel should be enough. It is rare to drive on
snow. With these two you will be able to keep moving.

The rest is detail:

Snow shifting:

Plastic shovels cannot move ice so an entrenching tool or an ice axe
are useful for removing ice.


Cold starts: Make sure your battery is in top condition.

You may wish to take one of the big fat candles for your 'survival
kit' to leave under the engine bay all night if there is very cold
weather. This keeps temperature above freezing point. A couple of red
luminous Cyalume sticks in case you are buried up to the roof or in a
bad position and need to mark your position so as not to be cut in two
by a snow plough.


Clothing:

Assuming you are using Alpine clothing, the need for emergency
clothing is reduced. Best weight/usefulness ratio are the war surplus
rain ponchos. They eliminate blowing precipitation in one stroke.

Torch: Find one of the small LED torches and place it around your neck
on a length of thin ribbon or similar. The problem with torches is
that they are usually somewhere dark when you need to find them.
Generally, you generally do not need a torch large enough to
illuminate a passing aircraft but you do need to see what you are
doing with snowchains, where you dropped your keys, et cetera. Round
the neck is easy to find.

If you are 'dressed' then old gloves are good for fooling with chains
and engine-bay. Frequently better than gloves are small plastic bags
because you can feel what you are doing and quickly remove/replace the
bags on your hands when you need to.


The roads are normally cleared very quickly but sometimes when it is
actually snowing you may need chains to get up or down the mountain.
Driving any distance on snow is very rare. Outside of Russia I have
only done this when driving through the night while snow is falling.
Wondrous hours.