Winter tires

[Tadass910]

Which would you recommend? Going to use 21 inch rims for winter and looking for 285/30/21 tires (will use sometimes for extreme weather conditions with lot of snow, as plan to go to mountain for skiing )

[sasha320]

I’ve used premium winter tyres on my past and present car.

Brands that I have used are Michelin, Pirelli and Continental.

I’ve used them in all the conditions you’d expect e.g., rain, slush, ice and compacted as well as freshly fallen snow.

I’ve found that the biggest single differentiator between all the tyres is tread depth.

In fact some countries stipulate that the legal minimum tread depth for winter tyres is 4mm. The manufacturers suggest 3mm is the recommended minimum.

So I’d suggest you go for the cheapest premium brand that are currently available - make a mental note of the difference in price and then put that towards replacing them early (as close to a 4mm tread depth as possible).

In certain conditions (very heavy rain, slush and snow) winter tyres work like magic!

Although I use them in the UK, they’re fairly pointless witj the weather we get to be honest. Obviously if you live in a snow prone area e.g., the Highlands and / or a very wet area then they are worth it.

The best winter tyre experience I’ve had is entering a fairly heavy snow storm on the French Autoroute at Reims. The road was getting covered in snow which was settling in the outside lane.

Traffic was reduced to about 30mph in the inside lane, I and a couple of others were able to maintain a speed of circa 60mph in the outside lane.

So what you may say?

The snowstorm lasted to Geneva...

[HPsauce]

I'll second that, having used winter tyres for many years now on both our cars, though one now has "all-season" Michelins.
The brand, provided it's a good one, isn't that vital, but when it gets cold, and especially if it's snowy, it's as if the snow/slush wasn't there at all, just carry on as normal!
You do obviously have to beware of other drivers and especially not scare them because they don't understand what you're driving.
And have fun.....

[Tadass910]

What about Dunlop

[sasha320]

I had Dunlop Wintersport 4D and 3D for 21” and 20” rims respectively.

Very good tyres.

[sasha320]

Better prices on Tyreleader.

I wouldn’t hesitate in going for the Conti’s on there at £300 / tyre.

[Daveperc]

Ah - if only Milltek made tyres

[uplandsway]

Ah - if only Milltek made tyres

Milltek is the bestest tyre I have it on the end of my exhausts


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[Tadass910]

Decided to try

[sasha320]

Nice choice.

The Michelins appear to be the best performing summer and winter tyre on the market these days. Although homologation is pretty pointless, it is a shame Audi choose not to homologate them.

I sometimes plan my trips to target the worst weather simply because 4WD and winter tyres gets you through most weather conditions you’ll ever come across on a modern* road network.

What time of the year are you travelling to the Alps?

* having driven in the Alps for many years, the local authorities are very responsive these days. It is rare that conditions become show stoppers for very long before snowploughs, gritters and the like clear and keep clear most roads. The issue that causes delays tends to be motorists who are unprepared for a sudden drop of snow or freezing conditions i.e., caught without snow chains and / or the right tyres and create traffic jams.

As an aside, have you thought about snow chains?

In theory they can’t be used on either the 20” or 21” rims because they would foul the top of the outside edge (wing) when cornering. Instead Audi recommend a wheel with much less offset that sits well inside the wheel arch (and looks like a space saver spare).

I got a pair of external snow chains by Thule that clamp on the outside of the 20” concave Audi wheel. They don’t take away the risk of fouling the wheel arch but they provide more clearance than the traditional skinny chains due to the positioning of the plastic chain holders (in red in the picture below).

All of that said, I’ve never used chains except on a 997 4S years ago (with winter tyres). The chains in the pic are similar to the ones I have for the RS6.

Kind regards

The winter tyre geek

[Christiaan]

Decided to try

How much..... Wow!

January 2018 I got 4 PA4’s for the 20” wheel set up for £1057 delivered!!!

[Tadass910]

Nice choice.

The Michelins appear to be the best performing summer and winter tyre on the market these days. Although homologation is pretty pointless, it is a shame Audi choose not to homologate them.

I sometimes plan my trips to target the worst weather simply because 4WD and winter tyres gets you through most weather conditions you’ll ever come across on a modern* road network.

What time of the year are you travelling to the Alps?

* having driven in the Alps for many years, the local authorities are very responsive these days. It is rare that conditions become show stoppers for very long before snowploughs, gritters and the like clear and keep clear most roads. The issue that causes delays tends to be motorists who are unprepared for a sudden drop of snow or freezing conditions i.e., caught without snow chains and / or the right tyres and create traffic jams.

As an aside, have you thought about snow chains?

In theory they can’t be used on either the 20” or 21” rims because they would foul the top of the outside edge (wing) when cornering. Instead Audi recommend a wheel with much less offset that sits well inside the wheel arch (and looks like a space saver spare).

I got a pair of external snow chains by Thule that clamp on the outside of the 20” concave Audi wheel. They don’t take away the risk of fouling the wheel arch but they provide more clearance than the traditional skinny chains due to the positioning of the plastic chain holders (in red in the picture below).

All of that said, I’ve never used chains except on a 997 4S years ago (with winter tyres). The chains in the pic are similar to the ones I have for the RS6.

Kind regards

The winter tyre geek

I think if you have good winter tyres and 4awd chains not necessarily to use, I plan January conquer Alps) I remember using my 335i with good winter tyres, and I was traveling to serre chevalier and there were lot of snow on a road, I bet using rs6 in a snow it’s a lot fun) not even thought about chains) chains only for those who have maybe bad tires or even summer tires, maybe some people use summer tires and they put chains saving moneys

Decided to try

How much..... Wow!

1760 eur for all 4

Expensive? Rs6 loves best shoes) if you have such car you should not save moneys on tyres

[Christiaan]

1760 eur for all 4

Expensive? Rs6 loves best shoes) if you have such car you should not save moneys on tyres

I know they are good tyres... I have them on my RS6!
I was just surprised at how much more expensive they were for the 21" wheel compared to the 20"

[sasha320]

]

I think if you have good winter tyres and 4awd chains not necessarily to use

I agree - except the cops might make you put them on. However the chances are low to be fair.

[Scotty C]

I currently have the Dunlop Winters and they have performed very well throughout Northern Europe in all conditions. I previously used the Continentals and they too were very good and just didn't do my size when it came to changing the car. Think they were from My Tyres and Oponeo from memory.