At what temperature do you fit your winter tyres ?

[Marlinleg]

 

Your thought please

Hello to everyone . 4/5 years ago I rang Dunlop tech department asking the question at what temperature to fit winter  tyres as there adverts were saying 7c and below 

Dunlop's tech guy said quote " we told the idiots in advertising that's not right anything below 12c then fit them as you will benefit "  he went on to say they are cold weather tyres but have the advantage of being good in the snow. First and foremost they are a cold weather tyre, shorter stopping distance 

Take care everyone 

[First_Lexus]

8 minutes ago, Marlinleg said:

 

Your thought please

Hello to everyone . 4/5 years ago I rang Dunlop tech department asking the question at what temperature to fit winter  tyres as there adverts were saying 7c and below 

Dunlop's tech guy said quote " we told the idiots in advertising that's not right anything below 12c then fit them as you will benefit "  he went on to say they are cold weather tyres but have the advantage of being good in the snow. First and foremost they are a cold weather tyre, shorter stopping distance 

Take care everyone 

I simply get the Winter wheels and tyres fitted between November and early April each year. It’s virtually impossible to predict the weather and that approach seems to work as well as any other. I thought Winter tyres worked best under about 45 degrees F.

[ColinBarber]

Most manufacturers state 7c on their winter tyres but it is more about at what temperatures does your summer tyre's performance drop to below the winter tyre and that can vary between manufactures and models.

I'd say once the majority of your driving occurs in single digit temperatures it is time to swap over.

[J Henderson]

I swapped to my winter set last week.

Normally I would wait until at least November, when single-digit temperatures are more commonplace, but I noticed one of my rear tyres was getting close to the wear indicator and  I didn't want to be flagged for an advisory about it during my MOT.

Even though the weather is still relatively mild, I can feel the benefits in terms of a more compliant ride and quieter tyre noise.

 

[paulrnx]

My experiences are that winter tyres are noticeably better in wet weather below about 7-8 degrees C. Also that winter tyres feel pretty horrible at temps over about 11 degrees especially when they are very hot on a long drive. You really can feel the tread blocks moving around especially on turn in to a corner. I haven’t ever run a hybrid Lexus on winter tyres but always did on a number of powerful rear drive Jaguars. I used to change to winter tyres in early November and back to the normal tyres at end March latest. Trouble is winter often gives daily temperatures of 12 degrees. I’m also pretty sure that winter tyres saved me from rear ending a car on a cold wet winter day as a car in front just stopped for no reason on a roundabout by Heathrow.

[steve2006]

17 hours ago, paulrnx said:

My experiences are that winter tyres are noticeably better in wet weather below about 7-8 degrees C. Also that winter tyres feel pretty horrible at temps over about 11 degrees especially when they are very hot on a long drive. You really can feel the tread blocks moving around especially on turn in to a corner. I haven’t ever run a hybrid Lexus on winter tyres but always did on a number of powerful rear drive Jaguars. I used to change to winter tyres in early November and back to the normal tyres at end March latest. Trouble is winter often gives daily temperatures of 12 degrees. I’m also pretty sure that winter tyres saved me from rear ending a car on a cold wet winter day as a car in front just stopped for no reason on a roundabout by Heathrow.

Sounds like a failed “crash for cash” attempt fortunately.

[paulrnx]

8 hours ago, steve2006 said:

Sounds like a failed “crash for cash” attempt fortunately.

It looked like a tourist driving a hire car picked up from Heathrow encountering a roundabout for the first time and not knowing what to do once on the roundabout. Each following car then had to drive around the stationary car on the roundabout. Totally unexpected. The winter tyres just gripped and stopped the car. 

[DanD]

I agree that winter tyres work best under 7 degrees.  They are made of a softer and therefore stickier compound than regular tyres and will wear out quickly in  temperatures above 10 degrees.

I lived in southern Germany for 9 years, and used to swap to winter tyres from late October to mid April.

[DBIZO]

+1 for winter when temperatures reliably drop well below 7C. I'd not want to drive a car with summer tyres on anywhere near 1-2C if there is the slightest amount of moisture on the surface.