When I fitted my Avon Ranger Ice Tyres, I rang AXA and as per the above they said no charge and also they would make a note of it on the computer which proves they are aware of them for peace of mind.

It was quite frosty this morning and the car stated it was 0C so on temperature if nothing else, they were in their comfort zone. LL.B (Hons) - University of Derby
LOT (Lord of Time) - University of Gallifrey

i canot see why you should have to tell your insurance if you are fitting winter tyres as it is not a modifocation as long as you keep within the tyre sizes otherwise every time you change a tyre for std use do you have have to tell them if so there is a lot of vehicle users out there that may not be coverd if thats the case and it dont say that on my insurance docs that i have to notify them only if its classed as a mod  rainy-city
xs

bigalf1961 wrote:

i canot see why you should have to tell your insurance if you are fitting winter tyres as it is not a modifocation as long as you keep within the tyre sizes otherwise every time you change a tyre for std use do you have have to tell them if so there is a lot of vehicle users out there that may not be coverd if thats the case and it dont say that on my insurance docs that i have to notify them only if its classed as a mod

hi doc i was just wondering that if too many people rang there insurance over winter tyres that some may make a meal out of it and start charging just to get some extra wonga out of us insurance is a ripoff now lets not throw fuel on the fire  rainy-city
xs

That would indeed be harsh of them although I wouldn't put it past them to deploy such a plan

As one of the other guys said, in theory (especially last winter) they will perform better unless it is above 7C so they bring an element of safety which insurers should applaud..... (said with limited confidence)  LL.B (Hons) - University of Derby
LOT (Lord of Time) - University of Gallifrey

lets face it insurers will not think logicaly  rainy-city
xs

bigalf1961 wrote:

lets face it insurers will not think logicaly

DOH!  LL.B (Hons) - University of Derby
LOT (Lord of Time) - University of Gallifrey

The Doctor wrote:

That would indeed be harsh of them although I wouldn't put it past them to deploy such a plan

As one of the other guys said, in theory (especially last winter) they will perform better unless it is above 7C so they bring an element of safety which insurers should applaud..... (said with limited confidence)

dont worry about the above 7c - i ran my winter tyres all year round, couldnt tell any difference from summer tyres

work as good in summer and better in winter, and Ive done about 18K and plenty left on them

win win

work as good in summer and better in winter

Oh boy, how wrong can you be
Still if you care to put your life at risk thats up to you, but dont suggest others do the same

Might suggest that British car insurers charge considerably more for drivers using winter tyres in summer than any suggestion of increasing premiums using winter tyres in winter  2007 Freelander 2 HSE TD4 Manual with Premium Pack & Moonroof.
Stornoway Grey with Ebony Black Pleather, Clear Indicators, Body Side Mouldings etc.

AndyC wrote:

work as good in summer and better in winter

Oh boy, how wrong can you be
Still if you care to put your life at risk thats up to you, but dont suggest others do the same

Might suggest that British car insurers charge considerably more for drivers using winter tyres in summer than any suggestion of increasing premiums using winter tyres in winter

why?

life at risk...B S

i feel its P.C gone mad, but go on explain the detrimetal risk of using a softer compound tyre in warmer weather.

in fact i'm sure thats what high performance vehicles use for BETTER traction......

ok, feeling i've been a bit off the cuff with my last reply I've been searching t'interweb and get my facts.

because obviously if the winter tyre was as good in sumer then there would be no winter/summer only all year round tyres.....

but i'm positive that the vredstein website used to say somthing along the lines of "also offer all year round performance" but it is now a different website

so the only website i found that answers or question says:

So why not use winter tyres all year round? The simple answer is that at higher temperatures, on wet or dry roads, they’re not as good as summer tyres: tyre technology has moved forward a long way but temperature still has a big impact on longevity and performance.

As a result, we have summer tyres, winter tyres and all-season tyres, the last a compromise for all-year-round use but not matching the ultimate performance of either winter- or summer-specific tyres.

Winter tyres use a higher proportion of natural rubber, with silica compounds to maintain flexibility in cold conditions. Michelin’s Alpin range (made in Dundee, Scotland) even use a compound containing sunflower oil for better wet grip. Winter tyres also have far more sipes for cutting through water and deeper tread than summer tyres but the side effect is that they can make the steering feel imprecise in the dry; much effort has gone into encouraging the sipes to ‘lock’ when cornering, to reduce this effect.


so the headlines of this statement says because of the materials they are made of (natural rubber etc) the longevity is reduced
and performance factor is that steering can feel imprecise


on a personal note the vredsteins have stood up very well on the wear rate, although i never expected to hit the 30K which my wrangelers did. On the performance side the vredsteins have never, never put a foot wrong on cornering which is possibly why I indicated all year round use prooved no issue. Also as i couldnt tell any difference, only improvements, especially with standing water on motorways etc.

I was wrong to generalise that all winter tyres would be fine all year round as this statement above prooves

cheers
matt

In addition to rubber compound differences, the tread pattern of a summer tyre is optimal for faster driving in dry and wet conditions and quite different to a winter tyre pattern which have a more complex tread pattern that is designed for slower wetter driving and in more slippery (ice/snow)conditions. To illustrate how the performance differences may appear in extreme situations, take a look at F1 and see what happens when wet tyres are used during a wet race and then the track dries out - if they don't swap back to slicks the wet tyres become too warm and loose their grip. The same will happen using winter tyres in summer conditions.

As a footnote - In Norway earlier (before the 4x4 boom) quite a few (often with lower motoring budgets) used all weather tyres all year round. When tested by the NAF (Norwegian equivalent to the AA/RAC) they were found to give considerably poorer results than using correct season tyres and when these became worn in some cases quite dangerous. I am not sure if they are still legal here, but if still sold I don't think it will be many. 2007 Freelander 2 HSE TD4 Manual with Premium Pack & Moonroof.
Stornoway Grey with Ebony Black Pleather, Clear Indicators, Body Side Mouldings etc.

I am a firm believer that winter and summer tyres are at their best in the correct season having experience of such.
My passat estate is hopeless in winter on all season tyres (Michelin Pilots 215/55 R16) so Last year I run it on Yokohama v903 winter tyres and found the handling on wet roads, snow and ice very good (not Freely like but better than without).
Then when I changed the wheels back over in spring I instantly noticed that I could take bends faster and the car was stopping a lot quicker on the Michelin pilots.

On my Freely Even in foot deep snow I've Never needed winter tyres. I just make sure I have brand new tyres on for the start of winter but I never get past 4mm before I change.

Last Winter I fitted 16 n wheels with 215/65 R16 Conti M+S
The Winter before I had 19's shod with 235/55/ R19 Conti UHP
Winter before That I was on 235/60 R17 Goodyear Wranglers M+S

I Would say they all handled perfectly well and I did some extreme snowy roads including 'The Struggle' Hardnotts and Rhinos in the lakes whilst they were Closed, I had chains in the boot and never needed then.

Also this year I have got a set of 15in Steelys (175/65 R17 Yokohamas v903) for my missus Mini Cooper instead of the 205/55 R17 she runs on in the summer.

i see, its understandable for the all weather tyres to be an issue as I'm guessing scandinavia has some quite extreme winters and if the tyres don't dont perform then people are at risk.

But the Fl2 comes with an all weather M&S tyre as standard? these would have to be removed at point of vehicle sale if they were illegal.

tread patterns are always different across tryes, the F1 explanation you give is of extreme perfomance where acceleration and the g force is that of near miricles!
i've done many races with slicks on and if it rains -bad times, but with a grooved tyre to disperse the water, even if it starts cracking the flags i could still finish strong. just not as fast as with the slick

with the fl2, the wintrac rating excedes the performance of the vehicle in all conditions. and there are no issues in 30c heat at 70mph on the motor way.

a member on here contacted vredestein last year via email and he posted the response from them, i have just been looking for it but i cant find it. in the email it stated that they can be run all year round with no risk.

you have to use common sence - I could go to a back street garage and buy 4 of the sh est nasty re-moulds put them on - pass MOT -drive in summer to winter and everything inbetween and it would be legal and accepted

so back to your original response - No i am not putting myself, my wife, and my childrens lives in jepordy - not everything is wrong just because its different

The big difference i notice is that standard road tyres just wont stop very well in slippery conditons, particualry if downhill.
We've quite a few hills round here, only tried road tyres once last winter and s t myself.
Even at a very low speed in 1st, HDC on, it kept sliding. Another member of the failed FL2 clutch/DMF club, twice.