Guys
Living in Sweden we are used to having great winter tyres and the biggest player, Nokian, is test winner year in year out. They hold the world speed record on ice with their road tyre!

They have just released the new Hakkapeliitta 8 in an SUV version - wow.

It is awesome and I don't use the word lightly. The SUV version has stiffer sidewalls to handle the extra weight and higher centre of gravity.

The H8 is a fantastic piece of technology in itself. It is studded with a new absorbing system, has ice block claws and is made of a new ultra low temp compound so that they remain 'sticky' even at minus 50 (most European winter tyres become like Lego bricks when the temp drops).

Here in Sweden we must drive on winter tyres between Oct - Apr. This means that for a few weeks of the year we are sometimes driving on wet or dry snow free roads and motorways (asfelt). This means that the studs in the tyres must be gentle on the road and withstand wear from running snow / ice free. These H8's are spot on.

Check out this infomercial from Nokian.



I fitted these a couple of weeks ago and they have changed my world. My old winter tyres were good (previous H7's), but man are these tyres amazing.

This week, a guy down driving up our street got his Ford Focus stuck going up a snowy hill whilst he was towing a 750KG trailer. He was going nowhere. I hooked him up and pulled his Focus, still attached to the trailer up a 20% uphill in the snow. I swear, even at the bite point, the tyres never even slipped a mm to find grip, it was just planted solid. It actually made the hairs on my arms stand up, just how incredible they (and LR2) are.

No I don't work for Nokian or similar, I'm just a Brit ex-pat maxing out the already great LR!

If I still lived in the UK I would definately fit these for winter. There is no law saying that studded tyres are illegal (MOT might have a view). Still, you can almost not see them, only just feel them with your fingers and they are virtually silent. I'd run them whatever. You would blow people away and freak them out in the UK when the white stuff falls and the ice arrives.

My set of 4 (16" as you want to make the width as narrow as possible and sidewall as deep as possible for maximum performance) cost about £700.

Click image to enlarge

Click image to enlarge

Sadly over here in 'sunny' England we are not usually allowed studded tyres IIRC.

However I am really liking your spots on the front of your Freely

Never really got to the bottom of studded tyre law in UK. In Germany and northern mainland europe where they are used to having winter tyres, they specifically forbid studded. UK are inly just waking up to winter tyres so maybe they haven't come across it yet?

Spots are fitted with very little impact to car. They are bolted to a solid metal plate which fits behind the number plate. In the future when removed, the through bumper bolt holes will be behind the number plate - smart. They are then stabilised by solid stays at the top which I zip tied to the grill (cushioned by rubber end stops).

They are rock solid and proper daylighters

As I read the law on Studded Tyres it's the same as for fitting Chains, if the road is completely covered in Snow, it's legal, should there be patches of Tarmac and the Studs or Chains can come in to contact with it, then it would be illegal. So for us we would need three sets of tyres, Summer, Winter and Snow, the Snow, probably never wearing them out over here.

http://www.etyres.co.uk/uk-tyre-law/

I am a massive fan of Nokian winter tyres! Freelander 2 HSE Lux 2013MY - Barolo Black with Ivory Leather. Alpine DVD - Privacy -Evoque 20" Dynamic Wheels and more to come.........