Winter is coming! Snow chains

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knea
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun May 21, 2017 6:39 pm
Location: London

Post by knea »

Hello,
I'm planning a few trips during the winter and I'm wondering what's the best way to deal with snow.
I own a FE - having 18 inch tyres - and the manual states:
"If your vehicle has 18 inch tyres, do not use tyre chains. They can damage your vehicle (wheel, suspension and body)."
I suspect this only based on the fact that there is no clearance behind the tyres, e.g. between tyre and suspension. Furthermore, the alloy can get damaged by the traditional chains. This is not unusual and with other cars you can use this kind of chains (not this model specifically!):
https://snowchains.co.uk/snowchains/Thule+K-Summit/

Please have anyone tried this kind of solution before?
Kia Niro HEV First Edition, 2017, White Pearl

deguy
Posts: 93
Joined: Tue Jan 31, 2017 8:54 pm
Location: Expat in Munich

Post by deguy »

Haven't tried those chains (or any other on the Niro!), but yes, the tyres on the 18" wheels are slightly wider and by my calculations also slightly larger in diameter than those on the 16".

Will you be driving in the mountains where snow chains will be needed/required, or are winter tyres on 16" wheels an option (I presume you had all weather tyres delivered as standard)?

Living in southern Germany, I will be going for the winter tyre option anyway, as the all weather tyres are not really up to the winters here, but I had not considered the snow chain aspect. I will bear that in mind, although I'm not likely to be driving in the mountains much in winter, and even when I did I have never needed snow chains - depends where you go of course.
Niro Spirit 2017 HEV in Ocean Blue (German spec similar to First Edition without ADAP)
Previously: Mercedes B-Class 200CDI Autotronic
knea
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun May 21, 2017 6:39 pm
Location: London

Post by knea »

Hello Deguy,
The tyres I got are the Michelin Pilot Sport 4. I suppose the same applies to other Niros, at least other FEs. The tyres are very good, actually, but they are not all-season tyres and I have no idea how they perform in Winter with low temp.

I'd be prompted to say that getting the winter tyres would be a good move, sort of best practice mainly based to my previous life elsewhere, but the the recent winters have been quite warm here around London. Maybe they can be an expensive overkill?
Going for good winter tyres, e.g. the Michelin Pilot Alpin, would be in the region of £700 for the tyres, or £1300 for alloy+tyre sets, plus service. So, the reason why I'm raising the topic now is to plan the purchase, in case.
This is the first winter season I expect to routinely drive across England in Winter. Any feedback would be genuinely appreciated!

Assuming the winter tyres are not really needed in England, the other option would be to buy and carry the snow chains, sort of plan B for compliance and in case of snow, although not the best option for ongoing driving. Yes trips are expected to be to Alps and Apennines and to areas where winter tyres / snow chains are mandatory November-April. The external snow chains are quite expensive but - theoretically - they would preserve the integrity of the alloy and the suspension. Can't find reviews around, by people who have actually used them in order to confirm it's possible with a Niro w/ 18'' tyres. Guess it's not an uncommon issue when you buy a relatively new model!

Out of curiosity, re "are winter tyres on 16" wheels an option": are you suggesting to use 18'' summer tyres and 16'' winter tyres?
Kia Niro HEV First Edition, 2017, White Pearl
JimT
Posts: 54
Joined: Sun Jul 30, 2017 4:53 am
Location: Ryde, Isle of Wight

Post by JimT »

Hi knea,
Would maintaining 2 sets of wheels - current tyres on the 18" alloys and winter tyres on steel wheels be an option? If you can find 16" steel rims that fit the niro would be better than keeping the alloys on and having to pay for the tyres to be changed over each year. Also they use an awful lot of salt on mainland Europe which doesn't do expensive alloys much good. Snow chains might be a possibility on 16" wheels - check with your dealer. Possibly 205 60R 16 winter tyres might be cheaper than the 225 45R 18 equivalent.
Now: niro 2 (red)
Previous cars:
Citroen C3 Picasso (auto)
Renault grand scenic 1.5dci on 17" wheels (awful)
knea
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun May 21, 2017 6:39 pm
Location: London

Post by knea »

Hi Jim,
Thanks, I have completely ignored the option with the 16'' winter tyres on steel! I'm giving a try with the dealer to understand what does it involve.
Kia Niro HEV First Edition, 2017, White Pearl
deguy
Posts: 93
Joined: Tue Jan 31, 2017 8:54 pm
Location: Expat in Munich

Post by deguy »

@knea, yes, I did mean to stick with the 18" for summer and use 16" for winter - as JimT says, it would be more normal to put the winter tyres on steel wheels rather than alloys. Only you can decide whether the use you get from them justifies the cost.

I will need to go for winter tyres in the next 6 weeks myself, and it is more normal here to go for smaller tyres on steels for winter. I will feed back on my experience afterwards.

One other thing to bear in mind as you say you have summer tyres (which I'm surprised at, as summer tyres typically only perform well above 7 deg Celsius, which even in the south of England, where I come from too, winters will drop below that every year) - summer tyres will not be considered appropriate in many countries during winter, so if coming to Switzerland, Germany, Austria or northern Italy you would need winter tyres to be legal. If on the other hand your existing tyres have M+S (mud and snow) on them, then they would likely be all weather tyres and allowed in winter from a legal point of view (at least here in Germany), but of course the chains won't fit. Mainly important for insurance purposes should you have an accident, but I've seen first hand what problems cars with summer and to a certain extent all weather tyres experience when driving on snow or just in very cold weather.
Niro Spirit 2017 HEV in Ocean Blue (German spec similar to First Edition without ADAP)
Previously: Mercedes B-Class 200CDI Autotronic
knea
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun May 21, 2017 6:39 pm
Location: London

Post by knea »

Hello Deguy, thanks, very clear.
Actually in Italy it goes beyond - or below :) - North: similar policies in other regions. E.g. several areas around Rome have the policy "winter tyres or chains" for highways and motorways.
Ok, very useful, thank you all! Time to look at some prices and options!
Kia Niro HEV First Edition, 2017, White Pearl
djbobbins
Posts: 132
Joined: Fri Mar 03, 2017 7:57 pm

Post by djbobbins »

As someone who lived in Germany for a while and had to have winter tyres by law, all I can say is that when we returne to the UK, we kept the tyres and I swap them each Autumn and Spring. Once the initial outlay is done (I was fortunate that I managed to pick up a set of steel rims of the right stud pattern for the car in question on eBay for not much money; 4 x 195/65/15 tyres came in at about £300) then actually the costs are the same - only one set of tyres is getting worn at any one time. I have a rack to store the wheels on in my garage and with a trolley Jack and wheel wrench, it takes me about 40 minutes to do all four wheels.

I even went so far as to buy a full set of winter tyres and wheels for my company car.

This is my way of saying that even in UK conditions, the grip on cold wet roads is noticeably better from winter tyres. We only had snow once whilst we were living in northern Germany, but in a deliberate test of the tyre performance, I had to accelerate fairly heavily in a snow-covered car park to get the car to lose grip. At that point I was converted and I think it should be mandatory for all new cars in the UK to be provided with both summer and winter tyres, or fitted with e.g. Michelin cross-climates, which I have heard are very good.
deguy
Posts: 93
Joined: Tue Jan 31, 2017 8:54 pm
Location: Expat in Munich

Post by deguy »

Just checked my tyres as delivered (car picked up in June 2017):

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 225/45 ZR18 91W

Very definitely summer tyres - no M+S. The W speed rating seems a bit excessive for the Niro, which does not have that high a top speed.
Niro Spirit 2017 HEV in Ocean Blue (German spec similar to First Edition without ADAP)
Previously: Mercedes B-Class 200CDI Autotronic
djbobbins
Posts: 132
Joined: Fri Mar 03, 2017 7:57 pm

Post by djbobbins »

Interesting that the 18" rims are not fitted with low rolling resistance tyres as standard; that would appear to be another reason for the difference in fuel consumption between the models.
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