Avensis

[Christine Jessie]

I have recently purchased a new Avensis T Spirit. During the recient bad weather, the car is very unstable on the snow and ice. Can anyone suggest what tyres I should change too to give me good road holding through out the year without changing tyres just for winter use.

[bothwell_buyer]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

Most cars are unstable on snow and certainly on ice. Its a compromise between tyres that are good for motorway driving (eg less road noise) and tyres good for snow that have deeper tread paterns...but which are then noisy on tarmac.

I have just bought a reasonable set of tyres for my Previa and cos they are new, they handle snow a bit better than part worn. However driving the Previa on ice is a bit the same as skating !

Depending on where in Scotland you are, the use of snow chains or the socks you can now buy will help in bad conditions but they need to be taken off when used on tarmac to avoid them wearing out quickly.

The guys with the Avensis will be along shortly to give their opinions on tyres for the car. Have fun.... safely !!!

[t-spiritpete]

I have recently purchased a new Avensis T Spirit. During the recient bad weather, the car is very unstable on the snow and ice. Can anyone suggest what tyres I should change too to give me good road holding through out the year without changing tyres just for winter use.

Hello, you could try switching off the traction control (TRC) when you are driving in snow, maybe try it out for the first time on a quiet stretch of road to see what you think but as the other reply said most cars suffer, an extreme example will be cars like the BMW or Merc with rear wheel drive and wide tyres which make matters a lot worse. One other thing to think about when fitting winter tyres is the insurance side, it may sound daft but some companies say you are more prone to be rear end shunted because your car can stop quicker than a car with summer tyres so it would be worth checking with your insurer.

Best regards,

Pete.

[DodgyKnee]

Hello,

I have a T4 on 17 inch wheels with Bridgestone Turanza tyres and the car was always undriveable on even the lightest snow/ice (I have done turning off the traction control etc...) . It turns out that the Bridgestone tyres are made of a very hard compound that just don't flex when cold so the tread gets full of compressed snow/ice and it is like trying to drive on slicks. Anyway, just before the last snow I changed the tyres for Uniroyal Rainsport 2 tyres (after lots of research) and they are a revelation - much, much better (suddenly in snow/ice I can get up my hilly street when before the car would just wheel spin and go nowhere) and they are very quiet at motorway speeds too. I know some people say that because they are softer they will need changing more often, but that is a moot point considering the alternative of just leaving the car sitting in the driveway whilst using my wife's Hyundai on Hankook tyres.

[Christine Jessie]

Hello,

I have a T4 on 17 inch wheels with Bridgestone Turanza tyres and the car was always undriveable on even the lightest snow/ice (I have done turning off the traction control etc...) . It turns out that the Bridgestone tyres are made of a very hard compound that just don't flex when cold so the tread gets full of compressed snow/ice and it is like trying to drive on slicks. Anyway, just before the last snow I changed the tyres for Uniroyal Rainsport 2 tyres (after lots of research) and they are a revelation - much, much better (suddenly in snow/ice I can get up my hilly street when before the car would just wheel spin and go nowhere) and they are very quiet at motorway speeds too. I know some people say that because they are softer they will need changing more often, but that is a moot point considering the alternative of just leaving the car sitting in the driveway whilst using my wife's Hyundai on Hankook tyres.

[Christine Jessie]

Thanks for the information, will try everyones suggestion about traction control and use of Uniroyals

Chris J

[jimmythemarker]

Thanks for the information, will try everyones suggestion about traction control and use of Uniroyals

Chris J

hi,christine,just reduce the tyre pressure in your drive wheels by up to ten lbs on hard packed snow keep your wheels straight whenever possible under gentle revs carry a shovel and old carpet and apply a notch on the handbrake downhill on frontwheel drive cars.been doing this over 40yrs good luck