Which tyres are best in the snow?

Hi, I run a Defender 200tdi 110 here in France. I have BFG Trac edge tyres which have plenty of tread but I am disappointed with them in the snow.
Last year I had Cooper A/T which had very little tread and they seemed much better in snow.
I am thinking of having a set of snow tyres for the winter but not sure what to get.
Whilst I was driving around on compacted snow and ice the postman in his little Renault van with snow tyres and only two wheel drive had much better grip and went anywhere the Land Rover would go.
On one occasion I parked the Landy in a lane on a hill whilst I was attaching a tow rope to pull the mother in-laws car out that she had driven into the ditch , the landy just slid off down the lane on the ice and disappeared into the distance. I did manage to get back up the lane with diff lock on and wheels spinning. I have tried lowering the tyre pressure which made a slight difference but still not as good as the postman.

My Special Tracs were awesome in the snow today.

mikescuba said:

Hi, I run a Defender 200tdi 110 here in France. I have BFG Trac edge tyres which have plenty of tread but I am disappointed with them in the snow.
Last year I had Cooper A/T which had very little tread and they seemed much better in snow.
I am thinking of having a set of snow tyres for the winter but not sure what to get.
Whilst I was driving around on compacted snow and ice the postman in his little Renault van with snow tyres and only two wheel drive had much better grip and went anywhere the Land Rover would go.
On one occasion I parked the Landy in a lane on a hill whilst I was attaching a tow rope to pull the mother in-laws car out that she had driven into the ditch , the landy just slid off down the lane on the ice and disappeared into the distance. I did manage to get back up the lane with diff lock on and wheels spinning. I have tried lowering the tyre pressure which made a slight difference but still not as good as the postman.

Click to expand...

If it was just ice, then ye'd be hard pushed to stop it slipping unless ye had some o' them stud things fitted to the tyres

In my experience AT's have always performed better than an open mud tyre as they manage to grip the snow rather than grab at it and rip it away.

in fresh or deep snow my MTs have been great but like buster says if its ice then your better off with studs or chains

erm studless ice and snow tyres would be yer best bet...... pretty limited on there use (or less than one month a year........


i'm pretty sure you can't get away with studs in most of europe but some areas you are legally obliged to carry chains

get a new set of bfg mud km2 they are the dogs

I had trac edges on mine last yr and found there where great in the snow a foot deep and they where ny-on worn out .
Aint tryed the Insa's yet as Im still waiting for the snow to get here

Studded tyres are the only things that work on ice. You can get a cheap set of tyres and add your own or get some with stubs already in.

simex

Well impressed with my BF Mud Terrain's today!

Last winter I had a 90 and I had new General Grabber TR fitted...these have been standard factory fit by LR in the past. I was very impressed with them in snow, dry and wet. They even got around the 'mud run' at one of the shows.

This season I have a 110 and I inheritted a new set of Enduro Runway 265/75 R16... Fairly chunky tread... good in dry and wet... snow, not as good as the General Grabbers but they do the job.... this could be because the 110 is not a nimble and heavier than the 90.

My brother lives in Canada and drives a SUV... a front wheel drive People Carrier. He has to go to winter tyres by law. When he showed me the winter tyres I was amazed how bland they looked.... just like 'regular' tyres rather than very chunky treads.

Dedicated snow/winter tyres are the best for snow..... ice, nothing will cope unless studded or add chains to the front.... you will slide off the road like everyone else.

Most of us want a compromise and one set only so if buying new make sure the tyres are 'snow rated'... they will be good enough.

I may ditch the Enduro Runway after this winter... if I do I would go for the new Grabber A/T or BF Goodridge A/T... I will do my research first as I am a tight git.

khaos said:

Studded tyres are the only things that work on ice. You can get a cheap set of tyres and add your own or get some with stubs already in.

Click to expand...

Studded tyres are illegal in the UK and France.

Chains are the ultimate for ice.

I have Pirelli Ice & Snow Tyres on my Landy atm, the muds are off until it warms up again.

Winter Tyres Rock!!!

I've just fitted a new set of grabber TR and have been impressed with them in 5 inches of snow today, no wheelspin and no skidding to a stop

I even managed to pull a VW LT35 with a flat tyre out of a snow drift after he got stuck, he'd read somewhere that letting the tyre down gives more grip, except he'd let all of the air out

Before I bought them I found a tyre review site where loads gave them 1 star for snow performance but i'm starting to wonder if they just work for a rival tyre manufacturer because they were great today

I've got Grabber TRs on my 110 - I'm very impressed with them too.

Thanks for the info. I have read that the Grabber a/t are better in the snow. My BF Trac edge pull well in the snow but cornering is poor. I couldn't keep up with the postman in his van with snow tyres on. ( I live in France) we normally have three months of snow here so a snow rated tyre might be worth while. I was in the forest yesterday virgin snow about 12/14 inches and the BG didn't miss a beat in the thick stuff. Think I will go with the Grabbers next time round unless I learn something different.
Regards

mikescuba said:

Thanks for the info. I have read that the Grabber a/t are better in the snow. My BF Trac edge pull well in the snow but cornering is poor. I couldn't keep up with the postman in his van with snow tyres on. ( I live in France) we normally have three months of snow here so a snow rated tyre might be worth while. I was in the forest yesterday virgin snow about 12/14 inches and the BG didn't miss a beat in the thick stuff. Think I will go with the Grabbers next time round unless I learn something different.
Regards

Click to expand...

Snow is easy, ice is the problem. My Maxxis tyres have been great these past few weeks. Never had a slip even when I gave it a bit of a flick to try and get a bit of sideways action. They're boring really. They just get on with it. Get some slicks and drive in snow with some flamboyance. Arrive everywhere doing pirouettes and bouncing off of curbs.

Hi All,
Any opinions of Michelin XZL M/T? I have a set of new ones, which I've never fitted so far. I'm using BFG A/T at the moment, quite ok, but must say that here (South Serbia) we haven't really had any serious snow this winter yet.

I have kumo muds KL71 on mine and they do tend to slip sideways a bit compared to BFG Muds on snowy lanes this weekend.

I also have Khumo KL71's and I've find them to be absolutely brilliant in snow, even in deep snow bumper high they've never let me down yet!