Winter tyres: speed and load ratings

[dinsdale]

Having obtained a spare set of alloys, I'm intending to fit winter tyres to my Leon Cupra (2002 model with the 205/55/16 size).

The tyres I'm considering at the moment are Avon Ice Touring, but I notice they come in 3 speed and load variants: 91H, 94H and 94V (standard fit summer tyres are 91V).

I read somewhere that the reason winter tyres usually have a lower speed rating is that you sacrifice road holding ability in ice/snow by going for a higher rating (presumably because side walls have to be stiffer, and some flex can be helpful here) - so I'm thinking of getting H rated tyres, unless anyone here has a good argument for getting the faster ones.

But what about load rating? As I understand it, winter tyres of the same load rating will have more flexible sidewalls than summer ones - so does this mean if I go for the 91 rated tyres the car will wallow noticeably more in corners? And if so, is getting the 94 rated ones a good idea, or will this again sacrifice ability in snow as above?

I'm sure there is no one right answer and any of the above tyres would be fine. But what would the experts on here recommend?

 

[ReDBull]

I think alot of the flex is in the tread which is much deeper. You also have less grip in the dry as there designed to work in the wet. As to speed ratings have you asked your tyre fitter or supplier?
I like the idea of winter tyre. I know this sounds like a stupid question but at what point do you decide to fit them? As in how wet do the roads have to be to justifie them?

 

[sonnex22]

winter tires work better than summer tires when the temperature drops below 7 degrees C

 

[BenG]

Are there any insurance / legal implications associated with fitting differently sized or load-rated winter tyres compared with the original-size and-rating tyres?

I was thinking of buying some 16" steels with 205/55 winter tyres (same size as original Cupra tyres) for my FR TDI (wearing 17s with 224/45 currently).

I'm moving to Scotland in February so figure some winters might possibly come in handy....

 

[dinsdale]

Are there any insurance / legal implications associated with fitting differently sized or load-rated winter tyres compared with the original-size and-rating tyres?

As I understand it, it's not legal to fit tyres of a lower load or speed index, except that winter tyres may have a speed index one step lower (i.e. H instead of V in my case). I believe in some countries, but not the UK, there should be a sticker visible to the driver if the tyres are rated for a lower speed than the car.

Insurance implications are, as always, a bit of a grey area. I've tried asking SEAT about this in the hope that they would have a range of recommended ratings, but the guy I spoke to simply told me it would be best to stick to exactly the same ratings as summer tyres. The standard advice would, I'm sure, be to ask your insurer, but the down side of this is that you could get the (incorrect) answer that it's a modification that can't be covered, or at least that it would cost you to get the change recorded on your policy.

As for size, I'm not sure, but have you first checked that the 16" wheels would fit over your brakes?

 

[Slimy]

16's should fit on the FR, I have a set of 16's waiting to go over 312mm brakes on my Toledo.

I don't understand the relevance of speed ratings on winter tyres, most speed ratings are higher than the national speed limit anyway and you are really brave to even get close to those speeds if the roads warrant the use of winter tyres!

The load index is more to do with the weight of the car so is slightly more relevant, but even so it's not as if I'm going to be loading up the tyres by gunning round corners with the winters on!

There was a news report about insurance companies wanting to know about winter tyres, the insurance rep specifically said it wasn't something they would take any notice of. However, that is one rep from one insurance company, so take it with a lorry load of salt.

My winters are 91H, for fitting to a V5 Toledo (similar kerb weight to the diesels).

 

[BenG]

So I suppose the answer is call the insurance company before buying winter tyres, so they can't use them as an excuse to wriggle off the hook in the event of an accident (which is more likely in winter weather, either because of hooning around enjoying the extra grip of the winter tyres or because someone else without them runs into the back of you).

They're pricy anyway and I was planning to fit 16s for all-year use to try to improve the shocking ride quality of the FR, so might skip the winters and use my mountain bike for commuting instead (spiked ice tyres were only £30 each...).

Ben