Winter tyres for Finland?

[S2central.net]

Agreed - H rating is plenty good enough... The only niggle you might get is the tyre place saying they cannot fit H rated tyres to a car which calls up something higher. They are covering their *** of course - just another reason to turn up with four naked rims.

[Nj]

cool. thanks lads. If I buy them here I'll get them fitted at an independent alloy specialist who probably won't grumble. In fact I'll check and see how much they can get the tyres for in case it's better.

[urq20]

Use winter tyres at temperatures below +7 °C and on snow or ice-covered roads.
Only then can the effect of the ABS and ESP® driving systems be ensured in winter too.
Use winter tyres of the same make and tread on all wheels to maintain safe handling characteristics.

You must replace winter tyres with a tread depth of less than 4 mm immediately.
These tyres are unsuitable for use in winter and no longer provide sufficient grip.
As a result, you could lose control of the vehicle and cause an accident.
Always observe the maximum permissible speed specified for the winter tyres you have fitted.

Winter tyres with H rating, speed limit is 210km/h
Winter tyres with V rating, speed limit is 240km/h

If you fit winter tyres which have a lower maximum permissible speed than that of the vehicle, affix an appropriate warning sign in the driver's field of vision. ( Required in Germany)
This can be obtained at a qualified specialist workshop, e.g. from a Service Centre.

[Nj]

below 7 eh? sounds like the Scottish summer

Thanks for that additional information mate. My car is clocked to 160mph so that's above both speed ratings, not that I intend to drive at 150mph on the snow

I'll see what the Finns say about needing a sticker.

With my car having sports suspension as standard it's quite low. would 205/55/16s give me acceptable clearance since i'm running 225/40/18s just now?

[silizium]

No stickers here.

[EspenW]

For use in Finland, I will strongly advise against H rated winter tires like the Nokian WR. These are specifically developed for continental Europe, and more of a rain/light snow tire.
The rubber compound is softer than a summer tire, but not nearly as soft as a proper Scandinavian type studless snow tire, so they are not nearly as good on ice.

Nokian Hakka R or Hakka RSi is what you should look into when it comes to studless tires for Finland. For studded ones, you can't go wrong with Hakka 7.

[Nj]

ahhh... I was actually trying to work out from Nokian's website just how different they would be. Their descriptions do mention the suitability of the WR to central europe rather than nordic regions.

Do you think i'll be ok driving through sweden and finland on the first few days of November on summer tyres? So I could just buy my winter wheels in Finland..

[EspenW]

Do you think i'll be ok driving through sweden and finland on the first few days of November on summer tyres? So I could just buy my winter wheels in Finland..

It might be no problem, but on the other hand, if there is snow/ice on the ground (good chance) you will not be going anywhere without snow tires, so I would not take the chance.

[Nj]

I'd really like to get them on before I leave but i'm having real trouble finding them in the UK

[Skull]

what is the difference between a WR 2 205/55 R16 91H and a WR 2 205/55 R16 94H XL?

is that XL part of the speed thingy?

[Nj]

I wish I knew. my head's a bit pickled

[jataka]

what is the difference between a WR 2 205/55 R16 91H and a WR 2 205/55 R16 94H XL?

is that XL part of the speed thingy?

XL = eXtra Load = reinforced

[Nj]

XL = eXtra Load = reinforced

*insert own mother in law in car joke here*

[Nj]

I'm having no luck at all trying to find Nokian Hakka RSi outside Finland.
Does anyone know about Bridgestone Blizzak Nordics? They seem to get a good write up and I have someone trying to see if he can get them for me locally.

[EspenW]

Check Hakka R or Conti VikingContact 5