@Betty, summer tyres aren't designed to work in extreme temperatures and below 7-10C the rubber becomes harder losing its traction. Like you I've always coped but I feel this has been foolhardy on my part and it's only luck on my side that I haven't had an accident up to now.
I know full well that summer tyres don't work so well below a certain temperature. But you drive your car in a manner fitting the conditions. The UK has managed for so long, why change now? We have a few days (at the most) of bad weather per year. Not enough to justify changing your tyres. You just take a bit of extra care. Unfortunately the British public get suckered in to all the scare stories and shell out money on four new rims and winter tyres when in fact, just taking a bit of extra care works as well.
Wintertyres are superior to summertyres and thats a fact.
Where have I said anything different?
You surviving is nothing than luck or you drive very slow.
Not luck. It's driving within the limits of my car, my abilities and the driving conditions. On the few times (in Holland) when there's been snow, I've coped in my rear wheel drive M3's, Z4 M's etc. Sure, I've had to travel slower than cars with winter tyres, and on the odd occasion I've decided against getting my car out of the garage and found an alternative, but I've never felt the need to fit winter tyres. In ten years I've never had so much as a small bump. I must be incredibly lucky!
The UK is not Sweden, where I agree, winter tyres are essential.
Not having wintertyres is just ignorance.
Complete and utter nonsense. Driving in itself is not without risk. It's all about risk assessment. Some cars don't have all the safety systems of the more expensive cars like the S Class. Does that mean the cheaper cars are dangerous? When airbags first arrived in the S Class, did that suddenly make every other car dangerous? Of course fitting winter tyres in winter makes driving safer. But that doesn't mean driving with summer tyres is automatically UNSAFE. Stop viewing the UK like Sweden. I've yet to experience a winter in 18 years of driving where winter tyres were necessary, and this isn't me being macho. Some winters in the UK (certainly away from the highest ground) don't even see an inch of snow.
Unfortunately the British public will just blindly follow any old crap that they're told whilst garages reap the profits.
