Thoughts please... I have been running 285/35 22 Toyo during the summer but now that it is below 7 degrees outside, I need to put winters back on. My original 07MY SE seven spoke 20 wheels currently have my worn out Pirelli Snow and Ice on them so looking at replacements.

4 options:

255/50 20 Nokian WR3 £177 per corneri

255/50 20 Vredestein Wintrac S £156 per corner

275/45 20 General Grabber Snow £110 per corner

275/45 20 General Grabber AT £151 per corner

Questions:

- do the 275/45 fit the 8.5J rims?

- does the AT work well as winter tyre?

I live in Aberdeenshire, so expect some snow but more ice and cold temps

Thoughts and suggestions appreciated. 2016 RRS Autobiography, Gone in 2018 56 plate Vogue SE TDV8 - my first Land Rover since Disco 2. Other cars 2012 Boxster S, 2007 FL2, 1996 MX5 Gleneagles, kids Fiat 500 and Corsa. Recent now gone 2003 Subaru WRX Wagon PPP, Mk3.5 MX5, VW Tiguan, 997 Porsche Carerra 4S, Porsche Boxster S (old) and wife's 2007 Saab Wagon. Recently had Subaru Impreza STI PPP, various MX5s and RX8. RR is first grown up car for a while.

Last edited by Stonehaven on 1st Nov 2016 12:48pm. Edited 1 time in total

I can vouch for General Grabber AT - had 2 sets on my D3 and they were great all year round I have read other people praising the Wintrac's but no experience myself.

I seem to remember reading in another post that 275/45 20s do fit, sure others will confirm either way.

I'm up in Aberdeen for a few days every month - lets hope it's a drier winter than last year

I have just got a set of second rims to put winter tyres on. I had a set of Vredesteins on my 322 and was astonished at the difference, but some have suggested they are entry level.
Still undecided what to get. letters not necessarily in the right order

Also, forgot to mention, I got a good 40,000+ miles from a set of Grabber AT's on my D3, compared with about 17,000 from the standard Pirelli's

Grabber AT's are NOT winter tyres.

I get kind of bored saying it, but M&S does not mean winter.

AT's are a compromise & have a tread pattern suitable for mud & snow, with better tarmac grip that full on MT's, but worse tarmac grip than most regular tyres.

Winter tyres are made of different rubber - they have a much higher silica content and remain flexible at far lower temperatures. They also have lots of little cuts (sipes) in them to create more edges to grip better.

To get the right thing for you, it's important to understand the differences - AT's will be great in snow, but less good on ice or wet roads. They will last a while as they have a deep tread, but that means they will handle worse on tarmac as there is more flex in those tread blocks.

I ran Vreds on my L322 in winter and they worked very well - but they do scrub a bit on the outer front edges.

Nokians are very well reviewed - I'd probably be going for those - but that would be for me - 99% on road and mostly concerned about cold wet roads & icy roads - and I run different tyres in summer. Your needs may be different - you'll likely see more snow and might require a more aggressive tread pattern and compromise the tarmac grip levels......

Thanks everyone.

So Nokians it is (as I expected).

Now choice is size 275/45 20 - £180 or 255/50 20 - £177

I like the look of the 285 width summer tyres on my 22 inch rims. The 20s have offset of ET57, the 22 have ET45, so by my reckoning a 275 on the 20s would stick out 7mm further than the 285 on the 22s and 10mm more than the standard 255 width. Does that sound right? I guess from other people using the 275/45 20s this isn't an issue nor is the 8.5j rim width? 2016 RRS Autobiography, Gone in 2018 56 plate Vogue SE TDV8 - my first Land Rover since Disco 2. Other cars 2012 Boxster S, 2007 FL2, 1996 MX5 Gleneagles, kids Fiat 500 and Corsa. Recent now gone 2003 Subaru WRX Wagon PPP, Mk3.5 MX5, VW Tiguan, 997 Porsche Carerra 4S, Porsche Boxster S (old) and wife's 2007 Saab Wagon. Recently had Subaru Impreza STI PPP, various MX5s and RX8. RR is first grown up car for a while.

Just before you buy - I suggest you look at Hancooks - I had a set for last winter, good price, low wear and great grip. Also very low road noise. Looking forward to getting mine back on. 2005 L322 Vogue Gold gone
2006 L322 Vogue Black gone
2011 L322 Vogue Silver gone
2011 L322 Autobiography Black gone
2015 L405 Autobiography LWB Black gone
2019 L405 P400e Range Rover Autobiography LWB Eiger grey / black roof gone
2001 P38a 30th Anniversary Wimbledon Green gone
2019 L405 P525 Autobiography LWB British Racing Green

Don't discount the Cooper Weathermaster WSC

Amazing tyre, IMHO, and approx £135 a corner

Stonehaven wrote:

So Nokians it is (as I expected).

Now choice is size 275/45 20 - £180 or 255/50 20 - £177

Ordered the Nokia in standard 255/50 size from Camskill - they were £20 per corner more than the Vreds or Hankook but seem to get strong reviews. Total including delivery was £722 for set of four delivered. Will be on car next Saturday. I will report back on how they are compared to the Perelli Snow and Ice which were very good but at £250+ a corner also very expensive. 2016 RRS Autobiography, Gone in 2018 56 plate Vogue SE TDV8 - my first Land Rover since Disco 2. Other cars 2012 Boxster S, 2007 FL2, 1996 MX5 Gleneagles, kids Fiat 500 and Corsa. Recent now gone 2003 Subaru WRX Wagon PPP, Mk3.5 MX5, VW Tiguan, 997 Porsche Carerra 4S, Porsche Boxster S (old) and wife's 2007 Saab Wagon. Recently had Subaru Impreza STI PPP, various MX5s and RX8. RR is first grown up car for a while.

Hello.

How did you fine the Nokians? I have a set of Vreds on RR 19" alloys that I can't use on my new car (4.4 TDV8) so looks like I may need new ones for the next winter (or I could track down the rare 19" style 15 that fit my RR and swap the tyres over).

Thanks.

Ian. Current: RR L322 2010
Past: RR L405 2017, RR L322 2012, 2008 & 2004, 2018 D5, 2016 Defender, 2011 D4, a few Disco2s, P38, RR Classic, couple of Disco1's, SIII SWB

Nice and quiet and good in rain but winter in Abereenshire was berry mild so can't vouch for proper winter use yet but expectation is they will be good. Happy with the purchase. 2016 RRS Autobiography, Gone in 2018 56 plate Vogue SE TDV8 - my first Land Rover since Disco 2. Other cars 2012 Boxster S, 2007 FL2, 1996 MX5 Gleneagles, kids Fiat 500 and Corsa. Recent now gone 2003 Subaru WRX Wagon PPP, Mk3.5 MX5, VW Tiguan, 997 Porsche Carerra 4S, Porsche Boxster S (old) and wife's 2007 Saab Wagon. Recently had Subaru Impreza STI PPP, various MX5s and RX8. RR is first grown up car for a while.