Has anyone any experience of using chains on a coupe with 225/45/17 tyres. My manual states that you can't fit chains on it but the dealer recommends a Redmatic Disc at £350 ($500+).

 

Don't know, but what's a Redmatic Disc?

 

Ya know? I hate it when I ask a question and someone replies by questioning my question. But, I just gotta do it.

Are you going to plow snow with your car? Why not just get some good quality snow tires? I used to live where it snowed by the foot and I'd drive my cars to mountain ski resorts. I never even bought snow tires. I just bought good quality, all-season radials for the winter. Sometimes, I would drive a '66 Corvette or a '95 T-Bird through fresh unplowed snow up to about one foot deep. Neither had snow tires or chains and certainly weren't designed for cutting through new snow. Besides, chains are illegal almost everywhere because they tear up the road whenever you come to a spot that isn't covered with snow or ice. They're also dangerous and a pain in the butt to install. You can't drive very fast with chains installed, either.

I'd buy some all-season radials or snow tires and carry a bag of sand in the trunk. Use the sand if you start spinning while stopped. If you want to plow through deep snow, buy a 4x4 vehicle.

 

Not everyone one lives were there going to "plough snow" all the time lugnut.
What if like me, he lives 1.5hrs from the mountain and goes up twice a year to go skiing and they require "chains must be fitted past this point" and you need chains or an equivalant, but he may never have seen snow apart from this point and doesnt need all season radials for a few trips!!! <thats just an example
Not everyone on here lives in the same climate

 

Then all-season radials would be appropriate. They're not just for snow. They're not just for the winter. They're for wet and dry conditions all year round. That's what "all-season" means.

If he drives on a road that requires chains, then there's no sense debating whether or not he should use them. I agree with you on that point. He didn't say that, though. That's why I'm asking and discussing alternatives.

I just believe, through my experiences, that you don't need chains. Maybe back in the olden days of one-ply poly tires, but not with today's all-season or snow radials. 16-year-old kids learn to drive in the snow where I grew up. I did and they still do. I think 16-year-olds anywhere can do the same. I don't see why not.

Chains not only tear up the road but they chew up your tires as well. It's better if he doesn't use them--unless of course he's required by law to use them.

 

I live in England where we rarely get much snow but am driving to the French Alps for a skiing trip in February. The French police will stop vehicles without chains or winter tyres when the weather is bad. Because it is just for one trip I don't want to spend too much but am also concerned at the "do not fit snow chains" mesage in the manual.

 

It seems as though you're caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Your tires are performance tires. Wide 17" tires were never meant to go snow trekking with chains on them, hence the reference in the manual.

So, snow or all-season tires without chains are acceptable? Is that what you mean by "winter tyres?" Either would suffice unless you get there just when a huge storm is dumping snow faster then the snow plows can remove it from the roads.

I don't want to get nosy, but a ski trip might last about a week? In the US, I can rent a 4x4 or AWD vehicle for a week for under $500. An upside to this is you won't get your car's paint and undercarriage sprayed with corrosive road salt.

There are also used tire outlets around here that sell used snow tires in good condition for a fraction of the cost of a new set. Two used snow tires wouldn't cost anywhere near $500. There are also want ads and flea markets and...

I don't know if any of that applies in England, though.

Have you even priced a pair of brand new snow tires? $500 for a pair of new snow tires would be an outrageously high price. You should be able to get a new pair for less than half of that. If it were me, I think I'd buy new snow tires and then sell them when I got back from my trip.

And, what is a Redmatic Disc?

 

Sorry it should be RUDmatic Disc (picture here ) which is the particular chain that Mercedes UK recommend.