All,

Morning , need to decide what to re shod the car in, done 23000 miles on Pirelli 190 Winter and been very pleased with levels of grip especilly living on the edge of the Dales where its needed.

Cannot get 190's but can get Pirelli Snowcontrol Series II which seem comparable, just not sure about the balance as i also need the tyre to perform the rest of the year and the new pattern seems more winter based than all year round.

Options are Quatrac 3 which get a good write up , same dilemer though but opposite way round are these tyres too "all year" and will not give the grip level needed in snow - not sure about the split tread idea

Anyone got either of the above fitted ( I know other on the forum have had Quatrac 2 fitted)

All thoughts welcome need to make a decision in the week.

Cheers all in adavance

Good morning!

I am in exactly the same position, both regarding tyres and location (the Dales).

Herts Hilltopper of this forum has Quatrac3s fitted, be good to know how they've been over the summer, esp in comparison withthe 2s he had on before.

The local Vredestein supplier (KB Tyres, Barnoldswick), can't supply the Quatrac 3s until mid-November apparently.

So am looking at Snowtrac 3s - which will no doubt wear out faster than the Quatracs, but will perform well on the colder roads / muddy fields locally?

Let us know what else you come across as being suitable? Have been struggling to find anything tbh.

James,

If Herts can let us know would be good, i thought he was running 2's not 3's , if they are good grip wise and acceptable wear rates will opt away from Pirelli as unsure about the series ii snow controls, they appear too "winter" orientated if thats not a daft statement.

Other options i found are Avon Icetours although they look similar to Quatrac3 anyway.

Best price i have on Quatracs is £53.00 inc VAT /Valve/ Balance / Fit based on a set of four.

I need my tyres by October latest, would really like to stick with Pirellis but i have a nagging doubt abiout the new ones - pty as i rate the tyres that are on mine now - grip in snow was amazing last year.

Whats "Doc" and "Bald Silver Surfer" running now, any thoughts welcome gents.

TTR said:

James,


Best price i have on Quatracs is £53.00 inc VAT /Valve/ Balance / Fit based on a set of four.

I

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that seems a good deal.................who's doing them at that price?

Yes, that's what I thought too, KB Tyres and Exhausts, Barnoldswick. 01282 816608

They seem decent company, but they (Sharon) says Vredestein tell them / her those tyres won't be in stock until mid November = frustrating!

Ooops, sorry just realised I hadn't quoted that price, it was TTR!!, sorry about that!

However it is nearly the same price as I was quoted by KB hence my mistake!!

I have a cheque made out to them for £209.34 for a set of four tyres - fitted, balanced, etc - they just need to get them in stock!! Which, thinking about it, makes my quote slightly cheaper than £53

Evening all...
Sorry, been busy recently so not looked in :-(
I have QT3 on the front (new at beginning of June), and QT2s on rear still, so both of you were right!

Summer wear has been minimal, but grip truly excellent, both in dry and in some amazing rain storms. Done about 5000 miles on them, mix of roads and speeds.

Is is true that buying 'winter' (or all season) tyres seems to be tricky 'out of season', but local Vredestein dealer (Supertyres, Welwyn Garden City) were able to obtain within a week or so for me. Given my summer wear experience, would recommend the QT3 if you can get them. They cost me £44 each, plus VAT, with balancing etc on top of that.

Pete (Herts Hillhopper)

I have to say the Quatrac3s are brilliant tyres (although get them before winter hits as they can become hard to get).
Had them on the Panda M-Jet through the worst of last winter (before trading it in) and it never got stuck once and we had some really severe weather.
Also got them fitted on the front of the Doblo van through the summer and they work well in both wet & dry condition and ware pretty well too.

All,

Many thanks for the responses on this - because i now need the tyres and could not get a commitement on dates for availaibility on the Quatrac 3's from any dealer i opted for the Pirelli Snowcontrol Series II

They are arriving in a weeks time so at least i can get some and being fitted first week in October.

James - if you get stuck on options ATS have been good with me and maanged to get the Pirellis.

Pete - many thanks for the update wished i could have gone with the Q3's but maybe next time.

I will let you know what my thoughts are - good or bad, i still have reservations but until there on......

If anyone interested i will try and post some pics on the site when i get them fitted, afterall it may help someone else out.

Thank-you for your e-mail.

Due to unpresidented pre Winter orders this year most of the stock for the UK has already been allocated, However the Quatrac 3 if placed on back order today we could have for approx the 18/10/10 the Snowtrac 3 are not due until December.

Hope this information helps.

Kind Regards
Lisa Merchant

james_f said:

​

The following is from a reply to a question I sent the other day to Vredestein about the delivery date for the Q3s I have ordered from KB Tyres.

Not sure what Pres. B Obama has to do with it all though...! ​

​

Thank-you for your e-mail.

Due to unpresidented pre Winter orders this year most of the stock for the UK has already been allocated, However the Quatrac 3 if placed on back order today we could have for approx the 18/10/10 the Snowtrac 3 are not due until December.

Hope this information helps.

Kind Regards
Lisa Merchant

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Thanks for that James. Might go ordering winter tyres for the wifes car a little earlier then.

Bit of a thread resurrection as the Panda has just come back from a fairly major service (cambelt - fair enough, it's due - but also £1350 worth of extra work deemed 'essential . I am acquiring a second opinion on that...) as the report said that the tyres fitted this time last year have more than half worn.

This is a higher wear rate than the Quatrac2s I had previously, and I wondered if this is unique to me or if anyone else has noticed a difference in wear rate.

I suspect that next time I'll be ordering some other tyre...

James,

Morning, just to let you know on the Pirelli's i had fitted in summary:-

Excellent grip in snow really perform well and deliver superb grip
Wear rate is difficult to tell, i rotated the front/back in September and there is still plenty of life in the tyre, no more than 20-25%% wear although the car only does 7k per annum
I run them all year, grip in summer is good, road noise as comparable with the Pirelli 190's

Hope this helps.

Regards

Cheers TTR

Given I am doing a bit more off road than before, plus pulling heavier trailers too, more agressive tread pattern c/w a 'cold weather' compound may be the way to go. When these wear out I may well change for something like the SnowControls

Ta, James

Hello there, I bought my Panda Cross at the beginning of Dec 2010, it came with the Conti's on ice and snow as standard, done about 7000 miles on them. They gripped very well in the bad snow and also running in dry conditions, cannot fault them

Hello, just to add my two-pennyworth. The original tyres on my cross (conti winter contact) lasted just over 40K miles. After this I had a set of Quadtracs, not sure whether they were 2 or 3; the grip from these was nearly as good as he contis but the wear rate was significantly higher (comparing the contis to the quadtracs the tread width on the quadtracs was a few mm narrower). I now have Goodyear Ultragrip 7s fitted & am very pleased with the grip & wear.
Personally I would recommend the ultragrips.
Neil.

I had the Goodyear ultragrips fitted a few weeks back and have to say they are a good tyre - lots of tread depth, decent ride quality and even work well enough in the odd warmish / dry day we've had recently.

However, I'm actually really looking forward to getting some snow and seeing how the little car performs. I hope the Panda really does live up to its reputation as being unstoppable in the snow.

Last year I was immobilised in my rear wheel drive BMW. 19" run-flat winter tyres are apparently very difficult to find so I would need to have bought a new set of 18" wheels and tyres to stay mobile and at a fabulous price.

Panda-size boots are much more affordable and were available off the shelf from the local tyre shop!

After two years I am renewing the Q3s on the Panda soon.

Any recent recommendations as to choice?

I am thinking of running full winters all year round (one of the above choices) as slightly more agressive tread may be better off road than the Q3s - unless someone has expereince to say this is a bad idea!

james_f said:

I am thinking of running full winters all year round (one of the above choices) as slightly more agressive tread may be better off road than the Q3s - unless someone has expereince to say this is a bad idea!

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On road handleing becomes a tad sloppy over 20C, and wear will be high, but nothing thats a major issue really.

Most Easterly Pandas said:

On road handleing becomes a tad sloppy over 20C, and wear will be high, but nothing thats a major issue really.

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For me I'd say above 15 degrees.

But it really isn't too hard to deal with. I had my winter tyres on in July on a fairly warm week as there was a cut in one of my summer tyres that caused it to fail its MOT. It was probably about 20-25 that week and the car wasn't the most steady but you just kept your speed down around corners and kept your distance from other cars.

I would still prefer to have 2 sets of tyres if it were me!