Club 80-90 Forums

Apparently it changed on 1 Dec..

Must have winter tyres (although M+S rating is said to be ok too) when on snow/ice etc...

40-80 euro per tyre and points apparently if you are caught...

Can anyone confirm that M+S rating is legal as I cant get any proper winter tyres in the UK now and I have to drive in Germany in the new year...
The tyres I have been offered are said to have an M+S rating but dont want to buy them to find out they wont be legal...

M&S is fine.

Should have added they do need to have the wee snowflake marking on them to qualify.

M&S are fine, you`ll still need to take it easy though. They don`t mean you can do 50mph on back roads covered in snow but you shouldn`t get stuck really.

hi there,

the law regarding winter tyres changed over here on nov 29th of this year. the new regulations state that you must have winter tyres fitted if there is snowy or icy conditions.in germany this is classsed as anything under 7 degrees C as this is when the compound of nomal tyres stops becoming effective. the minimum requirement is that you have M+S tyres or winter tyres or snow tyres. dont think they have to have a snowflake on them mine havent but if you are stopped its a 40 euro fine if you cause an obstruction or are in volved in an accident its 80 euros .i have heard rumours about points but as you will have a UK licence i cant see how the germans can enforce it or endorse it. i have tried to get confirmation on the points but no joy. will try again this weekend. just another tip its also law in belgium and the fine there is 1000 euros! ouch.. hope this helps.

melmelody
my colleague is going to Paderborn over Christmas, and asked about the 'winter tyre law' in Germany today, so thanks for the info. It seems as though, to be legal, he will actually have to buy 4 x new tyres to drive in Germany! His wife is from Paderborn, and they are going to see her family.
Its going to be an expensive trip!
FW

I've only just found out that it is now "Pflicht" (mandatory) to have winters fitted
At last! At least the hire car companies can't shaft you anymore.

And yes as stated before M+S tyres meet the requirements regardless of how old they are as longs as they have more than 2mm of tread.

They will put points on your license or take it away - ask my mate in his Subby!

Extra cost bbadinage don't think it's such a bad idea really. Some people in this country are bloody clueless when it comes to snow. Perhaps it would wake some of the idiots up.

2mm of tread on 10 year old m+s tyres won't get ye very far in the snow ( well, maybe a bit further sideways..........)

there seems to be quite a shortage of m+s tyres all over europe these days so don't leave it till the last minute. i put 4 new 8ply 185x14C on me caravelle a month ago , not because i'm going to germany.

Shortage? I think I bought them all by mistake.
At the last count I have 11 winters on rims, 2 winters on their own and 5 bare spare rims...

I really should stop putting daft small bids on wheels and tyres. I keep winning them!

Si. There's a part worn tyre place on Skegness industrial estate that gets all their tyres fro Germany. (Sorry but can't remember the name off the top of my head) They're dirt cheap. I got a couple of back tyres from them a couple of months back. I think it was 48 quid fitted for the pair and one of them was a winter tyre.

I can call in in the week if you let me know the size and see what they've got if you want.

Could someone explain what the most obvious differences are with winters and normal?
I have made a lot of tyres in my time but never a winter tyre
I'm assuming it's a very soft compound with block tread pattern and thin?

I looked at this a couple of weeks back, whilst dreaming up a trip away. According to ADAC, from the end of November the law change means that the tyres must be marked either "M+S", or have the "Mountain" logo on or the "snowflake" symbol.

Both the van & the Golf have M+S marked tyres on, but the Golf couldn't even turn round in the road after the 1st night of snow a fortnight ago. It seems a bit odd that these are still technically legal to use in Germany in worse weather than we get here. I used to run a set of Maxxis M+S light truck tyres on the van which were marked with the mountain symbol & the snowflake so I guess they were real winter tyres? They were a much softer compound and I never had any problems with them and got good mileage; so much so I bought another identical set as replacements. (The lucky buyer of my Carat alloys got the nearly new set)

Titus A Duxass wrote:I've only just found out that it is now "Pflicht" (mandatory) to have winters fitted
At last! At least the hire car companies can't shaft you anymore.

Check them youself, though, if hiring a car as it's the driver's responsibility. If you have a hire car with incorrect boots you can still be fined.

This, I think, will be the place in Skeggy that 72BUG mentioned. I've used them in the past & they are pretty good
http://www.germantyrewarehouse.co.uk/

72BUG wrote:Si. There's a part worn tyre place on Skegness industrial estate that gets all their tyres fro Germany. (Sorry but can't remember the name off the top of my head) They're dirt cheap. I got a couple of back tyres from them a couple of months back. I think it was 48 quid fitted for the pair and one of them was a winter tyre.

I can call in in the week if you let me know the size and see what they've got if you want.

you fitted 2 second hand tyres and one was m+s? and ONLY £48?

i fitted 4 new m+s and it cost me not much more than £200.

but i do have a rather good discount on the normal punter price.

this thread is going nowhere, there will always be people who drive on dangerous rubber to save a few quid and i've seen too many serious smashups in the winter.

Winter/snow/M&S tyres become innefective as winter tyres once they wear below 4mm of tread.