Cold weather tyres - a must in icy weather

Given the current icy weather conditions across the UK, Continental Tyre Group believes it’s more important than ever that van drivers and fleets are aware of the many safety benefits of fitting cold weather tyres to work vehicles.

Intensive studies undertaken by Continental have shown that a van’s braking distance when travelling at 30mph dramatically increases in icy conditions by up to 31%. The average distance a van will travel when braking on standard tyres versus cold weather tyres is an extra 13 metres while a passenger car or car-derived van will travel a further 8m – an increase of 23%.

Scott Benbow, product manager at Continental, said; “Every winter, we have problems on the road because drivers are poorly equipped to cope. Drivers in most European countries fit cold weather tyres from October to March. This allows them to have greater tyre performance when temperatures drop to below 7ºC - a common occurrence in winter months especially in early mornings and late evenings when most of us commute. To avoid the problems we have had this week van drivers and fleets should think about fitting cold weather tyres next winter.”

With a unique compound which stays supple in cold weather, the advanced Continental VancoWinter 2 aids drivers with sipes – the small slits in the tread blocks of the tyre – that spread when braking. This creates an ice scraper effect on the road surface allowing shorter braking distances on winter roads. Open shoulders on the tyre with wide lateral grooves give excellent water drainage leading to a high level of protection against aquaplaning on wet roads.

As well as ensuring the occupants safety, the VancoWinter 2 has an optimum tyre footprint to give even wear. This coupled with the cold weather compound gives the VancoWinter 2 as much as 30% extra mileage potential in the winter months compared to a conventional van tyre.

The VancoWinter 2 is currently OE approved by Mercedes for the popular Sprinter van as well as the Iveco Daily. Currently one in three vans leaves a European factory on Continental tyres.