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fluid dynamic

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    Kent, Home counties and south London general weather discussion 25/02/2018 onwards

    in Regional

    Posted

    12 minutes ago, Convergence said:

    Two mates turned up on foot yesterday having got their cars properly stuck on the school run and were asking for assistance. The problem they have is they live on a lane that's steep, twisty and has virtually no traffic. I just managed to drive the first one out with the help of the two of them pushing but the other one was hopeless. It was interesting for me as my car is fitted with winter tyres and this was a similar car to mine but with "normal" tyres. The difference was absolutely incredible. On "normal" tyres it was almost impossible to do a 3 point turn on the flat and completely impossible to get up the slope on the packed snow and ice. My car in comparison was happily turning and reversing (even into the deep snow at the sides) without even spinning a wheel. Luckily I had a set of chains in the correct size for her car in the shed and set off back home to get them. Once again my car quite happily drove up the hill on the ice and bashed through a few drifts without any drama whatsoever.

    We quickly fitted the chains to her car and I drove it back up the hill to her house. She followed in my car and was completely stunned by the difference. An hour of pushing, spinning and getting nowhere in her car, compared with just get in and drive normally in mine.

    I've used winter tyres ever since working as a ski instructor in my younger days and even living down South now have enjoyed the extra grip, feel and confidence they give in frosty, icy and generally cold conditions ever since. This recent spell though has given me a chance to see what the latest winter tyres are like in proper icy and snowy conditions and even as a long time convert I've been completely gobsmacked at how good they really are. The lane opposite my house we've been using for sledging so as you can imagine, it's hard packed snow with sheet ice where the wheel tracks are and pretty steep. Not only can I drive up or down it completely without drama I can even stop, have a chat with pedestrian and then set off up the hill again without any issue whatsoever. Can't recommend them enough. 

    And there's always the fall back of a set of chains in the boot should I encounter some really tricky conditions.

    It's important to note also that I'm not talking about studded snow tyres (which are illegal to use in the UK), these are simply winter tyres with a tread pattern and rubber compound optimised for snow and ice.

    For reference I'm driving a bog standard front wheel drive 15 year old Renault Scenic. The tyres are Continental WinterContact TS860 and I can't recommend them enough. I run the winter set on a spare set of alloys from a breakers yard but the other half (who simply commutes a few miles a day) has hers on all year around.

    Completely agree, what an excellent post.

    People out there blaming the authorities about getting stuck in ice and snow need to take a good look at themselves - Winter tyres really work. I got a set too and can drive around on snowy roads, ungritted, as does the rest of the world that gets snow.

    Kent, Home counties and south London general weather discussion 25/02/2018 onwards

    in Regional

    Posted

    31 minutes ago, samalllpop said:

    I might be mistake but the system looks like it is moving north west straight for London ir will this get pushed the other directly once it hits the easterly winds?

    can someone shed light on this? 

    will i think the rara is showing precip out east of the thames estuary, possibly the start  of a streamer.  The main blob has just edged into Exeter , right onto the Met office !

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