winter tyres on a 612

It's rarely the case that you are legally required to have winter tyres but in the event of an accident more blame may be apportioned to you if it was a factor. Many tourists do not have them but you may be required to put on chains in the mountains during heavy snow.
That being said I am sure the 612 would be year round usable with winters on unless the conditions were particularly extreme. They really do make a big difference in snow and freezing temperatures when summer tyres go rock hard. My main concern would be salt on the road in those conditions though so I'll use my car during the winter but only when dry.
I used my car last weekend in 6 C and was impressed that the MPSS still got up to 25 C per the TPMS. Grip and balance were just fine.

 

I took the 612 by -2C this week for the last drive of the year before winter storage, Pzeros were hard as rock, steering sucked and adherence was... non existent, it is about temperature and not the different tire profile as many people think. Yes, those tires have a special design to have more grip in the snow and probably a little bit more thread, but the key is in the different rubber compound that will keep its softness at low temperatures
Winter tires is a no brainer from a safety point of view if your are driving by those temperatures
I am only driving Michelin PA, best compromise from the longevity adherence viewpoint

good luck

 

Here's a picture from this morning. As you can see after 20 mins or so the tyres are up to a healthy temperature despite being only 3 C. Car was great otherwise and one advantage of using huge amounts of fuel is that the car warms up quickly further helped by the seat heaters.
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I drive my 612 in the winter all the time. I bought a set of used 612 wheels on eBay and fitted them with Pirelli Sottozero tires - the only winter tires available in the sizes I needed, It handles fine in the light snow and just needs more frequent washes when the roads are salty.
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Anybody know if those wheels will also fit the OTO? Just wondering if the ceramic brakes require a different size.

 

Just put some winter shoes on my OTO...
Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4
Front 245/35/R20 85 W non-marked (i.e. no K, M, N etc)
Rear 285/35/R20 104W non-marked

For staggered sizes you need the directional PA4 tread pattern. It took about a week to receive the tires after ordering.

Fronts (2221 date code) were made in France, Rears (4120 date code) in Hungary fwiw.

Bill

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