Winter tyres all year
I guess I won't be the first to belatedly discover that a rear kitchen motorhome on a short wheelbase is pretty useless on soft or slippery surfaces as a result of having its weight concentrated on the rear wheels with not enough on the front to get decent
traction. Since we travel regularly to mountainous destinations in Europe (Alpes, Pyrenees, Jura etc), and since our usual 3 month trips, and winter breaks encounter a whole range of seasonal conditions (often in a single trip) I am seriously contemplating
running on winter + M&S tyres all the year round, hoping to gain a significant benefit in the cold and on grassy sites but accepting some hopefully minor loss of performance and wear in summer conditions. (Bessacarr E412 on Continental Vanco Winter2 tyres).
I have seen quite a few vans in Southern Germany with winter tyres in summer (probably for the same reasons). I would be very interested to have feedback from other Club members who do the same. I am particularly interested in experience on how much better
traction is on grassy sites, and the degree to which performance and wear is found to deteriorate in warmer weather.
As an aside, my Fiat 4x4 Panda was factory supplied as standard with winter tyres and I can't say I've noticed any appreciable downside in the summer...albeit of course a campervan is a much heavier beasty.
Regards