Subscribe to our YouTube channel http://bit.ly/11Ad1j1<br />Subscribe to the mag http://subscribe.autoexpress.co.uk/yt<br /><br /><br />Winter tyres are going to be on a lot of minds this year - Britain could face a particularly harsh winter this year, with snow falling from as early as November. If you've got a four-wheel drive car, you probably think you're properly prepared - but are you?<br /><br />We went up to Tamworth Snowdome to find out if a front-wheel drive car with winter tyres has more traction in the snow than a 4x4 with summer tyres fitted. We used two Ford Kugas, both with 2.0-litre diesel engines and manual gearboxes - but one is front-wheel drive, and the other all-wheel drive. The 4x4 Ford Kuga costs £1500 more than the normal model.<br /><br />In snowy conditions the rubber in summer tyres gets harder and less grippy. Winter tyres use a softer compound, and a tread pattern that's designed to pick up snow - improving grip in these harsh conditions.<br /><br />In our first test we saw that the front-wheel drive car on summer tyres was hopeless in the snow - but when fitted with winter tyres, it obviously did much better. However we also tested the 4x4 on summer tyres - and the results might surprise you.<br /><br />With winter tyres, the normal Kuga went 110 metres up the slope, while the 4x4 car only made it 13 metres up, before sliding back down 9 metres. in the end, it ended up no further than the standard did with summer tyres.<br /><br />We also tested the four-wheel drive Ford Kuga with winter tyres - and the difference was astonishing. There was plenty of grip and the car drove all the way to the top of the steep ski slope without a problem.<br /><br />Obviously, the best solution for driving on snow is to have a 4x4 on winter tyres - without the right rubber, a 4x4 is just as useless as a two wheel drive car.<br /><br />Having four-wheel drive won't help with braking, though - and that's much more important.
