When weāve been to the Alps, everyone has small french hatchbacks on winter tyres, or a pickup if a farmer/workman.
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Lots of Fiat Punto 4x4 and the Suzuki Swift 4x4 too. Had one of the Suzukis for work in my second year there - it had seen a hard life being trashed by chalet crews but was still a rock solid vehicle.
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Yeah , I can remember chatting to one of the Dartmoor rescue guys saying that he drives a Honda Jazz with winter tyres and that it would get further in snow than a 4x4 with the wrong tyres.
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I saw a drag race video between a RWD BMW 5-series, famous for front heavy poor traction in slippery conditions, on winter tyres against a Range Rover on its standard tyres and it blew the RR off easily.
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Remember my dad coming home from work one day feeling smug because going to work that morning in his little blue Fiat Panda (which he generally love-hated) with snow/ice on the road, he casually drove past an annoying neighbour up the road struggling to move in his Jag XJS / XJ40 (canāt remember exact model).
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Have never understood why the UK has such a hate-hate relationship with winter tyres.
Not even the slightest thought is given to it over here 
, temps drop, whip em over to winters.
And FWIW thatās not cos itās snowy (this last week aside, weāve had fuck all this winter) , just cos the contact patch is much colder and the compound has better grip (yes yes, esp in snow n ice.)
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I think the vast majority are not interested in tyres in general, let alone the advantages of winter tyres when the temperature drops. Iād have thought most people just put the cheapest tyres on and replace them when the MOT tester says they will fail the test. That and having somewhere to store the winter tyres, however all-season tyres like the Michelin Crossclimate are so good in the summer and winter, our current and past 3-cars all have them fitted all year round.
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I fully appreciate the storage issue is a ballache. Itās routine over here to have the tyres / rims stored over the summer/winter at a central facility for those without a shed / garage / basement etc.
Costs around 80 quid a year IIRC.
Itās also not unusual for the winters to be mounted on steels rather than alloys, which affects the street-cred of your motor ofc but Iām fucked if I care when I can get around whatever the weather
Other than a set of steels + storage if needed, thereās no other cost as youāre just extending the life of the tyre
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Always had a soft spot for them - lovely looking car
Same here, not at 13 I was 16.5. The army used a rattly old petrol series 1 and when I went for my driving test you have a 1hr session with a driving instructor before the test to get prepared.
Started driving the car and he immediately said āah youāre one of themā so I asked what do you mean and he replied āa Harrogate lad, because youāre double clutching a Nissan Micra 
ā
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Same , always wanted one. If I donāt get one now I never will but getting on a bit now. Me and the car.
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Have you ever driven one?
Never even sat in one. Completely irrational want!
Arenāt they basically a Vauxhall?
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The phrase, never meet your heroes, springs to mind.
I had one, albeit a 2007 (pre facelift) petrol variant. Without doubt it is the most undynamic car I have ever driven, with a nasty plastic interior that rattled and squeaked as it crashed over slightly uneven road surfaces. It became genuinely wobbly and unstable when pushed. A mk3 mondeo is leagues ahead, imho.
The drivers seat was comfortable however.
Edit to add, If you buy one, make sure the drain valves behind the bulk head arenāt blocked with composted leaves. The cavity floods in heavy rain and overflows into the cabin filter housing which then pours into the HVAC system. When you turn the fan on, a litre of water is dumped into the passengerās footwell. Soon after the fan will seize preventing you from being able to demist the windscreen.
Because parts arenāt available youāre forced to scrap yards to buy bits of other peopleās old cars. Brittle clips and cheap plastic make dismantling the dashboard on your driveway to fit the replacement fan an absolute bastard of a job.
30% of the parts are shared.
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Yeah as much as I like the idea of one , practical estate. Iām not sure Iāll have the balls to actually pull the trigger.
I sold mine approx. 10 yrs ago, not long after saab when under. Theyāre all much older cars nowā¦
I went from an E92 to the 9-3. It was like going back in time 20yrs dynamically.
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