Steve vRS

AutoSock/Auto Sock.The Textile wheel cover for Driving in Ice and Snow.Auto Socks get you Home!

These things look good in the company videos. I would be interested in hearing from someone who has used them for an impartial view of their effectiveness.

In light of the current conditions and their cheap price, they may be worth getting.

Steve

Leslie

Looks interesting. It would be worth hearing from anyone with experience of them.

Les

Milamber

iTrader: (2)

Unless you have 4 it's a recipe for disaster isn't it? One super grippy wheel lulls you into a false sense of security and voila, 90 degrees across the road in a ditch.

Petem95

Work mate ordered some yesterday! £65 for the pair for his rear tyres.

Could be worthwhile as it's not fun getting stuck in the work carpark!

StickyMicky

Would be interested to see how long they last, i suspect they will wear out to be honest.....

M444GY

iTrader: (72)

hmmm . id like to see how long they would last 1

Butkus

I went to Andorra skiing in March and we used them on our hire car. They work very well, are sold in most of the supermarkets and convenience stores there, and cost very little (nothing like £50). Most of the locals were using them - snow chains appear to be 'old hat'.

They're much easier to put on than snow chains, and aren't damaged so easily when you drive on cleared roads.

Petem95

Idea is you put them on and when you get the major roads you pull over and take them off before getting onto the motorway.

I'm almost tempted myself, but going to see how my work mate gets on first!

scoobiewrx555

Not worth getting unless you buy 4, specially on scoobs.

It's all well and good putting them on your back wheels for forward traction but what about when you brake?? You're still going to get the fronts slipping and the ABS will still be doing it's best to kill you!!

I think they're a great idea even for the short time we get icy weather like this but i'd get 4!!

boomer

I bought a pair last year, but got my timing wrong

I ordered them just before we have a big snowfall, and due to the sudden demand they took a couple of weeks to be delivered - by which time the snow had melted

Nice compact package though

I also bought an Ortovox ALASKA D snow shovel from the same company The Roof Box Company, but they don't seem to sell them any more.

Still, i am now ready for whatever global warming, er, winter, throws at me

mb

Trout

iTrader: (1)

Don't you have brakes on the back of your Scoob?

Trout

iTrader: (1)

PS I could have done with some today in hilly Halifax - but they don't seem to do them in my size!

scoobiewrx555

ABS works independantly for each wheel. If you have a set of socks on your back wheels only it's likely they will grip the snow making them less likely to envoke ABS (depending on your speed of course). As your front wheels don't have socks they will lock as soon as you apply brakes and ABS will kick in rendering your front brakes useless in the snow. You need all four brakes to slow you down whatever the conditions so try doing it with just two working!!

Most modern passenger cars i know of are set up having a front brake bias but clearly need all 4 brakes at the same time to stop effectively. However, the rear brakes on most cars aren't doing as much work as the fronts so it's likely the fronts will lock well before the rears do. That's all the more reason to have socks up front so those wheels get as much grip in the snow as the rears making them less prone to envoking ABS.

So yes, I have got brakes on the back of my scoob. What's your point?

Edited to add: I just read the sock website and found this in their FAQ's.....

Q5: Is there anything else I should know about?
A5: Nothing to be concerned about, although certain users may wish to note that

•you can use them with your vehicle's electronic aids left on, unlike snow chains which should NOT be used with traction control and anti skid devices (e.g. ESP / ASC+T / ASR / ABS).
•they are breathable so there's no adverse effect on brake cooling.
•it's recommended that users of rear wheel drive cars should also fit a set to the front wheels to provide better directional stability, especially under braking.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Very nearly bought a set in Spain last week. But couldn't get the right size.

We get proper snow over there, not this pitiful flurry we get in the UK, as such, the car struggles to get off the driveway (35% incline).

They really they are only suitable for getting you out of the s**t, not a all winter solution (unless you live in ski resort where your constantly driving on snow ). As soon as you hit a clear or gritted road, they need to be pulled off. Otherwise they wear through pretty rapidly.

Only need two (one pair) on a FWD car, if its RWD or AWD get four.

GC8

Im sceptical about their worth for HGVs. Ive driven a 32 tonne HGV in the snow and if 20 tonnes of tarmac over the driven wheels (with diff locks and cross locks) wont give you traction, then a glorified Persil tablen bag is going to struggle.....

Trout

iTrader: (1)

So no mention of AWD cars there then

My point is that if the conditions are that bad then having two on the rear is surely better than none?

I would also have thought that even with your Autosock on you would still be driving at a speed proportional to the conditions.

Still doesn't matter as they don't fit my car I will merely have to rely on driving skill alone

StickyMicky

Wonder if you could overheat the scoob centre diff with just a pair fitted?

It is toooo early in the morning for my head to work it all out

scoobiewrx555

I don't think you're getting it.

AWD is FWD and RWD. If your car is RWD they say fit 4, if your car is FWD they say fit just two up front. Simple, your Scooby does both so you fit 4 on an AWD car.

It doesn't get much simpler than that!!

ChrisB

I have a pair of Autosocks for my 9-3 and I used them for the first time in the Peak District on Sunday. Very impressed by them, made a whole world of difference to traction.

Off into a meeting, more in a bit...

Trout

iTrader: (1)

The consequences of getting the number of Autosocks wrong on your car can be dreadful...

ChrisB

I put mine on the A515 between Buxton & Ashbourne. I had been slipping and sliding around a fair bit (tyres are 225/45/17 Ultrac Sessantas) - I'm not sure what had been twitching more, the TC/ESP or my backside...

We'd come round a corner to a hill to find two HGVs and a line of cars trying to get up the hill. Some folks seems to have given up, whilst the few cars having a crack were going sideways and backwards on the hill.

I stuck the socks on, took 5 to 10 minutes which isn't bad given I've never had them out of the bag before and it was almost dark. Then wafted straight up the hill without any dicey moments, even completely stopping & re-starting to avoid a Golf being pushed up.

Going down the other side of the hill looked equally dodgy (long line cars of trying to get up) - no twitching at all.

I did 5 to 10 miles on mine, stopping to take them off in a pub car park once back on clear roads. Took about 2 minutes to remove them. There's a few scuffs on the fabric but nothing major at all.

Great bit of kit for our "winters" ie lots of cold / rain and a few days of snow chaos (which don't warrant a set of snow tyres).