Still running on me Winter Tyres!

[Welly]

I know it's not like Summer at the moment but I'm still running on Winters!

Anyone know of any legality/insurance issues?

[PeterN]

I can't afford winter tyres so I don't have that issue.

Peter

[steve_earwig]

I think if the size and speed ratings are correct then it shouldn't* be a problem.

They will wear out quicker though...

[Welly]

I can't afford winter tyres so I don't have that issue.

Neither can I, I got these ones second hand 4 years ago.

I think they've actually gone off now, they don't seem to wear at all but leave a horrible feel on the road and have got into a couple of mini slides on them.

I've got 2 decent Pirelli's in my garage and need to buy 2 more for the car. Hopefully I can shift theses winters onto someone for £100.00 or something I really don't think they're needed in the UK i.e. bad snow = stay at home

[highlander]

The lad's mk.1 Focus has rusted itself to MOT-failure (also the power steering rack is leaking badly and the brake pipes and hoses are all corroded away too), so it's currently advertised as spares-or-repairs

We went and had a look at a Toyota Celica (gen 7, X reg, from 2000), looked in unbelievably good condition for its age and mileage (109k). Except that all four tyres are winter tyres.

I was going to come here and ask if this would likely be an insurance worry, given that it isn't exactly cold outside (it may be > 12C but it's bloody miserable, haven't seen rain this heavy in years). I figured they would wear faster, but I was more concerned about grip, and about legality.

The owner is putting the car through an early MOT (it expires in October) so assuming nothing goes horribly wrong there, then that's what he'll be driving home in tomorrow night.

[GingerMagic]

My old 406 passed its MOT with winter tyres on, in July, then I drove it to Pugfest and did the hill-climb with them still fitted...
They have been relegated to the shed since 2014 but I only paid £50 for them and there is plenty of tread left for when the slush comes....

[highlander]

Thing is, we don't have anywhere to keep a spare set of wheels or tyres. So I think he's going to have to drive the Celica on the winters and change them for decent all-weathers when the winters wear out.

It passed an MOT today, so it has a year's ticket, with the sole advisory being that one or more of the front brake pads is starting to wear thin. At least a set of front pads is only £30. So we're going to pick it up tomorrow!

[steve_earwig]

That sounds a bit of a result

[DaiRees]

I quite like that generation of Celicas (says the bloke who's sworn he'll never own a Japanese car, Jap 4X4s yes, but no Jap cars). Sounds like you've done well there. I wouldn't worry about the winters too much, I know people who've run them all year round including my local tyre shop's van!

My winters came off ages ago, they're currently in the old man's garage 'cos my garage is currently being extended and re-roofed, so I've had to totally empty it. It's incredible how much crap I hoard!

[Welly]

My insurance company have a note on my policy (cos I told them) that I have Seasonal Tyres fitted. Whether or not I would get clobbered for being in the wrong season I don't know but I'm not aware of Winters being unsuitable in warmer whether.

Re: Celica keep an eye on oil consumption they all use a drop of oil in normal use so don't be alarmed if the level drops a bit.

[highlander]

I've read that about the Celicas; apparently it's less of an issue with the 190 HP version (and later revisions of the 140 HP engine), but the lad has gone for the 140 HP version due to insurance. He's now insured on it, so all that's left to do is go down there, hand over the monies, receive the logbook, get it taxed, and drive it home.

I have exactly the same thing to worry about on the 2.2 petrol Coupe - they like to burn off oil. I wonder if it's something common to most early variable valve timed engines? The Celica is a VVTi engine as well.

[KozmoNaut]

I have exactly the same thing to worry about on the 2.2 petrol Coupe - they like to burn off oil. I wonder if it's something common to most early variable valve timed engines? The Celica is a VVTi engine as well.

No, it's nothing related to that. The VVT on the 2.2 is managed by a valve that moves oil pressure from one side of the camshaft pulley to the other, it's a completely closed system and the oil goes straight back to the sump.

According to my mechanic, it burns oil because it has high(ish) crankcase pressure. This is chiefly because it's basically a 2.0 engine that's been fitted with a longer stroke crankshaft, which increases the pumping effect in the crankcase, increasing pressure. But the crankcase ventilation is the same as on the 2.0, so the pressure is higher. And due to the higher pressure, slightly more oil is pushed up past the piston ring seals etc.

From what I've read, the 2.2 also runs a rather high oil pressure, compared to similar engines. That will also cause oil to push by various seals and rings.

On a properly-maintained 2.2, it's not really that excessive, certainly not compared to something like an Alfa Romeo Twinspark or JTS engine. I've gone ~8000km since the last service, and I just topped up with around ~750ml yesterday. And I usually don't putter around at low revs if I can help it.

I'm on Total Quartz 9000 5w40 full synthetic. Thinner oils will tend to burn off more.

[highlander]

Where exactly does the oil end up?

It's not caked all over the engine bay, it's not dripping off the bottom on to the driveway, it's not sprayed all over the inside of the bonnet sound-deadening. It's just - not there anymore. Is it maybe misting (under the pressure) and going out via the exhaust valves?

I have to top up with oil every couple of times I fill the tank (so roughly 0.5 litres of oil for every 1000 or so miles). I hear the same thing from other 2.2 petrol owners.

What is it that needs done to my engine to make it consume less oil? I've had all the injectors replaced, and I believe the injector seals were also replaced. I also had the rocker cover gasket replaced as one mechanic thought there might be an oil leak dribbling down the back of the block, but that didn't make any difference.

Is it maybe coming out through the sump, so should I get the sump removed and re-sealed? Should I be worried about my head gasket (I check regularly; there's no mayonnaise under the oil filler cap, and no sign of oil in the coolant)?

[KozmoNaut]

It gets burnt in the cylinders, there will always be a slight oil residue on the cylinder walls, otherwise the rings would ride on them with no lubrication. All engines burn some amount of oil, it's just part of normal operation.

The usual cause for increased oil consumption that isn't related to leaks etc. is due to insufficient ring sealing and seating, either due to wear or bad design. In the olden days, this was why running in the engine properly was so important, to correctly seat the rings, by varying the revs on the engine and utilizing engine braking.

Today it's not nearly as important, but it is still possible to doom some engines to high oil consumption, simply from not running them in properly. I know the BMW E46 and E90 M3s are notoriously finnicky for this, if you don't run them to redline (when warmed up, of course) at least a couple of times during the first 1000km or so, they will always guzzle oil for the rest of the car's life.

It's also important to not run any car hard, at full throttle and/or to the redline, before the oil is properly warmed up.

I'm afraid there isn't much you can do about it, short of having the engine refurbished and having new rings etc. installed. How many miles are on it?

Do you run it to the redline at least once every time you drive it, once everything's up to temperature?

[Welly]

My Volvo engine uses 1ltr of oil every 3000 miles, I think it's good for engines to use a bit of oil for long service life.

Experimenting with different types of oil can help; speak to oilman at Opie oils maybe. I believe that certain engines burn more fully synthetic oil than they would on semi-syn on the basis that fully syn is 'slippier'.