Zero degrees. 500bhp. Nearly two tons. Thick slush on the road. 50mph. Single carriageway road.

What I did next perhaps shouldn't be recommended, but heck there was nothing else around. I hit the brakes. Hard. 

The Jaguar XFR stopped. Dead. Remarkable. This time, the praise should be leveled not at the car but at the tyres. I'd spent the previous three months tooling around in an XFR on 'normal' tyres and had I tried this experiment on those tyres in last's night's conditions I'd still be trying to stop... tomorrow.

Last night however, I was driving Ollie's Jag XFR on Pirello Sotto Zero cold weather tyres.

Of course, for those who regularly swap their tyres in winter for more suitable rubber this is a 'no s**t Sherlock' blog. For me, who had little experience on winter tyres in those conditions, it was a 'bloody hell, why the hell aren't winter tyres a legal requirement this time of year in the UK?' moment...

Best,

Nick Trott

Editor

Evo

PS, you can read a comparison between cold weather and regular tyres via our two XFR's and a snow-covered Bedford track. Click here to do so...