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Why couldn't Mercedes-Benz supply a spare winter tyre for my friend's E-Class in March?

A German friend was in England in March in his E-Class fitted with Continental winter tyres. He had a puncture, which damaged the tyre beyond repair and drove to the nearest Mercedes-Benz dealer on the 'mini spare'. Several phone calls later, the dealer told him he couldn't find a replacement tyre in England. So my friend called German ADAC, which flew him a tyre over the next day at no charge. Surely, winter tyres must be available in England and Continental is a very well known make. Perhaps the Mercedes-Benz dealer didn't or couldn't be bothered to dig deeper?

Asked on 5 March 2011 by JS, Breisach, Germany

Answered by Honest John
Germany (and Austria where winter tyres are compulsory) are much more up to speed with this issue than the Brits. The big problem last winter was that the same supplies had been allocated to the UK as the previous year, but, because of the snow, demand hugely outstripped them. We'll get there in the end. And, of course, an average driver gets 3 - 4 seasons out of a set of winter tyres, so those who bought them in 2009/10 or 2010/11 won't need a new set for 2012/12, freeing up supplies for everyone else.

Cold-snap snow-how: Advice on coping with the freezing weather, including videos, facts and winter driving advice.

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