New Michelin CrossClimate tyres get boost from British Gas

The new Michelin CrossClimate tyres have been given a credibility boost with the decision by British Gas to fit them to their entire 13,000 fleet of vehicles.

Back in March, we revealed that Michelin had created a new tyre – the Michelin CrossClimate – that worked like a summer tyre in warm conditions but had all the characteristics of a winter tyre when the weather turned, so much so that it got the Three Peak Mountain Snow Flake (3PMSF) certification so it could be used even in countries where the fitting of winter tyres is mandatory.

It seemed to us that the CrossClimate would be the perfect tyre for UK motorists – especially as we’re inured to the idea of ‘One tyre fits all weather’ – giving all the benefits of a winter tyre but without the fag (and expense) of changing wheels and tyres twice a year.

That same thought seems to have inspired the fleet managers at British Gas to order their entire fleet of 13,000 vans to be fitted with CrossClimate tyres in a move that will increase safety when winter driving, and mean their engineers are more likely to arrive even when the weather’s rotten.

It’s a show of confidence from a big fleet operator in the CrossClimate, and Michelin are hoping it won’t be long before car manufacturers start offering the CrossClimate on new cars too.

At present, the CrossClimate is available in a range of the most common 15-17″ sizes, but there will be more sizes available from June next year, including 18″ and a wider range of 15-17″ too.

And if, like us, you expected the CrossClimate to come at a premium to normal summer tyres, you’d be wrong. We checked prices online, and found that the CrossClimate is almost exactly the same price as comparable summer tyres from other premium tyre makers.

So really, if you need new tyres, the Michelin CrossClimate is a bit of a no-brainer.