Tire Chains

[n8t50]

Gonna be moving out to Idaho this winter, won't be able to afford a good set of winter tires for my 96 850 T5 until after a few months of work. I also can't drop $500 on the Volvo chains. I know the manual says that aftermarket chains will cut the ABS and break lines, but is this legit, or just marketing BS? Will properly fitted aftermarket chains work on an 850?

[BlackBrick]

I put on aftermarket cable chains on my 1" lowered 850R with no problems.  
BUT, I put them on my higher profile set of winter tires (185/65/15), not my lower profile street tires (215/45/17).  The winter tires are thinner, don't think I'd risk putting them on  low profile wider tires. Just make sure they are on TIGHT, and that you don't drive too fast. (under 30 mph I think?)

Best thing to do when you can afford it, which I did, you can usually find some cheap 15" used wheels on craigslist or junkyard that are found on most of the GLTs (the six figured star pattern), but they are good solid Volvo wheels.  
Then buy some studless snow tires via TireRack, they are relatively cheap, like $75 each.  Then keep this set as your winter tires, only takes 20 minutes to swap out in garage.

Our buy studded tires?  Not sure if you need chains with those?
 

[Fudge_Brownie]

On 10/19/2017 at 7:46 PM, n8t50 said:

Gonna be moving out to Idaho this winter, won't be able to afford a good set of winter tires for my 96 850 T5 until after a few months of work. I also can't drop $500 on the Volvo chains. I know the manual says that aftermarket chains will cut the ABS and break lines, but is this legit, or just marketing BS? Will properly fitted aftermarket chains work on an 850?

If it helps, I see a lot of snow tires/wheelsets being sold on craigslist. Usually steelies. Seems like a lot of Volvo owners bought a set when they got a car, the car gets sold, so they've got a set to get rid of. Tread depth is obviously one factor, but rubber composition and sidewall flex are another. Nearly bald snow tires are probably still better than a set of summer rubber.

Thule used to show snow chains/tires on their website, and I assumed they'd be the manufacture of Volvo-branded equipment since they do some of their other accessories. I don't see it as an option under their product listing right now though. I know some mountain passes can have hard requirements on chains, but I think chain's value has decreased as snow tires have improved.

If you absolutely have to, what about wrapping the ABS wire with some DIY shielding? Couple layers of heat shrink around a layer of rubber? Periodic spot-checks for signs of rubbing on the brake line from the chain.