The roads get much slippery every time winter approaches. With this being said, vehicle owners of any sort should be ready for the winter season as it can cause disastrous accidents if ever such measures were not addressed before hitting the road. One of the best ways to avoid accidents during winter is by buying winter tires.

Winter tyres have an optimized tread pattern for situations that requires low-traction. They can also easily clear through snow and slush due to their sufficient tread depth. Also, the compound that comprises a winter tyre is designed to stay soft, malleable, and grippy as the temperature decreases.

When choosing for new winter tyres, a car owner should consider the type of vehicle that they own. There are different choices for normal-sized passenger cars, SUVs, and enormous vehicles like vans and medium-sized trucks. There are also special cars designated solely for electric and hybrid vehicles.

With the plethora of choices available in the market, an owner’s knowledge is important. The European Union ordered tyres to be labeled for simplification. However, most of them are used for summer tyres and not winter ones. The very first thing a car owner should remember is that there are studded and non-studded winter tyres that can be used for every vehicle.

What are the studded tires?

Studded tires are tires that have metal studs embedded within the tire tread. They give better traction because of the metal studs that could dig through the layers of ice.

But then, they are not allowed to be used during certain months in some states in the US because they can cause heavy damage to pavements. Other states even banned them completely from being used.

A studded tire best works when a person drives on a cold road but more or less clear and dry.

Studded tires are best used when the condition of the winter is at its worst because they are designed to grip both the snow and the thin layer of water that usually builds up on the footprint of the tires.

Make sure to look for the M+S symbol when buying winter tyres because this means that the tyres were built to withstand moderate weather conditions.

The most extreme driving situations during the winter can now also be survived by using non-studded tires due to the improvements of its rubber compounds. 

What are non-studded tyres?

Non-studded or studless tyres have a unique tread design that creates grip on ice and is also containing cyro-crystals that gives the tread surface and increase of friction.

Because of modern technology, a non-studded tire’s rubber no longer becomes stiffer. Modern non-studded tyres are now capable of maintaining flexibility in freezing temperatures because of its rubber compounding technologies.

The increased rubber flexibility allows the tire to maintain traction on snowy, wet, and dry driving conditions.

Unlike studded tires, non-studded tires are built with deeper tread depths which makes snow and slush dispersion under the tyre more manageable.

The Non-studded tires contain a tread pattern called sipes which helps the ntires in accelerating, decelerating and stopping.

And unlike studded tires, non-studded tyres rely on developments in rubber compounding, tread designs, and other technologies which means that they will not damage roads every time.

What are all-weather tires?

If there are studded and non-studded tires, there are also the all-weather tires that can be used in all types of weather which is the all-weather tires.

This tire is the perfect type for people living in areas which has no clear winter and summer season because this type of tyre can be used in both weather conditions.

All-weather tires have similar rubber compounds to winter tires that allow it to grip during winter season but still sturdy enough to manage slippery roads in December and hot highway roads during July. They are also durable to different temperature and terrains.

What should I choose?

Everything depends on preference and the meteorological conditions that exist in a given geographical location. You can choose to have all-weather tires on your car, but if you live in countries that have a tundra biome or are filled with snow, it is better to have a winter tire and vice versa.

It also helps if you research online about the best tires there is on the market in terms of durability and price. Researching goes a long way. In doing so, remember that the type of vehicle you have is also a factor in choosing.

If you have an SUV, you can check studded, non-studded, or all-weather tires for that.

And if you want more information on the selection of winter tires, you can always contact a reliable tire company.