subject: Key Factors About Winter Tires [print this page] The comfort that you enjoy while driving your car depends on each and every part of it. Tires play a major role in giving you a good ride. In order to drive your automobile during the winter days, you need to equip your vehicle with winter tires. These are specially designed to provide you a great amount of stability even while speeding past the slippery curves. There are certain factors that make this type of tires the best option during adverse weather conditions.
Winter tires provide 30% better grip compared to normal tires or even the all season tires when the temperature prevailing in the place is below freezing point. The braking is also much better compared to all other types of tires. When you use these tires, you do not have to worry about going out of track even when you apply brakes during an emergency situation. The braking distance is shorter by 10% compared to normal tires even when the roads are slippery. This will, however, depend on the speed at which you are driving.
The summer tires can be used when the temperatures are above 7 degrees and the all season tires offer some help when the temperatures are fifteen degrees below the freezing point. But, the winter tires stay good and provide you with a safe drive even when the temperatures drop to a whopping -40 degree Celsius. This is something that is offered by no other type of tires. You will not face any difficulty in steering your car through snow filled roads while using winter tires. The car will remain under your control all throughout the journey.
If you live in a place where the snow keeps falling all night, you can use the studded winter tires. These tires will help in removing the snowflakes from your tires when you hit the roads. You should however make sure that youre allowed to use them in your area. Some countries do not allow the usage of this type of tires. If you are allowed to use them, they will help you enjoy a safe ride even while taking a trip in your car to the hill tops.
These tires might not seem a necessity in the modern cars that are equipped with features like ABS and traction control systems. When the roads are dry, these features might provide you with the required assistance but when the roads are covered with snow specially designed tires are a better option.
The drawback of winter tires is that they cannot be used during the warmer days. If you use them in warm temperature conditions, the treads will wear out quickly. The grip will hence be lost which will in turn affect the stability. You will have to get these tires removed and change to summer tires during such situations. This is one thing that makes this type of tires a costly accessory for your automobile. But when you consider the safety, it is definitely worth the extra bucks that you pay, for life is much more important than money.
