I was wondering how snow tires differ from all seasons. Plus, what are the effects on snow tires if they are used all year round? Can they be used during summer?
2007-08-17 14:15:04 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
The differences in performance between dedicated winter and so-called "all-season" tires can be quite dramatic.
"All-season" is not a performance indicator. It is not a guarantee that a tire will perform well in all weather conditions. It is mostly a marketing term and it indicates a tire has at least a 34% void ratio in the tread.
That's it.
I know for a fact some supposedly all-season tires do not even see significant if any testing in winter conditions before they are put on the market. Thus there are big differences between different types of all-season tires in how they perform in bad weather conditions. One thing you will also notice when shopping for all-season tires is that they are rated in the catalogs and brochures as being suited for "light snow" conditions - Maybe 1-3 inches of snow at best, not 5, 6 or 12-inches of wet sloppy blizzardy slop like areas that see real winters are prone to get.
Think about the compromises an all-season tire has to face. It has to be hard and durable enough to wear well in 100-deg F heat yet pliable and soft enough to offer good traction in sub-zero temperatures. It has to have tread blocks that offer good dry braking and cornering performance with grooves that both evacuate water and trap snow for good winter traction - but there can't be too many grooves because that increases wear and noise. That is asking a lot of one tire.
A dedicated winter-only tire does not have such comprimises. It is designed to provide maximum traction in cold weather and icy, slush and snow conditions. The tread grooves are wide and deep (snow tires typically are molded with deeper tread than all-seasons), the tread blocks are smaller and more heavily siped than an all-season tire to provide more biting edges on ice and snow. The tread rubber itself is designed to be soft and pliable at cold temperatures to provide maximum traction on slippery surfaces. All of this combines to provide winter performance that no all-season tire can compete with.
On the downside dedicated winter tires generate less grip on dry surfaces, are less precise in cornering performance and will not wear nearly as well. Many winter tires perform poorly on warm dry pavement. For example, I find my Bridgestone Blizzak's scary to drive in temps over about 60 degrees, especially if the road is slightly damp. That tire also wears extremely rapidly in warm weather - I have seen more than once a brand new set completely worn out in just one summer because the owner didn't bother to switch them in the spring. On cold pavement and of course in snow or ice that tire really shines. So if you own a set of winter tires you also need to own a set of 3-season tires as well. My preference is a set of high-performance or ultra-high performance tires as they offer much better handling and braking performance than all-season tires with equal or better rain performance. The fact they are useless in the winter is of course irrelevant.
There is one exception to all of this. A relatively small tire company in Finland called Nokian markets a tire in North America called the WR (soon to be replaced by the WR G2) that they refer to as an "all-weather" tire. The design is essentially that of a dedicated winter tire tread pattern combined with an all-season tire compound so that they can offer a 50k mile treadwear warranty on a tire that also gets a severe winter service rating. No other all-season tire has that (a snowflake symbol on the sidewall indicatest the tire is approved for use in severe winter conditions). They do work extremely well in snow and slush and are only marginally inferior on ice to a tire like the Blizzak. They are far superior to any other all-season tire in the winter and they are perfectly decent if not outstanding in the summer as well, perhaps only slightly inferior in performance to a typical high-end all-season tire. But if you want great winter performance and only want to own one set of tires, this is the only game in town.
Sorry if that went on a bit.
ASE Certified Automotive Service Advisor
2007-08-17 16:11:55 · answer #1 · answered by Naughtums 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
what are that overall statistical sales ratio between winter tires and all season tires
2016-01-04 10:56:18 · answer #2 · answered by michael 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What is the approximate cost of such a tire.?
2016-08-06 08:40:24 · answer #3 · answered by postres20022000 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋