Keys To Buying Winter Tires That Suit You

Choosing the right winter tire for your vehicle will significantly improve your safety during the coldest days of the year. In this article, you’ll find the keys to knowing how to choose the most appropriate winter boots for your car and get the most out of your snow wheels.

The first frosts are already arriving and perhaps you are thinking of buying winter tires. They are specific for the coldest season of the year and have multiple advantages. Do you know which ones? Can you choose the ones that suit you best? If not, read on and we’ll tell you what to bear in mind when buying good winter tires and make sure you get the most bang for your bucks.

Why buy winter tires?

Winter tires are increasingly used by drivers every year and this has encouraged tire manufacturers to move away from seeing them as niche products and encourage them to increase their range offering. Not so long ago, snow tires were only available in the most common size but this is now a thing of the past.

Furthermore, more and more brands have tires specifically formulated to offer optimum performance in all seasons such as the Michelin Crossclimate or the Goodyear 4Seasons, both of which are approved for use as winter tires and feature the 3pmsf symbol.

All-season tires base their effectiveness on two qualities:

• Chemical composition: the rubber of the winter tire is designed to maintain its flexibility at temperatures below 7°C, just as the “summer” tires start to harden and lose grip at an alarming rate.
• Pattern design: the tread has two main purposes: to evacuate water as efficiently as possible – that’s why they go well on wet or snow – and to cause a caterpillar effect that pinches on the frozen or snowy surface providing optimal grip. To do this, they have wider evacuation channels and this kind of sipes in their cleats

“All-season tires’ tread is often called the “caterpillar effect”, meaning that, although the wheels are round, the part that rests on the asphalt is flat as it’s crushed against the ground and when changing the curvature, the sipes close and trap ice or snow, literally pinching it.” – points out James from GearedUp.

With this in mind, a narrow tire is much more effective on snow and ice than a wide tire. The footprint of a wider tire when resting on the asphalt is wider and shorter and obviously narrower and more elongated with a narrow tire. The latter allows more sheets to be in contact with the ground for the longest period.

What to consider when buying winter tires

Here’s my first tip: if you’re thinking about buying a set of winter and summer tires, buy some basic metal rims in the narrowest measure that your car’s datasheet allows and leave the precious aluminum rims for spring and summer. In the medium term, it will be much cheaper than going around unhinging and mounting tires in a single set of tires and, above all, smaller tires are also much less expensive.

In addition, when choosing a winter tire you must take into account the following points:

• Measurements and technical data sheet: Always read the owner manual of your car first. You’ll usually find the recommended winter tire type and size that can be used.

• Stay away from unknown brands: There are a wide variety of type and tire models and their price can vary a lot. You don’t have to buy the most expensive ones but stay away from the cheaper ones made by unknown manufacturers. Every mechanic will tell you. Cheap winters are even worse than good summer tires in the winter. Look for well-known brands and intermediate prices.

Unlike traditional winter tires which, due to their chemical compound, will start to wear pretty quickly and lose performance at temperatures above 20ºC, M + S tires, on the other hand, have a design and a rubber type that allows them to be used all year long.

Maintenance and care

There are no secrets. The maintenance of winter tire is pretty much the same as in the case of summer tires. You have to keep the right pressure and the legal limit of the tread depth is the same, around 1.6 mm. Simply be aware that the most winter tires will perform better with a tread depth greater than 3-4 mm.

Are winter tires worth it?

If you live in an area where it snows or freezes frequently or if you often travel to the mountains, winter tires are the way to go. No doubt about that. At the same time, if you are lucky enough to live in a place where it rarely snows, you can probably use M+S tires all year long without a problem. Simply remember that they won’t work as well under 7 degrees Celsius.