How to choose winter tires
Some drivers are in no hurry to “dress” their cars in winter tires, despite the insistent demands of the traffic police to prepare in time for frost and ice, and not to drive cars with summer tires. But with the onset of the first frosts and the first snow, there were a number of accidents, and most of them are due to the carelessness of car owners who did not change their tires on time.
The choice of winter tires is not an easy and not always unambiguous question. It mainly depends on the weather conditions prevailing in a particular region. But despite this, there are some general recommendations.
All season tires
As for all-season “rubber”, as an option for the whole year, and as a compromise between “winter” and “summer” tires, at first glance, it may seem very tempting. But, you should not expect good results from the “all-weather” under different weather conditions and under different road conditions. Sometimes motorists choose “all-season” based on the economy, given that one set is always cheaper than two. But, he does not take into account that while the resource of winter and summer tires will have to be replaced by all the same two sets of “all-weather tires”.
Studded tires
When choosing winter tires, you will have to choose between studded and non-studded tires. Studded tires allow you to significantly increase the coefficient of adhesion with the road surface, with the help of studs. In addition, tire manufacturers are constantly optimizing the shape of the studs, their ground, achieving the most secure hold.
Winter tire studding
Studding of winter tires can be done independently. As a rule, the more studs installed in the tire, the better it will behave in the car on the ice road. It has been suggested that reducing the braking distance reduces the likelihood of wheel slip. But when the number of studs increases the braking distance on asphalt, this should be remembered and not overdo it with studs. Carrying out self-studding tires, do not place the rods in their place randomly on the surface of the tire. Please note that not every tire can be Osipovichi, be sure to check this point when buying rubber. Do not skimp on your safety and do not install studded tires only on the drive wheels. You can expect a surprise from this car, even when driving at low speed.
Running studded tires
Recently installed studded tires, experts advise to “run” so that the spikes “fall into place” in the bus. To do this, you will need a couple of hundred kilometers to drive smoothly, without sudden acceleration and braking, without slipping, and without exceeding the speed of 60-70 km / h we must be especially careful if your car is equipped with ABS. When driving on a dry track in these cars while driving on spikes, the stopping distance is significantly increased and the driver can be hard to get used to.
It is possible to install non-studded winter tires on a car only if in your area there is snow on the Earth for almost the entire winter, and snow is frequent. In this case, non-studded winter tires are preferable, since studded tires are ineffective when accelerating and braking on asphalt, they reduce the coefficient of friction with the road and affect handling.
Auto rubber Velcro
Not so long ago, non-studded tires, the so-called Velcro, appeared. The tread of such tires is covered with thin sipes. Velcro tires for their behavior on slippery roads and almost caught up with studded tires.
If you have “change shoes” car in winter “rubber”? tire manufacturers recommend doing this by lowering the average temperature by 5 degrees. It is at this temperature that summer tires begin to lose elasticity, respectively, their grip decreases.