Winter Tires. Are they just a pointless waste of money?

"I have All Season tires. There is no need for winter tires." Oh, how wrong you are...

     There is a general consciences among people who live in the frosty bits of the world, that they don't need to run winter tires on their cars because they have "all seasons". Sorry folks, all seasons don't cut it in the winter. All Season tires are great in the fall and spring time, when it's not too cold or too hot.  Even though the round rubbers say "all season" on the side, they do not function nearly as well in winter as a dedicated winter tire. 

     As the mercury drops, summer and all season tires transform into hard, un-flexable hockey pucks. This puts you into a predicament. The snow hasn't even fallen yet and your all season tires are already underperforming. A tire's tread blocks need to be able to flex and move to obtain maximum grip on the hard road. In the cold, summer and all season tires become stiff, useless chunks of rubber. What does this mean? When compared to winter tires, which stay bendable like a wet noodle in the cold, stopping lengths are much longer. When the skies finally open up and drop the fluffy stuff, the winter tire shines. 

BMW 128i on Firestone Winterforce snow tires.

     In the snow and on ice, winter tires stop, steer, and accelerate much better than other types of tires. If you look at summer and all season tires, you'll see that they have wide tread blocks for traction on dry asphalt. To give some credit to all seasons, they do have more grooves for water and snow to flow out of when compared to dedicated summer tires. That is why folks can get away with using all season tires all season long. Jack of all trades, master of none. Having babbled that, snow tires have a many more grooves for snow to escape. They look like the butt of a zebra with all those grooves. Among those extra groves and staying pliable in the cold, winter tires have little cuts in the tread blocks, called "sipes". Which allow for more flex, more grip, and more water and snow channeling. That's a lot more.  All of these characteristics add up for a lot more control in the snow. Stopping distances are GREATLY reduced, handling is improved, and traction off the line is enhanced. 

"I have a 4X4, I don't need winter tires." 

     Having AWD or 4X4 will ONLY help you get traction for not getting stuck. It will not help in controlling that fat-hippo of an automobile around corners or stopping. Snow tires are your only option in improving stopping or steering. Imagine if a person put snow tires on a 4x4, which is recommended, that truck will be as unstoppable as a Sherman tank with bees shoved up its backside. 

    If you care about saving baby seals, put winter tires on.... wait that's not right. 

    If you care about your safety in the winter, put winter tires on your car. That's better. 

Links and Vids :

Popular Mechanics All Season vs. Winter Tire test.-- Specs.

Some YouTube love...