Winter Tire Installation Blairsville GA

How and When to Change from Summer to Winter Tires By Alison Lakin, Associate Editor

When the warm summer air gives way to the chill of an impending winter, some of you are probably thinking more about fading tans and lost beach days than you are about car care. We understand that anything related to cold weather might be a sore subject. However, winter tires (also known as "snow tires") are tremendously important for your safety if you live in a snowy climate, and it's important to know when to switch over to them.

The Basics
Winter tires, marked with a snowflake symbol, are made with special low temperature resiliant rubber compounds and have deep treads that grip unplowed snow, ice and other inclement conditions under your wheels. All-season tires, regardless of being branded with M+S for Mud and Snow, might not be suitable in heavy snow.

Robert Abram, Product Planning Manager at Yokohama Tire Corporation describes the difference: "The compounding and tread designs for winter tires are altered from traditional all-season tires to maximize grip. Even the best all-season tires have compounds that get more brittle as the temperature drops, and when that happens, the tires tend to grip less. The winter tire compound remains pliable when temperatures are low, retaining grip."

Without grip, most of your car's safety functions - like all-wheel drive and anti-lock brakes - can't do their jobs correctly.

Doug Brown, brand category manager for BFGoodrich Tires agrees. "Having a second set of dedicated snow tires gives you a margin of safety and a sense of security to get where you're going," he says. "You will increase your ability to start on a hill, stop the vehicle and to maneuver in deep snow that can't be achieved with conventional tires."

Winter tires also come in studded form. Adding 100 little studs to your tires makes for a safer ride on ice; however, the use of studded tires isn't always allowed due to the damage they cause on clear roads.

Even if you have two-wheel drive, you should put snow tires on every wheel of your vehicle. Putting them only on the front wheels of a front-wheel drive car can cause spinouts or result in diminished steering capabilities in a rear-wheel drive car. Trust us, it's worth the extra dough to do all four wheels at once.

When To Change Them
There are no clear answers as to when you should put on your winter tires. Obviously, where you live matters, as does the intensity of the winter season. Aim for changing them when the weather worsens, but don't wait too long. Going to the shop earlier in the season involves less waiting for you. Better to have them on too soon than leave it until you wake up to a foot of snow on the ground and your car stuck for the day.

While you can technically leave winter tires on your wheels year-round, we recommend against it.

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