Now when you face winter condition, it is not enough that you managed to change from all-season tires to winter tires, you also need to check that the winter tires are in good condition. Winter conditions are so challenging to drive in, that you definitely need to get the best performance from your car tires. There are a few key items with tires, one is that tread has to be more than 5/32 inches, the tire pressure should be as per recommended by the car’s manual and then the tire should be free from any damages caused by the curbs or sharp objects and the tread wear should be even across the profile.
For snow tires also known as winter tires, if you are using studded tires, you should also check that the studs are still in good condition and that you haven’t lost too many of them. If you are unsure it could be worth driving to a tire service station to have them check the tires for you, to see if the tires are still safe to drive with in winter conditions. Studded tires create traction on ice with the studs, where the non-studded tires will instead use gripping particles and innovations in the tread that can help grip the ice. However, a non-studded tire without studs will be worse than a non-studded tire on soft ice. When the studded tires have all its studs, the studded tire will have a better grip on ice and packed snow, which can be very important for areas that suffer from wet air causing icy conditions. This tends to be the situation in coastal areas and places close to great lakes.
If the tires are not in good condition you might be fooling yourself into believing that you have good and safe tires, while the reality can be quite different. When a service station does the tire change for you, they will check the tires before they mount them. If you instead mount them yourself, you will not get a valuable evaluation of the tire’s condition and you might end up driving with tires that are not in good conditions or worn out. Tires with low tread depth will have reduced properties such as braking distance, prevention of slushplaning and grip. The tires station will also ensure that the tires are properly rotated between the seasons as well as ensure that they nuts are securely tightened so that the wheels don’t fall off as you drive.
The tire pressure impacts the rolling resistance, so if your tires have low pressure the tires can get damaged, but also the tire resistance will increase so that the tire wear will be higher together with the fuel consumption, so it can get expensive. Your tires performance will also be impacted and if the tire pressure is too low it can feel that you have a flat tire. Make checking the tire pressure a part of your weekly routine, when you anyway stop at the gas station.
For more information regarding winter tires, visit: https://www.nokiantires.com/