All Season Tires vs. Summer/Winter Tires

For those of us with four radically different seasons in the year, we can always expect to encounter radically different roads as well. Yet, often times, cars are sold off the lot sporting “all-season” tires. One could easily assume that their all season tires are capable of handling hot summer pavement and winter ice the same as specifically designed tires would be. This is unfortunately due to a misrepresentation of all season tires combined with a general lack of basic tire knowledge abound.

 All season tires do indeed contain a portion of the needed qualities for summer and winter grip alike. With compromise, however, comes sacrifice. All season tires are lacking fundamental qualities of BOTH tires ideal for their assigned season.

There are multiple categories of tire composition- each one responsible for a faucet of the tires performance. As far as weather handling goes, key factors are going to be the tire treads rubber composition, depth, patterns, and edges.

Summer tires — known simply as “tires” before all-season tire use became widespread — are currently marketed as “performance” or “high-performance” tires. The tread is generally comprised of large tread blocks with high lateral stiffness, while wide circumferential grooves expel and sequester water. The rubber formulation is calibrated for firmness and isn’t nearly malleable to efficiently tackle slick roads.

Snow tires, on the other hand, utilize rubber compounds specifically formulated to produce grip at low temperatures and a tread that features a pattern of elements that are designed to physically bite into snow. A network of hair-thin cuts — known as “sipes” — crisscrosses the tread blocks, subdividing them into numerous edges for added grip. The result is a squishier, less stable tread than you'd see on any summer tire.

Now, because all-season tires are perceived as the do it all tires, this means that all season tires are expected to satiate an infeasible amount of criteria. If you experience the extremes of winter, mounting winter tires isn’t an over-the-top precaution – it’s an essential safety measure that could save your life.

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