Take a look at these Continental tyre treads; notice how on the winter tyre to the right, the tread cuts into the tyre in curved chevron patterns, while in contrast the summer tyre on the left has a more orbital tread? Once you start looking closely, the differences become much clearer, with another being that winter tyres also appear to be chunkier.
In fact winter and summer tyres are made from different rubber compounds, with each compound designed, developed and manufactured to adapt to and work effectively in very different driving conditions. Comparison performance of summer, winter and all-season tyres in a variety of weather and driving conditions. As a result, their driving properties diminish rapidly. The result of this investment is winter tyres designed to deliver optimum performance in cold weather conditions, and summer tyres that perform at their best throughout the rest of the year.
When you think about it properly, it suddenly makes sense. Snow is not the main reason why millions of drivers across northern Europe change to winter tyres every year.
So why do they change to winter tyres? And in the instance that it does snow, winter tyres are much better at helping you cope with adverse weather conditions than summer tyres ever can be, allowing you to continue to drive safely, or at least to safety.
We mistakenly think winter tyres are snow tyres, sometimes to our cost. If you would like to hear expert advice on the benefits of winter tyres, and which ones are best for your car, SUV or 4x4, speak to a Kwik Fit tyre professional now. We offer impartial, expert advice, fitting services and tyre storage options.
You can locate your nearest Kwik Fit centre here. The EU is changing the labels that come with new tyres in order to be more informative and transparent. But what do the new labels mean? Read to find out. Unsure where to find your tyre size? Click here for more information. We are committed to offering customers our most competitive tyre prices. Read about our exclusive online tyre pricing. Kwik Fit has over centres across the UK including Northern Ireland, many of which are open 7 days a week for your convenience.
We endeavour to ensure we are displaying the correct tyres for your vehicle. However, we recommend all customers check the tyre size printed on the side wall of their tyres before proceeding with a tyre purchase as occasionally discrepancies do occur.
By selecting the tyre sizes above and clicking 'Continue', you are indicating that you have checked your tyre sizes. Please note: Centres do not open until on bank holidays. Skidding could occur. Using winter tyres in warm summer months is not advisable. In the latter case, you could use winter tyres all year. Or, in the case of warm temperatures, summer tyres. Like the winter tyre, the summer tyre is optimised for certain weather conditions and offers maximum comfort along with safety.
Summer tyres have less grooves, big, solid ribs and a shallow tread depth. This makes the tyre more stable and provides longevity, while also saving fuel and reducing rolling noise. Due to this, the tread block is also bigger. The compound is flexible. In turn this all means better grip, and good cornering and braking abilities on dry and wet ground. Summer tyres have a great grip, particularly on dry and wet roads, thanks to the grooving and tyre ribs.
With their better braking behaviour, handling and traction they still maintain a high level of comfort. All while maintaining a low rolling noise. And a lower rolling noise often also means less fuel use due to lower resistance. As soon as the temperatures fall beneath the minimum, the compound begins to harden.
So, the traction is reduced and in extreme cases, the compound can crack. This is the main difference between summer and winter tyres. Using both is good choice in countries with a huge temperature difference between summer and winter.
Unlike when driving winter tyres in summer, some countries have laws that define an obligatory use of winter tyres in winter. This is because summer tyres are not made for wintry conditions and doing so is dangerous. Can you use summer tyres in winter? No, you should not. We strongly do not advise having two different types of tyres mounted. This is mostly due to the fact that tyre types behave differently.
Now you know the difference between summer and winter tyres, and what advantages all-season tyres offer. Take a look at the following overview of all advantages and disadvantages of the tyre types:. Some tyres have a defined direction. We explain how to recognise them and describe their advantages. Tyres Expert's Advice About Barum. Difference between summer, all-season and winter tyres. Chief among them: Which tyre type do you want?
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