• Yoneda Kou

As the temperature continues to drop, many drivers will be wondering whether it’s worth investing in a set of specialist winter tyres. Here’s our guide: Winter tyres have been the source of plenty of debate in recent years. First, a series of caused the public to wake up to their existence and start asking whether they should buy a set. But recent warmer winters caused plenty of people to go back the other way, writing them off as a waste of money and wondering what all the fuss was about in the first place. Just what are the facts surrounding winter tyres, though, and is it worth owning a set here in the UK? Here’s our guide.

What is a winter tyre? There are three main types of tyre one might consider using on the road in the UK. One is the summer tyre; this is what the majority of British drivers use and what you might think of as a “normal” tyre. Summer tyres have a relatively hard compound, which means they soften off in milder temperatures to provide lots of grip – most of the time, reckoned to be above 7 oC. That, however, makes them less useful when the temperature drops below that figure, when they’re too hard and can’t provide enough grip.

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It’s worth pointing out that these tyres are different to studded tyres, which feature plastic or metal studs embedded in the rubber, a bit like a football boot. These are not legal for use on the road in the UK. Between winter and summer tyres sits a third way: the all-season tyre. Beethoven 7th symphony youtube. The aim of this tyre is to offer the best of both worlds; a softer compound than a winter tyre so that it can be used in both cold and mild temperatures, but still featuring sipes to help with grip in snow and slush.

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These tyres are reckoned to be useful down to -5 oC. Which is best for use in the UK? On the face of it, the all-season tyre should be best-suited for use in the UK, as it is rated best for use in the sorts of temperatures we face throughout the vast majority of the year. However, many experts consider there to be a “jack of all trades, master of none” aspect to the all-season tyre; while it’s better in cold temperatures than a summer tyre, and vice versa, it isn’t as good as keeping two specialist tyres and switching between them from season to season. The question of whether we need to use winter tyres in the UK is the most hotly-debated. It all centres around how much of the season you think you’ll spend below 7 oC.

If you find yourself below that temperature for most of the winter, then buying a separate set of winter tyres and changing them over every October and March is the optimum solution. Otherwise, sticking with your summer tyres, or alternatively, buying a set of all-season tyres to run throughout the year, might be a better bet. So winter tyres aren’t just good for snow and ice? In fact, current research suggests winter tyres are better than summer tyres any time the temperature drops below 7 oC. That means a car fitted with winter tyres should stop more quickly and be less prone to skidding in any weather conditions if the temperature drops below this mark. But buying an extra set of tyres is expensive, isn’t it? Winter tyres are often slightly more expensive than summer tyres to buy, but having an extra set is quite a significant expense – especially if you team them with an extra set of wheels to make switching over even easier, just like they do in some European countries.

However, it’s worth bearing in mind that although you have to pay for two sets of tyres, they also last twice as long; in other words, much of the extra cost of the winter set is mitigated by the fact that they take the load off your summer set for half the year. And as for the spare set of wheels, you can always sell them on when the time comes to part ways with your car, and recoup a chunk of your outlay. But do winter tyres really work? Not only do winter tyres reduce stopping distances in snow and ice, but also in wet weather below 7­ oC. What’s more, they help with cornering performance, enabling you to turn the car in circumstances where you might otherwise skid straight on.