The advent of winter is the time when drivers prepare their vehicles for adverse road conditions. The right choice of winter tires is extremely important for the driver’s safety and vehicle handling on snow- or ice-covered surface. That’s why You should be very attentive when choosing winter tires. A few decades ago the studded tire was the only option for adverse winter conditions. But the technical progress is moving very fast and intensive work of tire manufacturers has lead to the development of new types of rubber compounds and improvement of traction performance of studless winter tires. That’s why today such tires don’t yield to studded tires and in some cases even excel them. The variety of winter tires on the today’s market is great. Nevertheless, You should remember that different types of winter tires show their excellent performance in specific road conditions. That’s why before making a purchase You should be aware of the road conditions in which You are going to operate Your tires.
The mounting of studs is aimed at the improvement of traction performance on dense snow or ice what in its turn considerably reduces the braking distance of a vehicle. The more studs has the tire the better will be the performance of a vehicle (due to the reduction of the barking distance and skidding probability). Basically, to achieve greater effectiveness studs are located not in one line – they are chaotically distributed over the whole surface of the tire. The location of studs is also made in a way that ensures work of each line of studs in any driving mode – accelerating, braking, cornering. The advantages of studded tires are well-known. They ensure outstanding traction even in the most adverse road conditions. But there are also disadvantages. On wet and dry asphalted surface the contact patch area is reduced due to stud protrusion what in its turn causes reduction of the steering control and increase of the braking distance. Besides this, the use of studded tires entails noise level increase, fuel consumption increase and more intensive destruction of road surface. No wonder that in many states of the European Union the use of such tires is banned by legislation. Another unpleasant peculiarity of studded tires is that they grind off or even sling out what results in the decline of the high performance of such tires. These are the reasons that make increasing number of drivers consider purchase of studless tires.
The base of successful performance of studless winter tire lies in unique rubber compounds that allow some molecular bonds forming the compounds to break and then quickly restore. On the one hand studless tire is to ensure high level of safety on wet road surface, on the other hand it must provide outstanding performance on snow. That’s why the main task of tire engineers and designers is to make such tires simultaneously soft (to provide superb traction performance) and rigid (to maintain outstanding steering). When touching the surface only outer rubber edge works – in the center of the tread rubber remains cold and rigid. Tire manufacturers are constantly working on the improvement of rubber compounds to ensure better traction performance of the tire on winter surface and provide confident steering on the asphalted surface. The high level of traction is also achieved through the use of special sipes – thin cuts that split each separate tread block. Directional tread pattern of studless winter tire enables effective withdrawal of water, snow and mud from the contact patch what results in improved steering.
As it was mentioned above, the choice of studded or studless tires is first of all determined by its operational conditions. In the conditions of slippery ice or rolled snow on city roads the use of studs allows to achieve considerable increase of traction ratio. In adverse conditions of winter operation the properties of studded tires still excel the properties of studless ones. Studded tires are recommended for frequent rides to the country on snow- or ice covered surface. In these road conditions the presence of studs will considerably increase general steering and, in its turn, will provide greater safety both for the driver and the passengers. For those drivers who prefer calm steering mode and want to insure themselves against slippery ice or sudden snow the studded tire is also the optimal choice.
When driving on snow-covered surface and soft deep snow the steering of the vehicle depends on the tread pattern and rubber compound to a greater extent than on the presence of studs. If Your roads are covered mainly with soft snow You should consider the purchase of studless tires. Studless tires are also recommended for the use on the asphalted surface (without slush and ice). In this case the use of studded tires considerably decreases contact patch area what leads to the reduction of traction ratio and worsens steering. On the contrary, studless tires show their best properties on such type of surface. Thus, in the city conditions studless winter tires will be the best variant.
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