Q. Do I need winter tires?

A. If you live in an area where the temperature is consistently below 45 degrees you do.

Winter tires are not like All-Season tires and have special rubber compounds designed to improve traction, handling, and braking in all cold weather conditions, not just ice and snow. See Tire Safety Below 45°.

Q. How many winter tires are recommended?

A. Four.

Of the hundreds of questions we get every year regarding winter tires this is the one most frequently asked. The answer is the same for every vehicle type, whether you drive a compact car or SUV.

Q. Why are four winter tires recommended?

A. Traction, control and safety.

Many people assume that the two drive wheels are most important and the other two tires sort of tag along. This idea was valid twenty or more years ago when snow tires were different only in their tread design. Today’s winter tires have different compounds and designs that deliver from 25 to 50 percent more traction in snow and ice, and stay pliable in cold weather allowing for more control on dry roads. Using just two on a vehicle creates a traction mismatch that can have serious handling consequences. Using four winter tires ensures optimum traction and control for all vehicle types. It is always recommended to use four winter tires, it’s the cheapest insurance you can buy to protect yourself, your family and others.

Q. What can happen if I only use two winter tires?

A. Running only two winter tires can cause you to lose control of any vehicle; here’s why:

Front Wheel Drive Vehicles

Even though steering, acceleration and most of the braking are done by the front wheels, don’t forget about the braking done by the rear wheels. If the rear wheels are not equipped with winter tires too, you are essentially disabling the rear brakes due to lack of traction. The following is what can happen using only

Winter tires on the front:

Traveling along in your neighborhood at 25 mph in just light snow, you begin to slow down to make a right turn. As you apply the brakes, your winter tires are doing their job, giving you all the traction you need to slow down. At the same time, the all-season tires on the rear are giving you much less traction causing the rear of your vehicle to slide around. Perhaps at slow speeds no harm is done, but what if this had happened at highway speeds?

Rear Wheel Drive Vehicles

Many people think that winter tires on the rear will solve the acceleration problem in ice and snow and that’s good enough. But getting your vehicle to accelerate is just half the battle; you still need to stop! The majority of braking is done with the front brakes, and failing to put tires designed for cold weather on the front of the vehicle can have disastrous consequences. Also keep in mind that steering is the sole function of the front tires, with insufficient traction it’s like not being able to firmly grasp the steering wheel.

How confident would you feel, now that you know this, if you were equipped with only rear winter tires, driving on snow, ice, or even cold pavement at 45 mph and you suddenly had to brake and swerve to avoid trouble? Chances are you could not stop and turn in time.

All (or) Four Wheel Drive Vehicles

During the winter would you purposefully disconnect your four-wheel drive and use just two wheel drive instead? Absolutely not. But that is exactly what you are doing if you use just two winter tires. The traction mismatch basically "disconnects" the two other wheels not equipped with winter tires. This leaves you open to the control problems cited in the other two sections, depending upon where you mount the winter tires.

Q. Do I need winter tires to improve traction if my vehicle has Traction Control?

A. Yes

Even though traction control optimizes the traction of your tires in adverse conditions by preventing wheel spin, this specialized system does not create additional tire traction. Traction always depends on the four contact patches created by the tires. The better traction your tires provide, the more effectively the traction control system will help you drive more safely. Cold temperatures will cause all-season compounds to harden, losing pliability and traction. See Tire Safety Below 45° for more information.

Q. My vehicle has ABS brakes; does that eliminate the need for winter tires?

A. No

An ABS braking system prevents "locking-up" the brakes by "pulsing" them as you apply pressure to the pedal. But remember it is the tires on your vehicle that supply the traction and help the ABS deliver faster stops. Tires built with better winter traction will improve overall braking performance on ice, snow and cold roads.