Barrowford MOT Suggest All Season Tyres

All season tyres, also known as all weather tyres, are designed for use in countries with moderate weather patterns all year round.

Countries like the UK where winters are less severe and are characteristically more cold and wet with a low likelihood of snow are ideally suited for all season tyres. Because they are designed to cope with less extreme climates, they are sometimes referred to as four season tyres as they can be used in spring, summer, autumn or winter.

All season tyres essentially combine elements of summer tyres and winter tyres to create a tyre that has benefits of both so that they can be used all-year round, giving drivers peace of mind whatever the weather throws at them. While all season car tyres are not likely to match the performance of specialist summer or winter tyres during these respective seasons, they provide a good all-round mix of strengths.

The benefits of all season tyres

Here are some of the advantages of switching to all season tyres:

• Avoid the hassle and cost of changing between summer and winter tyres – Purchasing two sets of tyres for summer and winter can be costly, especially when you factor in fitting costs. All season tyres remove the hassle of owning and storing multiple sets of tyres and can be used all year round.
• Better winter performance than a summer tyre – Thanks to a unique compound and tread pattern, all weather tyres provide better grip than summer tyres in cold wintery conditions. Many all season tyres are designated as winter-suitable and feature the 3-Peak mountain snowflake symbol on the tyre sidewall. This means the tyre has been approved for use in winter conditions and can be used in European countries where it is a legal requirement to fit winter tyres during certain months of the year.
• Better summer performance than a winter tyre –All weather tyres have a specially designed tread block which means they will work better and provide improved handling on dry, warm roads when compared to a winter tyre.
• Ideal for the UK – Severe ice and snow is uncommon in many parts of the UK when compared to some central European countries. This makes all season tyres ideal as they are designed to cope with the milder weather in Britain while still providing great wet traction for when it inevitably rains.

How do all season tyres work?

All season car tyres combine properties of both summer and winter tyres to create a good all-round performance tyre. All-season tyres are made from an intermediate rubber compound that offers sufficient grip on warm, dry roads but equally do not harden as much as summer tyres in cold weather. In addition, all season tyres have a unique tread pattern with grooves to aid aquaplaning resistance and high-density sipes that provide interlocking grip in icy conditions.

This means that all season tyres are the only tyres that can truly be used all year round. The trade-off is that all season tyres cannot offer best-in-class performance. The best summer tyres will outperform all-season during the summer just as the best winter tyres will always excel in the snow.  But for good, all-round performance, all season tyres cannot be beaten.

When should you fit all season tyres?

All season tyres can be fitted at any time of year due to their unique blend of tyre properties.

For further advice on tyres and wheel alignment contact Barrowford MOT today on 01282 639381.