Winter Tyres – Do You Need Them?

With the recent snow hitting the UK this week, many have decided to stay at home for fear of venturing out. But does having a good set of winters on make the difference?

As of now, most of the UK is experiencing some form of snow. Typically, we are woefully underprepared as a nation. But does the average driver need to be, and are a good set of winters worth investing in?

Tyres make the biggest difference for allround performance on the road, they allow you to accelerate better, handle better and stop better. Winters excel at this over all-seasons and summers in the white stuff.

What is a winter tyre?

A winter tyre is, unsurprisingly, a tyre built specifically for winter. But that is often our understanding of what they are. Their main purpose is to function in cold climates and perform well when the mercury drops. Certain tread patterns mean they are far better at dispersing water, slush and snow.

Tyres are all derived from various compounds that the manufacturers dream up. A compound is the tyres chemical makeup so to speak. Tyres can be hard, medium or soft, and that dictates a number of factors. Factors such as wear rate, ability to get up to temperature, handling capabilities and loads of other little pieces.

But the ability to get up to temperature is the key thing for a good set of winters. You’ll often get drivers ‘warming up’ their tyres when racing. Performance tyres work better when hot because it allows the molecules in a tyre to loosen up, and the tyre becomes ‘rubbery’ and sticky.

A soft tyre heats up quicker but will experience a higher wear rate, a hard tyre is the exact opposite and a medium sits between the two.

So why should I buy some?

Winter tyres optimal operating temperature is typically below 7 degrees because they’re a softer compound, more than this and the heat which makes a summer tyre work properly, has adverse effects here. If a tyre is too hard, it means it can’t contour properly to the road surface. You need a tyre to be soft and squishy so that it can adapt better to what’s going on underneath. Regarding braking, if the tyre is rigid and has no flex, the increased pressure on the tyre will have no effect. When it is soft, a greater contact patch hits the road, resulting in more traction and a better ability to stop.

But it isn’t just the temperature aspect that makes them better in colder climates.

The tread pattern on them is equally important. You can spot winters a mile off through the aggressive V-shape tread blocks they have fitted. These, coupled with a wider distance of said blocks means that they can push the snow, slush and water out of the way more effectively. Tyres only work when the rubber is on the ground, you don’t want something in between that.

All wheel drive, front wheel drive or even rear wheel drive cars will all benefit from having a proper set of winters on when it gets a bit chilly. In the snow, summers will be near on useless, regardless of what drivetrain you have. Granted, it doesn’t snow that much here in the UK, but it is often quite nippy in the winter months – and that’s where these tyres shine.

Can I use them all year round?

If you do decide to purchase a set, just be mindful about their wear rate and ability to overheat in the summer. By overheating they will just become less effective, but will settle once cooled down. The best practice is to use two sets of tyres, one for summer and one for winter.

Whilst the overall outlay for purchasing two sets is quite steep, you will only be using one set at a time, so it will eventually even out. In truth, without these winters on our NX, I would have never made it to the location where these photos were taken.

If you ask me, they’re a worthy investment to make.