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All Season Tyres – a compromise:

As the name suggests, all-season tyres are designed to be used in all seasons; they are different to winter or snow tyres. The main difference is the different tyre compounds used, which react differently in different temperatures. An all-season tyre is a trade-off that incorporates characteristics found in winter tyres, and also characteristics found in summer tyres. Should you be driving in snow or extremely cold climates, then an all-season tyre probably is not right for you. However, in the UK, an all-season tyre can work well and be an excellent compromise.

Winter Tyres – designed for a purpose:

A winter or snow tyre has a self-cleaning tread design that effectively cleans itself of snow as it drives. This allows the tyre to keep better traction when in snow.  A non-winter tyre is likelier to pack snow into the tread when driving. A winter tyre has a much softer rubber compound, which means the tread remains soft in cold temperatures. As the temperature drops, a summer tyre, and to some degree, an all-season tyre, will become firmer and, as a result, offer less grip. Due to the softer tread, a winter tyre will wear quicker and is unsuitable for summer use.

+ Benefits – All Season Tyres:

All-season tyres are useful if you drive in a range of conditions. Summer tyres are designed for use in temperatures 7 degrees and above. An all-season tyre is designed to work well in warmer temperatures but also in colder temperatures too.

– Disadvantages – All Season Tyres:

Being a jack of all trades means an all-season tyre is a compromise. So although you enjoy its range of benefits, it’s neither a high-performance summer tyre nor a strong winter tyre. Depending on your climate, you may find an all-season tyre is too hard for real winter driving or too soft for summer driving. An all-season tyre would be best suited to a climate where there are no regular extremes in temperatures, such as in the UK. Having said that, the UK can have very cold winters and also very hot summer days – so again, it is a compromise on what you want.

+ Benefits – Winter Tyres:

A winter tyre is a master of one thing – driving in the snow and in wintery conditions. Should you demand the very highest level of safety and are driving in very cold conditions, a winter tyre is ideal. It has the ability to flush out snow from its treads and remains soft in cold temperatures, whereas non-winter tyres would be firmer and offer less grip. Winter tyres provide more grip and shorter braking distances in snow and cold temperatures.

– Disadvantages – Winter Tyres:

Winter tyres are not suitable for summer driving. The softer tyre compound makes them wear much quicker than summer or all-season tyres.

Enjoying the best of both worlds…

Many people use winter tyres in the winter and swap them for summer or all-season tyres in the summer. Although this may sound expensive, the only real additional cost is paying a garage to swap your tyres over, and of course, having to store them. A garage will usually charge around £30-£60 to swap the tyres over, and if you have space in your garage, storage is free. You will benefit from safer motoring, and your summer tyres can take a well-deserved rest over the cold winter days.

What would we recommend?

We provide advanced driver training to companies and private clients around the UK. We always pay attention to the condition and type of tyres on a vehicle a client presents for training. We talk about grip and grip management, especially so on high-performance driving courses. If a client asked us what we would opt for, we would, for most UK drivers, opt for an all-season tyre, such as Michelin Cross Climate.

Although Michelin are at the higher end of the market in terms of price, they are of excellent quality and usually last well. We would only recommend a winter tyre if you live or have to drive regularly to very rural areas where gritting may not occur in icy conditions.