Think of studs as hammering and clawing into frozen precipitation under wheel rotation. Alternatively, some off-road truck studs have a screw design that lodges them into the tire tread. The stud holes are clearly visible on studdable winter tires like the General AltiMax Arctic The TSMI chart above outlines the various stud sizes. Proper stud size for the tire is necessary, and is indicated on the tire sidewall by many manufacturers. Tire shops will do stud installation work and professional installation is recommended by TireBuyer.
Only studdable winter tires can have studs installed. These tires have been engineered with preset locations holes for the studs. Attempting to stud studless winter tires could cause structural integrity issues, and compromise the performance and safety of the tire.
Studded winter tires have one proven performance advantage over studless: Studded tires provide superior grip on icy and hard-packed snowy roads. The traction characteristics of modern studless winter tires like the Michelin X-Ice Xi3 on icy roads are excellent; substantially better than the traction offered by any all season tires.
A studless winter tire provides its traction benefits primarily due to the enhanced wintertime grip of the unique, specially-designed tire tread compound, and its road surface interaction. But in the case of ice, the coefficient of traction can only be so strong. When the driver accelerates, brakes, or turns on ice with studded winter tires, he or she has the combined advantage of both the winter tire compound and studs clawing into the ice, which improves grip and vehicle handling responsiveness.
Studs are really only advantageous in icy and hard-packed snow conditions. When winter roads are dry or wet, studs actually decrease traction potential. In these conditions the tire tread compound is the foundation of tire grip. To a small but noteworthy degree, studs interrupt the crucial interaction between the tire tread and the road surface, which can have a negative effect on stopping distances.
Studs are also known to produce additional road noise, including a ticking sound as the studs contact the pavement.
Have you ever walked in soccer cleats on a smooth surface? The same idea goes for studded tires as they need a surface to penetrate and grip on to.
Studless winter tires generally have deeper tread depths than summer or all season tires. Deep tread depths allow the tire to manage snow and slush dispersion from under the tire. It also allows the tire to provide better or snow-on-snow traction by packing it within the tread blocks. Another feature you'll notice are thousands of tiny slits in the tread pattern, called sipes. These act as thousands of biting edges on ice that help with acceleration, deceleration, and stopping. The choice between studded vs.
Did you know Bridgestone is a leader in winter tires? Blizzak studless snow tires are specially engineered with unique tread patterns, deep tread depths, and industry-leading snow and ice technologies. Zig zag sipes in Blizzak tires provide a multitude of biting edges that provide confident grip in snow and ice. Proprietary rubber compound technology, called Tube Multi-Cell, removes the thin layer of water from under the tire, which is typically the main cause of slippage.
Ready to find the Blizzak tire for your car? Start here. At Bridgestone, we've always been in the fast lane when it comes to innovation. Today, we're still leading the pack, with the introduction of Run-Flat Technology, the first full line of run-flat tyres - tyres that keep you moving, even after a puncture.
Most snow tires are already siped , with small patterned slits on the lugs that create extra edges for better road grip. Additional safety siping can be done for a fee on new or used tires. Second, measure the tread depth by using a tire tread depth gauge. You can pick one up at any auto parts store for under five bucks. Or have a tire store tech do it; it should be free.
Take measurements in multiple places in the grooves on each tire. Did your tread gauge measurements show any tread depth difference between the four tires? Driving with mismatched tires or putting the wrong size on your vehicle will NOT save you money in the long run. This creates a big difference in traction between your axles.
And this will mean less steering control, not more.
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