That time of year has come again. Temperatures are falling, nights are growing longer and the shops are starting to fill up with all sorts of Christmas goodies.
Winter tyre safety might not be the most exciting part of the season, but it is certainly one of the most important. In colder weather, snow, ice and rain are all risks that cause numerous devastating accidents every single year.
To ensure that you keep yourself, your loved ones, and other road users safe this winter, it is important to understand the benefits of winter tyre installation and some top winter safety driving tips.
Benefits of winter tyres
Winter tyres are often called snow tyres, but whilst they are certainly great for this type of weather they perform exceptionally in all low temperature conditions.
Without going into too much technical detail, winter tyres differ from their summer equivalents in terms of composition, tread design, and more.
Benefits that these changes provide include superior traction on icy roads even in extremely low temperatures and shorter braking times. It is worth pointing out at this stage that winter tyre installation is NOT a replacement for taking extra care when driving in poor weather conditions. Snow and ice are dangerous no matter what tyres you have on your vehicle.
Winter tyres also make handling more responsive in many instances and reduce the threat of skidding or slipping on wet or frozen roads. Due to the fact that winter tyres have deeper grooves than standard tyres, they will also be able to channel slush and water away from the contact patch and keep the threat of hydroplaning to a minimum.
When should you install winter tyres
Don’t worry we aren’t going to just say ‘the winter’. When temperatures are consistently dropping below 7 degrees Celsius winter tyres should begin to enter your thoughts. As we all know, in Scotland these temperatures don’t always keep themselves to the winter months!
Top tips for winter tyre safety
- Ensure that your winter tyres are properly inflated. Cold temperatures can cause fluctuations in tyre pressure.
- Install 4 winter tyres not just two. A balanced set will provide consistency of performance.
- Keep speeds low in icy conditions no matter what tyres you have on your vehicle.
- Keep your tyres clear of snow and ice and check them more regularly than you might in the summer.
- Do not travel in weather conditions are set to be abnormally bad.
Winter tyre fitting
If you make the sensible decision to install a set of specialised winter tyres on your vehicle your next decision is where to get them from.
You could pop down to your local garage or install them yourself if you are mechanically minded, but for the upmost convenience why not call a local tyre fitting Glasgow company in your area.
They will travel direct to your location at a time that fits perfectly with your schedule and will even store your existing tyres in a safe location until you need them again next year.
