With all the snow and winter weather causing havoc there is hot debate whether the UK should embrace winter tyres. A number of drivers are making enquiries about them whilst others are still learning what winter tyres are yet there are many that aren’t convinced or choose not to bother. The confusion comes from there being no law to enforce the use of winter tyres in the UK but it is a different story across Europe, where winter tyres are required. Other countries such as Germany look set to make it the law to ensure driver safety on their roads.

Low Winter Tyres Stock in the UK

The problem for the UK is that it suffers from brief periods of cold snowy weather. In other countries like Russia and Sweden, it becomes the normal way of living for a few months with constant snowfall. This is an important issue for tyre manufacturers as they place resources into research & development, such as Nokian pioneering the slush planing testing, whilst calculating the deployment of their tyres across the world. This results in the European countries requiring more winter tyre stocks than the UK, which can end up leaving a shortage of winter tyres at your local tyre branch resulting in a further wait.

Concerns about Winter Tyres

• Low stock at tyre depots which could result in a wait whilst they are placed on order
• Higher insurance premium as insurance companies see winter tyres adding to the value of a car
• Winter only lasting for a few months meaning a change back to normal ‘summer’ tyres

Alternatives to Winter Tyres

What can you do if you don’t want winter tyres?

• Use snow chains on your tyres to help you get around – note these will need to be taken on and off based on conditions
• Buy some snow socks for your tyres that uses special material to grip the road
• By a 4 wheel drive car or Land Rover style vehicle
• Let down the air on the tyres to increase surface area
• Carry on as usual or stay indoors
• Buy a new set of car tyres which will have more tread and provide better grip than old tyres

Some of these may not be the best and most suitable alternatives to winter tyres but there are a few particular issues that we are keen to highlight:

Winter Tyres – Rubber Compound or Deeper Tread?

One benefit of a winter tyre is the rubber compound it is made from. It stops it from hardening in the extreme cold conditions. This is often highlighted as a key point in the benefit of a winter tyre. However, please remember that winter tyres have more grooves which are also deeper – these allow the tyre to bite into the snow and keep moving along.

Buy New Tyres for Better Grip

One sure way of increasing the amount of grip a car has on the road is putting some new tyres on it. The set of brand new tyres will have a deeper groove and will be able to grip the road better. So check your existing tyres and if they are worn, buy a new set of tyres for your car and make sure you have sufficient tread depth to keep control of your vehicle.

The 3mm tread campaign found the following:

Research showed that tyres with a 3mm tread had a 25% better performance than those at 1.6mm in wet conditions. In terms of braking distance this represents an extra 8 metres (25ft). In one test, where a new tyre with a tread depth of 8mm was compared to one with only 1.6mm the braking distance increased by 13 metres (42.25ft).

This highlights a significant decrease in the stopping distances when using a new tyre compared to one that is worn. If you aren’t convinced or having trouble finding winter tyres, buy a new set of car tyres at a local tyre branch for the benefits that increased tread depth will provide.

Image credits: mroach

Related posts:

1. Winter slush planing dangers and concerns from Nokian Tyres
2. Winter Tyres Guide & Review
3. Winter Tyres Review
4. Germany Set for Winter Tyres Law
5. 10 rules of how to drive in wet winter weather conditions