Do I Need Winter Tyres?

It’s that time of year when motorists begin to question whether or not they need winter tyres for their vehicles. While winter tyres are a legal requirement in many other European countries, in Britain we are not required by law to fit winter tyres to our vehicles – but does that mean that we shouldn’t?

How Do Winter Tyres Work?

Winter tyres provide enhanced driving safety in difficult winter weather conditions due to their specialist construction and design. Features of winter tyres will include:

• A specially formulated rubber compound which retains stiffness in cold temperatures. This enables winter tyres to retain grip with the surface of the road.
• A large number of sipes situated in the tyre tread bite to the road for enhanced traction in ice and snow.
• Deep grooves are located on the tyre to further enhance grip, traction and road handling.
• More tread channels work to rapidly evacuate water from the tyre to provide resistance against aquaplaning on frozen and thawing roads.

Do Winter Tyres Make a Difference?

Winter tyres do make a difference when it comes to driving in cold conditions! They provide enhanced grip, which helps the tyre to slow down reducing your braking distances on water, ice and snow covered roads.

In addition, winter tyres will offer better handling in when temperatures are low, resulting in higher levels of steering response and driver control for high levels of safety when you need it most.

Buy Winter Tyres

You can buy winter tyres online from PTA Garage Services and arrange a fitting at your local branch. Before you buy your new winter tyres we would recommend that you research the benefits and characteristics of the tyres so you choose ones that best suit your needs. For information and guidance on choosing winter tyres you can contact your local PTA Garage Services where our tyre specialists will be happy to offer advice.

If you choose to fit winter tyres to your vehicle, you should switch all four at the same time and we would recommend undertaking this task in October, or when temperatures have dropped below 7°C.

Prepare Your Tyres For Winter

Whether or not you choose to fit winter tyres to your vehicle, you should undertake important tyre checks to ensure that your tyres will keep you safe and legal on the road when temperatures drop.

1. Ensure that your tyres have at least 3mm of tread and replace them if not! Tyre tread provides grip and aquaplaning resistance so it is important that your tread will keep you safe in winter.
2. Check that your tyres are inflated to the right pressures. Under and over-inflated tyres do not optimally grip the road and this will reduce your handling abilities.
3. Inspect the condition of your tyres visually for any signs of damage and visit a tyre specialist immediately if you do notice any warning signs such as cuts, bulges or lumps.