With the winter season upon us, it’s important to make sure you have tires that are up to the challenge of the winter weather. Both all-season and winter tires are popular choices. Roadway Insurance, Inc., a provider of auto insurance in Annapolis, highlights both options.
All-Season Options
Almost all of the vehicles in the United States are sold with all-season tires on them. First created by Goodyear in 1977, drivers love the convenience of them. Instead of switching between summer and winter tires, you can keep these on all year round. With all-season tires, you do have to change them more often because the full mileage of the car will be on those tires.
The Benefit of Winter Tires
Especially if you’re in the northern part of Maryland, winter tires may be a good investment. While all-season tires perform admirably, there’s no denying that you get much better performance from winter tires, both in front and all wheel drive. This is especially noticeable when braking and going around corners. You want to make sure you’re keeping everyone in your car as safe as possible.
Many people complain about the inconvenience and having to buy two sets of tires. But you have half the mileage that’ll be going onto both tires, meaning you won’t have to replace them as often. It’s important that you don’t just replace two of your tires with winter tires, either. To get the full benefits of them, they have to go on all four tires.
If you go with winter tires, you should use them from around Thanksgiving to Easter. If the weather gets too hot, the softer rubber used for them can wear down very fast. We recommend storing them in black trash bags to help with oxidation for whichever set isn’t on your car. Keeping them in a cool, dry area is ideal.
The Future of All-Season Tires
There’s a new type of tire that’s come out known as “premium traction” tires. These are a new type of all-season tires that lean more toward the side of winter tires. They’ve been tested on both snow and ice, and perform better than traditional all-season tires, but don’t match the function of pure winter tires.
These premium traction tires use different tricks to make them better for driving in the snow. A quality tire for snow has to be pliable and not hard when you’re driving on ice and snow. Different methods are used to try and make sure they’re good for snow, but won’t wear out in the heat of the summer and spring months.
Stay Safe With Annapolis Auto Insurance
With MAIF car insurance, you make sure both you and your car stay safe in the winter weather. Call us or get a free quote online.