# Tell me about seasonal tires. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 24, 2013, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214 "2013-05-24T13:28:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2013, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/21 "2013-05-24T19:45:02Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > “All seasons” do not provide the safety necessary when you encounter actual winter conditions, from what I’ve read. But then, **I live in Ontario, so snow is more of an issue.** It’s just a bit dependent on location, yes, and if I lived in a heavier snowbelt, I’d probably depend on snows for at least a few months of the year. Based on considerable experience across vehicle types and climates, though, good AS tires can handle an amazing range of driving conditions, from dry, hot speed to slushy, snowy, icy cold. If you choose the tires to suit your location - e.g., I never bought snow and ice rated tires in California, wouldn’t dream of buying anything else here - and don’t have to drive in the worst winter conditions, good AS tires should be adequate for year-round driving. If you live in the heavy snowbelt and/or have to drive in snowstorm conditions, a set of snows is not an option. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2013, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/22 "2013-05-24T19:56:23Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > It’s just a bit dependent on location, yes, and if I lived in a heavier snowbelt, I’d probably depend on snows for at least a few months of the year. > > Based on considerable experience across vehicle types and climates, though, good AS tires can handle an amazing range of driving conditions, from dry, hot speed to slushy, snowy, icy cold. If you choose the tires to suit your location - e.g., I never bought snow and ice rated tires in California, wouldn’t dream of buying anything else here - and don’t have to drive in the worst winter conditions, good AS tires should be adequate for year-round driving. > > If you live in the heavy snowbelt and/or have to drive in snowstorm conditions, a set of snows is not an option. It also depends on how much risk you wish to handle. You only _really_ need winter tires when conditions are shitty - but like any other safety feature, when you need them, you really need them. So you are okay 98% of the time, but it’s that 2% you gotta worry about. Maybe in some places it’s only 1% and in others it is 3% or 4%. Depending on if you have winter conditions where you are of course. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2013, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/23 "2013-05-24T21:58:53Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I have all-season tires on my Ford Mustang (V6, stick), but bought a pair of Bridgestone Blizzak snow tires for the rear (drive) wheels for wintertime. My understanding was that they were only really needed for the rear wheels, which is why I didn’t buy four snow tires. > > I didn’t get an extra set of rims; I just have the tire store swap them out on the wheels in spring and fall. > > Between the snow tires and traction control, I have never had a serious traction problem in the car in winter. I will momentarily lose traction (particularly when turning right), but it very, very quickly regains grip. bad idea. Thing is, people assume that having AWD or 4WD is suffiicient. They might help get you moving or keep you from getting stuck, but they don’t do one (important) thing that winter tires do; and that is improve braking. Your front wheels do most of the braking and having a deficit of grip there is (IMO) worse. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2013, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/24 "2013-05-24T22:07:56Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > Your front wheels do most of the braking and having a deficit of grip there is (IMO) worse. If your front wheels have good traction and your rear wheels don’t, there’s a good chance you’ll reverse ends while braking. This is also a bad thing. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2013, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/25 "2013-05-24T22:53:40Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > If your front wheels have good traction and your rear wheels don’t, there’s a good chance you’ll reverse ends while braking. This is also a bad thing. therefore you should have the same tires at all four corners. thank you for agreeing with me. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/26 "2013-05-25T01:25:33Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > therefore you should have the same tires at all four corners. thank you for agreeing with me. Indubitably. I think we’re done here. ---
**Author:** ![Herrserker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a8b319/32.png) [@Herrserker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Herrserker)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/27 "2013-05-25T20:53:57Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I have all-season tires on my Ford Mustang (V6, stick), but bought a pair of Bridgestone Blizzak snow tires for the rear (drive) wheels for wintertime. My understanding was that they were only really needed for the rear wheels, which is why I didn’t buy four snow tires. Don’t do this. Put the better gripping tires on the stearing axle. What use would it be, if you have traction going forward, but cannot avoid causing in the occasional tree? ---
**Author:** ![Herrserker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a8b319/32.png) [@Herrserker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Herrserker)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/28 "2013-05-25T20:57:53Z")
Winter tires have not only better traction in snowy conditions, but also in cold conditions which would be about 40F. This is because they use different rubber mixture which is softer in time cold and therefore had better grip. ---
**Author:** ![Herrserker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a8b319/32.png) [@Herrserker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Herrserker)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/29 "2013-05-25T20:59:12Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I have all-season tires on my Ford Mustang (V6, stick), but bought a pair of Bridgestone Blizzak snow tires for the rear (drive) wheels for wintertime. My understanding was that they were only really needed for the rear wheels, which is why I didn’t buy four snow tires. Don’t do this. Put the better gripping tires on the stearing axle. What use would it be, if you have traction going forward, but cannot avoid crashing in the occasional tree? ---
**Author:** ![Orionizer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orionizer/32/4442_2.png) [@Orionizer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orionizer)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/30 "2013-05-25T22:26:42Z")
I’ve had 3 MINI’s (2 ‘S’ models and 1 Standard). I’ve always gotten All-Season and never had any issue keeping up on any of our spirited drives through really tight curves, etc. I’d recommend the All-Season and, for that matter, a MINI ‘S’ since people are recommending alternatives as well. I’ve never had any issue with any of my MINIs (2005 ‘S’, 2009 Std, 2012 ‘S’). ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/31 "2013-05-26T02:01:00Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > As stated, this is not a common recommendation. If you only have two it’s better to put them on the rear wheels regardless of FWD vs RWD since you don’t want to swap ends while braking, but having the same traction on all four wheels is much better. I did see Cleveland PD do this on a Crown Vic maybe 5 years ago. Still seems dumb to me… you want your car to have the same front/rear traction balance it came with from the stupid factory. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/32 "2013-05-26T03:00:15Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > So tell me, knowledgable automotive dopers: How does this work? Do I have to buy a set of rims and keep the other tires on them? Do I just pop down to my local service center in November and March and have them swap out the tires? Speaking of tires, do I get all seasons or snow tires for the cold months? You’ll want a second set of rims with snow tires on them. If you’re budget-minded, they’ll be cheap steel rims, and you’ll store them in your garage or basement until November, and then you’ll install them on your car yourself. If you are flush with cash, you can buy a beautiful set of alloy rims, have the snow tires mounted, and then store them at a local car shop all summer for a fee. When November arrives, head on over and pay them to swap out your wheels, and then pay them some more to store your summer rims/tires all winter. Me? Somewhere in the middle. When we bought my wife’s new car a couple of years ago, I bought a set of OEM rims from [www.allfactorywheels.com](http://www.allfactorywheels.com), with prices quite a bit less than the dealer. I got tires from TireRack, and mounted them locally; I keep them in the basement and swap them myself in spring/fall. I just got a new car this spring that came with summer-only tires, and I’ll be doing the same thing. My previous car came new with all-seasons. They were adequate for the first winter, but for the second winter they were absolutely miserable. For the third winter I bought snow rims/tires, and then the following spring I replaced the original all-seasons with summer-only tires. Note that “summer only” != “sunny weather only;” you can find summer-only tires that perform very well on wet roads. As others have noted, absolutely do not ever try to drive summer-only tires in snow. They are terrifyingly slippery; there’s a 50-50 chance you’ll find yourself sliding toward the side of the road merely because of the crowned pavement. Yes, they’re _that_ bad in the snow. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/33 "2013-05-26T11:16:09Z")
> [@Herrserker](#): > > Don’t do this. Put the better gripping tires on the stearing axle. What use would it be, if you have traction going forward, but cannot avoid crashing in the occasional tree? Uhg, not this again. The internet seems to be evenly divided on the question, but the industry (you know, the people who’ve actually done research) overwhelmingly says the better tires go on the back, regardless of drivetrain configuration. Only putting snows on the back of a RWD car is sub-optimum, but it’s not downright dangerous like only putting them on the front of a FWD car. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214/34 "2013-05-26T11:58:54Z")
Thanks all for the input. The car recommends are not necessary, as I’ve now got a nice Speed 3 sitting outside. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-seasonal-tires/659214.md?page=1)