If you ever thought about driving your winter tires during the summer, then you need to rethink your decision because there are numerous reasons against it. If you have been wondering about what effects winter tires can cause during the summer, then here’s what you need to know.
- Winter Tires Don’t Last in Heat
When caring for your tires, you need to know that temperature plays a vital role in their overall performance. Therefore, using winter tires during the summer is not always advisable. Winter tires are made from a flexible rubber compound which aids in delivering grip during snowy conditions. With that in mind, heat can be detrimental to your winter tires because they will wear out much faster than expected. Since they are constructed from softer elements, the tires will wear unevenly if used during the summer.
- Reduction in Fuel Economy
Using winter tires during summer will make you pay more for fuel. Rolling resistance of the winter tires is usually higher during the summer because the softer rubber changes its shape more. As a result, this leads to higher resistance, forcing your engine to consume more fuel. In turn, your automobile will end up affecting the quality of life by polluting the environment. When your car consumes more fuel, it will be noisier and will end up producing higher levels of carbon dioxide, thus polluting the environment.
- Reduction in Performance
Choosing the right tires for the right season is important because treads that perform excellently in ice and snow are not designed for use on dry roads. Additionally, such treads do not pull away from water like this is the case with the summer tires. When you use the winter tires in summer, you’ll experience a notable difference in traction. Additionally, the tires will have more give and will end up affecting the handling of your car.
- Safety
If you fail to switch to summer or all-season tires during the warmer weather, your vehicle will lack the optimal handling safety capabilities, especially in cases where sudden turns are needed. Imagine a situation where you are required to make a quick maneuver while on the road. Winter tires are too soft on dry pavement. As a result, the handling will not be as responsive as required in an emergency scenario.
Apart from that, using winter tires during the summer will extend the stopping distance. According to testing results, driving winter tires during the summer extends the braking distance on the dry pavement by at least 10 percent. On wet pavement, the braking distance extends by at least 26 percent.
On the perspective of durability, winter tires that may have been used throughout will most likely lose their tread blocks due to softer compounds used for their production. As such, when used again in the following winter, such tires will not offer much traction or grip, and this is a major consideration as far as cost and safety are concerned.
Conclusion
Using the right tires for every season will ensure your overall cost per mile is always kept at minimal. Additionally, using the right tires for summer will provide the most mileage along with the right levels of control and traction.
