We tend to either use our cars less in winter (less places to visit as we indulge in staying home with a hot chocolate and a romantic movie!) or more (as bicycles and walking lose their attraction as the weather turns icy, grey and rainy) but either way, our tyres need a moment or two’s thought before you hang up your car-keys or put away your cycle-shorts.
Should Winter Tyres Be Fitted?
Winter tyres are, as the name implies, tyres that should be fitted in winter. They are made from soft flexible rubber that will not freeze hard, and they have a rough, knobbly grip that helps them to cling to road. The tread on winter tyres is deep and wide, and designed to pack themselves with snow and ice. This is because of one of Nature’s occasional paradoxes, in which slippery ice and snow actually grips well against more ice and snow, so your ice packed treads give your vehicle more stability, rather than less as one might expect!
Winter tyres should be fitted when the average temperature is below 7°C for much of the day. In Basingstoke, tyres are seldom subject to great extremes of temperature, but winter tyres could be fitted between late November and early March, as the temperatures during those months tend to fall below 7°C fairly regularly.
Is There a Downside to Winter Tyres?
Using winter tyres all the time is counterintuitive as the rubber is much softer than regular tyres and they will wear away much quicker than regular temperature tyres. For this reason, it is best to use winter tyres for as short a time as possible, and change back to summer tyres as soon as temperatures allow – in this way, you will get good usage from both your summer tyres and the winter ones.
Finally, check your winter tyre pressure. It is best to do this after thirty or so minutes’ driving to allow the tyre pressure to settle having warmed up as you rolled along. Inflating cold tyres can cause issues later, as the extra warmth will increase the pressure inside the tyre, and potentially cause issues, especially as winter tyres usually require about 0.2 bars of pressure more than regular tyres – any further pressure can lead to failure of the tyre, punctures and even blow-outs.
In the mild climate of Basingstoke, tyres will last well, as a rule, and as long as you maintain your car properly, observing service dates and so on, you will be motoring happily for years to come. You can now easily book your new tyres online in Basingstoke via Headley Tyres. Visit their website and enjoy great deals on tyres.
