Can snow tires be used all summer?

[frankiee]

Can snow tires be used in the summer for added traction?
Snow tires are of a softer compound and should grip quite well.
Snow tires have lots of channels for water to get out when raining.
Are there any adverse effects using snow tires in the warmer weather other than the obvious rapid wear?

 

[MikeHalloran]

They're noticeably more noisy, especially with the windows open.

Despite all the open channels, most don't have a lot of siping, so they can be greasy in the rain.

In hard cornering, they'll feel odd/unstable/grip-or-slip until you wear off the corners.



Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[evelrod]

Annnnnnd----If your too lazy to change them in Spring (no comment as to this personal experience) you'll get "slicks" when the snow flies in November. Oh crap! More $$$$.

Rod ;-)

 

[MikeHalloran]

Yeah, but the slicks sure are fun...


Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[frankiee]

Thanks
I was thinking that the soft compound may be usefull in the summer. Sort of like how stock car racers have different tires for different temperatures.
The soft compound would wear quickly but would it give more traction.
It there a site where they actually test passenger car tires for traction on pavement and ice.
Could a snow tire out perform a summer tire because it is more "sticky"?

 

[MikeHalloran]

Some snow tires are especially sticky... but they wouldn't deal with summer heat very well.



Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[CapriRacer]

There are a number of problems - and for the sake of completeness, I'l be going over some of the same ground as above:

1) Durability - Winter tires are designed to operate in cold weather. This means that when the ambient temperature goes up, the tire operating temperature does, too. Heat is the tire killer. So there is an increased risk of a heat related tire failure.

2) Tread wear - The tread compounds in winter tires are designed to be softer than normal tread compounds - and that means they will be soft and not wear well when the ambient temperature goes up.

3) Traction - While the tread compound in a winter tire is soft, there is a temperaure where the traction properties peak and at temperatures higher than that, they degrade significantly.

4) Handling - Winter tires don't not have as much built in sidewall stiffness as regular tires - and the larger the difference in speed rating, the worse this is.

5) Wet traction / hydroplaning resistance: If we confine our discussion to hydroplaning resistance, then we can talk about circumferential grooves and their affect on wet traction. Circumferential grooves are not needed for snow traction - may be for "slush" traction, but if slush is your problem, you're probably running all season tires and this discussion becomes a mute point.

However if we stay away from hydroplaning resistance (meaning slow speeds and /or fairly thin films of water), then winter tires will be good up to a certain temperature and this falls off fairly rapidly (this is related to the tread compound).

Overall conclusion: There are a number of reasons not to use winter tires in conditions other than winter.

 

[izzmus]

I can speak from experience that snow tires do not appreciate being driven in summer temps. The tread wears rapidly.

They also do not take to being driven hard in any temps over about 40 degrees F. The tread wear is obscene, especially in the summer, and they turn "greasy" very rapidly, after the equivalent of the first three corners on an autocross course.

This is assuming non-studded tires. Studded tires may be illegal to drive in summer months.