Boucher Kia Official Blog
Are Winter Tires Worth it in Southeast Wisconsin?
By Product Expert | Posted in General Information, Information for Your Kia, Safety, Service on Thursday, December 20th, 2018 at 2:43 pm
Where to Get Winter Tires in Racine, Wisconsin
If you’ve done any driving on the snow and ice which can become commonplace during our winter months, you become aware of just how much we take things like traction and stopping power for granted when the weather is fair.
The slipping and sliding which can occur on icy or snowy roads is not only a hazard to your vehicle and its passengers, but other vehicles and their passengers also. All in all, it makes going out when the roads are less than ideal a harrowing experience and one that may deter you from getting out and enjoying the year-round fun and possibilities of Racine, Milwaukee and Southeast Wisconsin.
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One way drivers deal with the unpredictable threat of slick roads is by switching out their all seasons or summer tires for winter tires. If you’ve lived in areas with considerable snow and ice for a time, there’s a good chance you have heard advertisements for these road-huggers.
Do they work though? Let’s see!
Do Winter Tires and Snow Tires Work?
The short answer is “yes.” In inclement weather, winter and snow tires give you added traction and stopping power. How much so, is a matter of your individual driving style, specific weather factors and other factors like the vehicle’s weight and drivetrain.
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Winter tires accomplish this extra grip by not only being cut with deeper and more strategic treads but also by being made out of a specialized rubber compound. Before we explain how it works, let’s look at why you slip and slide in the winter.
Your summer tires and all seasons are not always able to stop or get traction in winter for two reasons. The first is that a slick surface, like an iced-over road, has significantly less friction than a dry one. Without friction, your vehicles individual tires may no longer be spinning but the laws of physics still are. Your vehicle will continue to move until something else stops it.
The second is that a lower temperature slightly freezes your summer or all-season tires, dramatically reducing the amount of squish, give and friction they themselves provide.
In wintry weather on slick surfaces, your vehicle is almost like a marble moving across a sheet of ice. It’s just going to keep going.
[READ MORE: Where to Find Affordable AWD Vehicles in Racine, Wisconsin]
Winter tires, on the other hand, control this secondary factor by decreasing the freezing point of the rubber in the tire. This means that your tires stay squishy and elastic at a much lower temperature than standard all-season or summer tires do, and that friction/surface area isn’t lost because the needle dropped below 25 degrees.
Where Can I Get Winter Tires in Racine?
If you’re looking to maximize traction and safety during this holiday season, let us know! AWD is great at allowing you to turn without losing traction, but AWD and winter tires are the true winning combination for control on hazardously-slippery roads.
Our tire center at Boucher Kia is transparent with excellent pricing and some of the highest customer reviews in the greater Milwaukee area. We’d love to help get you set up on a set of shoes that can take you anywhere rain, shine or snow.
Click below to schedule an appointment at our tire center and start living with less duress in this chilly weather.
