Is it possible to drive on winter tires in spring?

Is it possible to drive on winter tires in summer, autumn and spring?

There has been a debate among car enthusiasts for a long time: is it possible to drive on winter tires in the summer. The question is not idle. The case concerns the safety of road users, the safety of vehicles, and the material costs required to purchase new tires.

We'll tell you whether you can use winter tires in the summer.

Features of driving on tires for winter in the warm season

The weather conditions in our country are so unique that owners do not always understand when to seasonally replace wheels. In spring and autumn, the road surface can be dry, slippery, and a wet mess of snow and mud for one week. Driving on studded tires on asphalt - it’s a pity for the studs, the tread; driving on an icy highway on summer tires is dangerous.

Experts recommend “changing your shoes” in the fall if the temperature drops to +7°C.

In the spring, if the temperature remains above zero throughout the day, you can use summer tires.

Important! With the onset of the warm season, winter tires cannot be used.

This applies to studded products and rubber with Velcro.

Let us explain the categorical nature of this statement:

1. According to research by automotive industry specialists, the braking distance of a vehicle shod with winter tires is longer than that of a car with summer tires . This applies, first of all, to studded tires, which excellently cling to icy surfaces, but are helpless in front of dry and especially wet roads.
2. When driving on such wheels, the car consumes more fuel. The material for winter tires is softer. The machine has to apply additional force to overcome its resistance.
3. When in contact with a hard asphalt surface, the spikes wear out and fly out. The delicate rubber material also wears out faster. The owner will have to start purchasing new tires earlier than planned.
4. You can ride on Velcro in the summer, but this is fraught with the creation of an emergency situation and rapid wear. The higher the temperature “overboard”, the faster the rubber will lose its performance qualities and its service life will end.

Based on the above, I would like to give the following recommendation: in the summer you should drive on summer tires. It is reliable, safe and profitable.

When is it legal to install winter tires in 2019?

Good afternoon, dear reader.

Every year, as cold weather approaches, drivers begin to wonder when to put on winter tires. Currently, the answer to this question is partially regulated by a regulatory legal document.

In this article we will talk about the legally established deadlines for changing summer tires to winter ones. In addition, a fine for improper use of tires will be considered.

When is it legal to switch to winter tires?

Let's consider paragraph 5.5 of Appendix 8 to the technical regulations of the customs union TR CU 018/2011 “On the safety of wheeled vehicles”:

5.5. It is prohibited to operate vehicles equipped with tires with anti-skid studs in the summer (June, July, August).

During the winter period ( December, January, February ), the operation of vehicles of categories M1 and N1 that are not equipped with winter tires that meet the requirements of paragraph 5.6.3 of this annex is prohibited. Winter tires are installed on all wheels of these vehicles.

A period different from that specified in paragraph one of this paragraph may be established by the legislation of a member state of the Eurasian Economic Union in connection with climatic and geographical factors characteristic of member states of the Eurasian Economic Union.

So, what can be understood from this paragraph:

1. During the summer months (June, July, August) only studded tires are prohibited. This requirement applies to all vehicles.
2. During the winter months (December, January, February), only winter tires are permitted. You can put both studded and non-studded tires on your car. The main thing is that they are marked “M+S”, “M&S” or “MS” and the corresponding drawing (in the picture on the left). The requirement applies only to category B (M1 cars and N1 trucks). The restriction does not apply to other vehicles from November 11, 2018.
3. The terms of the ban on exploitation can only be increased by the legislative authority of any level (federal, regional) and cannot be reduced. Those. In your region, for example, the use of studded tires may be prohibited from May to September. At the same time, regional authorities cannot reduce the period of the ban, i.e. From June to August, cars in all regions must not use studs.

Thus, there are the following intervals for using car tires:

• Summer tires (without M+S marking, etc.) can be used from March to November.
• Winter studded tires (marked M+S, etc.) can be used from September to May.
• Winter studless tires (marked M+S, etc.) can be used all year round.

Let's look at a table with periods of possible tire use throughout the year:

7 degree rule. What every driver should know about changing tires

“Is it time yet or is it too early?” Motorists face this question twice a year: in the fall before the onset of serious cold weather and in the spring.

Often the decision to change tires is made at random. Drivers simply rely on intuition. It seems that the sun has warmed up, the asphalt has begun to show - it’s time. Is it possible to do this? Let's look at what you need to remember when changing tires together with the automaker Ravon.

What does the law say?

How simple it would be if the law prescribed something like: change winter tires to summer tires on April 1st. However, there are no clear instructions on exactly when to change the shoes of the car. The only thing it is proposed to focus on is the technical regulations of the Customs Union.

From January 1, 2015, the document prohibits the use of summer tires in the three winter months (December, January and February) and winter tires with studs in the summer months (June, July, August).

In other words, the regulations allow driving on winter tires with studs from September to May. An important point: the document allows you to ride on tires without spikes, so-called “Velcro”, all year round.

What should the temperature be?

Considering that Russia is a country of weather surprises, it would be imprudent to focus only on the regulations. Tire manufacturers and experts advise relying primarily on temperature conditions.

The Tire Manufacturers Association recommends changing your car's shoes in winter, when the average daily temperature drops below 7 degrees. Accordingly, as soon as the temperature outside becomes 7 degrees or higher in the spring, you can unpack your summer set. The risk of night frosts by this time is minimized.

In addition, at this temperature, summer tires, which differ in composition from winter tires, will not harden, which means that road grip will not become worse.

What happens if you drive in the summer on winter tires?

One of the main differences between winter tires and summer tires is the degree of softness of the rubber compound. Summer tires are much tougher. Therefore, in the cold it quickly becomes dull, loses its properties, and the car begins to behave unpredictably. At the same time, winter tires turn out to be helpless in a sense in the warm season. When there is no frost outside, the softness coupled with the winter tread pattern makes the ride more dangerous and uncomfortable.

If you ignore the recommendations and drive on winter tires in the summer, you will not be able to avoid troubles. This is especially true when traveling on wet roads. Under these conditions, winter tires behave worst of all - road traction becomes less reliable, vehicle stability deteriorates, and the steering also changes for the worse.

If you give a list of key problems that the use of winter tires in summer promises, it will be something like this.

— Poor traction, especially if it’s raining and the asphalt is wet, deterioration in handling.

— Increased braking distance.

— Increased fuel consumption.

— Deterioration of the car’s response to steering.

— Quick erasing of tread patterns not intended for summer roads. If you drive with “winter” all summer, then the tires most likely will not survive until the next snowfall.

How to check if tires can be used in the new season?

Before going to a tire shop, conduct a visual inspection of the tires. The main thing you need to pay attention to is the remaining tread height. It should be no lower than 1.6 millimeters. It is better to take measurements in several places at once.

After checking the tread height, it is a good idea to inspect the tires for mechanical damage. It is also important to consider how the rubber was stored. The surest and safest way is horizontal, when the tires lie on top of each other.

In any case, a control check of the combat readiness of the rubber must be carried out at a tire station. If there are any doubts, it is better to specifically ask the technician to carefully inspect the tires.

Maybe change it yourself?

In theory, you can change your shoes yourself. Especially if the summer tires have not been removed from the rims, and you have a jack and wheel wrench at hand. Only in this case there is a risk of missing a couple of important manipulations and adding to your problems with further driving.

It is worth remembering: in addition to installation, the tires must be properly inflated - it is better if this is done in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations. Controllability, wear, and braking depend on this point.

When changing tires, you must do balancing. It does not matter whether the tires were removed from the rims during storage or not. This moment also affects handling, braking and tire wear.

depositphotos.com

When should I buy a new kit?

And finally, one more important issue that has long divided the drivers into two warring teams. Representatives of the first are confident that you can drive on the same tires a little bit at a time for the rest of your life, if they are not worn out. The latter disagree: they say it needs to be changed every few seasons.

If we consider the issue based on security considerations, the second opinion is closer to the truth. The fact is that most tire manufacturers advise using rubber for no more than 10 years. After this period, it is recommended to change the set even if the tires are not worn out. The reason is that the condition of tires is affected not only by damage, but also by age. Over time, rubber loses its properties, becomes less elastic and less resistant to deformation, and as a result, the car’s handling deteriorates.

There is another figure: after 4-5 years of using rubber, manufacturers recommend inspecting the set more carefully before seasonal re-shoeing. If you have any doubts about the quality, it’s time to update the kit.

Be careful - spring!

At temperatures above +7 degrees Celsius, the braking distance of winter tires compared to summer tires from a speed of 100 km/h is longer by about 6 meters. “The off-season always creates certain inconveniences and even threats to safe driving. In autumn and spring, road surfaces and air temperatures change rapidly. Therefore, neither summer nor winter tires in their classic design can provide maximum grip on the roads. Thus, snow falling overnight can make it impossible to use a car equipped with summer tires, and sudden warming a few days later will worsen the effectiveness of the traction properties of winter tires,” Dmitry Molokanov, director of marketing for Michelin passenger summer tires, explained to cars.ru.

Tire manufacturers recommend changing shoes in the “summer”, when the average daily temperature is steadily fixed at +7 degrees Celsius. But the weather is still far from positive stability, so we are encouraged to drive on winter tires for now, but remember their features and adjust your driving style to the weather conditions. Thus, according to research by Continental, at temperatures above +7 degrees Celsius, the braking distance of winter tires compared to summer tires from a speed of 100 km/h is approximately 6 meters longer. When the car stops on summer tires, the car on winter tires is still traveling at a speed of 37 km/h. Control accuracy deteriorates by 15%.

On dry and wet roads, winter tires of the Nordic segment lose up to 30% in braking performance to conventional summer tires. But winter tires, depending on the type of tread, also have their own characteristics especially in above-zero temperatures. First of all, they are divided into studded and non-studded, and the latter into Nordic and Eurowinter. The most dangerous thing in such weather is studded tires - steel tips, which are designed to bite into ice and snow, slide helplessly along dry and especially wet asphalt.

“The most difficult situation in such weather is for owners of studded tires who drive mainly on city roads. These tires are designed for regions with severe weather conditions - from 0 to −50 degrees Celsius. Therefore, they need to reduce speed in advance before turning and calculate the length of the braking distance with a margin. In addition, above-zero temperatures and bare asphalt contribute to the loss of studs,” Ilya Shabalin, an expert at the 4tochki tire store, told cars.ru.

Winter tires, when plus, literally melt and rub off on the asphalt, which increases their wear. However, the catch lies not only in the studs. The composition of the rubber mixture for winter tires is different - it is much softer than summer tires. So the friction clutch is also dangerous in warm weather, especially in the Nordic segment, that is, designed for harsh conditions at temperatures from 0 to −50 degrees. “On dry and wet roads, winter tires in the Nordic segment will lose up to 30% in braking compared to regular summer tires,” Michelin explained. On wet asphalt, a car with non-studded tires does not slide, but “floats” and “steers”.

The safest in the off-season are non-studded tires of the European type, the so-called “Eurowinter”: they are designed for mild winters with operating temperatures from −20 to +10 degrees, so their properties are designed specifically for the current weather. Only in our area such tires are practically not in demand.

Due to their softness, winter tires literally melt and rub off on the asphalt at high temperatures. This means that they wear out much faster - firstly. Secondly, the rolling resistance of winter tires, as calculated by Continental, is 15% higher, which significantly increases fuel consumption !

Until the weather settles, tire experts unanimously insist that it is too early to wake up tire fitters from their winter hibernation. Goodyear clarifies that frost and ice formation are still possible in March, especially on suburban highways, bridges and overpasses, and this process is accelerated by strong winds. Why is March: this year the weather is funny with sharp changes during the day: pieces of ice on the roads turn into streams of water, the next day everything dries out and the asphalt heats up, and at night a month’s worth of precipitation may fall, which in the morning will turn into impassable snowdrifts. Therefore, for now we remain on winter tires, but remember the nuances.