Ask around and everyone's got a different opinion on winter tyres. For those of us driving around Burnley, Pendle and the hills behind them, where winter means weeks of cold, wet roads and the occasional proper dump of snow, it's a fair thing to wonder about. So here's how we'd think it through.
It's not really about snow
This is the bit most people miss. Winter and all-season tyres aren't just for snow, they're for cold weather full stop. Once it drops below about 7°C a normal summer tyre goes hard and starts to lose grip, even on a clear, dry road. Winter-rated rubber stays softer and keeps hold of the surface. Given how many months of the year we sit under 7°C up here, that's the real headline, not the snow.
Winter tyres
These use a softer compound and a tread full of little slots that bite into cold, wet, icy and snowy roads far better than a summer tyre manages. They make the most sense if you're regularly on untreated back roads or hills, say out towards Trawden or over into the Ribble Valley, and you need to get to work whatever's fallen overnight.
The catch is you really want to swap back to summer tyres when it warms up, so you end up storing and fitting two sets.
All-season tyres
All-season, or all-weather, tyres are the middle ground, and the ones we end up recommending most. They carry the little three-peak mountain snowflake marking, which means they're properly certified for winter use, but they're built to stay on the car all year.
They're a good shout if you do mostly town and main-road miles round Burnley, you'd rather not mess about swapping tyres twice a year, and you see far more cold and rain than you do deep snow. For a lot of local drivers that's exactly the picture, and a decent set makes a real difference in the cold and wet without the faff of a second set of wheels.
A rough steer
If you're regularly stuck on ungritted hills, or you just can't afford to be caught out, winter tyres are worth the extra hassle. If you're mostly on cleared roads and want one set that copes with a Burnley winter, all-season will do you nicely. When in doubt, all-season is the safer bet for most people.
Don't forget the basics
Whatever you run, the simple stuff still decides how safe you are. Keep an eye on your tread depth, because grip falls off well before the legal limit. Check your pressures every few weeks, especially as it turns colder and they drop off. And make sure your wheel alignment is right so everything wears evenly.
Come and have a chat
If you're not sure what suits you, come in and we'll talk it through. How and where you drive, your budget, the car, then we'll point you at the right tyres. No hard sell, and we'll fit them while you wait. Best to get it sorted before the cold properly sets in.