When you want to drive safely in extreme winter weather, you will need to have winter tires on your vehicle. In some states and provinces, they are even mandatory. The winter and snow tires should be mounted before the winter weather arrives so that you can remain safe while driving. When you talk about non-studded tires, they are so-called tires that are dedicated to winter use. They are called non-studded to differentiate them from the studded tires, which are also dedicated winter tires, but they use metal studs to create friction.
Non-studded tires should not be confused with winter-approved all-weather tires that can also be used during the winter seasons and for all-year-round driving. The non-studded tires should be removed and replaced with all-season tires once the winter season is over. They use a rubber compound optimized for keeping the tire soft and agile even at low temperatures but will wear too quickly if used during hot summers. It is therefore important to change the tires once the winter season has passed. This is when you need to mount your all-season tires for the warm seasons.
Non-studded tires use the tread to create enough friction on snow, ice, and slush so that you can enjoy trouble-free, safe driving through innovative sipes and snow claw functionality between the shoulder and tread blocks that can grip the ice and by adding cryo-crystal grip particles to further improve the grip on ice. The studded winter tires have similar tread pattern, but they don’t need to add the cryo-crystals as they have the metal studs that will create the friction for grip on ice.
The non-studded tires are great for winter driving and offer a lot of flexibility. The they are not regulated the same way as studded tires are so you can mount them on your car well in time before the winter arrives so that you don’t end up with all-season tires trying to drive in winter conditions. This can be a very dangerous situation and should be avoided. You shouldn’t drive with non-studded tires all year round, as they are optimized for winter conditions, and they will wear out faster if used in summer conditions. However, placing them on your car a few weeks too early before the winter arrives will only cause some slight excessive wear, which can be a very low price to pay for extra safety. The safety of having the right tires already mounted on your car so that you are ready to drive if you end up in winter conditions. This is very good if you are dependent on your car every day.
As with all tires it is important that you take care of them and allow for proper maintenance. Check the condition of the tires and it is important that the sidewalls aren´t damaged. The tires should also have sufficient pressure. You can find the correct pressure for the tires in the car´s handbook or then you can always search the web for the correct information.
For more information regarding non-studded tires for the winter, visit: https://www.nokiantires.com/