Winter is finally coming to an end, or almost! Even though we are still getting last-minute storms here in Quebec, March 15th is past and legally we can remove our winter tires mounted on our old all-rusty steel wheels to install our summer tires with the beautiful rims.
Now some good people will do it from the first day and others will do it in May. In reality, experts agree that winter tires are not the best idea with a temperature above 7 degrees Celsius. Below you will find a list of reasons why you should replace your tires as soon as possible.
Reasons to Change Early!
1- The stopping distance is longer on a wet or dry pavement with winter tires. When it comes to emergency braking, every thumb counts and this distance could mean the difference between stopping in time and hitting something, or worse, hitting someone.
2- Grip and handling on bends are greatly reduced, especially on wet pavement. This can easily lead to loss of control of the vehicle in a situation where an emergency maneuver would be required.
3- It will cost you more money in the long run. The soft rubber compounds used for winter tires wear out much faster at high temperatures, meaning you’ll have to spend money to buy new winter tires much sooner.
4- Heat is the worst enemy of a tire and in some cases could lead to the failure of a winter tire in the form of a rash. Changing the tires at home is pretty easy on a beautiful spring day, but it’s far from fun (or safe) on the shoulder of a highway on a hot and humid day.
5- You will spend more on gasoline . When winter tires run on hot roads, they become spongy, producing strong grip instead of offering low rolling resistance, meaning less fuel economy.
Be careful on the road!