Your tuning and car performance guide

Wintertime driving can be more than challenging and even downright dangerous. Now before the cold winter descends on us from Canada preparation for the driving conditions that await us in the snow and ice are in order. Prepare your vehicle – be it auto, car, truck or SUV now. It pays to work ahead. Why wait for spring or in this case winter-time cold weather driving .

Many think that in these days of cell phones for roadside emergencies and dealer offered and provided road-side assistance that changing their tires come winter time with an entirely different set of tires is not necessary any more and even a worn out tradition from earlier “more quaint” driving times , when vehicles were not as rugged or hardy. Think again. You never can be too safe when it comes to wintertime , wintertime driving safety . Many a motorist on a trip has never given a second chance to the overall reliability of his automobile or to packing a good coldweather parka and wintertime emergency kit to be packed away in his trunk. Its downright cold and frigid out there.

You may well have heard the click click click sound of studded snow tires emanating from a passing vehicle. Studded tires ones with tungsten , carbide or ceramic studs buried in the tyre treads perform well on packed snow or ice, almost as well as winter-time snow “chains” However due to the damage done to highways and roadways not all states allow the use of wintertime studs. At last count for the 2009 / 10 winter season fully 36 out of the 50 states allow these traction devices – within seasonal time of year , geographic with some provisos on modifications of the devices. Six states (Colorado, Kentucky, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Vermont, and Wyoming) allow virtually unrestricted use of studded tires on state roads and highways. Lastly there are seven states , mainly in warm southern climes, who distinctly prohibit their use. Think again if you are going to traverse the United States highway beltway system, from home in Northern or Edmonton Alberta escaping Jack Frost for a well earned Christmas break vacation in Florida or Texas, and driving safely over ice with studded tires. Take the time and expense to switch back to your all season or even summer set of radial tires yet you have nice discussion and highway traffic fine from a friendly state trooper just waiting there for you.

In terms of tire” studs” as mentioned earlier that due to their destructive affect on highways and roads many locales do not allow the use of studs or “studded wintertime tires” on their roadways. Note though that if allowed in your driving areas – that on both packed snow and ice these devices work very well at reducing stopping distances.

Lastly what about tire chains? Not every driver knows how or wants to under their vehicle to put them on. If there is one simple and practical point it can be said about tire winter time chains is that when buying chains purchase them early – way ahead of the winter time driving seasons. Pleasant and safe driving.

Wintertime Dodge Ram Truck Winter Tires Studs Chains Fort McMurray and Wpg Used Auto Info