February 25th, 2025

Tire Tread and Winter Driving

Happy Tuesday, writing an informational post about tire treads, depth and winter driving. I am hoping this post answers many of the most frequently asked questions we get about tires and winter driving. I am also hoping to explain how an "All Season" and an "All Weather" tire are different. 

1. The first question we get asked is, "Aren't my all season tires also good as snow tires?" The answer is unfortunately, not always. According to Federal law, all season tires do not have to meet federal requirements for snow.  Winter in southern and western states is different than the Northeast. In order for a tire to be deemed snow worthy, it must go through specific tests and outperform a designated snow tire as per federal requirements. If a tire can pass those requirements, it gets the 3 peak mountain snowflake symbol, thus deeming it capable for driving in the snow. If a tire gets this symbol, then it qualifies and becomes an "All Weather" tire.
2. So what is the difference between "All Weather Tires" and "Snow Tires?" The answer comes more to tread design, tire compound and tread depth. Snow tires are made of a softer tire compound that helps for gripping; however, it does not equal good longevity. An all weather tire is a hybrid compound using both soft and harder type rubbers to get better mileage use while providing traction. Snow tire tread designs tend to be blocky and directional based. All weather tires commonly use an asymmetrical tread pattern with 1 side of the tire looking blocky designed for snow and the other tighter for water dispersion and noise reduction. (Snow tires tend to be noisy due to open tread blocks causing vibrations). Lastly, tread depths on snow tires often start with more tread around 11/32 to 12/32 of tread, whereas often all weather and all season begin with 10/32 to 11/32 depending upon the manufacture. 
3. This segways into how much tread depth is needed for wintertime driving. I would like to start off this part though with New York State's Inspection requirement for a tire. A tire to be able to pass inspection in NYS must have 2/32 (1/16") of tread. All manufacturers have a wear bar at 2/32 of tread to indicate it is time to be changed. Tire manufactures deem snow tires no longer worthy of snow driving once they reach 5/32 to 6/32 of tread. This is because there is not enough depth to pierce the snow for adequate traction and also because the tread compound changes to the harder base that makes up the tire. All weather tires commonly have a snowflake symbol on the center of tread that will disappear once worn off to indicate that they are no longer good snow weather. If you are already thinking to yourself, "Why is the legal limit below what's needed for necessary winter time driving?" Well, that question should be directed to NYS Government because I don't have a good answer for that one.

So, what is a good rule of thumb to go by for buying tires and tread depth/life in NYS? I will always be recommending an All Weather tire if 1 is available. I want my customers to have confidence and safety in winter driving. When it comes to tread depth, in the springtime we recommend continuing to use tires that have depths of 4/32 to 5/32 throughout the summer and plan on changing in the fall. If your tires in the fall are at 4/32 to 5/32, then we will have a discussion. Although they are roadworthy in NYS inspection requirements, you will be advised that you may find yourself slipping and sliding in snow. It is ultimately the consumers decision to change tires or not; however, it is our job here at the garage to keep our customers informed and educated on their cars condition. That way, our customers can make the best decision for themselves as we are all in different situations. 

If you have tire questions, please do not hesitate to call us and ask! 

This is symbol that indicates that this tire has met the requirements of the law to be deemed worthy of snow conditions.

For conversations and visual sake, here is a picture of a tire that has reached its tread bar wear indicator. This tire needs to be replaced as it has reached 2/32 of tread. 

Call us with your tire questions!