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You know that we can get some serious winter weather here in North Carolina, even if only for a short time. Are your tires up to the job, if we get a few inches of snow on the ground?

If they’re all-season tires, the answer to that is probably “no.” All-season tires are a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none. They offer low noise, good road manners, handling and ride quality and good traction on dry or wet pavement. Unfortunately, once the snow flies and piles up, all-season tires tend to lose their composure.

Ever considered a set of winter tires?

Winter tires are a far cry from the heavy, noisy, clumsy “snow tires” that were on your dad’s Buick station wagon in the 70s. Today’s winter tires rival the best all-season and passenger tires in terms of ride quality, noise level and handling. Winter tires are designed with deeper, more aggressive tread grooves to dig into snow, but shed the snow as they turn so there’s always a clear groove. They also feature a dense network of sipes, hair-thin slits cut into the tire tread face to add thousands of extra biting edges for traction in snow.

More importantly, modern winter tires are designed with a tread formulation that stays flexible at low temperatures. A flexible tire can conform more easily to deliver traction on snow and slush, where an all-season or high performance tire might stiffen up and just spin without connecting. Please remember, though, that there’s a down side to those softer tires…they will wear pretty quickly in warmer weather. Winter tires should be changed back to all-season tires when temperatures are above 40-45 degrees.

At Black’s Tire & Auto Service Centers, we’re proud members of the Goodyear network of dealerships. That means we carry winter tires from Goodyear, Dunlop and Kelly, in a wide variety of sizes for different fitments. And as part of the Goodyear Tire & Service Network, you can count on us for top-quality warranty coverage and service after the sale. Are your tires up to the job of getting  you through winter weather? Make an appointment with us at Black’s Tire & Auto Service Centers!