Wider is Better for Winter Tires?

[SubLGT]

Continental Tire asserts that wider winter tires have several advantages:

........"Comparing winter and summer tires of the same size, winter tires are actually at a disadvantage in terms of cornering stability," explains Dr. Andreas Topp, Head of Winter Tire Development at Continental. "This is due to the softer rubber compound and fine siping of winter tires designed for driving on snow and ice. Fitting narrower tires further exacerbates this inherent disadvantage. In order to achieve the same level of cornering stability and steering precision as with summer tires, fitting wider winter tires is recommended.".................

"........Wide winter tires also offer advantages on typically wintry road surfaces. On compacted snow surfaces in particular, they offer more space to form sipe edges, fill deeper tire tread grooves with snow, and increase friction between the rubber and snow. The handling properties of a car fitted with wider winter tires are also enhanced on compacted snow surfaces............."

".............Wide-base tires even offer advantages in deep snow: Their cornering stability is better than that of narrower tires and their braking distances are shorter. Narrower tires only have the advantage when it comes to traction in deep snow. ................"

(The above quotes are from a Continental press release entitled "Warm Slippers for the Colder Season")

 

[E365]

Very interesting!

 

[Corvette Owner]

Probably correct, but I would add that narrower tires are an advantage in ANY uncompacted snow.

Besides, who is looking for ultimate cornering in snow?!

 

[IndyIan]

High speed stability in slush or rutted snow, this is mostly why I try to run narrower snow tires.
I think the only places I've ever driven consistantly on packed snow is northen ontario and Winnipeg, but even there usually the intersections were glare ice or cleared.
Down here, packed snow lasts for an hour until the salt turns it to slush.

 

[BobsArmory]

Tall narrow tires do seem to work better in uncompacted snow when you go off road (gets you down to solid ground) but only to the point where the frame starts riding on the snow and you get high centered then the big wide floatations work better.

But for over the road car they may have a point. I have never owned snow tires before.

Interesting.

 

[SubLGT]

Originally Posted By: IndyIan
High speed stability in slush.................Down here, packed snow lasts for an hour until the salt turns it to slush.


I agree, in slush a wider tire is a disadvantage.

 

[krzyss]

I suspect the same holds true for ice (not studded tires).
Then you have water/slush when narrower is better.

Krzys

 

[JTK]

IMO, the wider is better scenario is way too generalized.

I would think it depends on the size of the wheel-base, weight of the vehicle, among other things.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

In ONE situation out of MANY that one would see in winter, wider tires are better. To say that wider winter tires are always better - very wrong.

 

[A_Harman]

Bridgestone recommends going down 10% width and up 10% on aspect ratio. At least they did when I first bought Blizzaks for my Camaro back in 2003. Stock tire was a 245-50/16. The Blizzak they recommended was a 225-55/16.

 

[229]

A smaller contact patch puts more surface tension on the area contacted for a given weight.

 

[gaijinnv]

Originally Posted By: SubLGT

Narrower tires only have the advantage when it comes to traction in deep snow."

(The above quotes are from a Continental press release entitled "Warm Slippers for the Colder Season")


I'll take traction any day. Rule of thumb in the Northeast for years has been narrower tires = better winter performance.

 

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted By: A_Harman
Bridgestone recommends going down 10% width and up 10% on aspect ratio. At least they did when I first bought Blizzaks for my Camaro back in 2003. Stock tire was a 245-50/16. The Blizzak they recommended was a 225-55/16.


IF I lived in northern New England, northern upstate N.Y., or even your U.P., I would even get the stock 16 x 7 (7.5) steelies, and put Nokian Hakka Rs in 215/60-16 on them for our cars!

 

[Bamaro]

I'm surprised that they would say that. One problem with wider tires is they tend to create more of a "plow" effect rather than cutting through the snow.

 

[krzyss]

They do not talk about about cutting through but getting traction on snow itself.

Krzys

 

[jjjxlr8]

Originally Posted By: Corvette Owner
Probably correct, but I would add that narrower tires are an advantage in ANY uncompacted snow.

Besides, who is looking for ultimate cornering in snow?!


This guy!!

 

[gaijinnv]

Originally Posted By: jjjxlr8
Originally Posted By: Corvette Owner
Probably correct, but I would add that narrower tires are an advantage in ANY uncompacted snow.

Besides, who is looking for ultimate cornering in snow?!


This guy!!

That is, indeed, the best argument yet put forward for narrow tires in the snow.

Well done!

 

[Rand]

I can see where wider would possibly be better in specific cases.

usually in many dangerous situations its much worse.

 

[CapriRacer]

It's obvious Dr. Topp is talking about pure snow traction - that is the affect tire wide has on in their traction testing - which is done in groomed snow where the tire is not allowed to touch the underlying surface. What he is saying, in essence, is that having more of the biting tread surface in contact with the snow is better. Perfect sense.

What he is NOT saying is about what happens if you can get down to the road surface - and the fact that narrow tires are more likely to get down to that road surface.

I know the article is trying to be helpful, but sometimes these technical types get wrapped up about a particular slice of the bologna (or is that baloney?) and forget the bigger picture.

 

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted By: gaijinnv
Originally Posted By: jjjxlr8
Originally Posted By: Corvette Owner
Probably correct, but I would add that narrower tires are an advantage in ANY uncompacted snow.

Besides, who is looking for ultimate cornering in snow?!


This guy!!

That is, indeed, the best argument yet put forward for narrow tires in the snow.

Well done!

Yes, I've seen those studded (and unstudded) Michelin/Pirelli ice/snow compound/width rally tires up close and personal, and I will tell you that there are downhill mountain bike tires wider than those!!!

But they WORK, as one would NOT believe the speeds they attain/sustain on VERY slippery surfaces, as I have witnessed in person, 4 wheel rooster tails and all!

I've also never seen high end, super expensive, alloy/magnesium wheels that narrow before seeing these.