How good are SUV non-studded tyres?

When you purchase winter tyres for your SUV it is important that you purchase the correct dimension of tyres and make sure that they can handle the weight of your SUV. With heavy vehicles it is important that they have sufficient grip so that they can stop quickly even on slippery surfaces such as ice and snow. Most non-studded tyres on the market will come in a range of size that will include dimensions to fit an SUV.

Finding good SUV non-studded tyres can be done on the internet. You can search for the dimension that you are looking for, e.g., 275/65R18 non-studded tyres and you can then go through the results that the search generated.

Good non-studded tyres should have a good combination of rubber compound, tread design and sipes. The rubber compound should have silica added to improve the grip on ice and improve the wear resistance plus lower the rolling resistance. The rubber compound should also have the necessary additives to ensure that the rubber will stay soft and agile throughout the winter temperature span. The tread will have to be geared towards creating grip on snow and ice for best grip, performance and control.

The main difference between non-studded and studded tyres is how they manage to create grip on ice. The studded tyres will have metal studs that are protruding from the tread, these studs can dig into the ice and thus create good grip. This tends to be slightly better than the grip that can be achieved by the non-studded tyres, so if studded tyres are allowed in your area and you want the absolutely best grip on ice, studded tyres might be your best option. You do have some drawbacks with studded tyres, where one of them is that they are not allowed everywhere. You are not allowed to enter Germany with studded tyres, so you can’t visit or drive through Germany without first having to change to non-studded tyres. This makes them a bit less flexible.

The non-studded tyres will create the necessary grip on ice with its added grip particles, they also have sipes that can act as suction cups that can grip the ice. On snow both tyres will behave more or less in a similar way it is mainly the tread that will determine the performance on snow. Additions of new innovations such as snow claws and snow grip boosters between the tread blocks. The channels and the sipes will work together to prevent slushplaning by quickly and efficiently remove the slush layer from the road surface to prevent the tyres to lose contact with the road. A loss of contact would result in a loss of control over the vehicle and an accident could be imminent.

For SUVs it is also advantageous to have aramid-reinforced sidewalls as that protects the tyres from sharp stones or objects when driving off-road but also against curb damages when parking in cities.

For more information regarding SUV non-studded tires, visit: https://www.nokiantyres.com/

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