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How to Choose the Right Tire For Your Vehicle

“Does it really matter which tires I choose?”

The short answer, absolutely! There are a wide variety of tires for an array of different usages. Will you be driving through icy or snowy conditions? Does your family enjoy long road trips? Do you only drive your car around town? These are all questions you need to ask yourself before picking out a set of tires.

First Thing’s First: Tire Size

It’s common for consumers to change out their tires for a similar-sized set. That’s because the car company engineered your car to perform on that particular type and size tire. According to Car and Driver, “fitting an identical or similar replacement set would maintain the performance and safety your vehicle was designed to deliver.”

To know your car tire’s diameter, you can find it in your driver’s manual, online, or right here at [company name]. However, you can also find it located right on the sidewall of your tire. As an example; if you see the 245/40-R18 — 245 is the tire width, 40 is the aspect ratio, R is the radial tire designation, and 18 is the diameter.

Now The Fun Part: Tire Type

Now that you know your tire size, it’s time to delve into the different categories of tires. We’ll be going over the types of commercial tires that are ideal for cars, trucks, vans, SUVs, and crossovers. The categories range from all-terrain to performance, all-season, and more. Let’s take a look at your options!

All-Season Tires

A large proportion of drivers on the road drive around on all-season tires. They’re great for most weather conditions and their capability is acceptable. With these tires, you can expect to experience smooth, quiet handling and decent traction in wet conditions. If you’re looking for something that can handle snow and ice, you’ll want to heavily consider a more appropriate tire (hint: winter/snow tires). With all-season tires, you have 2 sub-categories:

    ● High-performance all-seasons: As the name suggests, these are sportier tires. They can grip the road and provide sharper handling. However, they do sacrifice traction in winter weather.
    ● Grand-touring all-seasons: Also known as “all-weather,” these tires offer similar performance to winter tires but with better handling.

Winter Tires

If you need a tire that can handle weather conditions beyond the usage of all-season tires, it would be wise to consider winter/snow tires. For slippery, icy, and snowy weather, it doesn’t get better than these. They’re designed to handle stopping and turning much better than all-seasons; however, they wear easily once the weather heats up, so they should be considered a second set of tires for your vehicle.

Summer Tires

These are also called “regular” or “three-season” tires because they can handle every season except cold, frigid winters. While they’re ideal tires for sharper steering response, better cornering, and increased stopping ability, they only work well in temperature above 40 degrees fahrenheit. Depending on the type of performance you’ll be needing, these tires come in: ultra-high performance, max performance, and extreme performance at the top rung.

All-Terrain Tires

For off-roading enthusiasts that like to take their vehicle off the beaten path, these will do just fine. Designed to tackle all sorts of terrain, these will handle mud, sand, rocks, and more — they’re heavy-duty tires for people that like to explore. Additionally, they can drive on normal roads with the ease and comfort of a regular tire.

Performance Tires

These tires can handle your need for speed with ease. Also known as high-performance tires, They’re great for sports cars because they can grip the road at high speeds. However, they do have a reduced tread wear rating, which means you’ll need to replace these tires more often than other types.

Touring Tires

For superior comfort and smooth handling, you’d be remiss not to consider touring tires. They’re quiet, reliable, and offer a long tread life. Most are all-season tires as well, so you can drive them in most weather conditions except snow and ice.

Mud-Terrain Tires

If you need a tire that can handle more than the all-terrain, the mud-terrain tire is capable of traversing through deep mud and sand. The deep tread pattern will help your vehicle get through soft terrain by providing maximum traction. But when it comes to the road, you can expect a less smooth and noisier ride.

Commercial Tires

If you’re looking for something that goes beyond regular consumer tire usage, you’re probably looking for commercial truck tires. Their general applications depending on your needs include:

    ● Long-distance hauls: many miles to removal, fuel-efficient, comfortable ride
    ● Long & short distance hauls: great handling, durable tread, long lifetimes
    ● Short distance hauls: excellent traction, tough casing, construction service

Your Authorized Dealer

At Roadside Solutions, we’re an authorized dealer of almost all tire brands for whatever usage your vehicle requires. From Firestone to Bridgestone, Goodyear, and more, we’re proud to deliver quality tires and reliable service.

If you’re in need of a tire change, don’t hesitate to call us at (210) 999-1945 to learn about our catalog of dependable tires.