Talk:Snow tire

First post
Encyclopedia Britannica has a snow tire article. Chergles (talk) 21:18, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

This article can grow. We can include material on how the rubber is different, tread pattern, manufacturers, use of studs, where studs are illegal and why, etc. Chergles (talk) 21:19, 25 October 2008 (UTC)


 * Aren't snow tyres compulsory during winter, in Germany? I came here to find out more about that, but the article is just a stub. Jason404 (talk) 15:55, 15 March 2009 (UTC)
 * No, they aren't. They are just compulsory if the conditions require them. Some areas of Germany get snow so irregularly that it would be pointless to have a blanket requirement for them. You're not supposed to drive in snow with summer tyres though.

Quebec first to implement snow tyre law? Winter/Snow Tyres have been a legal requirement in Sweden since Dec 1999. 188.223.101.209 (talk) 14:17, 24 November 2010 (UTC)

Winter tires in Norway
I see plenty of websites saying that winter tires are not compulsory in Norway, but I tend to give more weight to this official U.S. website, which says that they are required "from November to April". I will see if I can find any official Norwegian source for this. Mikenorton (talk) 23:37, 26 January 2011 (UTC)
 * Winter tires are required only on heavy vehicles. For light vehicles there is only a general rule saying that the driver is obliged to use tires that gives sufficient friction. Studded tires (tires wiht spikes) are allowed April-October only according to conditions. I have modified the paragraph. --Erik den yngre (talk) 09:07, 4 September 2013 (UTC)

When first marketed?
It would improve the article to give some history on snow tires, for example, when were they first marketed? Possibly before WW 2 (1939 - 1945)? Or after? I would assume that prior to the advent of snow tires, the installiation of chains was the primary method of obtaining satisfactory traction on heavy snow or ice.--TGC55 (talk) 01:13, 4 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Some history: http://www.wintertyres-yorkshire.co.uk/winter-tyres-a-brief-history/ JSoos (talk) 10:45, 13 September 2018 (UTC)

Dead link
Please remove all links are dead! Thanks for earlier!--109.67.200.83 (talk) 23:21, 6 September 2011 (UTC)

Disadvantages?
Presumably winter and snow tires have disadvantages, or they would be used throughout the year. Can anybody add information about this? --Ef80 (talk) 17:03, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
 * They wear out quicker. Some claim they make more noise.  They often have directional tread pattern.  Load ratings and speed ratings are less.  If you feel the need to add this, you can do so, but I don't have any of this sourced so any entry could be deleted. --Dana60Cummins (talk) 17:53, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
 * (ec)Studded tires are banned in some inner city areas of Scandinavia in the winter, because of the fine particles produced from the road surface when snow/ice is not there - this has been linked to an increase in breathing difficulties for some people. I got that from someone in Sweden, so I don't have a source to hand, but I'll take a look around. Studded tires are also only used in winter because of the damage they cause to the roads (it's also why several countries ban them completely). More generally with snow tires, they are presumably not optimum for grip and/or wear during non-winter conditions. Sorry not to be able to support any of that with sources, but If I find any I'll be back. Mikenorton (talk) 17:55, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Swedish laws
Here is the link to the office publishing the regulations: http://www.transportstyrelsen.se/en/road/Vehicles/winter-tyres/ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.181.175.124 (talk) 23:14, 27 January 2012 (UTC)

Needs to be extended
This article should be more detailed especially for something which is so much a part of everyday life for many of us. The section about requirements in Europe is insufficient considering there are 51 countries in Europe. Why no mention of Poland, Russia, Sweden and other countries?--ЗAНИA talk talk] 19:59, 22 January 2013 (UTC)


 * Sweden is one of 15 countries that are listed, but we do need information on Russia, Poland, Serbia, Belgium, Denmark, Albania, Hungary, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Montenegro, Macedonia, Netherlands, Liechtenstein, Ireland and Iceland. Spain, Portugal and Greece probably use them in mountainous areas, although we can probably leave out Malta, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican City. Perhaps a table would be good way of presenting this information, when we get it? Mikenorton (talk) 20:28, 22 January 2013 (UTC)

Snow tires vs. winter tires
Somebody thought these articles were describing the same thing and combined them. Snow tires have been around for the better part of a century but winter tires are something new in the last few years being promoted by the sales people as having softer rubber compounds for use in cold weather. Snow tires have large lugs on them for grip in snow or sand. After some research I have never found the softer rubber compounds claimed by tire manufacturers. Some real references would be good to validate the sales hype. These articles or at least descriptions need to be kept separate. 174.118.142.187 (talk) 14:31, 1 February 2013 (UTC)
 * I disagree. In the Nordic context winter tires and snow tires is one and the same thing, and have been so for some 40-50 years. There are perhaps some special purpose "Mud & Snow" types made for offroad driving, I don't think these are used on public roads in the Nordic area. --Erik den yngre (talk) 09:11, 4 September 2013 (UTC)


 * I agree that the current snow tires/winter tires distinction doesn't make sense. See for example Nokian tyres English page for passenger cars, it talks about winter tyres throughout. Similarly, Michelin and Goodyear also categorize all of their winter/snow tyres as winter tires. Additionally, all the current references of the article seem to be talking about winter tires, not snow tires. 109.204.245.233 (talk) 16:05, 20 October 2013 (UTC)

Regional rules
Why is much of the article taken up with regional rules for use of snow tires? This appears to me to be much too detailed and particular to specific regions—not of general interest, especially where there is no requirement. There are no citations, as well. So, I propose drastically condensing this section. Anybody disagree? User:HopsonRoad 04:25, 27 December 2016 (UTC)

Deletion of images
IP user 208.100.156.100 has twice deleted images here. The images illustrate the concepts described in Snow tire. Please don't delete these images without a good explanation. Sincerely, User:HopsonRoad 20:12, 25 March 2017 (UTC)
 * hi i removed a non-applicable picture of a car and added an applicable picture of a snow tire, along with improving captions and formatting, please check the edit diffs next time instead of assuming all IP edits are vandalism, thanks! 208.100.156.100 (talk) 20:49, 25 March 2017 (UTC)
 * Thank you for your reply, here, 208.100.156.100. I apologize if I misread your intentions. I did check your contributions history and it did not lead me to conclude that you were experienced in WP—a risk that an IP editor runs who doesn't edit from a single spot.
 * As to the Russian street scene, I chose it in place of some earlier, irrelevant images, because it was one of few images available on Wikimedia Commons that illustrated the need for snow tires in real conditions. Otherwise, the article only shows the tire and its immediate reaction with snow. Sincerely, User:HopsonRoad 21:31, 25 March 2017 (UTC)
 * commons has a bunch of better snowy roads roads than that one too, thats where i found the other snow tire pic, i will see what i can do 208.100.156.100 (talk) 21:59, 25 March 2017 (UTC)
 * I appreciate your interest in this, 208.100.156.100. I felt that the Russian picture showed tires on snow, whereas your recent choice shows only delayed traffic, which could happen with an accident ahead. The opposite lane has no traffic, so an accident may have occurred further up. Cheers, User:HopsonRoad 22:09, 25 March 2017 (UTC)
 * Thanks for your continued efforts, 208.100.156.100. The Japanese image shows tire-road interaction, but the road is little more than wet—not that big a challenge for regular tires. Cheers, User:HopsonRoad 22:21, 25 March 2017 (UTC)

Russia already covered
An IP user keeps creating a special mention of Russia as follows: "In Russia light vehicles and buses must be equipped with snow M+S or 3PMSF tires on all axles from December through February and have a minimum tread depth of 4 millimetres (0.2 in)". This violates WP:UNDUE, since Russia is already covered in equal measure to other European countries in previous edits. I leave it to someone else to address this in order to avoid WP:3RR. HopsonRoad (talk) 21:04, 17 December 2020 (UTC)