Talking Cars 527: Best Tires for Winter Driving

Main theme: Love it or hate it, winter is on the way. The Consumer Reports tire guys sit down to talk about preparing your car for the cold weather. While at the podcast table, Ryan Pszczolkowski and Gordon Gingras couldn’t resist talking about tires, too. 

It’s also not a coincidence that we just posted new SUV and truck tire ratings on CR.org. And even if you live somewhere where winter doesn’t visit, there is still excellent general tire advice in this episode. We discuss general car and tire maintenance tips, the kinds of things you should do on a regular basis, regardless of the change in weather.

Then the tire guys dish the details on the differences between tire types. What is an all-weather tire anyway? And what is the deal with studs and chains? They talk about the tire testing process, from asphalt to snow, and even why we test on an ice rink. (See the best winter/snow tires.)

Last winter, we conducted some all-season tire vs. snow tire tests, and the team talks about what it is like to test tires under harsh conditions.

Read: Top Pick Tires: Best Car, SUV, and Truck Tires and Best Tire Brands.

Audience questions: When are snow tires not enough? And are tire studs and tire chains worth the effort?