Winter Tires are built from the ground up to deliver safety and control in snow, ice, and cold weather conditions. Many car and truck owners think all-season tires can offer that same kind of performance, but that’s not true. Read more at http://www.belletire.com/blog

1. Find Top Winter Tires
October 2011

2. Winter Tires are built from the ground up to deliver
safety and control in snow, ice, and cold weather
conditions. Many car and truck owners think all-season
tires can offer that same kind of performance, but that’s
not true.

3. The compounds used in all-season tires generally
begin to harden and lose traction when the
temperature goes below 45 degrees Fahrenheit.
Winter tires use special rubber compounds designed
to improve a vehicles performance, traction, handling
and braking in all cold weather conditions including
ice and snow.

4. Drivers shopping for
winter tires this 2011
season won’t be
lacking options. Tire
manufacturers have
spent a lot of time
developing winter tires
and here are three
models to look for at
local tire retailers.

5. Bridgestone BLIZZAK WS-70
Designed for coupes, sedans, crossover vehicles and
minivans, the Blizzak WS70 is the fourth generation of
Bridgestone WinterBiter tires.
The studless winter tire
offers outstanding
performance in the
wintertime by taking
advantage of Bridestone’s
unique patented designs.

6. The Blizzak WS70 has a dual-compound tread. One layer
is a standard winter compound and the other is
Bridgestone's NanoPro-Tech silica-enhanced Tube
Multicell compound.
The Tube Mutlicell compound is layered on top and
features thousands of microscopic tubes and cells. These
are uniformly distributed throughout the compound to
prevent water from building-up between the tire’s
contact patch and the surface of snowy and icy roads.

7. As the tread wears, new tubes are constantly exposed
along the tread for consistent performance. Basically,
the compound gives the tire superior grip in cold
weather and bite when dealing with snow and ice.

8. The Blizzak WS70 includes other features to enhance dry
road performance while maintaining snow, ice and wet
traction. This tire has four main circumferential grooves
that helps disperse water from the tire's contact patch to
improve hydroplaning resistance and enhance braking.

9. Michelin X-ICE Xi2 The Michelin X-Ice Xi2 is another
winter tire built for coupes,
sedans and minivans.
The Michelin tire is a great value
with its low rolling resistance and
meets the company’s Green X
standard. Michelin guarantees
that the tires energy efficiency is
at the top of the market in that
given category of tires. For vehicle
owners, that means reduced fuel
consumption and emissions of
C02 gasses.

10. This branding doesn’t mean the tire sacrifices anything in
performance. The X-Ice Xi2 is designed so it is prepared to
handle the coldest winter driving conditions around the
world.

11. The tire uses Michelin's patented FleX-Ice silica-based
winter tread rubber compound. The compound enhances
the tires traction in snow and ice, but also remains firm at
higher temperatures for traction on wet and dry roads.
The compound is molded into a directional tread design
that pushes water and slush away from the tire to
improve hydroplaning resistance.

12. Firestone WINTERFORCE
The Firestone Winterforce is
another great option for
drivers of coupes, sedans and
minivans looking for winter
tires.

13. Firestone Winterforce features a winter tread compound
that’s molded into an aggressive directional tread pattern.
It has tread blocks that are siped, and also can be
studded, so the tire has biting edges for traction on ice or
in snow.

14. It also has
independent tread
blocks with high-
density siping to
improve the grip on
the road. This works
well with the tire’s
intermediate and
shoulder tread
blocks. Internally, the
features twin steel
belts.

15. If you're thinking your tires will have you slip sliding away
this winter, stop at a local tire store and learn more about
getting the right winter tires for your vehicle. There are
many great winter tire rebates. Winter won't wait and
neither should you.

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