Analyze your driving conditions

A person who lives in southern California will often choose a significantly different tire for their car than someone who lives in Minnesota. There are exceptions to the rule, however. The person who lives in California may go on a skiing or off-roading trip. The person in Minnesota may only drive on plowed roads during snow season. Therefore, their driving situations may include a variety of conditions.
Here are some guidelines to help you select the right tire based on your driving conditions:

• Analyze your average driving conditions to determine if you most frequently drive on dry roads, a combination of both wet and dry roads, or primarily wet roads. Then, factor in the possibility of seasonal extremes. Most tires purchased today are the all-season type that appeal to the great majority of drivers who seek acceptable performance and traction across the spectrum of possible driving conditions in all four seasons. Look for the M&S symbol on the sidewall to ensure the tire's mud and snow rating for winter use.
• Consider seasonal tires. All-season tires have performance and traction disadvantages since their design elements are averaged. In the fast-growing performance market segment, two newer strategies have become popular. In non-snow climates, summer or dry type designs are emerging as year-round favorites. These designs feature far superior dry handling and traction with wet performance ranging from acceptable to excellent. Performance enthusiasts who live in more extreme winter climates also use these new designs when seasons allow and change over to winter tires once the snow begins to fall.
• If you drive a pickup truck or SUV, chances are you'll be considering a purpose-built tire design to match your driving needs. These designs have tradeoffs including traction (both on and off the road for various conditions), highway ride quality, and performance. In terms of traction, designs range from HT (highway tread) to AP (all-purpose) to AT (all-terrain) to MT (mud terrain) in order of aggressive tread design. Highway ride quality diminishes as the tread design becomes more aggressive.

You can pick tread aggressiveness according to your needs, but be mindful of the highway ride quality tradeoff. Most SUV owners select AP type tires for their balanced highway ride and all-season traction. Sport truck tires with all-season tread designs are quickly gaining popularity among SUV owners, however. These drivers are looking for better handling when on the highway and are willing to settle for less traction off-road. Meanwhile, pickup truck owners continue to sustain their "purpose-oriented" tire selection, with AT tires remaining the most popular type in this market segment. However, Sport truck tires are showing gains among those who like great highway handling and need a tire that can handle truck load capacities.