Summer tires aren't meant for snow, but does that mean they can only be driven during summer temperatures?

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atikovi

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but it says summer tire. Remember reading here something about not using summer tires below or near freezing temperatures. Does that still apply, and what happens if you do?
 
atikovi said:
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but it says summer tire. Remember reading here something about not using summer tires below or near freezing temperatures. Does that still apply, and what happens if you do?
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I previously ran Continental Extreme Contact Sport summer tires on my BMW. There were a few weeks in CT where we had really nice days, with mornings that dipped below 32 degrees. I could definitely notice a difference, the back end of the car (RWD) would feel loose on tight corners and even trigger traction control. I now run performance all-seasons during the summer (snows in winter) since there are too many "in between" days during the year in my climate to just have summer and winter tires.
 
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but it says summer tire. Remember reading here something about not using summer tires below or near freezing temperatures. Does that still apply, and what happens if you do?
Click to expand...
IIRC 40F is the cut off where grip diminishes significantly. There's also some risk in damaging the tread at these temps but I think in normal driving that's highly rare occurrence.
 
Never gets freezing here, but I have run the DWS for 5-years before swapping to PS4s. What a significant difference that made. 😏
 
atikovi said:
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but it says summer tire. Remember reading here something about not using summer tires below or near freezing temperatures. Does that still apply, and what happens if you do?
Click to expand...

It depends on the tyre, grand touring tyres are just fine as long as there's no snow or slush on the ground, and when it's dry they are likely the best option as far as grip goes.

When it's wet and near freezing, it really depens on the tyre. My UHP summers don't care, but I've ran others that don't deal with it at all. the PS4 and Bridgestone potenza sport are better han crossclimate in the wet.
 
I drove summer tires on snow once and I'll never do it again. It's just too dangerous. I barely made it up a bridge that I didn't know was sloped. I made it to the dealership somehow and had them put on a set of snow tires the same morning.

You feel like you have little steering, acceleration or braking and that you're going to either go off the road or run into somebody.

High performance all season radials are okay on light snow (ie good for extending the "summer" season).
 
If you leave your summer tires outside at -20 and then immediately put them on the car with weight on them, you can crack them, yes. It's worse with tires ~200 treadwear and below. Otherwise it is not a huge deal in terms of actually damaging them. Personally I always use full on summers and winters so there is always a point when you switch over when the temp range is not ideal. You just have to use your brain.
 
when My Brother lived in DFW, both of the Challengers he bought came from the factory with Summer only Tires (Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar).

He could Get away with them most of the year, on those few days they did get below freezing, snow, and Ice, he could barely get the car to the end of his own street, let alone the 45 min drive to work.

Luckily, his Dakota had 3PMS rated tires, so he was still able to commute. (he could work from home, but a couple of his supervisors were Dickish about it...)

when he moved back up here, that car was parked from the time the leaves turned, until the first Mow of the spring. the first year he even rented a storage unit for it.
 
I tried "summer" tires once, only to find out that they sucked on wet pavement. And then I was sweating snow tire changeover. Never again, all seasons for me, even if I use snows for winter. Only if I ever have a summer-only car would I contemplate a summer tire.
 
I own a Corvette in a northern climate. It is off the road, garaged, from Thanksgiving to Spring. GM equipped it with summer tires.

Summer tires start to lose grip at around 40 degrees, as others have said. I have a second set of wheels with ultra high performance all seasons mounted. Continental DWS06 plus. I usually put them on the car in mid September, and take them off around Memorial Day. If I ever decide to take the Corvette for a mid winter trip to a warm climate, a good set of all seasons is necessary.

GM now equips base model Corvettes with all season tires, and Z51 and up models with summer tires.
 
They get hard and lose grip. I remember when I first bought my 135i (which came with summer tires), someone got into a bad accident by disregarding their tires in the cold.
 
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