10 Best All Season Tires of 2020

Seasons may change throughout the year but with all-season tires, you can keep driving your car safely on dry, wet, hot or cold conditions.

If you want such tires, instead of waiting for the current ones fitted in your car to fail, here is a review of the best all-season tires that you can buy.

Understand Your Tires

All tires have some markings on the sidewall, which indicates various info about its type and size. These markings are standardized in most regions around the world and to be more specific, they show the following.  

• Type
• Width
• Sidewall aspect ratio
• Internal construction
• Rim diameter
• Load index
• Speed rating

For instance, with a tire marked P275/55R20 111S, this means:

Type

P indicates this is a passenger car tire. Other markings such as LT means it is a light truck tire, ST is for special trailers and T is for a temporary tire, which is the one found in the trunk.

Width

This tire’s width is indicated as 275, which means it measures 275mm from sidewall to sidewall.

Sidewall aspect ratio

Aspect ratio is a percentage that indicates the ratio of the tire’s height to its width. In this case, 55 is the aspect ratio, and this means the tire’s sidewall height is 55% of 275mm, which is 151.25mm.

Internal construction

This is a radial tire because it is indicated as R on this marking. Radial tires are very popular nowadays because of their strength and durability. They are built using fabric cords placed at a 90˚ angle to the centerline.

If its marked D, this implies a diagonal or bias-ply construction where the fabric cords layers are placed diagonally at 30-45˚ angles from the tread’s centerline. B indicates a Belted-Bias internal construction, which combines a diagonal ply with fiberglass belts.

Rim Diameter

The tire’s internal diameter is indicated by 20, which means a 20-inch rim diameter.

Load Index

A tire’s load index shows its maximum carrying capacity. Given as 111, this means the tire can carry up to 2403 pounds in weight. 

Speed Rating

Lastly, the tire’s speed rating is S, which means it can handle rolling stress at speeds of up to 112 mph.

10 Best All Season Tires – Reviews

How to Buy the Best All-Season Tire

1. Traction

Traction can be defined as the effectiveness of grip on different surfaces, be it wet or dry. Ultimately, the tire with a more aggressive tread design will bite better and therefore, provide better traction on different surfaces. The more the traction, the better.

2. Size

It is also very important to check the size of the tire and more specifically, check the rim diameter (internal diameter), overall diameter and aspect ratio, which shows the sidewall height.

The tire’s internal diameter should match your car’s rim diameter while the overall diameter and aspect ratio should be considered so as to determine if the tire will fit in your car’s wheel well.

3. Load Capacity

Considering that a standard car weighs about 4000 pounds, the 4 tires should be able to carry this weight collectively. However, the weight of the car may vary depending on the cargo or even construction of the car and that said, here are the different load indexes and what they mean.

4. Uniform Tire Quality Grade (UTQG)

UTQG is a system developed by the Department of Transportation in the US, and it helps in the comparison of tires based on tread wear, traction, and temperature.

For traction, this represents the level of grip that the tire has. The letter grading can be broken down to the following:

On the other hand, a tire’s temperature rating shows its ability to disperse heat. The higher the temperature rating, the better because this shows the tire gets rid of heat much faster, thereby reducing the chances of heat damage from occurring. This rating can be broken down into:

With that in mind, a UTQG rating of 500AAA implies:

• 500 is the tread wear. The government’s mandated tread wear is 100 and therefore, this tire will wear up to 5 times longer. However, this depends on your driving conditions, habits, weather, etc. Generally, the higher this number is, the better.
• AA means the tire grips very well. It cannot get better than this.
• Lastly, the final A means the tire can safely disperse heat to avoid damages even at high speeds that exceed 115 mph.

5. Tread Pattern

Tread patterns may look cool and attractive, but there is some science that goes into their design. These are the 3 patterns that you may get.

Unidirectional

Unidirectional treads are very common and they are designed to move in a single direction. Because of this, they tend to wear much faster on the key points and therefore, tires with these treads need to be rotated more frequently than the other types.

Symmetrical

Tires with symmetrical treads can be rotated in different ways and they are very durable. This is because the groove patterns wear out evenly, which makes the tire last for a long time.

Asymmetrical

Asymmetrical treads are a combination of different tread pattern standards, and they give superior traction on both wet and dry surfaces. This pattern also maintains a firm grip at high speeds, making such tires ideal for racing and sports cars.

6. Fuel Economy

Fuel economy is not only good for your pocket but also helps protect the environment from harmful emissions. Therefore, getting tires that give you more mileage is a very wise thing to do.

7. Budget

Lastly, you need to consider the price of the tire. It's not a must that the most expensive all-season tire is the best and likewise, the cheapest one is not necessarily the worst.

The features and quality of the product should be the primary determining factors and after you narrow it down to the best all-season tires for your car, pick the one that you are most comfortable spending on.

FAQs

1. Are all-season tires good in snow?

This depends on the amount of snow. Of course, winter season is covered in the “all-season” aspect of this tire, but only in light snow. For extreme snow conditions, all-season tires will not get you through.

All-season tires are designed for dry and wet roads, as well as slippery trails. When its winter season, ensure you drive only on plowed roads or else you will get stuck.

If you have to drive through thick snow, you need to fit in winter tires. These ones are engineered for harsh winter conditions, featuring rubber compounds that remain flexible in extreme cold and deeper grooves that have aggressive biting edges for better traction.

2. Is there a difference between all-season and all-weather tires?

While the two terms may almost mean the same thing, all-season and all-weather tires are very different from each other. Just like winter tires, all-weather tires are designed to handle snowy conditions, making them suitable for extreme winters whereas all-season tires cannot cope.

3. When should I change my all-season tires?

There are three main things to check as you continue using all-season tires to run your car.

Distance

Almost all tires are backed by a treadwear warranty from the manufacturer and this should act as a guide, showing you when the tire should be replaced. Given in miles, this warranty assures you that the treads will not be worn out until that distance is covered.

Structural damage

This is a no brainer. If you spot any structural damage on the sidewalls, tread area or shoulders of the tire, then it should be replaced immediately.

Treadwear indicator

Lastly, most tires are equipped with multiple treadwear indicators along the tread grooves. These simplify the task of determining if the treads are worn out because once you notice that the treads sitting flush with them, then the tire is worn out and should be replaced immediately.

Conclusion 

As you can see, there are many different varieties of all-season tires, with each having some unique features, but all are built to serve you throughout the year.

With that in mind, the all-season tire review above will guide towards picking the best all-season tires that suits you and your car’s needs.

Sources

1. Comparing Winter & Snow Tires vs. All Season Tires - Bridgestone