The Studdable Winter Tire You Didn’t Know You Needed

With the spectre of Old Man Winter right around the corner, wide swaths of the country will soon be turning their attention to winter tires. Offering far more grip (in all directions) and traction than a pair of summer skids, these hoops go a long way to making sure drivers make it through winter with their car shiny side up.

It is genuinely hoped that the need for expounding on the general benefits of winter tires is long behind us, so we’ll start with a quick explainer of how these hoops help one keep control of their car when road conditions are foul. Mechanical features are generally counted as the tread pattern itself, those blocks of grip which are shaped just right to bite into snow and ice with authority; saw-toothed edges help with acceleration and deceleration while other design details add lateral rigidity and grip for more stability in the corners. Molecular features are the ingredients tire manufacturers bake into the rubber so the tire is less likely to become hard when cold and remain pliable. These details are closely guarded, not unlike the recipe to Nonna’s tiramisu.

It is for those reasons winter tires, such as the Sailun Ice Blazer WSTX, are a key part of safe driving when misery begins to fall from the sky. The Ice Blazer WSTX is brand new the USA, after proving itself north of the border in Canada. This author will slide in the assertion that a front-wheel drive crossover on a good set of winters is arguably safer and more controllable than an equivalent all-wheel drive model on all-seasons. Once the thermometer tends to drop below 7 degrees Celsius (44.6 degrees Fahrenheit) and stay there, non-winter tires are a great deal less pliable and simply don’t have the mechanical or molecular attributes to deal with winter’s worst.

National Tire Wholesale (NTW) Sailun Ice Blazer WSTX's exclusive US retailer, ensures dependable and convenient accessibility for retailers with more than 100 distribution centers nationwide.

The Sailun Ice Blazer WSTX is a studdable winter tire designed to deal with the likes of slush, snow, and icy conditions, thanks to a grip-dealing blend of proprietary rubber formulas and a unique directional tread design and staggered along the centre rib. This likely permits an extra measure of biting surface, as if a chef started overlapping pepperoni on a pizza so the guest gets toppings with every mouthful.

Those v-shaped tread blocks are intended to grip into icy conditions while the lateral grooves should do their job of quickly evacuating water and slush so the tire can actually be in contact with the pavement in those semi-winter conditions. By the way, those little ‘squiggles’ in each tread block are called sipes, designed to better control pressure distribution and improve a tire’s rigidity whilst resisting deformation. In plain English, it helps keep the tire from going pear shaped in a corner to deliver better stability while braking and turning. It naturally has the three-peak mountain snowflake symbol on its sidewall, an industry standard which means a tire has passed certain thresholds for performance in winter conditions. This icon can appear on traditional winter rubber or studdable ones like the Sailun Ice Blazer WSTX.

In fact, it is worth having a discussion about studdable tires right now. New examples like the Sailun Ice Blazer WSTX use technology which absorbs some of the road impact when operating these tires on dry pavement. After all, unless you’re an ice road trucker, chances are good that you’ll be driving on such a surface at some point whilst running winter tires. Modern takes on studded tires are light years away from the headache-inducing ‘clack and drone’ which was once exhibited par excellence by studded tires.

Personal experience proves tires like these are quieter than they’ve ever been, with the rubber underneath the studs absorbing some of the impact. In fact, that trait allows the stud to recess ever so slightly when it hits a hard surface like dry pavement but remain fully extended when in contact with malleable surfaces like packed snow or ice; this offers the best of both worlds. Talk about advancements in mechanical features, eh? Of course, one must check local laws in their area around studded tire usage and the dates in which you are allowed to run them.

The Sailun Ice Blazer WSTX is available in a wide range of sizes, all the way from 175/65R14 to jumbo hoops like the 255/55R20. It is worth noting that one of the 18-inch sizes bears an impressive weight rating and is actually a 31-inch tire in off-road parlance, suggesting Sailun knows it can capture some of the pickup truck and SUV market with this rubber.

NOTE: This is sponsored content produced in partnership with Sailun Tires