Studded vs. studless: Tahoe officials weigh in on options

INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — From crushed walnut shells to coiled wires, tire manufactures have been reinventing the wheel for decades.

The most recent reinvention in the last decade has been studless snow tires — wheels made of a more porous rubber compound that grips slippery ice.

Tests show that both studded and studless snow tires perform relatively equally in winter conditions, and the decision of which to buy generally comes down to personal preference, local vendors said.

“I've got a lot of people who won't put anything but studded snows on their tires and the complete opposite as well,” said Joe David, owner of Sierra County Tire and Automotive in Kings Beach.

He puts studless snow tires on his Audi and studded tires on his plow truck.

“They both do a really good job,” he said.

Sometimes the choice comes down to a generational gap, said Greg Jacobsen, manager of The Auto & Tire Doctor in Truckee.

“The younger generations, they don't know about studded snow tires unless they hear it from their parents,” Jacobsen said. “They lean more to studless, where as the people who have used studded tires might ten to stick with them because they know they work.”

Jacobsen drives a good all-terrain tire through the winter.

Studless tires are becoming more popular because many newer sizes of tires come in studless, said Bob Elliott, store manager of Ken's Tire Center in South Lake Tahoe. He drives studded tires on his Corolla.

At the Nevada Highway Patrol, officers drive cars with winter tires with heavy treads, said Sgt. Blair Harkleroad. In Incline Village and Washoe County, deputies have used studded tires in the past but may move toward studless, said Sgt. Bill Devine.

In Tahoe City and the west shore, Placer County Sheriff Department deputies drive studded tires during the winter.

“Studded tires work, until you get into really thick snow and then nothing matters” said Placer Sgt. John Giovannini.

California Highway Patrol officers use studded snow tires in the winter, said officer Steven Skeen, and the South Lake Tahoe Police Department also drives studded tires during the winter, said Sgt. Brad Williams.

Evolution of the wheel

While studded snow tires became available in 1963, a studless snow tire claiming the same traction ability as its spiny cousin hit the roads in 1992.

To increase traction in icy and snowy conditions, studless snow tires usually rely on a rubber compound with microscopic pores.

“A studless tire is relying on the entire contact patch of the tire and the rubber to grip the ice,” said Matt Edmonds, vice president of the Tire Rack, which did a study on studded versus studless snow tires in 2007.

The softer rubber allows the tire to grip the road and wick away a thin film of water that forms when a warm tire touches ice.

“One of the most treacherous things of a tire on ice is you get a microfilm of water that is built up that makes it very slick,” Edmonds said.

Studded and studless snow tires offer different traction depending on the road conditions, according to a 2002 University of Washington study.

“Studded tires produce their best traction on snow or ice near the freezing mark and lose proportionately more of their tractive ability at lower temperatures than do studless or all-season tires,” the 2002 document reported.

However the traction of studded tires can be slightly superior to studless tires in clear ice near the freezing mark, according to the study.

To simulate a freezing road, testers at the Tire Rack drove four 2006 BMW 325-I rear-wheel drive sedans with four different types of tires (three studded and one studless) on an ice rink in 2007. They found that the cars using studless snow tires had 1 percent to 15 percent better traction than the vehicle with the studded snow tires.

The test measured traction in terms of how many seconds it took each car to travel 60 feet. Studless tires in the test included Michelin's X-Ice, Dunlop's Graspic DS-2 and Bridgestone's WS60. The studded tire was a Firestone Winterforce.

While the study recommended that drivers use studless snow tires, local tire merchants and law enforcement officials are split on which wear better and are safer for Tahoe's winters.

Performance in all conditions

In addition to giving traction on a road covered in a sheet of ice, studded tires can help break up ice on a road, eventually making it safer for other motorists, said Thor Dyson, a Nevada Department of Transportation district engineer.

“Just like chains, studded tires can help break up the ice pack,” Dyson said.

However, those same studs that dig into ice may give motorists issues in drier conditions, Edmonds said.

“People tend to forget with studded snow tires that they don't handle the same on dry pavement as a conventional tire,” said Mark Woods, general manager of AAA Automotive Repair for Northern California.

Elliott asks customers to consider how often they travel out of the Basin.

“People tend to run the studless when they have to do a lot of out of town driving,” Elliott said. “If you leave the basin a lot, the studless are better.”

Studded and studless snow tires can have a similar life span — depending on who is judging.

David said he sees studless tires wear down faster.

“They are a very soft rubber compound and they wear faster than a studded snow tire,” David said.

The tires can also cost 10 to 20 percent more, David said.

Jacobsen said both tires are comparable in price and durability.

“They're designed to get at most two to three seasons depending on driving habits,” Jacobsen said.

As for fuel consumption, the 2002 Washington study found that studded tires can cause a 1.2 percent increase over non-studded tires on bare roadways. However, the effects of winter weather like road unevenness, snow and ice can increase fuel consumption by 15 percent, no matter what kind of tires are on the road.

The future of tires

In future years, Jacobsen said he sees people using studded tires less and less.

“Studded snow tires might go down the wayside because of the damage they do to the roads,” Jacobsen said.

Studded tires can rut pavement and cause vehicles to hydroplane on accumulated water in the ruts, excessive road spray and premature damage to pavement markings, according to the 2002 Washington study. They can also create dust when they tear up the road, according to the study.

However, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency does not have scientific evidence on how much of that contributes to the tiny particulate matter that causes water quality degradation in Lake Tahoe.

“There isn't compelling evidence that studded tires increase the levels of fine sediment that enter the lake,” said TRPA Spokesman Dennis Oliver.

However, studded tires can impact the agency's noise threshold.

“From a noise point of view, you are better off going with something that is not going to create a big sound of metal hitting the pavement,” Oliver said.

Other things to know

California regulations on studded tires:

Studded tires are allowed in California between Nov. 1 and April 30. This period can be extended in the case of adverse weather conditions.

Nevada regulations on studded tires:

Studded tires are allowed in Nevada between Oct. 1 and April 30.

Available brands of studless snow tires:

Bridgestone Blizzak

Dunlop Graspic

Michelin X-Ice

Continental Extreme Winter Contact