As every year, the obligation to use winter tires in Austria ends on April 15. The ÖAMTC also recommends slowly switching to summer tires in warmer weather. The ÖAMTC also advises against changing tires yourself.
However, using winter tires in winter driving conditions would be best. But there is no need to rush after April 15, ÖAMTC technician Steffan Kerbl said on Monday: “There is no obligation to use summer tires.”
Winter tires in summer are less problematic
“For winter tires to drive at high temperatures is less problematic than summer tires in the cold. If the winter tires are already scraping the four-millimeter limit for tread depth anyway, you can continue to drive them for some time with an adapted driving style without further ado, instead of disposing of them immediately,” Kerbl emphasized.
Only at summery temperatures would winter tires degrade significantly and begin to “smear away.” However, it is also clear that summer tires have better grip as soon as it is consistently above freezing and no longer cold and wet.
Yes or no to all-season tires?
One question increasingly asked by ÖAMTC club members is whether all-weather or all-season tires are an option. The tire expert answered “yes”: “It depends on the individual situation. There are good all-season tires – but compared to summer and winter tires, they are always a compromise.”
Changing tires on your own is also discouraged. “Tires are getting bigger and heavier, and mistakes when jacking up can result in property damage to the underbody and sometimes serious injury. The money saved, on the other hand, is comparatively small,” Kerbl explained.
- source: krone.at/picture: pixabay.com
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