How do winter tyres work and how do I identify them?
How winter tyres work and how to identify them
How they work
Winter tyres differ from summer tyres in three key ways that combine to deliver superior cold weather performance:
- Softer rubber compound — Stays flexible below 7°C, maintaining grip where summer rubber hardens and loses traction
- Deeper tread grooves — Better at clearing snow, slush and standing water from under the tyre
- Sipes — Thousands of tiny cuts in the tread blocks that create additional biting edges for grip on ice and compacted snow
How to identify winter tyres
Check the sidewall for these markings:
- M+S (Mud and Snow) — A basic cold weather designation found on both winter and all-season tyres. It indicates the tread pattern is suitable for mud and snow but does not require the tyre to pass specific performance tests.
- 3PMSF (Three Peak Mountain Snowflake symbol) — The higher standard. This symbol means the tyre has passed specific snow traction tests and delivers genuine winter performance. This is the marking to look for if you want true winter capability.
If you see the snowflake symbol inside a mountain outline on the sidewall, you have a proper winter-rated tyre.
