Experts agree: If you drive regularly on ice or snow, you'll be safer on winter tires than on all-season tires. found that "winter tires easily command a 20-percent benefit in snow and ice traction over all-season tires, and some of the best winter tires have nearly twice the grip as some all-season models." Keep in mind that winter tires aren't just for snow; cold temperatures can harden regular tires' rubber, reducing their ability to grip pavement. But softer, more porous snow tires absolutely thrive in cold climates. The colder it gets, the more tenaciously they grip. Just because you have an all-wheel-drive car doesn't mean you don't need winter tires, as the editors of Popular Mechanics found out. In a test, reviewers drove two identical Chevy Equinoxes -- one with front-wheel drive and one with all-wheel drive (AWD) -- on a packed-snow track with a milled-ice underlay. The AWD Equinox equipped with snow tires braked the quickest from 60 mph; when equipped with all-season tires, the same Equinox went from first to worst in terms of stopping distance.

The front-wheel-drive Equinox also handled better when using snow tires than with all-season wheels. "On snow tires, both cars came to a halt about a car length sooner -- often the difference between a close call and a call to your insurance company," testers wrote. When using winter tires, both models also enjoyed a slight advantage in acceleration, cornering (how tightly a vehicle hugs the road in curves), and climbing a 10-percent grade. Bottom line, according to Popular Mechanics: Winter tires trump all-weather tires in ice and snow. Snow tires for passenger cars. Unlike all-season tires, snow tires for passenger cars have special tread designs and compounds to grip better on snow, ice and cold pavement. Snow tires for SUVs and light trucks. These are similar to passenger-car snow tires -- and some lines are also available in sizes suitable for coupes and sedans -- but are top performers when installed on bigger, heavier vehicles.These are designed for high-performance cars.

They grip better on wet and dry roads than regular snow tires, so they're also great for mild winters -- you'll be ready in case it snows, without giving up performance when it's warmer. Ko Fire Curtain PriceThey don't cling quite as stickily to ice, though.Altra Running Shoes EuropeIn the frozen north -- where black ice and packed snow cloak the roads from fall until spring -- experts and drivers swear by studded tires, which have built-in metal teeth to chew into the ice. Purple Peacock Feather ComforterFor most drivers in the U.S., studded tires are probably overkill, and some states and localities ban them, or limit the months in which they can be used, because they tear up dry pavement. The studs send a constant noisy rattle into your car's cabin, too.

You can get studded tires that come that way from the factory, or purchase tires that accept aftermarket studs, which can be installed by your tire retailer for an additional cost. Unless otherwise indicated, pricing estimates in this report are per tire, and for the smallest size available at retail. Be aware that larger tires can cost more, sometimes a lot more. They also don't include installation -- sometimes free, depending on your retailer -- and you can incur extra costs for balancing, stems, tire disposal, etc. If buying online, some sellers offer free shipping, but others do not; shipping costs on one tire, let alone four, can sometimes be substantial. conducts the most exacting snow tire tests. , a tire retailer, also conducts impartial reviews and names best choices. Canadian testers are demanding and they often have personal tales to tell about how various tires hold up in their frigid winters, so we incorporated feedback from sites such as Canada's Automobile Protection Association and Toronto's The Globe and Mail newspaper.

We scoured hundreds of owner reviews, as well -- they're an essential piece of the puzzle -- to find out whether a given snow tire will really help you stay safe in the winter. When analyzing these reviews we take into consideration how well the tire grips on icy, snowy, wet and dry pavement, the quality and noise of the ride while using the tires and whether the tread wears quickly.The snow is starting to fall in parts of North America and full-on winter is right around the corner, so it is time to start thinking about all things icy: Do I need a new jacket? Where did I stash those goggles? Is it gonna be Utah, Colorado, Montana or B.C. this February? And of course, what kind of snow tires should I get?This question already assumes you need snow tires instead of all-weather tires, and you do. All-season tires are great for 3 out of 4 seasons, but if you are going to be spending time in real winter conditions, you need to forget about chains and get the proper hardware. Snow tires outperform all-weather tires in test after test, and so they should.

Besides, if you live up in the mountains or far north, you probably already have burly studded snow tires on your favorite ski car. But do you know which snow tires are really the best?  Here are five of our favorites.5. The BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A KO is a good truck and SUV tire for the snow. It handles well and gets good customer ratings EXCEPT for icy conditions. In ice, the T/A KO loses its grip a bit. This tire is best for light snow and not for the hardcore, long winters. That said, if you are a city dweller up North, this could very well meet your needs.4. The Bridgestone Blizzaks WS70 is a great all-winter tire for driving everyday in snow and ice. This is the fourth generation of Bridgestone “WinterBiter” tires which now integrate the latest in nanotechnology to bite into the slush and ice with a stronger, molecular level grip. If any of these tires becomes sentient, Transformer-style, the Blizzak is the most likely candidate, based on their “NanoPro-Tech silica-enhanced Tube Multicell compound.”

Thousands of microscopic tubes and cells are spread on top of the normal winter compounds in a way that continues to grip even as they wear down. All of these nanotubes biting, scratching and gripping the snow and ice lead to a seriously reliable set of tires.3. Continental ExtremeWinterContact make for a great set of high-traction tires. They also have their own proprietary high-tech winter tread compound to deliver extreme gripping. These are unique in their asymmetrical tread pattern with grooves, treads and sipes that expel water especially quickly so your tire can get down to the brass tacks of gripping the road tightly. Most enticing of all, these are the best-priced tires in this top tier, so if you are on a budget this winter, these are for you.2. The Michelin X-Ice Xi2 is a great winter tire that also rides well in the summer, unlike many competitors. But it really only excels on ice, not snow, and it is this weakness on snow that keeps Michelin from reaching the top of our rankings.

This tire did rank highest in the Consumer Reports’ Winter Tire category, topping the list of 16 tires tested in everything from wet and dry grip to ice braking and rolling resistance, so it’s definitely an excellent product. This Michelin tire’s secret sauce is its extra deep grooves with “Cross Z-Sipes” that have a specially designed curve for increased traction. The sister Xi3 model was noted for superior rolling resistance, while the Xi2 offered better handling overall. These are great tires and you’ll pay for the quality, but they still have a bit of innovation to go until they can be considered the best snow tires in the world.1. The best studless snow tire in the world also has the most unique name: the Hakkapeliitta R. The Finnish company Nokian invented winter tires back in the 1930s and they still hold “more winter tire patents than all other tire companies combined.” Despite the origin of the name Hakkapeliitta – referring to Finnish light cavalryman who fought during the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) and excelled in sudden and savage attacks – the tire Hakkapeliitta exhibits traction and handling that is “logical and calm.”