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Tire siping,
what is it and why would anyone want it?
We'll explain to you what tire siping is, what it does,
and why like thousands of others in Les Schwab country
you might think about having your tires siped as well. Before we talk about siping
we should first talk about tire traction. A tires traction comes from a series of
rubber grooves, channels, and tread blocks or patches.
The combination of these tread blocks and grooves,
allow a tire to grip both dry and wet roads
depending on its design and intended use. A tire intended for dry pavement use
utilizes more tread patches and fewer grooves and channels.
A tire designed for wet weather or all season driving
utilizes more channels and grooves to help dissipate
water from between the road and the tire. On wet or
icy roads it's critically important for a tire to be able to penetrate the liquid
on the surface,
and make solid contact with the road itself. Otherwise,
loss of traction and control ensues, and hydroplaning becomes a problem. In wet
weather,
the channels in a tire's tread direct large volumes of water
away from the surface of your tire, while grooves and sipes
grab the surface of the road with their rubber edges,
like hundreds of tiny rubber teeth. Siping adds bite
to your tire. Merely every
all season winter traction and wet weather tire has grooves and sipes
that provide important traction edges that help to bite
the road. Safety siping from Les Schwab
multiplies the number of traction edges without damaging the important
structural components of your tire.
These additional traction edges dramatically
increase the stopping and starting power of your car, truck, or SUV,
especially in wet weather driving conditions. An independent study by the
US National Safety Council,
found that siping dramatically improved stopping distances,
breakaway traction, and rolling traction on vehicles
of all kinds. And another independent study by Mobility Research,
found that an average passenger car stops 37 percent quicker
with siped tires over the same car with non siped tires.
Even more impressive, that same study
found that larger commercial vehicles with siped tires
decreased stopping distances by a whopping
57 percent. So,
you might ask, "If siping's so great, why aren't all tires made siped
right at the factory?" Well, tires designed for snow and ice often do come with
additional sipes,
but for most all season tires, siping is too costly and time-consuming to do on a
massive scale,
especially done the way we do it here, without removing
any of the tires rubber. Additionally, even though siping improves traction in
almost
any driving condition, the benefits of siping
are even greater in regions that experience significant wet weather driving
conditions. So how do we sipe your tires?
Our siping machines are lubricated, razor-sharp blades that don't remove any
rubber from your
tire, but cut hundreds of slits in the tread blocks.
These slits are virtually invisible to your eye
unless the tire flexes like it does when it needs that extra grip on the
road.
But, is it safe? Siping is safe for your tires.
The patented spiral cut technology of our machines,
leave your tread strong, so the existing
edges and tread blocks can do what they were designed to do.
Additional benefits to siping include,
increased tire life and a smoother ride too.
That's right, siping can actually increase the life of your tire
by dissipating heat caused by friction.
Heat is a natural enemy to rubber, and can cause premature wear
or abnormal wear patterns. Siping provides a natural cooling
effect by opening up more surface area for heat to escape.
And the increased flexibility on your tires,
help make for a smoother ride on the road. Around here, there's no telling what
road conditions you'll come across.
With siped tires from Les Schwab you can count on
better starting, stopping, and increased control no matter what Mother Nature
throws your way.
Les Schwab can sipe your new or existing tires for you while you wait.
It's a quick and affordable process that can make all the difference when you need it
most.
Wanna learn more, ask a Les Schwab technician.
Thanks for watching, and thanks again for making Les Schwab
your tire store.