There are many different brands of tires out there, and each brand has its own lines as well. When it comes to choosing between all these options, it can be challenging!
Blizzak tires are one of the top winter lines and are produced by Bridgestone. For the most part, they are considered extremely popular. However, are they worth the extra cost? Keep reading to find out.
What Are Blizzak Tires?
Blizzak tires are Bridgestone’s top winter tires. There are several different tires in this line – each with its own features and benefits. For the most part, these tires are designed to provide extra grip and traction in the snow, which they do with a wider tread and various other features.
To figure out if these tires are the correct option for you, keep reading below.
Are Blizzak Tires Good for Snow?
Blizzak tires are specifically designed for the snow. Therefore, they are quite good in the snow, as you might expect.
There are several features that make Blizzak tires very good in the snow. Firstly, these tires are made with a polymer that is designed to maintain grip in wet and cold conditions. When it is snowing outside, these are the conditions that you’re often dealing with in the winter.
Secondly, the teeth of the tire are specifically designed for snow. Specifically, the teeth are designed to bite into the road and keep your car from sliding around. When you’re driving in the snow, this extra bite can be exceedingly useful.
Thirdly, Blazzak tires have a wider tread. With more contact with the road, these tires are designed to have better traction and handling. When you’re dealing with snow, you need all the grip you can get.
Finally, these tires are designed with lots of tiny pores. When driven around in the snow, these pores pull the water from the surface of the tire to provide extra traction. In many situations, this excess water is the very thing that causes you to slip while driving.
How Do Blizzak Tires Work?
Blizzak tires have many different features that make them work better in the snow. However, they are very similar to other snow tires, which are all designed to help you drive a bit better in the snow.
Like most winter tires, Blizzak tires have a bit wider tread. With more tread on the road, the tires are better at maintaining grip, even when the road is covered in snow.
Similarly, they also have teeth that grip the road’s surface through the snow, providing more traction. However, this is a feature that most winter tires come with.
Unique to these tires, though, is their pores. In many cases, these pores help pull water from the surface of the tire. Without this water, these tires provide extra grip in wet conditions – like the snow.
Like most winter tires, these ones are designed with a special polymer that keeps them from becoming stiff in colder temperatures. Because they stay flexible, they also provide extra grip.
Why Are Blizzaks so Good?
In many cases, Blizzak tires are so much better than other tires because they include many extra features that make them specifically good at functioning in the snow.
They feature a specific tread pattern that allows them to direct water, slush, and snow away from the contact area of the tread.
Furthermore, they feature 3D zig-zags, which provide extra biting grip and improved handling.
What is the Difference between Blizzak Tires?
There are a few different types of Blizzak tires on the market.
The Blizzak WS70 has a soft tread on top of a regular standard winter tire compound.
To improve grip, these tires feature microscopic pores throughout the rubber. When looked at under the microscope, these tires look a bit like swiss cheese.
When in contact with snow, these pores help eliminate water from the surface of the tire, improving grip and handling. New pores are constantly exposed as the tire wears, so the pores don’t go away with wear.
Plus, these tires feature flexible rubber that doesn’t get cold and rigid with winter conditions.
Alternatively, the Blizzark LM-60 is slightly different. Generally, the main difference between this tire and the other tire is the higher speed rating.
Unlike the WS70, this tire features a high-silica content that is designed to maintain higher speeds.
In fact, this tire has a speed rating of H, which means that it can go up to 130 mph.
Furthermore, the tread has a directional design and comes with tread blocks to provide enhanced grip.
Luckily, this improves hydroplaning resistance. For the most part, this tread highly improves the braking force on snowy roads.
What is the Difference Between Blizzak DM V1 and DM V2?
The DM V1 is the successor to the DM V2. Therefore, the V2 is generally considered the better option. After all, it is newer and features more benefits than the V1.
For instance, the Blizzak V2 has 15% more biting edges than the DM V1. In practice, this provides a little extra grip in snowy conditions, as there are more edges to contact the road.
However, that doesn’t mean that this feature translates to much difference in practice.
After all, 15% isn’t that much of a difference in practice.
To know more about tires, you can also check our posts on how long do Bridgestone tires last, how long do Michelin tires last, and how long do performance tires last.
Conclusion
Blizzak tires may be a great option for you if you live in a snowy region and tend to contend with a lot of snow. Specifically speaking, they are designed to provide traction, responsive handling, and grip – even in the snowiest conditions.
Luckily, this line also features a variety of different tires, which allows you to choose the best option for you. For instance, they feature tires that are designed for extremely snowy conditions, as well as luxury tires.
In the end, these tires are a great option for those who have to drive on snowy roads.