Tire replacement. Seasonal tire changes are allowed during the pandemic. Fines are unreasonable

As a result of the intervention of the Polish Tire Industry Association, the Polish Association of the Automotive Industry and the Association of Car Dealers, the Ministry of Health approved the replacement of winter tires with summer tires for people who use cars to commute and meet their needs. daily needs.

For drivers who do not drive their car during this period, and for those who are in mandatory quarantine, there is no hurry - they can still wait for a visit to the garage.

It must be remembered that not every tire is suitable for fast driving on hot roads. The sheer time and money savings of tire changes make some drivers forget about safety. Unfortunately, the braking distance from 100 km / h on winter tires in summer is even 16 meters longer than on summer tires.

The choice of tires should be closely related to the conditions of their operation. Winter tires have a different tread structure and rubber compound than summer tires - at lower temperatures they do not become as hard as plastic and remain flexible. The stiffness of such tires ranges from 45-65 on the Shore scale, while the stiffness of summer tires is 65-75. This affects, in particular, the faster wear of winter tires in spring and summer temperatures and their greater rolling resistance.

– Summer tires, thanks to the tread structure and harder rubber compound, provide better grip in spring and summer temperatures. - Speaks Piotr Sarnecki, CEO of the Polish Tire Industry Association (PZPO). - If these days you need to drive your car to work or shopping, it is better to do it with summer or good all-season tires. Thanks to this, you will avoid faster wear of the winter kit - adds Sarnetsky.

- We thank the Ministry of Health for the prompt response to our appeal. We are convinced that dispelling any doubts about allowing seasonal tire replacement for people who use cars for commuting and everyday needs, such as grocery shopping, will improve road safety. - he comments Jakub Faris, President of the Polish Association of the Automotive Industry (PZPM).

When changing tires, remember to contact a professional service - if the service is not done skillfully, you can easily damage the tire and rim, which we will not always be informed about. As drivers, we don't have the ability to catch service technicians' mistakes - when we return home from a workshop where our tire has been damaged, it can burst and cause a huge tragedy.

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However, if someone wants to ride on only one set of tires, then good all-season tires with winter approval, at least the middle class, will be a win-win solution. Of course, in summer such tires will not be as good as summer tires, and in winter they will be as good as typical winter tires. However, for those drivers who own small cars and rarely drive - with less than 10K miles. kilometers per year - and for short distances only in the city, this will be enough. However, they will not be more profitable than seasonal tires in the future for several years - if you drove 4-5 years on one set of summer tires and one set of winter tires, then having an all-season tire during this time you will use 2 or 3 such sets. If you often cover long distances in both the first and second half of the year, and your car is larger than a compact, get two sets of seasonal tires. They will be more economical and safer solution.

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