A wide range of tire choices is available for every vehicle. Understanding the types of tires will help you make the right choice. Tire types can be grouped by their application: Cars and Minivans, Trucks and SUV, Winter Tires.

Tire Types for Cars and Minivans

Passenger tires are among the most cost-effective tire types available. Premium tires such as Pirelli's P3000 offer longer wear and even lower cost-per-mile operation.

1. Higher profiles (80, 75, 70, or 65 series) for smoother ride and longer wear.

2. Lower speed ratings (Q, S, and T) with a harder, longer wearing compound.

3. All-season tread designs for year round wet, dry and snow traction.

4. Tread patterns that emphasize high ride comfort and low noise.

5. White or black sidewall finish.

6. Tread wear guarantees ranging from 30,000 to 85,000 miles or more.

Touring tires feature enhanced performance blended with excellent ride quality. Designs range from high mileage S-rated tires such as Yokohama's AVID Touring to performance oriented V-rated designs like Michelin's MXV4.

1. Slightly lower profile (from 70 to 55 series) and wider tread than an equivalent     passenger tire for improved handling and stability at speed.

2. Wide range of speed ratings (S, T, U, H and V), the widest for any category, provides     numerous wear, handling and ride quality tradeoffs. The touring tires a Taurus owner     selects can be very different from the touring tires a BMW owner selects.

3. All-season tread designs are predominant in the touring category, though a number     of dry or summer designs are available.

4. Tread patterns emphasize performance blended with ride comfort; low noise is also     important.

5. Most touring designs offer contemporary black sidewall styling. Relatively few touring     designs offer a white sidewall finish.

6. Tread wear guarantees are available but diminish as speed ratings increase.

Performance tires are really specialty tires that customers choose to enhance the look and low speed traction of their vehicles. BFGoodrich's Radial T/A and Goodyear's Eagle RH are good examples of this tire type.

1. A very wide range of profiles and tread widths are available to select that special     look; muscle cars, vans and street trucks commonly use this tire type.

2. Lower speed ratings (S and T) help keep these tires very affordable.

3. All-season tread designs deliver year round wet, dry and snow traction.

4. Tread patterns emphasize low speed traction and handling.

5. Raised white letter or black lettering (on either sidewall) provide styling choices.

6. Tread wear guarantees ranging from 40,000 to 50,000 miles are commonplace.

High Performance tire design extends high speed handling and stability. Specialty design such as BFGoodrich's Scorcher add styling effects as well. Dunlop's W-10 typifies excellent value in a V-rated high performance tire design.

1. Lower profiles, as low as 40 series, and larger diameter wheel sizes, up to 17     inches, stiffen sidewalls for improved cornering response, lower rolling resistance and     increased tread stability.

2. H-rated (130 mph) and V-rated (149 mph) mean control “at speed” for high     performance cars.

3. All-season designs are most common, but dry designs deliver superior cornering     response and high-speed stability in wet and dry conditions.

4. Tread designs emphasize maximum contact patch. Tread compounds are "softer" for     better traction. UTQG ratings are lower; treadlife is shorter.

5. Sophisticated belt and cap ply packages help to maintain a maximum contact patch     and optimum tire shape at high speeds.

6. Numerous bead and sidewall enhancements stiffen the casing for better cornering     response and high-speed stability.

Ultra High Performance tires take material and tire design technology to the limit. These are the tires for today's most sophisticated sports cars and sedans. All-season designs such as Michelin's Pilot XGT-Z4 deliver year round traction. And Nitto's 555 typifies a tire designed for extreme performance with the largest contact patch in its class.

1. Lowest profiles attainable by design and material technology, as low as 30 series,     deliver the greatest control and response at speed. Tire diameters up to 20 inches     and cross-section widths up to 335 mm are available.

2. W-rated (168 mph), Y-rated (186 mph) or Z-rated (over 149 mph) for the ultimate in     high-speed control.

3. Asymmetric and directional tread designs maximize dry contact patch and wet     control. All-season designs compromise extreme performance for year round     usability.

4. Tread compounds are "sticky", trading off wear for performance. UTQG tread wear     ratings are the lowest of any tire designed for everyday street use.

5. From bead bundle to belt/cap package, every design innovation enhances handling     and high-speed control. Exotic, lightweight materials are used.

6. Manufacturers strive to offer designs that also deliver a smoother, quieter ride. Ultra     high performance tires must be matched to ultra high performance vehicle     suspensions in order to appreciate this benefit.

Competition tires are built for racing classifications that require a DOT-approved tire. Yokohama's A032R is a popular choice among autocross racers. Among front-wheel drive enthusiasts Nitto's 555R Drag Radial is often the choice for faster quarter mile times. While legal for the street, the racing compounds and virtually groove-free designs make these tires impractical for most users.

1. R compounding is specially designed for racing. Heat cycling improves wear and     traction. UTQG tread wear ratings are typically below 100.

2. Minimum tread depths deliver improved racing traction.

3. Racing belt package stiffens tread to maintain maximum contact patch under     extreme steering response.

4. Massive block designs approach racing slick traction.

5. Drag slick designs feature flexible sidewalls that maximize traction during     acceleration.

Tire Types for Trucks and SUVs

AP type tires are original equipment on many of today's vehicles due to their smooth, quiet highway ride and good all-season traction. Often referred to as All Purpose or Mud and Snow designs, the Dunlop Grandtrek and Michelin LTX M/S are good examples of this tire type.

1. All-season tread designs and full-depth siping provide confident traction year round.     Quiet, stable highway ride is equally important.

2. A wide range of sizes, from 14- to 17-inches, and load carrying capacities are     available.

3. Compounding emphasizes good wear and traction in a wide range of temperatures.

4. 40,000 miles of service is the norm.

Sport Truck tires bring sports car handling to the truck and SUV marketplace, yet they are built to handle the suspensions and load carrying capacities of trucks. Nitto's NT404 and Pirelli's Scorpion Zero are excellent examples of this tire type.

1. All-season tread designs emphasize street handling and traction year round.

2. Wheel sizes up to 20-inch diameter and section widths up to 345 mm with profiles     as low as 45 series are available.

3. Standard and reinforced load capacities combine with large sizes to provide sufficient     load carrying for trucks and SUV.

4. Speed ratings up to V (149 mph) are available.

All Terrain tires are a step up in off-road traction from the AP designs. This is arguably the most popular truck tire category. Most users are willing to accept the highway ride tradeoff in order to get the additional traction. BFGoodrich's All-Terrain are extremely popular tires in this category.

1. Tread design features larger blocks and greater void (area where there is no tread) for     better clean out of mud and snow.

2. A wide selection of sizes for pick-ups and SUVs of all types and load carrying     capacities.

3. Ply ratings range from four-ply to eight-ply for many sizes. Extreme ten-ply or     twelve-ply ratings are available in special sizes.

4. All tires in this category are Mud and Snow rated.

5. Manufacturers in this category strive to deliver designs that wear longer and ride     more quietly over the road.

Mud Terrain designs represent the extreme in traction tires that are still acceptable for highway use. The emphasis is on off-road traction for those whose hobby or business requires the ultimate grip in mud, sand, rocks or any possible off-road condition. The Yokohama Geolander MT is an excellent example of tires in this category.

1. Tread designs feature the largest possible block sizes and high void ratios for grip     and durability under harsh off-road conditions.

2. Sizes range up to the very tallest and widest available for increased flotation and axle     clearance.

3. Ply ratings range up to eight-ply, and extra sidewall and tread reinforcement plies are     often added to protect against puncture.

4. Tread compounds often add silica to stiffen the blocks for improved durability and     wear.

5. Manufacturers strive to make tires more "streetable" with refinements in noise     reduction and highway control.

Winter Tires

Winter tires are more specialized than people think. Many of us who grew up in the north remember the old noisy snow tires that we mounted on the rears and perhaps added studs if we had to drive on ice, but that has gone away. Today's technology has changed all that. Here's what's new. Winter tires for cars and minivans may be described as tires for the average driver with the average car. This user has concerns for a wide range of potential winter conditions including snow, ice, slush, rain to freezing rain and, of course, dry highways. Lack of winter tires could threaten safe driving if serious conditions suddenly developed. Here's what winter tires provide.

1. Tread designs that balance a smooth, quiet ride (not much different than your "other"     tires) with instant traction when bad winter weather develops.

2. Tread compounds are the big design advancement. They incorporate soft,     microfilament grip materials and stay pliable in the coldest temperatures for superior     snow and ice traction without the need for studs. Some design allows for studding,     however, for those who live in more extreme climates.

3. Because of the significant traction improvement of winter tires, especially in colder     temperatures, they should only be used in sets of four.

4. Most design features additional siping, very small slits in the blocks that give extra     gripping edges across the treadface. Sipes enhance traction for any road condition     but are especially useful for snow and ice.

5. Most designs are Q-, S- or T- speed rated for the every day driver.

Winter tires for performance vehicles are, as you may expect, more for the driver who needs enhanced winter traction but wants as much responsive, high-speed handling as possible.

1. Almost all performance winter tires are H-rated but a few V-rated are available.

2. Directional and asymmetrical tread design increase performance traction but must     not be intermixed. Use the same product for all four tires.

3. As with passenger types, performance winter tires utilize special tread compounds     that remain pliable in extremely cold weather and incorporate microfilaments for extended snow grip.

4. Additional siping ( small slits in the tread elements) is typical in this category as the     added gripping edges they provide are essential to good snow and ice traction.

5. Winter performance tires in sizes up to 18 in wheel diameters, cross section widths     up to 285 mm and profiles as low as 40 series are available.