Winter, All-Weather or All-Season Tires? Choosing for Fraser Valley Winters

Winter, all-weather or all-season: the choice turns on where you drive once it turns cold, so the table below sorts the three by route. This guide is about what to buy. For what the law requires on each highway, and when, see BC's winter tire rules.

The short answer: match the tire to your routes

What the sidewall symbols tell you

The mountain snowflake

A snowflake inside a three-peaked mountain (often called 3PMSF, or the Alpine symbol) means the tire passed a snow test. The Tire and Rubber Association of Canada (TRAC) explains that tires with this symbol must pass the ASTM F-1805 traction test on a medium-packed snow surface.

That's a pass mark against a minimum standard set in federal tire regulations, and it covers snow traction only. It doesn't rank one tire against another, and it can't tell you two things:

• Which type you're looking at. Dedicated winter tires and all-weather tires can both carry the symbol, according to TranBC.
• How the tire grips once worn. The test is run on new tires. Whatever the marking, Transport Canada advises against using tires worn close to 4 mm of tread on snow-covered roads.

M+S (mud and snow)

M+S is the mark TranBC uses to identify all-season tires. On its own it isn't tied to the packed-snow test: TRAC says all-season tires don't meet the minimum snow traction requirements needed to be considered a winter tire. Some tires carry both marks, in which case the mountain snowflake is the one that speaks to snow traction.

Whether an M+S tire counts as a winter tire under BC law is a separate, legal question, and the rules guide linked above covers it.

How winter, all-weather and all-season tires differ

Winter tires

TranBC describes full winter tires as using a rubber compound that stays soft in cold temperatures, with an aggressive tread for snow and ice. It lists them as performing well on rough ice and soft to hard-packed snow at temperatures below 7°C. The trade-off is practical: two changeovers a year, and a second set to store through the off-season.

All-weather tires

TranBC describes all-weathers as carrying the mountain snowflake symbol and says they can stay on the vehicle year-round, suited to milder winters with rain and fast-melting snow, above and below 7°C. TRAC calls them a step up from all-season tires, but says their rubber doesn't perform as well below freezing or on ice, and that tires designed for winter outperform them. TRAC also says many all-weather tires carry the symbol, so check the sidewall for it rather than going by the name.

All-season tires

All-seasons are marked M+S and, per TranBC, perform best in milder, dry or slightly wet conditions. Transport Canada says that below 7°C, all-season and summer tires begin to lose elasticity, which means less traction. ICBC calls M+S tires a safe option if you only meet winter conditions on a limited basis and are prepared to drive with added care and caution.

The 7°C guideline

TRAC advises changing over to winter tires "as soon as the temperature consistently dips below 7°C." It says the benefit covers cold, dry pavement as well as snow and ice, so the guideline applies on bare valley roads too.

A Traffic Injury Research Foundation study cited by TRAC found that just below freezing, stopping distances with winter tires were as much as 30% shorter than with all-season tires. That comparison is winter against all-season, not all-weather.

All-weather tires sidestep the timing question, since they stay on all year.

Choosing by how you drive

Mostly the valley floor

TranBC says drivers in a milder area like the Lower Mainland, which gets rain rather than snow, may choose all-weather or all-season tires, though it still recommends winter tires for maximum stability on ice, snow and slush.

Cold still settles in here. Ahead of a December 2022 storm, BC Wildfire Service lead forecaster Matt MacDonald wrote in a social media post, reported by Daily Hive, that the Fraser Valley "holds onto Arctic air longer than most." Spells of that cold, well below 7°C, are a reason to choose a mountain snowflake tire even if you rarely leave town. Freezing rain is different: no tire handles it well, and staying off the road is the safer call.

If your winter driving is around Chilliwack and Sardis and west along Hwy 1, and you can stay home when roads are snowy or icy, all-season tires in good condition are workable. That lines up with ICBC's "limited basis" advice, and with the BC transportation ministry's 2017 handout, which calls M+S tires a viable option for people in areas without frequent winter weather who plan their trips around better weather.

All-weather tires cover the same driving with more margin when the temperature drops or a cold snap brings snow, and without a changeover twice a year. If your commute can't wait for the roads to clear, that margin is the reason to choose them.

If you live on one of Chilliwack's hillside roads, the City has its own tire rule for those roads during snow events, and the guide to BC and Chilliwack winter tire rules explains it.

A few mountain trips a winter

A couple of ski days or a family visit in the Interior sits in between. A mountain snowflake all-weather covers those trips without a seasonal swap, and the ministry's advice for M+S drivers, to time trips for better weather, is good practice whatever you're running. If the trips can't move, such as a shift that starts in Merritt on a fixed date, lean toward winter tires.

Regularly over the mountains

Regular winter trips over the Coquihalla toward Merritt or Kamloops, along Hwy 3 to Princeton, or up the Fraser Canyon past Hope put you in the conditions winter tires are built for. In that 2017 handout, the ministry and the RCMP recommended mountain snowflake tires for regular highway travellers, and the Province still recommends them for cold-weather driving, with chains carried for extreme conditions. ICBC says drivers who live where snow is regular, or who head to the ski hills often, should run four matched mountain/snowflake tires. Since tires designed for winter outperform all-weathers, a dedicated winter set is the better fit for regular pass driving.

Tires are one part of mountain readiness; the rest of the vehicle is in the pre-trip check for BC mountain highways.

Why winter tires go on all four wheels

Transport Canada says to install winter tires in sets of four, and that handling improves when tires of the same type, size, speed rating and load index are on all four wheels. TRAC spells out what happens otherwise:

• Two winter tires on the front only: the front grips better than the rear, which TRAC says causes oversteer, where the back end can step out in a turn.
• Two winter tires on the rear only: the rear grips better than the front, which causes understeer, where the front pushes wide.

ICBC adds that you should keep the same type of tire on all four wheels, particularly on all-wheel drive, four-wheel drive and SUVs, because acceleration, braking and cornering need all four tires working together. That advice covers all-weathers too, so don't pair them with winter or all-season tires. The legal minimum is a separate matter, covered in the rules guide.

Before you buy

• How much tread is left. If your current tires are getting close to 4 mm, Transport Canada's advice about snow-covered roads applies now, not next year. It's worth judging tread depth and tire age before you buy.
• How the old set wore. Wear on one edge, or uneven wear across the tread, is worth raising before new tires go on. Transport Canada lists misalignment and tire imbalance as causes of uneven wear, so a wheel alignment check before the new set goes on can show whether the angles are out. Scalloped, cupped wear can also point to worn shocks or struts.
• Whether you want a second set of wheels. Mounting winter tires on their own wheels makes each changeover a wheel swap. If your vehicle has a tire pressure monitoring system, Transport Canada's tire pressure monitor guidance notes it may not work properly with winter tires unless the correct sensors for your vehicle are installed, so ask about sensors when pricing a second set. Big temperature swings can also bring on the low-pressure warning.
• Size and ratings. The size, load index and speed rating your vehicle calls for are on the tire information label, usually on the edge of the driver's door or the door post, and in the owner's manual. The sidewall shows what's fitted now, which isn't always the same.

West Yale's tire counter has its own line, 604-391-1766, and handles tire sales, installation and TPMS work. Have your tire size and a rough idea of your winter routes ready, and the counter can talk you through the options.