In many areas nationwide, winter weather turns roads icy and treacherous for long stretches of the year. You can get special snow tires to help your vehicle handle better in the snow, but even those are sometimes not enough to get through the heaviest winter storms. One of the best and most proven ways to give your car more traction in the snow is by throwing snow chains on your tires. Wrapping a snow chain around a tire allows it to bite deeper into the snow and ice, preventing your wheels from spinning out as easily. Theyll make your car a bit clunkier to drive and limit your speed, but thats an easy trade-off when dealing with slick roads.
I am installing tire chains on a sedan with front-wheel drive, so I will be attaching tire chains to both of the front tires. If you have a rear-wheel drive car, you should install the chains on the rear tires. For all-wheel or four-wheel drive vehicles, you can install chains on all four wheels to maintain an even level of traction. Before purchasing, ensure that the chains you select are compatible with your tire size. The tire chains I purchased are self-tightening snow tire chains, which allow them to tighten automatically while driving. Note that not all tire chains have this feature, so if yours dont, you will need to use chain tensioners. I highly recommend investing in automatic self-tightening chains to avoid the hassle of manual adjustments.
Are snow tire chains legal?
Restrictions on using snow tire chains vary by state, as each state has its own regulations on public road use. For instance, in some states, it is mandatory that drivers have snow tire chains on their vehicles when signs indicate their necessity or during specific times of the year on designated roads. In other states, they are outlawed on all public roadways. Since it would take an entire article to cover each state’s snow tire chain guidelines, it’s best to do a quick Google search for your states requirements to ensure you comply with the regulations.
Layout the chains flat on the ground
Start by untangling the chains and disconnecting any cables if necessary. Make sure that the wire hooks are facing down toward the ground. The blue cable side of the snow chains should be positioned at the back, on the inside of the tire and closest to the vehicle, while the red side should be in the front, farthest from the vehicle. Note that the split in the chain indicates where the tire will rest during installation.
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