Tread depth: Tire suppliers prepare for winter rush

Windsor, Ont. -

Most of southwestern Ontario saw snowfall this weekend, and auto groups hope drivers aren’t sliding into winter.

If you’re looking for a snow tire that’s standard, you might be in luck.

“There seems to be a bit of shortage around winter tires right now so if you are buying new tires, now is the time to start looking around,” says Kaitlynn Furse, director of communications for CAA.

“If you do need something that’s a little more specialty, then you may really want to start looking around.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the right snow tires could be hard to find, and if you can’t get your hands on a set, a good quality all-season tire is a wise alternative.

“Winter tires do help you reduce your braking distance by about 25 per cent, but we need to make sure we’re providing enough space around, that we’re not running into any bad situations,” says Furse, who also suggests steering clear of alloy rims during the cold months.

“Steel rims are better and that’s because we want to make sure there’s not a lot of corrosion happening. It can impact the tire itself.”

Unlike other auto parts, manufacturers appear to be loading up on snow tires in advance of the tough driving conditions.

“There hasn’t been any back order issues or anything so far,” says Marc Thibert, manager of Firestone in Windsor.

“I’ve gotten some brake pads that are on back order from the dealers and how are break pads on back order? But mostly electronic parts, chips, stuff like that.”

But that can change when old man winter arrives.

“We don’t normally see anything until about December for snow. By then sometimes we can’t get tires because the snow has already fallen everywhere else,” Thibert tells CTV News Windsor.

Making it a last minute purchase for Ontario’s most southern area.

“You don’t need snow on the ground to put snow tires on.”