Tyres for handling

Tyres designed for increasing grip and handling traits of a vehicle are called performance or summer tyres. Made of soft compound rubber, they are designed to give maximum grip at high speeds during dry weather conditions. Most sports cars are fit with performance tyres to improve their handling and cornering ability. These tyres are also available from the aftermarket for drivers who want better handling and performance from their tyres. 

Performance tyres have a low aspect ratio, which means that they have a very short sidewall. A shorter sidewall causes the tyre to have less air in it. As a result, such tyres roll very less around corners thereby improving handling. On the flip side, lesser air makes the tyre stiffer, resulting in a bumpy ride. Also, the soft compound on these tyres leads to such tyres wearing out faster. Since the grooves on these tyres are less, they don’t work too well in the rain as the dispersion of water from under the tyres is less. Hence, these tyres run for a long time in places with warmer climes and scanty rainfall. 

It’s important to constantly check these tyres for wear as they offer little or no grip on wet roads once worn out. An extreme example of such tyres in use is in motorsport, where  they are called ‘slicks’ as they have no tread on the contact patch of the tyres to ensure that all of the rubber makes contact with the road surface.