Talvirenkaiden valintakriteerit

Winter tyres differ in their traction, purchase price, environmental impact, abrasion resistance, noise and other features. The choices facing a motorist when purchasing winter tyres are also relevant for road safety. The purpose of this study was to explore the factors affecting choice of winter tyres among passenger car users and to examine the results relative to road safety.
A nationwide survey was carried out in Finland with a sample of 1 024 respondents. Analyses based on the survey focused on the importance of different winter tyre features for motorists and their prioritisation in making purchase decisions. Two further questions were addressed: from what sources do motorists get information concerning winter tyres, and has the fact that winters are becoming milder affected their tyre preference?
Traction on ice was found to be the most important winter tyre feature, based on both a scale of values and stated tyre choices. In the latter, traction on ice was the most crucial feature especially for motorists using studded tyres, whereas for users of studless winter tyres the overall picture tended to be more important. This finding is in line with earlier results. On a scale of values, the most significant tyre features following traction on ice were abrasion resistance, suitability for various conditions, and traction on a wet road. In stated tyre choices, over half of the respondents chose a tyre with a third lower price, although it was a substantially poorer option for the environment.
Car and tyre sales representatives seem to have an influence on winter tyre purchase decisions, since most of the respondents reported getting their winter tyre information from them. It was also common to obtain information from websites, forums and magazines. The respondents evaluated that tyre test results and personal experience were the two most influential information sources for their purchase decisions. The literature suggests that winters becoming milder, with the resulting changes in winter driving conditions, may increase dangerous situations in traffic. The results of this study indicate that motorists are aware of this, as the suitability of the tyres to different conditions was considered important. Slightly under a tenth of respondents said that winters becoming milder had affected their winter tyre choice. More specific answers revealed that the impact mechanisms can be various and potentially regionally distributed. The sample size was too small to draw statistically significant conclusions.
In all, the respondents considered winter tyre features related to safety to be important. Relative to traffic safety, it is important that motorists making winter tyre purchase decisions get appropriate information, purchase tyres that are suitable to their driving and conditions, maintain good tyre condition, and at the same time do not rely too heavily on the traction of their tyres.