Get ready for driving on winter roads

YAKIMA, WASH. -- Loel Helmick wants to make sure his cars will start, run and stop no matter what the weather.

The 67-year-old retired forklift operator already has taken all three of his cars to Elliott Tire and Service to prepare them for winter.

Battery test: check.

New wiper blades: check.

Three sets of tires for his wife's commuter car: check.

"You never know, when my wife comes home from work it freezes sometimes," Helmick said.

The father of three adult children recently purchased all-weather radials for his wife's 1987 Oldsmobile Cutlass, which she drives every day to work. They work well on wet roads and, in his opinion, snow up to one inch deep.

However, Helmick takes winter preparation so seriously that he keeps brand new studless snow tires and studded tires stored in his garage, just in case the weather turns bad enough on his wife, Carol. He has never even used the studless tires.

"I don't put snow tires on the car unless it's bad," he said.

If only all drivers were half as prepared, transportation officials said.

"We find a lot of the collisions that block traffic in slippery conditions are caused by unprepared drivers," said Mike Westbay, spokesman for the Washington Department of Transportation.

In spite of warnings each autumn, too many drivers fail to carry chains, pack warm clothing or make sure they fill their windshield washer reservoir with fluid.

"Some people say, 'Well duh,' but the reason we keep saying it is because we keep finding people who are unprepared," Westbay said.

Winter-car-care.com, a Web site dedicated to winterizing vehicles, claims that 70 percent of drivers do not winterize their vehicles.

Yakima has the climate to warrant some preparation. National Weather Service statistics say the area averages 150 days a year with freezing or below temperatures and nearly 24 inches of snow.

But getting your car ready for that weather doesn't necessarily mean spending a lot of money, either.

New tires are expensive, of course, but they are only part of the equation.

Some checks are cheap. Making sure your radiator has fluid, checking tire pressure and stocking an emergency kit with warm clothing are examples. Every year, Westbay sees drivers putting on chains in their shorts and sandals.

Many mechanics perform free checks on batteries, antifreeze and brakes.

Oil changes are never a bad idea either. That's often the first thing Fred Mendoza, manager of Elliott Tire and Service of Yakima, advises his customers.

"A lot of times we just start with a basic oil change," said Mendoza.

Sometimes mechanics may replace oil with a thinner viscosity for winter weather, but even if they don't, scheduling an oil change puts a mechanic under your hood to check radiator fluid levels and chemistry, making sure it has at least a 50-50 mix of antifreeze and water.

While they are at it, they may flush antifreeze for a discount. The service runs between $80 and $130 alone. A few mechanics offer winterization packages for a variety of checks.

The stakes are high. Inadequate antifreeze, for example, could cause your engine block to crack and ruin your radiator, water pump and intake manifold, costing thousands to repair, said Joel Weber, owner of Weber's Radiator Service in Yakima.

If you notice antifreeze on the ground, you may have a leak. Mechanics can verify that with a pressure check. Auto parts stores sell cheap bottles of chemical additives designed to temporarily block such leaks, but don't rely on them for longer than it takes you to get a car into a mechanic, Weber said.

By design, the fluid gums up and can clog your cooling system, causing costly repairs that require a specialist such as Weber.

If you have to add antifreeze, make sure it's at least a 50-50 mixture; don't pour straight water into the reservoir or it could freeze and cause engine damage.

Other inexpensive checks people often over look is installing new windshield wiper blades and making sure lights work.

What about tires?

If new tires are in order, expect to spend some money.

Prices vary wildly. For example, Les Schwab has five different choices in all season radials for a 2002 Toyota Camry, ranging from $80 to $130 each tire.

There are basically three choices in winter tires -- all season tires, studded snow tires and studless snow tires. Studded tires don't necessarily cost more, but sometimes shops charge a fee -- about $15 per tire -- to install the studs.

Before you buy four studded tires, think hard about what kind of driving you do. That's probably the first question tires vendors will ask.

"It also depends on what kind of vehicle you have," said Jimmy Samdal, assistant manager of the Yakima Avenue Les Schwab.

If you spend most of your time on roads that are plowed and treated, you may be able to get away with all season tires, putting on chains only when snow or ice accumulate on the road.

Snow tires -- either studded or studless -- are an option for people who live on remote county roads or who often travel over mountain passes. Check the sidewall for a snowflake symbol or a mud and snow label. Those designations mean the tire is allowed when mountain passes require traction tires.

In between is a category of studdable tires. The treads come with built-in receptacles for studs but are rated for snow without them.

Most dealers, however, will not install less than four snow tires on your car, even if you ask for it. It's a policy developed by the Northwest Tire Dealers Association as a result of past lawsuits.

Meanwhile, studded tires are falling out of favor with some people.

The state Department of Transportation Web site says in all conditions except packed snow and sleet, studs make driving even more dangerous. On wet pavement, the studs prevent the tire rubber from making full contact with the road surface, causing slides.

Consumer Reports makes the same claim: "Our test of studded vs. unstudded winter tires shows that for most drivers, studs may hurt more than help," the organization reported on its Web site.

Many drivers opt for studless snow tires, which use a softer rubber and extra tread for more traction without the metal studs.

Whether it's a battery check or a set of new tires, take action before the ice and snow arrives.

"We find that people wait until the last minute," Westbay said.

* Ross Courtney can be reached at 509-930-8798 or rcourtney@yakimaherald.com.

Tires

When gearing your car up for winter, you have three basic choices to make for tires -- studded snow tires, studless snow tires and all-season tires.

Prices vary, but all three categories run from $80 to $130 per tire for a 2002 Toyota Camry, a relatively common car. Several shops quoted prices of four new tires with balancing between $400 and $700.

Here's a description of each one:

* Studded snow tires are tires with receptacles that accommodate metal studs designed to dig into snow or ice for traction. The drawbacks: They make traction worse when pavement is wet and tear up roads. They are legal only from Nov. 1 to March 31.

* Studless snow tires use softer rubber with extra siping -- small slits in the treads -- to create more "biting" edges that dig into the snow and ice. They should have a snowflake symbol on the sidewall. They will be legal if mountain passes require "traction tires." The drawback: They wear out quickly because of the soft rubber.

* All season tires try to compromise by giving you tread with a lot of biting edges, channels to push away water and harder rubber to last longer. Read the sidewall for a variety of labels -- M&S, M/S, etc. That means the tires are rated for mud and snow conditions, making them legal on mountain passes requiring traction tires. The drawback: In snow and ice, they don't offer as much traction as the other two categories.

Web sites

For more information, check the following Web sites:

www.wsdot.wa.gov

www.winter-car-care.com

www.edmunds.com/ownership/howto/articles/43799/article.html

www.ehow.com/how_7412_winterize-car.html

www.weather.com/activities/driving/drivingsafety/drivingsafetytips/winterize.html

www.cartalk.com/content/features/WinterDriving

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