Bought new snow tires this November and the sound is driving me insane. Started off as just plain loud tire-to-asphalt sound, but now I’m getting a low, increasingly loud wa-wa-wa-wa sound with the cadence of rotation as well. Tires aren’t flat. Do they need rotating? Is it something bigger?
Winter tires, with their more aggressive tread pattern, often make considerably more noise than all-season tires. The winter tires I use are very noisy, but I put up with it because they provide excellent traction when there’s snow on the ground.
There can be a significant difference in noise from one tire brand to another. My Nokian winter tires are very noisy, but the Firestone Winterforce tires on my daughter’s make no more noise than her summer tires. Unfortunately, you can’t really tell until the tires are on the vehicle.
Your tires may be wearing abnormally, which might explain the new noise. Did you have the wheels aligned when the new tires were installed?
Make That One More Reason That I Never Buy Winter Tires …
… besides the fact that I’ve never needed them for traction, the added cost, the faster wear, the inconvenience of switching, and off-season storage. They’re ugly, too. I ran them for a time, every winter, but not any more.
There are many winter (not snow) tires that are as quiet if not quieter than some all-seasons. If a modern design is used they are not that noisy. Some good examples are Bridgestone, Dunlop(upper end winters), Nokian, and Michelin winter tires.
I agree anything labeled snow is old design.
These are my ultra modern winter tires:
http://digtator.dmp.fi/files/92/128543/nokian_wr_p.png
What kind of tire did you buy?