What are slats on a tire? – Jalopnik

Modern tires may appear to be made of one piece of uniform rubber, but they are made of many parts. Some – such as the beads, radial cord, inner lining and belt layers – are behind the curtain, so to speak, but are nevertheless crucial to the strength, stiffness and quality of the tire.

What we see when we look at a tire are the sidewalls and the tread. The first is the sidewall of the tire, from the inner beads to the tread, and this is where you’ll find all the letters and numbers associated with the tire’s size, construction, speed rating, and aspect ratio. The tread is the part of the tire that touches the ground. Tires have three main tread designs: symmetrical, asymmetrical and directional.

The common denominator between the different tread designs are the sipes. A tire’s sipes are small cuts, crevices, or shallow zigzag patterns on the tread. Named after John F. Sipe, who practically invented the sipes in the 1920s when he cut slits in the soles of his shoes to reduce slipping, sipes began appearing in tires in the 1950s to do the same. These sipes work quietly in the background and help increase traction on low-traction surfaces such as snowy, icy or rain-soaked roads.

It doesn’t look like it, but those sipes are like teeth or claws that grip the road, creating more “biting surfaces” on the tread. They also flex and open as the tires roll forward to catch water or snow, which significantly improves grip by keeping the rubber in contact with the road. Additionally, those seemingly random cuts or slits make the tread more flexible, which promotes heat dissipation for longer wear and contributes to a smoother, more comfortable ride.

Slats have evolved from the traditional horizontal or vertical slits. When you hear that a tire has advanced zigzag sipes, it simply means that it has Z-shaped or interlocking sipes to improve grip. Meanwhile, some tires have three-dimensional sipes that can be opened or locked to release slush or dirt to maximize traction.

The strategic placement of sipes on a given tire goes beyond adding traction and all-season capabilities, but can reduce aquaplaning, provide better rolling resistance and contribute to better fuel economy. Brand name tires are more expensive due to their advanced rubber compounds, stronger construction and improved tread blocks with generous, deeper sipes, and outperform cheaper tires when it comes to wet braking. With all these factors taken into account, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that sipes play a crucial role in a tire’s performance.

There are pros and cons to installing aftermarket sipes, but the extra $60 or so to add sipes to your rig’s tire kit can be helpful if you live in an area where there is snow or ice most of the year. But if not, stay away from aftermarket louvers. For starters, this could void your tire warranty and compromise the tire’s construction, performance, and safety on slippery asphalt. It’s also illegal in many states, so keep this in mind before you start adding crevices to your otherwise good tires.

The better, safer and possibly more economical alternative to aftermarket sipes is to buy a set of winter tires. Winter tires on a front-wheel drive vehicle can perform better than an all-wheel drive (AWD) vehicle with all-season tires.