AutoSock
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Winter brings with it a host of changes to the driving experience, one of which is the need for extra grip. While plenty of people out there will be perfectly fine with installing some of the best winter tires on their vehicles, there are situations where tire chains and similar products may be the preferred choice.
Since tire chains attach to the tires already on your vehicle, they can be a handy temporary aid if you don't necessarily need a full-time set of winter tires. They can also offer better grip in very deep snow and when traversing challenging terrain. There are definite drawbacks to tire chains as well, and you shouldn't use them all the time, but they have their uses for sure.
If you're in the market for a set of tire chains, then you'll know that there are quite a few products to choose from. And while that amount of choice may make selecting the right tire chain somewhat intimidating, help is at hand. Car and Driver has tested a range of tire chains and snow socks and picked out five products that you'll want to consider for your car.
SCC Peerless Auto-Trac
SCC
The SCC Peerless Auto-Trac tire chains are Car and Driver's favorite, with these reasonably priced options earning praise on multiple fronts and beating out some more expensive options. The outlet particularly liked how these chains performed, with the Peerless chains offering better grip, braking stability, and acceleration than the other chains tested when attached to a Hyundai Santa Cruz. These did vibrate at around 20 mph, which is something to watch out for, but it's not a massive red flag considering the fact that you shouldn't be going much past that anyway with tire chains on.
Car and Driver also liked the easy installation process, with the chains' dual self-tensioners ensuring a great fit once installed. However, it did point out that getting the right size itself can be a bit of an issue due to discrepancies in SCC's sizing sheets. Thankfully, the right ones fit perfectly, but getting the correct size sadly doesn't seem to be as straightforward as it should be.
Thus, if you're keen on these, you'd best buy from a retailer with easy online returns — or just purchase multiple sets if waiting for a return isn't an option. Sizing issues aside, though, the combination of great performance, perfect fit, and compelling price — expect to pay between $65 to $120 for a set of two — makes these the ones to go for.
König XG-12
König
König is the German word for king, and these snow chains come in at a price point more befitting of royalty than the others in Car and Driver's top five. The König XG-12 tire chains will set you back anywhere from $270 to $350 or so for a two-pack, making them quite an expensive proposition.
Thankfully, they do go some way to justifying the cost. Car and Driver liked the König tire chains' ease of installation and winter performance, although they did trail the SCC Peerless Auto-Trac chains on both fronts, according to the testers. Their braking performance wasn't quite as stable as the top choice, while installation was just that little bit more complex, with a bungee cord to deal with alongside the usual tire chain fasteners.
On the plus side, Car and Driver thought the metal chains themselves were of higher quality than the SCC Peerless chains, which may be a factor worth considering if you want your tire chains to last for the long haul. The König XG-12 chains also come with a hard plastic case instead of the fabric bags of the SCC products.
SCC Z-Chains
SCC
Another strong contender is the SCC Z-Chains, which will set you back between $65 and $150 or so. These tire chains offered solid winter weather performance in testing. Car and Driver wasn't particularly enthused by their performance, but neither did it find anything to complain about, with the Z-Chains being generally on par with the SCC Peerless Auto-Trac and König XG-12 offerings. The SCC Z-Chains do accommodate wider rubber than those two products, though, with the Z-583 variant supporting up to 345/55R17 rubber.
Unfortunately, these Z-Chains fall flat when it comes to the installation process. They don't have any self-tensioners, unlike the aforementioned tire chains, and installing these proved to be a two-person job for Car and Driver's testers. While that's perhaps not the end of the world if you can prepare ahead of time (say, if you're installing these at home), it could prove disastrous if you're caught by surprise and you don't have anyone to help you out.
Car and Driver wasn't entirely convinced by the chains themselves, either, which don't appear to be as durable as the SCC Peerless and König XG-12. That said, the outlet didn't evaluate any of these for long enough to make any concrete observations about wear and durability (and didn't encounter any issues during its test period anyway), so you may want to take that observation with a pinch of salt.
PLTMIV Universal Tire Chains
PLTMIV
If you need the cheapest possible tire chains you can buy, these PLTMIV Universal Tire Chains are the Car and Driver-recommended ones to go for. Usually available for around $50, these one-size-fits-most chains are compatible with 205 to 265-mm tires and are, unfortunately, a nightmare to install.
These PLTMIV offerings use ratchet straps, and you'll have to thread the straps through your wheel and then through metal ratchets to install these on your tires. You'll also need to use a small metal tool to tighten the straps down. The whole process seems like it'd be a nightmare, especially if you happen to be unlucky enough to have to install these outdoors.
Tedious installation isn't the only issue; these tire chains didn't perform well in testing, either. Car and Driver noted that these barely offered any traction or grip benefits, at least compared to the other chains it tested. Still, these PLTMIV chains didn't break immediately — unlike the even cheaper plastic Topteng Tire Chains that Car and Driver also tested — and are quite affordable, so some may find a use for them despite their faults.
AutoSock Snow Socks
AutoSock
Unlike the other products we've discussed, these AutoSock Snow Socks, as the name suggests, are snow socks, not tire chains. If you're unfamiliar, these tire chain alternatives are generally easier to install and more convenient, albeit at the cost of potentially reduced grip and lower durability.
Car and Driver's testing bore this out, noting that while the AutoSock socks improved grip and traction compared to bare tires, they weren't enough to prevent the outlet's truck from instability when braking in the snow. Testing also highlighted a minor installation issue, namely that attaching the snow socks requires drivers to reach deep into the wheel well, potentially soaking arms and gloves. On the plus side, the snow socks seemed to fit well, although they did require repeated adjustments before they sat right on the aforementioned Hyundai Santa Cruz.
It's worth noting that Car and Driver wasn't all that confident about the AutoSock Snow Socks' durability, opining that they'd likely only last a few uses at most. So they're not going to be your go-to, but their extreme portability means they're perfect as a short-term backup solution.
