The tread pattern design from one tire to another can look very different but they all tend to share some basic characteristics. The design is very important, as it is the only part of the tire in contact with the road. Therefore, it impacts many areas of tire performance – wet and dry traction, handling, noise, ride comfort and treadwear.
For passenger and light truck tires, there are a few different types of tread designs.
Symmetric Design – both the left and right side of the tread are the same (a mirror image rotated around a center point). This is the most common type of design.
Asymmetric Design – this features a design that changes across the tread face from left to right. This type may have one side of the tread with more grooves or smaller tread blocks for increased wet traction, while the other side has larger tread blocks with less grooves for more dry traction.
Directional Design – this type of tread pattern is designed to only rotate in one direction (and must be positioned on a specific side of the vehicle). Ultra-high performance and Winter tires are often directional designs.