i like it wet...

[chip P.]

so..how exactly does a tire designed for a wet surface work? does it lose some of its grip if its dry?

[redrumracer]

tires that are designed for wet surfaces have more grooves cut into it to channel the water out of the path of the tire, and yes tires designed specifically for the wet do have less grip in the dry than some tires due to the fact that they dont have as much surface/contact patch.

[yudalicious]

tires that are designed for wet surfaces have more grooves cut into it to channel the water out of the path of the tire, and yes tires designed specifically for the wet do have less grip in the dry than some tires due to the fact that they dont have as much surface/contact patch.

tires designed for the wet do have less grip, although I'd say the reason is more due to tire compound than surface area. ie: take the tire compound of an all season and turn it into a slick, it's still not that grippy. Generally, a grippy tire in the dry is still going to be grippy on wet pavement without standing water.

edit: although this is talking about race tires, it's pretty spot on:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rain_tire

As you can read the grooves really only channel the water out of the way as a main function, although I wanna say that a reduction in surface area and a concomitant increase in pressure (pressure = force/surface area) help grip in the wet/snow as well.

[Brooks]

silica is a compound make-up that makes tires grip well in the rain or wet circumstances. tires containing more black carbon work better is dry situations. a few manufatures like michelin and their pilot sport a/s use both. the very center of the tire is contains the most silica that a tire can contain by government regualtions. on the outmost portion of the tire, they have used the most black carbon possible. brigestone has a lot of information on the matter.... www.bridgestoneusa.com (i think)