On a perfect day, driving a sports car can be the most fun you will have. With the top down or windows rolled open, you can enjoy the refreshing feel of fresh air on your face. On wet pavement, though, you might be a little bit more reluctant to drive your car to its full capacity. When it comes to wet weather driving, tires can make an incredible difference in your safety and ability to keep control of your car. Add in the stress of driving a performance-oriented vehicle, and your tires are even more critical.

Wet pavement and tires

If you love to drift, then chances are wet pavement is a little exciting. Cars like the Nissan 350z are designed to spin well, making them a popular platform for drifting and customizing like the new Nissan Proto Z hopefully will. If you drive muscle cars or exotics, there is a good chance that you don’t want to be sliding around on wet pavement when you hit the gas. Even more importantly, losing traction because of damp pavement can be dangerous, and with high horsepower engines, it can become a real nightmare.

Tires for any season

As a native-born Floridian, I had no idea there was such thing as snow tires growing up. Since learning to drive in different climates, I’ve come to know that there are a lot of different types of tires. Between all of the different types, other brands, and different sizes of tire, it can be pretty stressful to know which ones are the best for you.

What car you drive and your personal driving style can also make a big impact on what tires you need, and if you like driving performance-oriented cars and live in a wetter climate, chances are you need something a little bit more hardy than your standard tire.

Tire brands and types

Luckily for us, there are unbiased websites like Consumer Reports that compile ratings on different types and brands of tires. According to their list, there are a handful of options. For an SUV, the choice was a Michelin CrossClimate SUV tire, which received high ratings. If you want something more affordable, the General Altimax RT43 won’t leave you disappointed.

The team at Consumer Reports takes into account several factors when rating tires for wet weather conditions. The tires handle on damp or flooded pavement, the braking capacity that the tires can handle without sliding, and how the tires handle while hydroplaning are all things that are taken into account.

What’s even more impressive was that some of the tires that made this list were rather affordable. That means you don’t have to break your budget just trying to get good tires for wet weather conditions.