Northeast Blizzard 2016 Storm Updates: Dangerous winter storms and bad weather are a factor in nearly half a million crashes and more than two thousand road deaths every winter, according to the latest research by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

Big snow storms can motivate buyers to invest in new snow tires or even four-wheel-drive vehicles.

Winter tires are the most important part of your vehicle this time of year. Snow tires can cost anywhere from $90 a tire to several hundred dollars a tire depending on the size and quality that you get.

About 46 percent of crashes involving bad weather take place in the winter, making this the worst time of year for driving in treacherous conditions.

Consumer Reports ranked the new Toyo Celsius and the Nokian WR G3 above some winter tires. Toyo Celsius is a variable-conditions tire ideal for snow but worn year-round. and the Nokian WR G3 is a similar all-season/winter tire hybrid. Both tires performed similarly and were found to offer good winter traction, good stopping grip on dry roads and confident handling. Both tires received an overall score of 64, the same score as some winter tires such as Continental's Winter Contact SI and the Cooper's Weather Master WSC.

Engineers responsible for all-season tires sacrifice traction on wet roads for better steering in snow and in sub-freezing temperatures.