Winter tyre test 205/55 R16 - AutoMotorSport 2018

Winter

2018

Year

11

Tyres

Winner

Continental WinterContact TS 860

Tested tyres

11

Price vs Quality

See how tyre price relates to test performance at a glance

Results

Agenda:

Best value in test

Better than average value

Worse than average value

Worst value in test

1

Continental WinterContact TS 860

Rating: Highly recommended

£183

91 T

mytyres.co.uk

+5 More sizes →

91H 91H 94H +2

Wet

Aquaplaning Cross#1/11

Wet Braking#1/11

Wet Circle Cornering#1/11

Wet Handling#1/11

Wet Handling Measured#1/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#4/11

Dry

Dry Braking#1/11

Dry Handling#2/11

Dry Handling Measured#3/11

Dry Steering Reaction#4/11

Dry Lane Change#8/11

Comfort

Ride Comfort#1/11

Noise Exterior#4/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#3/11

Snow

Snow Traction#1/11

Snow Circle Cornering#3/11

Snow Braking#4/11

Snow Handling Measured#4/11

Snow Handling#5/11

Strengths

Well-handled on snow, perfect compatibility with ESP, excellent performance on wet, lively but safe on dry

Weaknesses

too much choppy responses on snow, still has reserves

2

Goodyear UltraGrip 9

Rating: Recommended

Wet

Wet Circle Cornering#1/11

Wet Handling Measured#1/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#2/11

Wet Braking#2/11

Wet Handling#2/11

Aquaplaning Cross#3/11

Dry

Dry Lane Change#1/11

Dry Steering Reaction#4/11

Dry Braking#5/11

Dry Handling#5/11

Dry Handling Measured#7/11

Comfort

Ride Comfort#1/11

Noise Exterior#4/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#6/11

Snow

Snow Traction#1/11

Snow Braking#4/11

Snow Handling#7/11

Snow Handling Measured#7/11

Snow Circle Cornering#10/11

Strengths

Exact and easy control on wet and dry, good traction on snow (but worse in turns)

Weaknesses

weak handling on snow, mismatch between riding straight and in the bends, lack of lateral guidance on dry surface

3

Nokian WR D4

Rating: Recommended

Wet

Aquaplaning Cross#5/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#6/11

Wet Circle Cornering#6/11

Wet Handling#6/11

Wet Braking#7/11

Wet Handling Measured#8/11

Dry

Dry Braking#2/11

Dry Lane Change#2/11

Dry Handling#5/11

Dry Handling Measured#7/11

Dry Steering Reaction#7/11

Comfort

Noise Exterior#4/11

Ride Comfort#11/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#1/11

Snow

Snow Braking#1/11

Snow Handling#1/11

Snow Handling Measured#1/11

Snow Traction#1/11

Snow Circle Cornering#3/11

Strengths

great on snow - accurate, easy to use and reliable, acceptable on dry, minimal rolling resistance

Weaknesses

deficits on wet, especially during braking, slightly unpredictable.

4

Hankook Winter i*cept RS2 W452

Rating: Recommended

Wet

Aquaplaning Cross#1/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#1/11

Wet Handling#2/11

Wet Handling Measured#3/11

Wet Braking#4/11

Wet Circle Cornering#6/11

Dry

Dry Steering Reaction#1/11

Dry Handling Measured#3/11

Dry Braking#5/11

Dry Handling#5/11

Dry Lane Change#9/11

Comfort

Noise Exterior#4/11

Ride Comfort#5/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#8/11

Snow

Snow Handling Measured#1/11

Snow Traction#1/11

Snow Handling#2/11

Snow Braking#4/11

Snow Circle Cornering#6/11

Strengths

very reliable, accurate and powerful on snow, safe and easy to use on wet, predictable understeer

Weaknesses

longer braking distances on dry asphalt, increased rolling resistance

5

Pirelli Cinturato Winter

Rating: Still recommended

£91

mytyres.co.uk

+5 More sizes →

91H · £142 91H · £91 91H · £94 +2

Wet

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#2/11

Wet Handling#2/11

Aquaplaning Cross#3/11

Wet Handling Measured#3/11

Wet Braking#4/11

Wet Circle Cornering#6/11

Dry

Dry Lane Change#2/11

Dry Braking#5/11

Dry Steering Reaction#7/11

Dry Handling#8/11

Dry Handling Measured#10/11

Comfort

Noise Exterior#1/11

Ride Comfort#9/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#8/11

Snow

Snow Circle Cornering#1/11

Snow Traction#1/11

Snow Handling#2/11

Snow Braking#4/11

Snow Handling Measured#4/11

Strengths

safe and balanced on snow and wet, comfortable

Weaknesses

Worse handling on dry, higher rolling resistance

6

Bridgestone Blizzak LM-001 EVO

Rating: Still recommended

Wet

Wet Braking#2/11

Wet Circle Cornering#3/11

Wet Handling Measured#3/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#4/11

Wet Handling#5/11

Aquaplaning Cross#7/11

Dry

Dry Handling Measured#1/11

Dry Handling#2/11

Dry Lane Change#2/11

Dry Steering Reaction#4/11

Dry Braking#5/11

Comfort

Noise Exterior#1/11

Ride Comfort#5/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#3/11

Snow

Snow Braking#10/11

Snow Handling#10/11

Snow Handling Measured#10/11

Snow Circle Cornering#11/11

Snow Traction#11/11

Strengths

very neutral adaptive tire, dry steering is natural and safe when changing lanes, more or less safe

Weaknesses

Poor traction, understeer in the snow, weak aquaplaning in turns

7

Vredestein Snowtrac 5

Rating: Still recommended

£89

91 T

mytyres.co.uk

+4 More sizes →

91H 91H · £117 91H · £89 +1

Wet

Wet Circle Cornering#4/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#6/11

Wet Handling#6/11

Wet Handling Measured#6/11

Aquaplaning Cross#7/11

Wet Braking#7/11

Dry

Dry Steering Reaction#1/11

Dry Braking#2/11

Dry Handling#2/11

Dry Lane Change#2/11

Dry Handling Measured#3/11

Comfort

Ride Comfort#5/11

Noise Exterior#11/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#3/11

Snow

Snow Traction#1/11

Snow Circle Cornering#3/11

Snow Braking#4/11

Snow Handling#5/11

Snow Handling Measured#7/11

Strengths

good traction, harmonious on snow (except for braking), still acceptable performance on wet, above average on dry

Weaknesses

weak wet braking

8

Nexen Winguard Snow G WH2

Rating: Still recommended

Wet

Wet Braking#4/11

Wet Circle Cornering#4/11

Wet Handling Measured#6/11

Wet Handling#8/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#9/11

Aquaplaning Cross#10/11

Dry

Dry Handling Measured#3/11

Dry Braking#5/11

Dry Steering Reaction#7/11

Dry Handling#8/11

Dry Lane Change#9/11

Comfort

Noise Exterior#4/11

Ride Comfort#5/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#10/11

Snow

Snow Braking#4/11

Snow Circle Cornering#6/11

Snow Handling#7/11

Snow Handling Measured#7/11

Snow Traction#8/11

Strengths

good braking on wet, satisfactory performance on snow

Weaknesses

unbalanced wet handling, poor aquaplaning resistance, unbalanced dry performance, high rolling resistance

9

Giti GitiWinter W1

Rating: Still recommended

Wet

Wet Braking#7/11

Wet Handling Measured#8/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#9/11

Wet Handling#9/11

Aquaplaning Cross#10/11

Wet Circle Cornering#10/11

Dry

Dry Handling Measured#7/11

Dry Steering Reaction#7/11

Dry Braking#10/11

Dry Handling#10/11

Dry Lane Change#11/11

Comfort

Ride Comfort#1/11

Noise Exterior#9/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#6/11

Snow

Snow Braking#1/11

Snow Circle Cornering#1/11

Snow Handling Measured#1/11

Snow Traction#1/11

Snow Handling#2/11

Strengths

Best in the snow from the whole test

Weaknesses

poor aquaplaning resistance, low grip and wet direction change responses, low steering accuracy, poor response and dry performance

10

Toyo Snowprox S943

Rating: Still recommended

Wet

Wet Circle Cornering#6/11

Aquaplaning Cross#7/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#9/11

Wet Handling#9/11

Wet Braking#10/11

Wet Handling Measured#10/11

Dry

Dry Handling#1/11

Dry Steering Reaction#1/11

Dry Braking#2/11

Dry Handling Measured#2/11

Dry Lane Change#2/11

Comfort

Noise Exterior#9/11

Ride Comfort#9/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#2/11

Snow

Snow Circle Cornering#8/11

Snow Traction#8/11

Snow Braking#10/11

Snow Handling#10/11

Snow Handling Measured#10/11

Strengths

Dry, precise and well-handling, well-adapted to car handling

Weaknesses

worse on snow, long braking distance on wet, poorly handles load change in wet corners

11

Kumho WinterCraft WP51

Rating: Conditionally recommended

£120

91 T

mytyres.co.uk

+4 More sizes →

91H 91H · £135 91V +1

Wet

Aquaplaning Cross#5/11

Aquaplaning Longitudinal#6/11

Wet Handling#9/11

Wet Handling Measured#10/11

Wet Braking#11/11

Wet Circle Cornering#11/11

Dry

Dry Lane Change#2/11

Dry Braking#10/11

Dry Handling#10/11

Dry Handling Measured#10/11

Dry Steering Reaction#11/11

Comfort

Noise Exterior#1/11

Ride Comfort#1/11

Economy

Rolling Resistance#11/11

Snow

Snow Braking#3/11

Snow Handling Measured#4/11

Snow Handling#7/11

Snow Circle Cornering#8/11

Snow Traction#8/11

Strengths

Still usable tires despite the disadvantages.

Weaknesses

unbalanced snow performance, mismatch between straights and bends, wet and dry weak, high rolling resistance

Same size tyres not featured in the test

Tests usually don't cover the whole market - here is our selection what not to miss when shopping for tyres in this size.

#	Name	Our rating	Segment	Price
1	Premium GoodYear UltraGrip Performance+ 90%	90%	Premium
2	Premium Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005 90%	90%	Premium	£128 91 T +3 More
3	Upper-middle Kleber KRISALP HP3 89%	89%	Upper-middle	£75 91 T +3 More
4	Premium Michelin ALPIN 5 89%	89%	Premium	£130 91 T +7 More
5	Premium Pirelli Cinturato Winter 2 89%	89%	Premium	£110 91 T +2 More
6	Premium Goodyear UltraGrip Performance Gen-1 89%	89%	Premium	£89 91 H +1 More
7	Premium Dunlop Winter Sport 5 89%	89%	Premium	£91 91 T +6 More
8	Premium Michelin ALPIN 6 89%	89%	Premium

9	Upper-middle BFGoodrich G-FORCE WINTER 2 87%	87%	Upper-middle	£90 91 T +3 More
10	Upper-middle Hankook W462 Winter i*cept RS3 87%	87%	Upper-middle	£71 91 T +7 More
11	Premium Pirelli WINTER SOTTOZERO Serie III 86%	86%	Premium
12	Premium GoodYear UltraGrip 9+ 86%	86%	Premium
13	Budget Semperit Speed-Grip 2 86%	86%	Budget
14	Premium Michelin ALPIN A4 86%	86%	Premium
15	Upper-middle Hankook Winter i*cept evo2 W320 84%	84%	Upper-middle	£85 91 H +1 More
16	Upper-middle Firestone Winterhawk 4 84%	84%	Upper-middle	£69 91 T +3 More

17	Premium Bridgestone Blizzak LM-001 84%	84%	Premium	£106 91 H +5 More
18	Budget Maxxis Premitra Snow WP6 82%	82%	Budget	£75 0 H +1 More
19	Budget Semperit Speed-Grip 3 81%	81%	Budget
20	Budget Semperit Speed-Grip 5 81%	81%	Budget	£78 91 T +3 More
21	Upper-middle Falken EuroWinter HS01 80%	80%	Upper-middle	£166 91 T +8 More
22	Budget Fulda Kristall Control HP2 80%	80%	Budget	£69 91 H +1 More
23	Upper-middle Nokian WR Snowproof 79%	79%	Upper-middle
24	Upper-middle Toyo Observe S944 79%	79%	Upper-middle	£79 91 H +2 More

25	Upper-middle Toyo Snowprox S954 78%	78%	Upper-middle
26	Premium Continental WinterContact TS 860S 76%	76%	Premium	£143 91 H
27	Budget Debica Frigo 2 75%	75%	Budget	£63 91 T +1 More
28	Budget Sava Eskimo HP2 75%	75%	Budget	£64 91 H +2 More
29	Upper-middle Kumho WinterCraft WP71 75%	75%	Upper-middle
30	Upper-middle Uniroyal MS Plus 77 74%	74%	Upper-middle
31	Premium Hankook Ventus Prime 4 73%	73%	Premium	£58 91 H +17 More
32	Budget Sava ESKIMO S3+ 73%	73%	Budget	£73 91 T +2 More

33	Upper-middle Yokohama BluEarth-Winter V906 72%	72%	Upper-middle	£69 91 T +2 More
34	Budget Nexen Winguard Snow G3 WH21 67%	67%	Budget	£85 91 T +2 More
35	Premium Bridgestone Blizzak LM-32 66%	66%	Premium
36	Budget Debica Frigo HP2 66%	66%	Budget	£58 91 H +1 More
37	Budget Nexen WinGuard Sport 66%	66%	Budget
38	Upper-middle Nokian WR D3 66%	66%	Upper-middle
39	Upper-middle Uniroyal WinterExpert 65%	65%	Upper-middle	£69 91 T +3 More
40	Budget Barum Polaris 5 64%	64%	Budget

41	Upper-middle Nokian WR A4 63%	63%	Upper-middle
42	Upper-middle Falken EUROWINTER HS449 63%	63%	Upper-middle
43	Budget Fulda KRISTALL MONTERO 3 62%	62%	Budget
44	Upper-middle Yokohama BluEarth winter V905 62%	62%	Upper-middle	£117 91 T +9 More
45	Upper-middle Firestone Winterhawk 3 61%	61%	Upper-middle
46	Budget Matador MP93 Nordicca 56%	56%	Budget
47	Budget Kormoran SNOW 40%	40%	Budget
48	Budget Matador MP92 Sibir Snow 36%	36%	Budget

49	Budget Imperial SnowDragon UHP 25%	25%	Budget
50	Budget Duraturn Mozzo Winter 1%	1%	Budget
51	Budget Syron Everest 1 plus 1%	1%	Budget
52	Premium Dunlop Wintersport 5 1%	1%	Premium	£93 91 H
53	Budget Imperial SnowDragon 3 1%	1%	Budget

Cars with 205/55 R16 tyres

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