Tyre Reviews Winter Tire Test 225/45 R18 2023

On the snow:

In the snow test, the two slowest asymmetric tread tires, Falken and Leao, showed significant understeer. The Giti and Continental were good, but their transition between grip and slip was a bit steep. Kumho, Bridgestone and Vredestein were very good, with the Vredestein surprising with its balance and the Bridgestone with its easier steering. Hankook, Pirelli and Goodyear had excellent grip, with the Hankook being subjectively the best, while the others were slightly steeper at the limit. The Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 was again in a class of its own with excellent handling and was the fastest. The Hankook Kinergy 4S2 all-season tire came in an impressive seventh, while the summer tire had significantly weaker grip and was slow.

Hankook narrowly beat Michelin in snow braking, with Bridgestone in third place. The all-season tire once again placed in the middle of the field, and the summer tire finished well behind the group.

Snow traction returned Michelin's advantage, with Hankook once again besting the rest

In the wet:

Wetness is key for winter tires, especially in areas with long, rainy winters. The Bridgestone Blizzak LM005 was fastest on wet roads and had the best wet braking, although it was mediocre in aquaplaning. The Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 and Continental WinterContact TS870P were also excellent in both disciplines, but like Bridgestone, they were not strong in deeper water. The Hankook, Goodyear and Pirelli were also great in the wet, with the Pirelli having the best aquaplaning. The Falken was good on the road and had excellent aquaplaning, but it braked a little worse. The Giti handled well and had great aquaplaning, but had less grip under braking and handling. The Vredestein and Kumho were weaker, but still good. The cheap Leao tire was bad, especially on a rear-wheel drive car, and was 10% worse than the last tire in braking, which is the length of the car. Overall, Bridgestone is best in the wet, Pirelli in deep water, and Michelin and Continental are also excellent, as are Goodyear and Hankook.

As I mentioned in my all-season tire test, the sipes required on winter tires make braking very difficult, meaning the summer tire was well ahead of the pack in wet braking and was also very quick in wet handling. It also had the best aquaplaning resistance by a clear margin, which is a good reminder to change your winter tires once the colder months are over. The all-season tire was narrowly beaten in wet braking by the excellent Bridgestone, and as we saw in the all-season tire test, the Hankook all-season tire didn’t like the deeper parts of wet handling because it doesn’t have the best aquaplaning resistance, so it wasn’t the fastest on the track.

In dry conditions:

Dry braking is even more challenging for winter tires than wet braking because the forces are higher, so the summer tire had a significant lead again, more than 16% better than the best winter tire! Think about it if you see someone considering driving on winter tires in the summer too...

The best winter tire in dry braking was Michelin, with Continental a close second. Goodyear, Giti and Kumho performed well, with Giti and Kumho agreeing on the result and Falken just a little behind. Pirelli, Bridgestone and Hankook, who performed well in wet braking, had a bit of trouble in dry braking, with Vredestein and Leao rounding out the braking results.

Comfort:

As with the all-season tire test, I didn't have the weather to objectively measure noise, but the two of us spent quite a bit of time subjectively assessing noise and comfort on an excellent comfort track. There were some standout tires, so if comfort is important to you, you'll be very happy with Bridgestone, Michelin, Continental, Goodyear, and Falken, with Hankook being the best of the rest.