Germany's influential motoring club, ADAC, has published the results of its 2025 all-terrain tire test, delivering a disappointing result for drivers considering these tires for their SUVs, campers, and pickups. ADAC tested eight popular all-terrain tires in the common 225/65 R17 size, focusing on whether their rugged looks translate to competent all-around performance, particularly for European road use, and included a winter rated all season tire as a reference.
The test highlighted that while the all terrain tires promise go-anywhere capability, they come with a significant and dangerous loss of on-road safety. Not a single all-terrain tire tested earned an ADAC recommendation.
While some of these were European spec. all terrain tires, this test also has North American tires in it, and highlights the compromises of all terrain tires anywhere in the world.
The All-Season Reference Tire: A Clear Winner
To contextualise the performance of the all-terrain segment, ADAC included a premium all-season road tire, the Pirelli Cinturato SF3, as a reference benchmark in all tests. The results were bad: the specialist road tire massively outperformed every all-terrain tire in critical on-road safety tests.
The most alarming weakness was found in wet braking. The best-performing all-terrain tire in the wet, the Falken Wildpeak A/T AT3WA, required six meters more to stop from 80 km/h than the Pirelli all-season tire, a gap the length of an entire campervan. The worst performer, the BF Goodrich Trail Terrain T/A, took a shocking 48.8 meters to stop, nearly 13 meters longer than the reference tire.
This safety deficit extended to handling, where the all-terrain tires lacked grip and composure on both wet and dry roads. Some, like the Pirelli Scorpion A/T+, exhibited a pronounced tendency to oversteer, requiring skilled driver intervention to maintain control.
Off-road, the advantage was not as clear as one might expect. On gravel, the reference all-season tire had the second-best traction, just behind the Matador MP72. And on a simulated muddy campsite field, ADAC found the all-terrain tires offered no noticeable traction benefit over the all-season tire; a vehicle's drivetrain (AWD vs 2WD) was a far more decisive factor. The only clear advantage for the all-terrain tires was their robustness, as they resisted damage from an extreme gravel course better than the road-focused reference tire.
The snow performance tests revealed a huge capability gap between the all-terrain tires, but also proved that a dedicated road-focused all-season tire remains the safer choice in winter. The reference all-season tire set the benchmark for winter performance, and none of the all-terrain tires could fully match it.
The Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015 was the clear standout among the all-terrain group, performing "almost at the level" of the reference tire, making it the most competent winter option. Interestingly, the BF Goodrich Trail Terrain T/A, which failed on wet and dry roads, was the second-best performer in the snow. At the other end of the spectrum, the Bridgestone Dueler A/T002 was the worst tire on snow by a significant margin, demonstrating the massive variance in winter capability within the segment.
Individual Results and ADAC's Advice
While no tire was recommended, the Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015 finished as the test winner with an overall "Satisfactory" rating. It was the best of a compromised group, with its main strength being a surprisingly competent performance on snow. The Falken Wildpeak A/T AT3WA, General Tire Grabber AT3, and Matador MP72 Izzarda A/T2 also received satisfactory ratings, showing a more balanced, albeit still compromised, performance across the board.
The four other tires were downgraded due to significant specific weaknesses:
- Pirelli Scorpion A/T+: Downgraded for poor handling and oversteer on snow and wet roads.
- Toyo Open Country A/T III: Downgraded for very weak performance in the wet.
- Bridgestone Dueler A/T002: Downgraded for being the worst tire in the test on snow.
- BF Goodrich Trail Terrain T/A: The most expensive and heaviest tire, it was downgraded for being by far the worst on wet and dry roads.
ADAC concludes that for the vast majority of drivers, even those who occasionally venture onto a gravel track or wet field, a high-quality all-season tire is a much safer and more competent choice.
A Note on ADAC Test Data
As is often with ADAC, the organization sadly does not publish the detailed raw data from its testing. This means specific figures for braking distances in meters (apart from anecdotal examples), handling lap times in seconds, or lateral G-forces are not made publicly available. The final ratings are based on a weighted scoring system across different performance categories.
Results
1st: Yokohama Geolandar AT G015 | |
| The Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015 is the winner of the ADAC all-terrain tire test. Its greatest strength lies on snowy roads, but it also performs convincingly in other disciplines, consistently placing it among the top of the test field. It offers the best handling not only on snow but also on wet roads, and delivers a top performance in dry braking. Since the tire has no major weaknesses, it secures the overall victory, even though it provides less driving safety than the reference tire. Read Reviews |
2nd: Falken Wildpeak AT AT3WA | |
| The Falken Wildpeak A/T AT3WA is the most balanced tire in the test. Although it has the shallowest tread depth when new, this doesn't negatively impact its aquaplaning characteristics. In fact, it performs well in all disciplines and, with the exception of the gravel traction test, is always at least in the upper midfield. The Falken shows no real weaknesses and is even the best tire on wet surfaces. Read Reviews |
3rd: General Grabber AT3 | |
| The General Tire Grabber AT3 provides a balanced performance, with its primary strengths showing on snow-covered roads. It excels in both braking and handling on snow, where it ranks as one of the best tires in the test. However, it cannot quite keep up with the other top-rated tires in wet conditions, marking its weakest area among the non-downgraded group. Read Reviews |
4th: Matador MP72 Izzarda AT2 | |
| The Matador MP72 Izzarda A/T2 is a balanced tire, much like its corporate sibling, the General Tire. It excels on gravel, where it is rated as the best in the test field, primarily because of its superior traction. In contrast, its performance on dry roads is a significant weakness. Even when compared to other all-terrain tires, which are not known for precision, the Matador stands out for its delayed steering response and slow build-up of lateral force. Read Reviews |
5th: Pirelli Scorpion AT+ | |
| Despite its rugged appearance, the Pirelli Scorpion A/T+ is the lightest tire in the test and performs well on gravel, offering good traction and responsive steering into corners. However, this is overshadowed by a significant tendency to oversteer, where the rear of the vehicle can lose grip. While this is manageable on gravel, it becomes a safety issue on wet and snowy roads, creating difficult situations that require a skilled driver. Due to its poor performance and lack of safety on snow, the Pirelli's final score was downgraded. Read Reviews |
6th: Toyo Open Country AT III | |
| The Toyo Open Country A/T III is an expert on dry surfaces, at least within the all-terrain tire test field. It achieves the best score in the dry performance category and is considered the strongest tire in the subjective handling evaluation on dry roads. However, the tire cannot maintain this high level of performance on wet asphalt, where it is weak, leading to a downgrade in its final score. Its performance is especially lacking in cornering aquaplaning and on the wet handling course, where it was only rated as sufficient. Read Reviews |
7th: Bridgestone Dueler All Terrain AT002 | |
| The Bridgestone Dueler A/T002 shows strong performance on paved roads. It handles wet surfaces well, ranking as the second-best tire in the test on wet asphalt, and its performance in the dry is also solid, where it stands out as a very good dry-braking tire. However, its overall ranking plummets to second-to-last place because of its capabilities on snow. In the snow evaluation, it was the weakest tire in the entire test group across braking, traction, and handling, which led to its final score being downgraded. Read Reviews |
8th: BFGoodrich Trail Terrain TA | |
| The BF Goodrich Trail Terrain T/A stands out for several negative reasons: it is the heaviest and most expensive tire in the test. It also provides the least driving safety on both wet and dry roads, where it is by far the weakest performer, leading to a major downgrade in its overall score. In stark contrast, the tire performs surprisingly well on snow, ranking as the second-best in that specific category. The test concludes that this tire is an extreme example of the difficulty in engineering a single product to perform well in all weather conditions. Read Reviews |
Best UUHP Tires
Best All Season Tires
Best Winter Tires
