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Test source Auto Bild

2011 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test

Overall test winnerMichelin Alpin A4

Auto Bild, well known for their excellent tire tests, have recently tested 11 premium winter tires and 1 premium all season tire in the popular 225/45 R17 to create their 2011 winter tire test. Read on for the full results!

Tires tested
12
Tested size
225/45 R17

At a glance

Tire shortlist

12 Tires tested

Published finishing positions, with the strengths and considerations from this test. Owner reviews cover other sizes and driving conditions.

1st

Michelin Alpin A4

+World class all round performance with excellent mileage. Safe handling, good ride comfort

−Slight weakness with aquaplaning

2nd

Bridgestone Blizzak LM32

+All round talent with excellent traction on snow. Best handling with precise steering on wet and dry roads. Excellent low rolling resistance

−Average wear

3rd

Dunlop SP WinterSport 4D

+Fantastic snow performance with safe handling on both dry and wet roads. Shortest wet braking distance

−Slight weakness with aquaplaning

4th

Goodyear Ultra Grip Performance 2

+Good winter tires with good traction and stable cornering on snow. Excellent steering response on wet roads

−Quite high pass by noise, average wear

5th

Uniroyal MS plus 66

+Stable cornering and safe handling qualities on snow, high mileage, good value for money

−Only average wet performance

6th

Toyo Snowprox S953

+Convincing winter tire with dynamic handling on snow. Good aquaplaning

−High wear, increased rolling resistance, lots of understeer on wet roads

7th

Continental WinterContact TS 830 P

+Safe handling with stable corning in all weather conditions. Good braking on wet roads

−Poor dry braking, average wear

8th

Nokian WR D3

+The snow king. Low rolling resistance, low noise

−Average aquaplaning, poor wear

9th

Pirelli Sottozero Serie II

+Good lateral grip on snow and wet roads, good aquaplaning results, low rolling resistance

−Poor wet and dry braking, high wear

10th

Nexen Winguard Sport

+Good price to performance ratio, low rolling resistance

−Low traction and long stopping distances in snow, poor handling and long braking on wet roads

11th

Kumho IZen KW17

+Good rolling resistance, low price

−Low grip on the snow, poor steering response and long stopping distances on wet roads. Poor ride comfort

12th

Goodyear Vector 4Seasons

+Dynamic handling and short braking distances in the dry, very good value for money

−When compared to a full winter tire, poor snow performance. Average ride quality

Tire shortlist

Compare selected tires

2011 Auto Bild Winter Tire Test · 225/45 R17

Explore the complete results →

The full test

The evidence behind the verdict

Auto Bild, well known for their excellent tire tests, have recently tested 11 premium winter tires and 1 premium all season tire in the popular 225/45 R17 to create their 2011 winter tire test.

As always, the tires were put through their paces on snow, wet roads and dry roads, with their wear rate, noise and comfort measured objectively and subjectively.

As always with winter European tire tests, the scoring was bias towards raw snow and wet performance, with subjective handling and dry performance given a lower weighting in the final results.

We'll have a full write up soon, but for now here are the overview results with testers comments on each tire.

The Results

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All tire tests

Where these tires were tested again, and how the verdict held up.

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