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2017 AMS Performance 18 inch Winter Tire Test

Jonathan Benson
Data analyzed and reviewed by Jonathan Benson
6 min read Updated
Below are all the data points for the 2017 AMS Performance 18 inch Winter Tire Test, displaying how each tire performed across all test categories. The spider chart below provides a complete overview of performance, where one hundred percent represents the best performance in each category. The larger the area covered by each tire's plot, the better its overall performance.
How to read these charts: For each test category, data is presented relative to the best performing tire. The direction indicates whether lower or higher values are better - pay close attention to this when interpreting results.

Performance Overview

This radar chart shows relative performance across all test categories, with 100% representing the best performance in each category. Reference tires may have gaps where data is not available.

Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
Dunlop Winter Sport 5
Semperit Speed Grip 3
Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
Nokian WR A4
Fulda Kristall Control HP2
Hankook Winter i cept evo2
Kumho WinterCraft WP71
Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus

Quick Navigation

Dry Performance Overview

Dry Braking (M)

Dry braking in meters (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Nokian WR A4 with a result of 44.6 M. The difference between best and worst was 6.5%.
  1. Nokian WR A4
    44.6 M
  2. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    45.4 M
  3. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    45.6 M
  4. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    45.7 M
  5. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    45.9 M
  6. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    46.5 M
  7. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    46.6 M
  8. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    46.8 M
  9. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    47.1 M
  10. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    47.7 M

Dry Handling (Km/H)

Dry Handling Average Speed (Higher is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Nokian WR A4 with a result of 119 Km/H. The difference between best and worst was 3.1%.
  1. Nokian WR A4
    119 Km/H
  2. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    118.9 Km/H
  3. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    118.7 Km/H
  4. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    118.2 Km/H
  5. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    117.5 Km/H
  6. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    117.2 Km/H
  7. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    117.1 Km/H
  8. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    116.9 Km/H
  9. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    115.9 Km/H
  10. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    115.3 Km/H

Wet Performance Overview

Wet Braking (M)

Wet braking in meters (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Continental WinterContact TS 850 P with a result of 33.9 M. The difference between best and worst was 10.8%.
  1. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    33.9 M
  2. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    34.5 M
  3. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    35.7 M
  4. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    35.9 M
  5. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    36 M
  6. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    36.8 M
  7. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    37 M
  8. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    37.6 M
  9. Nokian WR A4
    37.8 M
  10. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    38 M

Wet Handling (Km/H)

Wet Handling Average Speed (Higher is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Continental WinterContact TS 850 P with a result of 76.2 Km/H. The difference between best and worst was 8.3%.
  1. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    76.2 Km/H
  2. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    74.7 Km/H
  3. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    74 Km/H
  4. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    73.8 Km/H
  5. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    72.2 Km/H
  6. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    72 Km/H
  7. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    71.9 Km/H
  8. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    71.4 Km/H
  9. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    71.4 Km/H
  10. Nokian WR A4
    69.9 Km/H

Straight Aqua (Km/H)

Float Speed in Km/H (Higher is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Fulda Kristall Control HP2 with a result of 87.6 Km/H. The difference between best and worst was 8.1%.
  1. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    87.6 Km/H
  2. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    87.4 Km/H
  3. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    86.5 Km/H
  4. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    86.1 Km/H
  5. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    85.9 Km/H
  6. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    85.8 Km/H
  7. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    85 Km/H
  8. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    84.9 Km/H
  9. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    81.3 Km/H
  10. Nokian WR A4
    80.5 Km/H

Snow Performance Overview

Snow Braking (M)

Snow braking in meters (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Dunlop Winter Sport 5 with a result of 27.7 M. The difference between best and worst was 7.7%.
  1. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    27.7 M
  2. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    27.8 M
  3. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    28.1 M
  4. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    28.2 M
  5. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    28.5 M
  6. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    28.7 M
  7. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    29.3 M
  8. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    29.7 M
  9. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    29.9 M
  10. Nokian WR A4
    30 M

Snow Handling (Km/H)

Snow handling average speed (Higher is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Dunlop Winter Sport 5 with a result of 55.5 Km/H. The difference between best and worst was 3.6%.
  1. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    55.5 Km/H
  2. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    55.4 Km/H
  3. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    55.4 Km/H
  4. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    55.3 Km/H
  5. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    54.9 Km/H
  6. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    54.8 Km/H
  7. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    54.5 Km/H
  8. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    54.5 Km/H
  9. Nokian WR A4
    53.8 Km/H
  10. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    53.5 Km/H

Comfort Performance Overview

Noise (dB)

External noise in dB (Lower is better)

Key Insight: All the tires in the noise test finished less than 3% apart.
  1. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    72.4 dB
  2. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    72.5 dB
  3. Nokian WR A4
    72.7 dB
  4. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    72.7 dB
  5. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    72.9 dB
  6. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    73 dB
  7. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    73.2 dB
  8. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    73.3 dB
  9. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    73.3 dB
  10. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    73.4 dB

Value Performance Overview

Rolling Resistance (kg / t)

Rolling resistance in kg t (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Nokian WR A4 with a result of 7.7 kg / t. The difference between best and worst was 21.4%.
  1. Nokian WR A4
    7.7 kg / t
  2. Semperit Speed Grip 3
    8.2 kg / t
  3. Continental WinterContact TS 850 P
    8.2 kg / t
  4. Dunlop Winter Sport 5
    8.6 kg / t
  5. Hankook Winter i cept evo2
    8.8 kg / t
  6. Fulda Kristall Control HP2
    8.8 kg / t
  7. Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
    9 kg / t
  8. Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3
    9.2 kg / t
  9. Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus
    9.7 kg / t
  10. Kumho WinterCraft WP71
    9.8 kg / t

Overall Findings

Based on the weighted scoring from all tests, here are the overall results:

Position Tire Score
Continental WinterContact TS 850 P 0%
2 Dunlop Winter Sport 5 0%
3 Semperit Speed Grip 3 0%
4 Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 0%
5 Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3 0%
6 Nokian WR A4 0%
7 Fulda Kristall Control HP2 0%
8 Hankook Winter i cept evo2 0%
9 Kumho WinterCraft WP71 0%
10 Cooper Weather Master SA2 Plus 0%

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