2017 Auto Bild SUV Winter Tire Test

The biggest interest in this test was the Chinese budget winter tire from Pace. With the most expensive set of winter tires costing 660 euros at time of test, the budget Pace tires were a full 400 euros cheaper, at just 260 euros. Are the savings worth the performance drop? Read on below to find out.

Dry

In the dry, the summer tire dominates braking, and wins the handling test. The Bridgestone Blizzak LM001 is the best of the winter tires, while the test-topping Goodyear and Continental tires could only manage mid-pack. The budget Pace tire is acceptable under dry braking conditions, but is by far the worst during the dry handling lap.

Wet

For the top five winter tires, wet braking was closely contested with the summer tire, with the Goodyear winter tire finishing top. Wet handling puts the summer reference back on top, with the Goodyear winter being the best of the winter tires on test. In both tests, the budget Pace tire again performs the worst.

Snow

Surprisingly the Pace budget tire wins the snow braking test, proving that it's easy for a budget tire manufacturer to make a tire which works well in one road condition, but not all three. Snow handling is also closely contested, with only the Maxxis and Vredestein noticeably behind the rest.

Environmental

Both the Continental and Bridgestone winter tires have a lower rolling resistance than the summer tire on test, and every winter tire proves to be quieter than the summer.

Result

Auto Bild started the test asking whether the huge cost saving of a budget winter tire was worth the risk? Their answer is a firm no, unless you only ever drive it on snow covered roads - the dry and wet penalty is too vast.

1^st

Goodyear UltraGrip Performance Gen 1

225/55 R17

Very good results on snow, High resistance to aquaplaning, Very high grip on wet surfaces, High level of comfort, Precise steering on dry surfaces

Slightly high noise level, expensive

Test winner

Total: 53

Dry 8

Wet 11

Snow 8

Comfort 10

Rolling Resistance 8

Noise 8

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2^nd

Continental WinterContact TS 850 P

225/55 R17

Good balance of performance, Very good results on snow, especially in terms of lateral stability, Low noise level

Average braking performance on dry surfaces, Average ride comfort, High price

Recommended

Total: 50

Dry 8

Wet 8

Snow 10

Comfort 8

Rolling Resistance 8

Noise 8

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3^rd

Michelin Alpin 5

225/55 R17

Good results on snow, High resistance to aquaplaning, Short braking distance on wet roads

Average braking performance on dry surfaces, High price

Recommended

Total: 50

Dry 8

Wet 10

Snow 8

Comfort 8

Rolling Resistance 8

Noise 8

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4^th

Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3

225/55 R17

Short braking distance on dry and wet surfaces, Good lateral stability on wet surfaces

Medium traction and lateral stability in snow, Increased noise level

Recommended

Total: 50

Dry 8

Wet 10

Snow 8

Comfort 8

Rolling Resistance 8

Noise 8

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5^th

Bridgestone Blizzak LM001

225/55 R17

Close to a summer tire in the dry, good snow traction, low rolling resistance

Average aquaplaning resistance, poor snow handling

Good

Total: 51

Dry 10

Wet 8

Snow 8

Comfort 8

Rolling Resistance 9

Noise 8

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6^th

Hankook Winter i cept evo2

225/55 R17

Short braking distance and general well balanced snow performance, well priced

Long braking distances in the dry and wet, average comfort

Satisfactory

Total: 44

Dry 6

Wet 8

Snow 8

Comfort 6

Rolling Resistance 8

Noise 8

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7^th

Vredestein Wintrac xtreme S

225/55 R17

Short braking distance and generally high wet grip, Low noise level

Poor snow grip, poor dry grip, high rolling resistance

Satisfactory

Total: 46

Dry 8

Wet 10

Snow 6

Comfort 8

Rolling Resistance 6

Noise 8

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8^th

Kumho WinterCraft WP71

225/55 R17

Good snow handling, Low price

Average aquaplaning resistance, low wet grip, poor dry grip and handling

Satisfactory

Total: 46

Dry 8

Wet 8

Snow 8

Comfort 6

Rolling Resistance 8

Noise 8

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9^th

Maxxis Arctictrekker WP05

225/55 R17

Good resistance to aquaplaning, Good grip on dry surfaces, Low noise level

Relatively weak grip and a long stopping distance on snow and wet surfaces, High rolling resistance

Not Recommended

Total: 44

Dry 8

Wet 6

Snow 8

Comfort 8

Rolling Resistance 6

Noise 8

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10^th

Pace Antarctica 5 Pace

225/55 R17

Very good results on snow, Very low price, Very low noise level

Weak grip on dry and wet surfaces, Very long braking distances on wet surfaces, High rolling resistance

Not Recommended

Total: 39

Dry 6

Wet 4

Snow 8

Comfort 6

Rolling Resistance 6

Noise 9

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11^th

Reference Summer

225/55 R17

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