2023 Best SUV Tires Tested

Sadly Tire Reviews isn't performing an SUV summer tire test this year, but luckily the German publication AutoBild once again have us covered if you want to know what the best tire is for your SUV!

This year AutoBild tested twelve SUV tires for the crossover SUV segment in the 225/65 R17 tire size.

As usual, all the tires were tested in the dry and wet, and had their rolling resistance and noise / comfort levels graded, but as this category of tire is also intended for some "light off-roading" they tested the twelve SUV tires in mud, sand, dirt and even on wet grass! This means this really is the best test this year you show you what the best tire is for your SUV!

There's a LOT of data from this test, so we won't preface anymore - This is how the best twelve SUV tires fared in the dry, wet, gravel, mud, dirt and sand!

Wet

Wet braking was led by the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV. The Michelin looks a little out of place in this test, the Pilot Sport 4 SUV is an ultra high performance summer tire, and all the other tires in the test are more touring / comfort bias tires. Perhaps the Michelin Primacy 4 would have been a better match for the test, but this does give us an excellent insight into the differences between the two categories of tires.

It should come as no surprise that the Aplus A919 in last place was the cheapest tire on test, but it might be a surprise that the Cooper Zeon 4XS Sport also struggled to stop the car.

The Michelin was also the fastest around the wet handling lap, beating the new Bridgestone Turanza 6.

The Michelin also had the best straight aquaplaning resistance, significantly ahead of all the tires bar the Uniroyal RainSport 5, which usually wins the deep water tests!

Dry

The Pirelli Cinturato P7 managed to beat the Michelin to be best in dry braking, with the Aplus once again trailing the field buy a significant margin.

The more comfort bias Pirelli couldn't hold off the more sporty Michelin during the dry handling test.

Off Road

The dirt handling course was led by Pirelli, with the new Hankook Ventus Prime 4 a close second! 

The next three data points are gravel, sand and mud traction tests, measured as a pulling force. It's important to note that offroad testing is some of the hardest testing in the world, none more so than mud, so worry less about the precise order and more about general trends.

These general trends are that the budget Aplus might not be able to grip on wet roads, but is great on wet grass and in mud but not sand. The General Grabber GT Plus was best in sand but poor on grass... it seems even general trends are difficult with offroad testing!

Environment

External noise is a much easier test, and the Goodyear EfficientGrip 2 SUV proved to be the quietest tire of the group by a huge margin!

The new Bridgestone Turanza 6 continued Bridgestones excellent performance in the rolling resistance tests, leading the Hankook and Uniroyal.

The Aplus was the cheapest tire on test, but this time the Michelin wasn't the most expensive tire of the group, it was the joint most expensive with Goodyear!

Results

1^st

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV

225/65 R17 106V XL

Exemplary.

Dry99.2%

Wet100%

Off road92.7%

Comfort97.7%

Rolling Resistance87.9%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	2nd / 12	115 ft	+1 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	1st / 12	64.2 mph	Best in this discipline
Wet BrakingLower is better	1st / 12	164 ft	Best in this discipline
Wet HandlingHigher is better	1st / 12	53.9 mph	Best in this discipline
Wet CircleLower is better	1st / 12	14.41 s	Best in this discipline
Straight AquaHigher is better	1st / 12	59.6 mph	Best in this discipline
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	1st / 12	9.7 ft/s²	Best in this discipline
Gravel TractionHigher is better	1st / 12	1,858 lbf	Best in this discipline
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	7th / 12	41.0 mph	-0.4 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	10th / 12	1,741 lbf	-257 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	5th / 12	556 lbf	-101 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	3rd / 12	679 lbf	-54 lbf
NoiseLower is better	3rd / 12	68.9 dB	+1.60 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	8th / 12	8.44 kg/t	+1.02 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/72

Price

610.00

2^nd

Bridgestone Turanza 6

225/65 R17 102H

Exemplary.

Dry96.8%

Wet96.6%

Off road92.1%

Comfort97%

Rolling Resistance100%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	8th / 12	120 ft	+6 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	3rd / 12	63.6 mph	-0.6 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	6th / 12	174 ft	+10 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	2nd / 12	53.7 mph	-0.2 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	3rd / 12	14.58 s	+0.17 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	6th / 12	55.3 mph	-4.3 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	6th / 12	9.1 ft/s²	-0.6 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	2nd / 12	1,856 lbf	-2 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	9th / 12	40.8 mph	-0.6 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	4th / 12	1,876 lbf	-122 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	12th / 12	515 lbf	-142 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	4th / 12	659 lbf	-74 lbf
NoiseLower is better	7th / 12	69.4 dB	+2.10 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	1st / 12	7.42 kg/t	Best in this discipline

EU Label

B/A/69

Price

570.00

3^rd

Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun

225/65 R17 106H XL

Exemplary.

Dry96.4%

Wet96.1%

Off road92.9%

Comfort96.7%

Rolling Resistance86.4%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	6th / 12	119 ft	+5 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	8th / 12	62.4 mph	-1.8 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	5th / 12	174 ft	+10 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	8th / 12	52.7 mph	-1.2 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	11th / 12	15.01 s	+0.60 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	3rd / 12	56.5 mph	-3.1 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	4th / 12	9.4 ft/s²	-0.3 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	4th / 12	1,830 lbf	-28 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	3rd / 12	41.3 mph	-0.1 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	2nd / 12	1,893 lbf	-105 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	7th / 12	549 lbf	-108 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	7th / 12	645 lbf	-88 lbf
NoiseLower is better	8th / 12	69.6 dB	+2.30 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	10th / 12	8.59 kg/t	+1.17 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/69

Price

465.00

4^th

Goodyear EfficientGrip 2 SUV

225/65 R17 106V XL

Exemplary.

Dry96%

Wet96.7%

Off road92.2%

Comfort100%

Rolling Resistance87.4%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	7th / 12	120 ft	+6 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	6th / 12	62.4 mph	-1.8 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	2nd / 12	171 ft	+7 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	6th / 12	52.9 mph	-1.0 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	6th / 12	14.74 s	+0.33 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	5th / 12	56.0 mph	-3.6 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	5th / 12	9.3 ft/s²	-0.4 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	7th / 12	1,769 lbf	-89 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	6th / 12	41.1 mph	-0.3 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	6th / 12	1,821 lbf	-177 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	4th / 12	563 lbf	-94 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	4th / 12	659 lbf	-74 lbf
NoiseLower is better	1st / 12	67.3 dB	Best in this discipline
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	9th / 12	8.49 kg/t	+1.07 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/71

Price

610.00

5^th

Hankook Ventus Prime 4

225/65 R17 102H

Exemplary.

Dry97.4%

Wet95.2%

Off road91.4%

Comfort95.9%

Rolling Resistance97.3%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	4th / 12	116 ft	+2 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	6th / 12	62.4 mph	-1.8 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	4th / 12	173 ft	+9 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	5th / 12	53.1 mph	-0.8 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	5th / 12	14.72 s	+0.31 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	10th / 12	53.6 mph	-6.0 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	8th / 12	8.4 ft/s²	-1.3 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	8th / 12	1,753 lbf	-105 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	2nd / 12	41.3 mph	-0.1 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	5th / 12	1,867 lbf	-131 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	8th / 12	547 lbf	-110 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	8th / 12	630 lbf	-103 lbf
NoiseLower is better	11th / 12	70.2 dB	+2.90 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	2nd / 12	7.63 kg/t	+0.21 kg/t

EU Label

B/A/69

Price

485.00

6^th

Pirelli CINTURATO P7

225/65 R17 106V XL

Good.

Dry99.7%

Wet97.7%

Off road86%

Comfort96%

Rolling Resistance88.9%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	1st / 12	114 ft	Best in this discipline
Dry HandlingHigher is better	2nd / 12	63.8 mph	-0.4 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	3rd / 12	171 ft	+7 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	3rd / 12	53.3 mph	-0.6 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	2nd / 12	14.46 s	+0.05 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	4th / 12	56.5 mph	-3.1 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	3rd / 12	9.5 ft/s²	-0.2 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	12th / 12	1,605 lbf	-253 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	1st / 12	41.4 mph	Best in this discipline
Sand TractionHigher is better	9th / 12	1,798 lbf	-200 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	10th / 12	539 lbf	-118 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	12th / 12	525 lbf	-208 lbf
NoiseLower is better	9th / 12	70.1 dB	+2.80 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	7th / 12	8.35 kg/t	+0.93 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/70

Price

590.00

7^th

Uniroyal RainExpert 5

225/65 R17 102H

Good.

Dry93%

Wet96.6%

Off road96.3%

Comfort97.1%

Rolling Resistance96.7%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	11th / 12	124 ft	+10 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	11th / 12	60.8 mph	-3.4 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	8th / 12	177 ft	+13 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	7th / 12	52.8 mph	-1.1 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	9th / 12	14.83 s	+0.42 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	2nd / 12	58.7 mph	-0.9 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	2nd / 12	9.6 ft/s²	-0.1 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	5th / 12	1,822 lbf	-36 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	4th / 12	41.1 mph	-0.3 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	3rd / 12	1,888 lbf	-110 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	2nd / 12	600 lbf	-57 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	2nd / 12	720 lbf	-13 lbf
NoiseLower is better	5th / 12	69.3 dB	+2.00 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	3rd / 12	7.67 kg/t	+0.25 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/71

Price

475.00

8^th

Toyo Proxes Comfort

225/65 R17 106V XL

Good.

Dry97.7%

Wet94.5%

Off road87.6%

Comfort97.1%

Rolling Resistance90.9%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	5th / 12	117 ft	+3 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	5th / 12	63.2 mph	-1.0 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	9th / 12	179 ft	+15 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	4th / 12	53.1 mph	-0.8 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	4th / 12	14.64 s	+0.23 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	9th / 12	54.1 mph	-5.5 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	9th / 12	8.4 ft/s²	-1.3 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	10th / 12	1,691 lbf	-167 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	12th / 12	40.5 mph	-0.9 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	11th / 12	1,665 lbf	-333 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	3rd / 12	582 lbf	-75 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	11th / 12	567 lbf	-166 lbf
NoiseLower is better	5th / 12	69.3 dB	+2.00 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	5th / 12	8.16 kg/t	+0.74 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/70

Price

430.00

9^th

General Grabber GT+

225/65 R17 102H

Fair.

Dry94.1%

Wet93.3%

Off road93%

Comfort97.4%

Rolling Resistance95.4%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	10th / 12	122 ft	+8 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	10th / 12	61.1 mph	-3.1 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	10th / 12	180 ft	+16 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	10th / 12	52.4 mph	-1.5 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	10th / 12	14.9 s	+0.49 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	7th / 12	54.6 mph	-5.0 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	10th / 12	8.1 ft/s²	-1.6 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	9th / 12	1,743 lbf	-115 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	8th / 12	40.9 mph	-0.5 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	1st / 12	1,998 lbf	Best in this discipline
Grass TractionHigher is better	9th / 12	543 lbf	-114 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	4th / 12	659 lbf	-74 lbf
NoiseLower is better	4th / 12	69.1 dB	+1.80 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	4th / 12	7.78 kg/t	+0.36 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/71

Price

510.00

10^th

Nexen N Fera Sport SUV

225/65 R17 102H

Fair.

Dry97.4%

Wet94.7%

Off road89.6%

Comfort98.5%

Rolling Resistance86.4%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	3rd / 12	116 ft	+2 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	9th / 12	62.1 mph	-2.1 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	7th / 12	176 ft	+12 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	9th / 12	52.4 mph	-1.5 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	8th / 12	14.79 s	+0.38 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	7th / 12	54.6 mph	-5.0 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	7th / 12	8.7 ft/s²	-1.0 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	11th / 12	1,686 lbf	-172 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	11th / 12	40.6 mph	-0.8 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	6th / 12	1,821 lbf	-177 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	6th / 12	552 lbf	-105 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	9th / 12	618 lbf	-115 lbf
NoiseLower is better	2nd / 12	68.3 dB	+1.00 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	10th / 12	8.59 kg/t	+1.17 kg/t

EU Label

D/A/71

Price

350.00

11^th

Cooper Zeon 4XS Sport

225/65 R17 102H

Conditionally recommended.

Dry96%

Wet90.4%

Off road87.6%

Comfort95.6%

Rolling Resistance89%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	9th / 12	122 ft	+8 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	4th / 12	63.4 mph	-0.8 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	11th / 12	200 ft	+36 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	11th / 12	52.2 mph	-1.7 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	7th / 12	14.77 s	+0.36 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	12th / 12	52.1 mph	-7.5 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	11th / 12	7.9 ft/s²	-1.8 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	3rd / 12	1,852 lbf	-6 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	10th / 12	40.8 mph	-0.6 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	12th / 12	1,625 lbf	-373 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	11th / 12	524 lbf	-133 lbf
Mud TractionHigher is better	10th / 12	578 lbf	-155 lbf
NoiseLower is better	12th / 12	70.4 dB	+3.10 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	6th / 12	8.34 kg/t	+0.92 kg/t

EU Label

C/A/70

Price

420.00

12^th

Aplus A919

225/65 R17 102H

Not recommended.

Dry90.1%

Wet88.1%

Off road97.4%

Comfort96%

Rolling Resistance77.6%

Category scores (% of best)

All discipline results (14)

Discipline positions compare the ranked tires in this test, not the whole market. These are individual measurements, not weighted overall scores.

Test	Position in discipline	Result	Gap to best
Dry BrakingLower is better	12th / 12	132 ft	+18 ft
Dry HandlingHigher is better	12th / 12	60.5 mph	-3.7 mph
Wet BrakingLower is better	12th / 12	209 ft	+45 ft
Wet HandlingHigher is better	12th / 12	51.3 mph	-2.6 mph
Wet CircleLower is better	12th / 12	15.23 s	+0.82 s
Straight AquaHigher is better	11th / 12	52.1 mph	-7.5 mph
Curved AquaplaningHigher is better	12th / 12	7.7 ft/s²	-2.0 ft/s²
Gravel TractionHigher is better	6th / 12	1,814 lbf	-44 lbf
Dirt HandlingHigher is better	4th / 12	41.1 mph	-0.3 mph
Sand TractionHigher is better	8th / 12	1,801 lbf	-197 lbf
Grass TractionHigher is better	1st / 12	657 lbf	Best in this discipline
Mud TractionHigher is better	1st / 12	733 lbf	Best in this discipline
NoiseLower is better	9th / 12	70.1 dB	+2.80 dB
Rolling ResistanceLower is better	12th / 12	9.56 kg/t	+2.14 kg/t

EU Label

E/C/71

Price

300.00