2023 Studless vs Studded Snow Tire Test

The 2023 TESTIRENKAAT Snow Tire Test tested eight tires designed for extreme winters in the popular 205/55 R16 size.

This is a really interesting test as the four premium tires are studless friction tires, and the four budget tires are studded, so it gives us an interesting data point to compare the best of the new studless friction soft compound tires against the cheaper end of the studded market.

The testers had a few surprises from the studs vs friction results. The test saw a kind of changing of the guard, as Goodyear's new tire rises to the top among Nordic friction tires. The improvement over its predecessor is significant, and the Ultra Grip Ice 3 narrowly snatched victory from the Hakkapeliitta R5. The third-place Michelin falls noticeably behind the top two.

As for the main point of the test—the battle between friction and studded tires—the differences were surprisingly large. We initially thought that even a slightly cheaper studded tire would perform better than studless ones on ice, but only Antares succeeded, and that too only in longitudinal grip tests.

On asphalt, cheaper studded tires generally perform better, which is not surprising since their rubber hardness is closer to summer than winter tires. However, summer rubber compounds won't work in winter conditions, especially if the studs are also installed too deep or in the wrong positions.

The winter driving tests revealed why some tires cost more than others. The performance of cheaper studded tires drops significantly, emphasizing that making a winter tire that works well in varying conditions is not easy. Bad winter tires might perform quite well up to the grip limit, but their behavior can change radically beyond that.

Dry and Wet

On asphalt, inexpensive studded tires hold better on average than on snow and ice, which is not surprising, because the hardness of the rubber is closer to summer tires than winter tires. Still, the cheap studded tires can have surprising and even dangerous behavior.

Dry Braking

Wet Braking

Wet Handling

Snow

In snow, the tires are rarely divided into two groups in all tests. In all tests, the friction tires are the best tires, with the low cost studs falling behind.

Snow Braking

Snow Traction

Snow Handling

Ice

It was noteworthy that on ice the premium friction tires beat the cheap studded tires in the handling tests. When the tires are straight, the studs bite better on slippery ice, and in the acceleration tests two studded tires fit in the top three - but only one in the braking test.

Ice Braking

Ice Traction

Ice Handling

Results

1^st

Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Best control, excellent grip on ice, excellent grip on snow; Wet Conditions: Summer tire-like steering, safe and easy to drive in wet conditions, extreme situation behavior not as good as the best..

Dry

98.1%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	4th	31.25 M	30.67 M	+0.58 M	98.14%

Wet

92.3%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	4th	38.49 M	32.53 M	+5.96 M	84.52%
Wet Handling	1st	40.4 s			100%

Snow

99.5%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	1st	11.28 M			100%
Snow Traction	2nd	4.39 s	4.34 s	+0.05 s	98.86%
Snow Handling	2nd	83.28 s	83.04 s	+0.24 s	99.71%

Ice

97.7%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	1st	14.75 M			100%
Ice Traction	2nd	6.39 s	5.95 s	+0.44 s	93.11%
Ice Handling	1st	69.76 s			100%

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2^nd

Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Best control, excellent grip on snow, good braking grip; Wet Conditions: Excellent extreme situation behavior, good driving characteristics on dry surfaces, oversteers in wet conditions..

Dry

98.6%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	3rd	31.12 M	30.67 M	+0.45 M	98.55%

Wet

85.6%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	8th	43.16 M	32.53 M	+10.63 M	75.37%
Wet Handling	5th	42.2 s	40.4 s	+1.8 s	95.73%

Snow

98.5%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	2nd	11.52 M	11.28 M	+0.24 M	97.92%
Snow Traction	3rd	4.45 s	4.34 s	+0.11 s	97.53%
Snow Handling	1st	83.04 s			100%

Ice

95.7%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	2nd	15.02 M	14.75 M	+0.27 M	98.2%
Ice Traction	4th	6.68 s	5.95 s	+0.73 s	89.07%
Ice Handling	2nd	69.9 s	69.76 s	+0.14 s	99.8%

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3^rd

Michelin X Ice Snow

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Safe driving behavior on snow, very good steering on snow, general grip level on ice is good; Wet Conditions: Excellent extreme situation behavior, good steering on dry surfaces, understeers in wet conditions..

Dry

96.4%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	6th	31.82 M	30.67 M	+1.15 M	96.39%

Wet

85.9%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	7th	41.98 M	32.53 M	+9.45 M	77.49%
Wet Handling	7th	42.8 s	40.4 s	+2.4 s	94.39%

Snow

97.8%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	3rd	11.56 M	11.28 M	+0.28 M	97.58%
Snow Traction	4th	4.47 s	4.34 s	+0.13 s	97.09%
Snow Handling	3rd	84.04 s	83.04 s	+1 s	98.81%

Ice

93.1%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	4th	15.3 M	14.75 M	+0.55 M	96.41%
Ice Traction	7th	7.01 s	5.95 s	+1.06 s	84.88%
Ice Handling	3rd	71.21 s	69.76 s	+1.45 s	97.96%

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4^th

Pirelli Ice Zero FR

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Best traction on snow, most oversteering among friction tires, weakest grip on ice among friction tires; Wet Conditions: Summer tire-like steering, best braking grip on dry surfaces, sharp grip limit in extreme situations..

Dry

100%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	1st	30.67 M			100%

Wet

88.4%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	6th	41.06 M	32.53 M	+8.53 M	79.23%
Wet Handling	4th	41.4 s	40.4 s	+1 s	97.58%

Snow

98.3%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	4th	11.57 M	11.28 M	+0.29 M	97.49%
Snow Traction	1st	4.34 s			100%
Snow Handling	4th	85.19 s	83.04 s	+2.15 s	97.48%

Ice

89.7%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	5th	15.92 M	14.75 M	+1.17 M	92.65%
Ice Traction	5th	6.93 s	5.95 s	+0.98 s	85.86%
Ice Handling	4th	77.09 s	69.76 s	+7.33 s	90.49%

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5^th

Tigar Tigar Ice

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Most balanced driving behavior among studded tires, weak grip on ice, mediocre grip on snow; Wet Conditions: Good braking grip in wet conditions, good drivability in wet conditions, mediocre grip on dry surfaces..

Dry

97.9%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	5th	31.32 M	30.67 M	+0.65 M	97.92%

Wet

97.9%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	2nd	33.62 M	32.53 M	+1.09 M	96.76%
Wet Handling	2nd	40.8 s	40.4 s	+0.4 s	99.02%

Snow

90.4%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	6th	12.24 M	11.28 M	+0.96 M	92.16%
Snow Traction	5th	4.91 s	4.34 s	+0.57 s	88.39%
Snow Handling	6th	91.69 s	83.04 s	+8.65 s	90.57%

Ice

86.9%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	7th	16.42 M	14.75 M	+1.67 M	89.83%
Ice Traction	5th	6.93 s	5.95 s	+0.98 s	85.86%
Ice Handling	6th	82.21 s	69.76 s	+12.45 s	84.86%

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6^th

Sunfull SF W11

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Weak grip on ice, weakest grip on snow, very poor driving behavior on snow; Wet Conditions: Very good braking grip in wet conditions, good drivability in wet conditions, mediocre drivability on dry surfaces..

Dry

99%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	2nd	30.98 M	30.67 M	+0.31 M	99%

Wet

99.5%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	1st	32.53 M			100%
Wet Handling	2nd	40.8 s	40.4 s	+0.4 s	99.02%

Snow

85.3%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	8th	12.96 M	11.28 M	+1.68 M	87.04%
Snow Traction	7th	5.41 s	4.34 s	+1.07 s	80.22%
Snow Handling	8th	93.73 s	83.04 s	+10.69 s	88.59%

Ice

88.6%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	6th	15.93 M	14.75 M	+1.18 M	92.59%
Ice Traction	3rd	6.67 s	5.95 s	+0.72 s	89.21%
Ice Handling	7th	83.04 s	69.76 s	+13.28 s	84.01%

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7^th

Antares GRIP 60 ice

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Best traction on ice, very poor driving behavior on ice, weak grip on snow; Wet Conditions: Weakest drivability on dry surfaces, worst extreme situation behavior, poor grip in wet conditions, very high tire noise..

Dry

92.8%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	8th	33.06 M	30.67 M	+2.39 M	92.77%

Wet

84.8%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	5th	40.88 M	32.53 M	+8.35 M	79.57%
Wet Handling	8th	44.9 s	40.4 s	+4.5 s	89.98%

Snow

88.4%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	5th	11.99 M	11.28 M	+0.71 M	94.08%
Snow Traction	8th	5.44 s	4.34 s	+1.1 s	79.78%
Snow Handling	5th	90.82 s	83.04 s	+7.78 s	91.43%

Ice

94.2%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	3rd	15.25 M	14.75 M	+0.5 M	96.72%
Ice Traction	1st	5.95 s			100%
Ice Handling	5th	81.25 s	69.76 s	+11.49 s	85.86%

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8^th

Winrun Winter Max S1 WR60

205/55 R16

• 3PMSF: yes

Ice and Snow: Weakest grip on ice, vague drivability, mediocre braking grip on snow; Wet Conditions: Average braking grip in wet conditions, poor extreme situation behavior, dangerous driving behavior in wet conditions..

Dry

94.1%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Dry Braking	7th	32.58 M	30.67 M	+1.91 M	94.14%

Wet

92.3%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Wet Braking	3rd	36.13 M	32.53 M	+3.6 M	90.04%
Wet Handling	6th	42.7 s	40.4 s	+2.3 s	94.61%

Snow

88.4%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Snow Braking	6th	12.24 M	11.28 M	+0.96 M	92.16%
Snow Traction	6th	5.16 s	4.34 s	+0.82 s	84.11%
Snow Handling	7th	93.33 s	83.04 s	+10.29 s	88.97%

Ice

80.7%

Test	#	Result	Best	Diff	%
Ice Braking	8th	16.95 M	14.75 M	+2.2 M	87.02%
Ice Traction	8th	7.71 s	5.95 s	+1.76 s	77.17%
Ice Handling	8th	89.39 s	69.76 s	+19.63 s	78.04%

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