All Season Premium Touring SUV and 4x4 Tire Tests

Nokian have just announced the Nokian SeasonProof 2, the first tire from their new, state of the art factory in Europe. They are hopeful this will finally be the tire that brings them to the front of the all season market, so of course I had to test it!

In this test, I will be testing seven of the best all season tires in the popular 235/55 R18 tire size. As these are all season tires, I will be testing them in all seasons, covering the dry, wet and snow performance of these tires, and testing the noise, comfort and rolling resistance levels of the tires to help you make the most informed choice for your own driving needs.

Motor magazine has recently conducted an SUV all-season tire test, focusing on the popular 235/60 R18 size commonly found on SUVs and family vans.

The Michelin CrossClimate 2 SUV won the test. It had a great balance between snow, wet, and dry performance, while maintaining low rolling resistance and noise levels. The Continental AllSeasonContact 2 secured the second position, excelling in wet conditions and achieving the lowest rolling resistance. Bridgestone's Turanza All Season 6 completed the top three, displaying consistent high-level performance across all tests. In the mid-range segment, the Falken EuroAll Season AS220 Pro showed strong dry handling characteristics but underperformed in snow conditions. The budget-oriented Dębica Navigator 3 demonstrated impressive snow performance and competitive pricing, although its wet performance was subpar. The Imperial All Season Driver, while offering the lowest price point, consistently ranked at the bottom of most performance metrics, with notable weaknesses in wet and snow conditions. These results indicate a clear correlation between tire price and performance, with higher-priced options generally offering superior all-round capabilities. However, some mid-range and budget options showed strengths in specific areas, suggesting potential value for users with particular performance priorities.

For the 2024 AutoBild Camper test, Autobild tested the popular 235/55 R17 size. While they used a camper van for the test, this tire dimension is commonly found on a variety of vehicles, including SUVs such as the Audi Q3 and BMW X1, and even some family cars like the Volkswagen Passat Alltrack.

The Michelin CrossClimate 2 emerged as the clear winner, earning top marks across all test categories. It demonstrated exceptional performance in winter conditions, with impressive traction and handling on snow and ice. The tire also excelled in wet conditions, offering excellent aquaplaning resistance and short braking distances. On dry roads, it provided precise handling and low rolling resistance, contributing to fuel efficiency.

The new Nokian Outpost nAT claims to be an all terrain tire you can use in snow, but how good is it? Nokian invented winter tires, so they're pretty confident, so confident in fact they suggested we test it against the king of winter tires, the Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5, along with their much loved all weather tire, the Nokian WRG4 SUV, and their high mileage all season tire, the Nokian One SUV.

Before we start, it's worth noting that three of the tires are 3PMSF marked, which is the 3 peak mountain snowflake symbol, sometimes called "severe snow rating". The Winter, All Weather and All Terrain tires carry the 3PMSF marking, but the all season does not. The test size was 265/65 R17, and we used a Toyota Hilux for the test in RWD only mode.

All season and winter tire testing season is upon us! The first test of the season is the excellent AutoBild AllRad SUV all season tire test, which tested ten of the latest all season tires in 235/65 R17, and included a reference summer and winter tire to see what the differences are between various tire options.

Autobild conducted the test using an Audi Q3, and are the first publication to test the new Bridgestone Turanza 6 All Season! Can the new Bridgestone take on the established king, the Michelin CrossClimate 2 SUV? Read on to find out!

The 2022 Auto Bild SUV all season tire test has tested eleven popular all season tires in 225/50 R18 tire size and included a summer and winter tire as comparison references! 225/50 R18 is a small sidewalled tire for an SUV,  this is aimed at the more compact crossover SUV all season tire market, with Auto Bild using a BMW X2 for the testing.

The German SUV specialist publication Auto Bild Allrad have become the second magazine in 2021 to publish their all season tire test, and the first to include the new Michelin CrossClimate 2 (much to our disappointment, we wanted to be first!)

While the Allrad tests aren't quite as in depth as the industry leading Auto Bild tests, they're still an excellent reference point for the market, and especially useful if you drive an SUV, or are interested in how an all season tire compares to a summer and winter tire, as both are included as references.

The tested size is 215/65 R17, which fits many popular SUVs such as the VW Tiguan test vehicle, the Audi Q5, Mercedes GLA, Nissan Qashqai and many others. It's worth remembering that sometimes SUV tire sizes have different constructions to their regular cousins, meaning that surprising results can be a feature in this sort of test!

The 2020 Auto Bild crossover SUV all season tire test has tested 11 of the best all season tires in the rather small 215/60 R16 tire size, using a VW T-Roc. 

Auto Bild have also included a reference summer and winter tire, so we can see the difference performances between the three tire types, but sadly haven't shared which tires were used as the reference tires.

The 2020 ADAC SUV All season tire test has tested seven all season tires in the popular 235/55 R17, and include a summer tire in the dry and wet, and a winter tire during snow and ice testing.

ADAC usually hides all their data and just gives numeric scores, but this year have released braking distances for all four braking tests. This might be to back up their conclusion from this test, which is even the best all season tires are deficient compared to a summer and winter tire combination.