2025 Friction Winter Tire Test
The Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV has been criticized in previous tests for weak wet grip, and now comes the R5 with an update and new rubber compound intended to improve wet characteristics - but perhaps Nokian pulled its focus on wet roads a bit too far. The stopping distance on wet asphalt is by far the best in the test with a good margin. However, Nokian has lost some of its sharpness on ice, especially the cornering behavior on winter road surfaces. The grip is still good, but with eager steering responses on snow and ice, the tire can lose grip more suddenly than before and becomes harder to balance at the grip limit. As a whole, Nokian has improved the balance between wet grip and winter characteristics, which is appreciated. The tire performs well with decent grip levels on ice and snow and is more agile than the understeering Continental in tight corners, though it has lower ice grip and worse steering feel on asphalt than the best. In the tough competition, it settles for fourth place.