Owners mainly praise the Nokian WR A3 for wet and dry grip, comfort and generally quiet running, with 50 of 59 reviews scoring above 70%. Snow traction is more often liked than criticised, but around one in eight owners report a concern, so confidence in snow is not universal. Ice grip is much more evenly divided, as is steering feedback. Longer-use accounts generally support good tread life, including substantial actual mileage, though a few describe short life or poorer grip in later seasons. Repeat reviewers remain positive rather than showing a shared decline with use. Noise complaints are a minority alongside the more frequent praise, making everyday road comfort a more consistent positive than ice performance.
What owners mention most counted across 55 reviews
Great tires , would recommend to anyone looking for a new set of winter tires. Dry grip is very good and i was suprised at how good the wet grip is. With 3000 miles on them i am seeing very little wear. The only downside is road feedback which could be better.
Bought in October 2013 to prepare for the UK "winter". Got from Tireleader all the way from Germany at cost of 460GBP for four and paid 55GBP for changeover (kept my alloys on the car).
Noticeable grip in wet conditions and hitting puddles athe side of the road goes largley unnoticed. Now April 2014 and considering leaving them on as the fuel rating improvement over my summer tires has improved cosnumption by around 3MPG. UK had no real snow since fitting but even at -10 with ice on the road these tires felt sure-footed. Now the temperature is around 10 to 15degrees I am conscious that the Fronts are now starting to wear on the edges. Do I change or do I leave on???? Dry braking in warmer temperature may be reduced compared to summer tires.
The rim protector rib is an added bonus.
Overall, I have done 6000 miles since fitment and have definitely been happy with the purchase. The runner-up was Vredestein Wintrac extreme but the fuel rating was much lower than the Nokian.
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Just changed off for my summer tires. Great all round tire , very responsive in the wet + wear seems v minimal after 5mnths daily usage .I found the tire quite noisy in comparison to the Pzero Rossos's they replaced but leaps and bounds ahead in wet grip .
After having driven Michelin Alpin, Uniroyal MS66 and Vredestein Snowtrack before, these Nokian WRA3 are my preference by far. Reliable in every situation. Low noise levels, maybe not in measured dB, but the gentleness of the sound give a more comfortable ride than most other tires.
I bought these tires for a recent trip to Switzerland. Having only ever borrowed 4x4 cars before I was slightly sceptical about their ability to grip on ice and snow in a 2 wheel drive car. A long drive through a very wet France left me in doubt about the tires wet weather capabilities - amazing grip and security. So on to the mountain stage, snow and icy car parks.....not a hint of slipping on snow - not once! But then the icy car parks....not a hint of slipping until I'd parked up and nearly fell over after getting out of the car. Fuel economy was better then my summer Pirelli tires too. Brilliant amazing tires for winter time. 100% recommended.
Excellent tire. I am havin it for the seocnd winter season now. Mostly, it was dry and this tire works just perfect there. Fells just like my summer tires in the dry, really. Extremely nice. They are a bit noisier but still ok. On the wet the tires are not as well. They are good there, too, but ist is not their stregth. Unfortunately I had not much chance to test it in the snow, but whenever there was snow, I felt safe and comfortabel with this tire.
All in all, a pretty good deal that I would always recommend.
Fitted these to our VW Tiguan last November, now ran them for approximately 4000 miles. Slightly more road noise, but not significantly. Grip is good in wet and dry conditions. Also good on gravel tracks where we regularly drive to access work sites. Fuel consumption is poorer by about 4 mpg. No obvious wear apparent as yet. Nothing really wrong with them but sourcing them was not straightforward. We will probably go back to Vredsteins.
I bought these tires for my car having spent last winter on budget winter tires and paying the price with catastrophic understeer as soon as the weather warmed up.
The reviews on this site convinced me that Nokian A3s were worth a go and so far, after 2000 miles in normal, non-wintery conditions, I have to say that I'm delighted with them.
I spend half my time doing short local trips but my work means I also spend a fair chunk of time on motorways. Locally, the car drives as normal and much to my surprise, it does the same up and down the A1. Road noise is minimal and the economy doesn't appear to have taken a hit either.
Having read Mike's incredibly comprehensive review on these tires, I have decided to perform my own 12 month test with these tires to see how they fair in all conditions. If they hold up as well as the summer tires I've just replaced (I got 12,000 miles from the front 2), then I don't see any reason to buy summer tires again.
My initial conclusions on these tires is that for a winter tire, I doubt you can get better, not just for the money, but full stop!
Absolutely amazing grip. Put these on for our road trip across Europe and not once did they let us down. Excellent in snow and wet conditions and surprisingly brilliant in the dry.
Hands down, better than other winter tires i've experienced.
When I ordered new 16" alloy's for winter for my Civic, I chose Nokian WR A3 tires to go on them. My broter in law is driving his Nokians for the third winter now and has always been content.
I specifically chose the A3 (assymetric) over the cheaper D3 (symetric) cause I prefer assymetric tires so I can rotate to each corner. The reviews on this site helped a little, but since there were only 34 reviews not so much.
On my other car I've got the much more expensive, and simply fantastic, Michelin A4 winter tires. But to be honest, untill now the Nokians simply keep up for far less money. Grip is excellent in every condition, steering became much smoother compared to the 225/40 18 Goodyear F1 Assymetric 2 summer tires and these Nokian WR A3 are extremely quit.
I can't comment on wear because they've only been driven 2000 km until now, but I think for most people wear isn't the main concern when buying winter tires. I will write a new review after coming winter and when they've had some snow, but I thought it would be a good idea to write one now because these tires don't have many reviews untill now.
