The Nokian zLine is a mid-range summer performance tire whose owners generally praise wet and dry grip, handling and refinement. Tests are more mixed, with repeated concerns about behavior near the limit and aquaplaning resistance, while tread life divides owners.
The quick answer
Owners say86%from 83 owner reviews79% would buy againRead the reviews
Strengths & weaknessesDry, WetComfortRelative to its rivals across every test we hold
Built from every independent test result and vetted owner review we hold for this tire - the evidence is all further down the page. Data updated January 2025.
Across the 2 wet-braking tests it has featured in, the Nokian zLine stops 4.1% longer than premium rivals, 0.3% shorter than mid-range rivals and 4.1% longer than budget rivals. It has a Tire Reviews wet score of 66/100, and owners rate it 9/10 in the wet from 83 reviews.
How good is the Nokian zLine in the dry?
Across the 2 dry-braking tests it has featured in, the Nokian zLine stops 1.8% longer than premium rivals, 0.3% shorter than mid-range rivals and 0.7% longer than budget rivals. It has a Tire Reviews dry score of 69/100, and owners rate it 9.1/10 in the dry from 83 reviews.
How fuel efficient is the Nokian zLine?
Across the 1 test measuring rolling resistance, the Nokian zLine's rolling resistance is 0.9% lower than premium rivals and 11.6% lower than mid-range rivals.
How many miles does the Nokian zLine last?
Based on test and owner data, the Nokian zLine is expected to last around 17,396 miles (27,996 km).
What do owners say about the Nokian zLine?
Across 83 owner ratings the Nokian zLine averages 86%. Owners rate Dry Grip highest at 9.1 out of 10 and Wear lowest at 7.6. 26 of those reviews come from owners past 10,000 miles. 89% of owners score it 70% or better.
More questions about the Nokian zLine(8)
How comfortable and quiet are the Nokian zLine?
Owners rate the Nokian zLine 8.5 out of 10 for comfort and noise across 76 reviews.
How well do the Nokian zLine wear, according to owners?
Owners rate the Nokian zLine 7.6 out of 10 for wear across 76 reviews. 26 of those reviews come from owners past 10,000 miles, and the typical review covers 6,000 miles.
Would owners buy the Nokian zLine again?
79% of owners say they would buy the Nokian zLine again, based on the 82 owner reviews that answered the question. 59% of them gave it the highest possible answer.
What do owners say about the Nokian zLine's dry grip?
Of the 72 owner reviews analyzed for the Nokian zLine, 36 mention dry grip: 34 praise it (strong dry grip) and 2 criticise it (limited dry grip). One owner wrote: "Grip and feedback is excellent". Read those reviews
What do owners say about the Nokian zLine's wet grip?
Of the 72 owner reviews analyzed for the Nokian zLine, 36 mention wet grip: 35 praise it (confident wet grip) and 1 criticise it (weak wet grip). One owner wrote: "Wet grip! WOW! Is the road even wet? Corners like the road is dry". Read those reviews
What do owners say about the Nokian zLine's tread life?
Of the 72 owner reviews analyzed for the Nokian zLine, 29 mention tread life: 14 praise it (long-lasting) and 15 criticise it (wears quickly). One owner wrote: "wear was terrible though, worse than any tire I have had before". Read those reviews
What does the Nokian zLine replace?
The Nokian zLine is the successor to the Nokian Z G2 in Nokian's range.
Looking to replace 265/45 21 104 Dunlop SP Sport 01s on an Infiniti QX70 with something newer and better. Show moreLooking to replace 265/45 21 104 Dunlop SP Sport 01s on an Infiniti QX70 with something newer and better. Nokian Zline SUV and Dunlop Sport Maxx RT 2 seem about the same on eu label and reviewer scores. However, even though both are High Performance Summer tires would the Nokian have the edge in colder temperatures and on snow ? The A/S version is US only and not made in 265/45 21 in any case. Show less
January 17, 2018
While Nokian Tires do specialize in winter tires, the zLine is a UHP summer so it's unlikely to have a significant performance advantage over the Dunlop in cold / snow.
Wet and dry grip are the clearest strengths of the Nokian zLine, with thirty-five and thirty-four favorable mentions respectively against one and two criticisms. Noise, comfort and dry handling also receive more praise than complaints. Tread life is almost evenly divided, with fourteen positive comments and fifteen criticisms, so durability is less consistent than grip. End-of-life accounts range from early replacement to long service, while two later reviews describe continued confidence after substantial use. Those individual follow-ups do not establish a uniform ageing pattern across the group. Across seventy-six reviews from seventy-three owners, the 84.3% average reflects sixty-six positive scores, eight neutral and two below 40%.
What owners mention most counted across 72 reviews
Tap one to read only the reviews that mention it.
Owner ratings averaged from 83 ratings
Owner score86%
Dry Grip91%
Wet Grip90%
Road Feedback89%
Handling87%
Comfort85%
Wear76%
Featured reviews
Most helpful 87%
“I have had them for 51.000km (31K miles) as my front tires of my Peugeot 407 2.0. I was a bit worried initially because I lost 2mm too quickly to my taste but then the deterioration stabilized and I had a good driving...”
“I've had a pair of these on the front of my 2010 Scirocco and it made the ride comfort appalling. The car crashed over bumps and potholes to the extent that I took my car to two garages to see if there was a suspension...”
“You don't need to spend more money for other brand tires. You will be amazed by its performance on wet and dry surfaces. You will be angry with yourself for not trying these tires before. I definitely recommend it.”
My z Line tires has side cracks all around diamerte. The tires are only 4 years. I dont feel safe driving witn my nokian tires. Try to send you mail, but no respond
Check out how the BEST all seasons tires perform against premium summer and winter tires!
I am in Canada and I got these tires about 3 months ago. The tire shop I went to (Kal-Tire) suggested these tires. I told them I did not want cheap tires. I wanted mid to high-end. I've always known that Nokian tires were very good as they have been in the industry for a long time. And are extremely trusted. Usually you see nokian tires on high end German cars. It has been 3 months now as I was saying and these tires are superb. They are very quiet. And the grip is pretty insane. And they seem to wear pretty slow at least for me. Cuz I've had them on for 3,400 + miles and the treads almost still looks brand new. These tires have built-in wear indicators that actually tell you the percentage left on the tire so there is no guessing. They're definitely really good high performance tires. People say that they don't do good when it's wet. But I haven't had any issues except when I hit deep water on the highway. And I hydroplane a little bit but again it doesn't matter what tires you have, if you hit deep water you're going to hydroplane no matter what with all brands. I got these tires in the beginning of Summer so I can only attest to how they perform during the summer. I guess we will see how they do in the winter. I'm going to try them in the winter for a little bit. But not for long because I have another set of snow tires and I don't want to ruin these ones. As for the price I guess it really depends on where you are in the world. Mine cost $270 CAD per tire. So they are definitely pretty expensive but not at the top. I researched for a long time before I got these tires and I am happy with them. I did not want cheap Chinese tires and opted for Nokian and I couldn't be happier. They are a mid to high end Tire and aren't much cheaper than some Continentals.
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You don't need to spend more money for other brand tires. You will be amazed by its performance on wet and dry surfaces. You will be angry with yourself for not trying these tires before. I definitely recommend it.
I purchased them to replace Michelin Primacy... and it was mistake. Wet performance is extremely poor on these, and I will recommend anyone to stay away from these as on wet they are for brave people. They glide on little wet. They are ok on dry, but I expected much more from Nokian, especially from they elevated prices. Unfortunately Nokian is known to be well in tests and poor in real life. If I would new it before purchasing, I would buy something else. Good that they discounted this model, I do not know how current are performing, but never more Nokian for me.
#2# I fitted these tires to replace the previous very good Nokian G2. I noticed immediately also a good field in dry and wet conditions. I was impressed by these tires I had essentially chosen for the very low price. The only flaw I noticed is that they seem a bit too soft. High comfort level for low price.
I just can't score these any higher. I have them on a 2006 Saab 95 Aero Combi and I got 30,000km from them which is the most I ever got on that car. I always used Goodyear Eagle F1s on it before but they were getting very expensive so tried the zLine. In the wet they are so much better than the Goodyear, the water they throw up is massive compared to the Goodyear F1 and they actually aren't bad in snow either. I found their ability to hold air much better too, I check my pressure twice a week and they may drop 1psi in a month where the Goodyear may drop that in a week. Don't get me wrong, the Goodyear Eagles are fantastic but they aren't as good as the Nokian zLine. The most mileage I got from a tire on my Saab was around 11,000km until I got the Nokian tires. In the dry they are very good, great feel and they wear better than anything else I've had, they wear perfectly to be honest. I live in Ireland and the roads here are probably the worst in Europe I reckon, the motorways are good but noisy but they drain water here better than any other European motorway. Some reading this might say I'm over stretching this review but seriously, the Nokian zLine is THE BEST tire I have ever used.
I use the 225/40/18 on a remaped Ford Mondeo 2.0 tdci with 8.5j rims. Comparing them to my 'ex' tires (Falken Ziex 914 EcoRun 205/50/17 on 7.5j rims ) I can say the following after 3.000 km:
- 1 mm is gone already, I don't do street racing . I hope that the wear does not continue at this rate.
- the sidewall is not that good, when coming out of a corner I feel that the car is being thrown out (I did not have this feeling with the Falkens)
- they are a bit noisy
- the dry grip is pretty good, wet grip also good .
For the money (approx. 100 Euros) I would recommend them .
Nokian Zline does everything the way it should. Water, grip, fuel and handling is really good. But when it comes to comfort it´s not really good. Halfway through the tire and you can feel driving over a penny. To bad cause else it perform really well. High speed driving and braking at high speed, is not so good as Dunlop Sport Max rt2.
Recommend.
Those tires are so weird . There are sign of disintegration on all 4 tires . There are pieces of them that literally fall apart . Beside of that they behave great , but i am really concerned
Bought a set of Nokian Zline and initial thought was that they were very good tires. There is really nothing bad about the handling. But the upper sidewall started to crack after one summer. Had them changed for another set and they also started to crack after a summer. I've gone through 3 set of Nokian Z-Line tires in three summers and every set started to crack. I'm not really confident driving the car 180-200 km/h in Germany with micro cracks on the sidewall.
