2012 Sport Auto Winter Sports Tyre Test

The 2012 Sport Auto winter tyre test was the first tyre test to include both the new Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 and the new Goodyear UltraGrip 8 Performance.

Somewhat surprisingly, the winner of the test was neither of the new tyres, but the Continental Winter Contact TS830P which took the top spot thanks to its near perfect snow performance. Worth noting that for the UK climate at least, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 is the best all round tyre as it matched the Continentals wet performance, and the small deficit in snow performance is worth the trade in higher dry stability and grip.

The Results

Click here to view Results as a single table and adjust the score weighting based on your own driving needs!

1st: Continental WinterContact TS 830 P
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 249 Dry: 59 Wet: 91 Snow: 99 Very balanced tyres, excellent traction on snow and wet surfaces, short braking distances in all conditions Çok dengeli lastikler, karlı ve ıslak yüzeylerde mükemmel çekiş, her koşulda kısa fren mesafeleri Sehr ausgewogene Reifen, hervorragende Traktion auf Schnee und nassen Oberflächen, kurze Bremswege unter allen Bedingungen Pneus très équilibrés, excellente traction sur la neige et les surfaces mouillées, distances de freinage courtes dans toutes les conditions Relatively sluggish and inaccurate steering response in the dry Kuru zeminde nispeten yavaş ve yanlış direksiyon tepkisi Relativ träge und ungenaue Lenkreaktion im Trockenen Réponse de la direction relativement lente et imprécise sur sol sec Read Reviews
2nd: Goodyear UltraGrip 8 Performance
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 242 Dry: 59 Wet: 91 Snow: 92 High grip and good handling on wet roads, high lateral grip and short braking distances on snow Islak yollarda yüksek kavrama ve iyi yol tutuşu, karda yüksek yanal kavrama ve kısa fren mesafeleri Hohe Haftung und gutes Handling auf nasser Fahrbahn, hohe seitliche Haftung und kurze Bremswege auf Schnee Adhérence élevée et bonne tenue de route sur routes mouillées, adhérence latérale élevée et distances de freinage courtes sur la neige Average dry handling and braking Ortalama kuru yol tutuşu ve frenleme Durchschnittliches Trockenhandling und Bremsen Tenue de route et freinage moyens sur sol sec Read Reviews
3rd: Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 242 Dry: 66 Wet: 91 Snow: 85 High grip and short braking distance on wet roads, very precise reaction to steering the dry Islak yollarda yüksek kavrama ve kısa fren mesafesi, kuru yolda direksiyona çok hassas tepki Hohe Haftung und kurze Bremswege auf nasser Fahrbahn, sehr präzise Lenkreaktion auf trockener Adhérence élevée et courte distance de freinage sur route mouillée, réaction très précise à la direction sur route sèche Read Reviews
4th: Nokian WR A3
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 238 Dry: 67 Wet: 78 Snow: 93 High grip and short braking distances on snow, good handling on dry surfaces Karda yüksek kavrama ve kısa fren mesafesi, kuru yüzeylerde iyi yol tutuşu Hohe Haftung und kurze Bremswege auf Schnee, gutes Handling auf trockener Fahrbahn Adhérence élevée et distances de freinage courtes sur la neige, bonne tenue de route sur surfaces sèches Relatively weak resistance to aquaplaning, relatively long braking distance on wet roads Suda kızaklamaya karşı nispeten zayıf direnç, ıslak yollarda nispeten uzun fren mesafesi Relativ schwache Aquaplaning-Resistenz, relativ langer Bremsweg auf nasser Fahrbahn Résistance relativement faible à l'aquaplaning, distance de freinage relativement longue sur route mouillée Read Reviews
5th: Dunlop SP WinterSport 4D
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 235 Dry: 59 Wet: 91 Snow: 85 Good resistance to aquaplaning, good handling on dry surfaces Suda kızaklamaya karşı iyi direnç, kuru yüzeylerde iyi yol tutuşu Gute Aquaplaning-Sicherheit, gutes Handling auf trockener Fahrbahn Bonne résistance à l'aquaplaning, bonne tenue de route sur sol sec Relatively poor traction and long braking distances on snow Karda nispeten zayıf çekiş ve uzun fren mesafeleri Relativ schlechte Traktion und lange Bremswege auf Schnee Traction relativement faible et longues distances de freinage sur la neige Read Reviews
6th: Pirelli Sottozero Serie II
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 222 Dry: 53 Wet: 76 Snow: 93 High traction on snow Karda yüksek çekiş gücü Hohe Traktion auf Schnee Traction élevée sur la neige The tendency to shift from understeer to oversteer. Relatively long braking distances on dry and wet surfaces, poor resistance to aquaplaning Önden savrulmadan arkadan savrulmaya geçme eğilimi. Kuru ve ıslak yüzeylerde nispeten uzun fren mesafeleri, suda kızaklamaya karşı zayıf direnç Die Tendenz zum Wechsel vom Untersteuern zum Übersteuern. Relativ lange Bremswege auf trockener und nasser Fahrbahn, schlechte Aquaplaning-Resistenz Tendance à passer du sous-virage au survirage. Distances de freinage relativement longues sur sol sec et mouillé, faible résistance à l'aquaplaning Read Reviews
7th: Toyo Snowprox S953
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 213 Dry: 55 Wet: 69 Snow: 89 High grip, balanced behaviour and excellent traction on snow Yüksek kavrama, dengeli davranış ve karda mükemmel çekiş Hoher Grip, ausgewogenes Fahrverhalten und hervorragende Traktion auf Schnee Adhérence élevée, comportement équilibré et excellente traction sur la neige Relatively long stopping distances on dry, poor handling and long braking distance on wet roads Kuru zeminde nispeten uzun durma mesafeleri, ıslak zeminde zayıf yol tutuşu ve uzun fren mesafesi Relativ lange Bremswege auf trockener Fahrbahn, schlechtes Handling und langer Bremsweg auf nasser Fahrbahn Distances d'arrêt relativement longues sur route sèche, mauvaise tenue de route et longue distance de freinage sur route mouillée Read Reviews
8th: Hankook Winter i cept evo
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 212 Dry: 67 Wet: 79 Snow: 66 Good handling on dry surfaces Kuru yüzeylerde iyi yol tutuşu Gutes Handling auf trockenen Oberflächen Bonne tenue de route sur sol sec Weak performance in the wet, very weak grip and poor handling in the snow Islak zeminde zayıf performans, karda çok zayıf kavrama ve kötü yol tutuşu Schwache Leistung bei Nässe, sehr schwacher Grip und schlechtes Handling im Schnee Faibles performances sur sol mouillé, adhérence très faible et mauvaise tenue de route sur la neige Read Reviews