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2025 Friction Winter Tyre Test

Jonathan Benson
Data analyzed and reviewed by Jonathan Benson
7 min read
Below are all the data points for the 2025 Friction Winter Tyre Test, displaying how each tyre performed across all test categories. The spider chart below provides a complete overview of performance, where one hundred percent represents the best performance in each category. The larger the area covered by each tyre's plot, the better its overall performance.
How to read these charts: For each test category, data is presented relative to the best performing tire. The direction indicates whether lower or higher values are better - pay close attention to this when interpreting results.

Performance Overview

This radar chart shows relative performance across all test categories, with 100% representing the best performance in each category. Reference tires may have gaps where data is not available.

Continental VikingContact 8
Pirelli Ice Friction
Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
Nordman North RS3 SUV
Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus

Quick Navigation

Dry Performance Overview

Dry Braking (M)

Dry braking in meters (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Pirelli Ice Friction with a result of 43.63 M. The difference between best and worst was 7.9%.
  1. Pirelli Ice Friction
    43.63 M
  2. Continental VikingContact 8
    44.41 M
  3. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    44.96 M
  4. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    45.13 M
  5. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    45.62 M
  6. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    45.75 M
  7. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    47.03 M
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    47.36 M

Subj. Dry Handling ( Points)

Subjective Dry Handling Score (Higher is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Pirelli Ice Friction with a result of 5 Points. The difference between best and worst was 80%.
  1. Pirelli Ice Friction
    5 Points
  2. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    5 Points
  3. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    4 Points
  4. Continental VikingContact 8
    4 Points
  5. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    3 Points
  6. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    3 Points
  7. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    2 Points
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    1 Points

Wet Performance Overview

Wet Braking (M)

Wet braking in meters (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV with a result of 46.49 M. The difference between best and worst was 13.6%.
  1. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    46.49 M
  2. Pirelli Ice Friction
    48.85 M
  3. Continental VikingContact 8
    50.3 M
  4. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    50.35 M
  5. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    52.76 M
  6. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    52.81 M
  7. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    53.29 M
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    53.78 M

Wet Handling (s)

Wet handling time in seconds (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3 with a result of 61.6 s. The difference between best and worst was 5.5%.
  1. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    61.6 s
  2. Pirelli Ice Friction
    62 s
  3. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    62.6 s
  4. Continental VikingContact 8
    62.9 s
  5. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    63.9 s
  6. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    64.2 s
  7. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    64.7 s
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    65.2 s

Straight Aqua (Km/H)

Float Speed in Km/H (Higher is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Pirelli Ice Friction with a result of 70.2 Km/H. The difference between best and worst was 7.8%.
  1. Pirelli Ice Friction
    70.2 Km/H
  2. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    67.5 Km/H
  3. Continental VikingContact 8
    67.1 Km/H
  4. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    66.2 Km/H
  5. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    66.2 Km/H
  6. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    65.8 Km/H
  7. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    64.8 Km/H
  8. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    64.7 Km/H

Snow Performance Overview

Snow Braking (M)

Snow braking in meters (Lower is better)

Key Insight: All the tyres in the snow braking test finished less than 3% apart.
  1. Pirelli Ice Friction
    12.01 M
  2. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    12.04 M
  3. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    12.04 M
  4. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    12.1 M
  5. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    12.11 M
  6. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    12.14 M
  7. Continental VikingContact 8
    12.17 M
  8. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    12.24 M

Snow Traction (s)

Snow acceleration time (Lower is better)

Key Insight: All the tyres in the snow traction test finished less than 3% apart.
  1. Pirelli Ice Friction
    1.92 s
  2. Continental VikingContact 8
    1.92 s
  3. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    1.93 s
  4. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    1.93 s
  5. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    1.93 s
  6. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    1.94 s
  7. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    1.94 s
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    1.94 s

Snow Handling (s)

Snow handling time in seconds (Lower is better)

Key Insight: All the tyres in the snow handling test finished less than 3% apart.
  1. Continental VikingContact 8
    69.2 s
  2. Pirelli Ice Friction
    69.5 s
  3. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    69.6 s
  4. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    69.7 s
  5. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    70.2 s
  6. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    70.2 s
  7. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    70.7 s
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    71.3 s

Ice Performance Overview

Ice Braking (M)

Ice braking in meters (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Michelin X Ice Snow SUV with a result of 11.7 M. The difference between best and worst was 20.4%.
  1. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    11.7 M
  2. Continental VikingContact 8
    11.76 M
  3. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    11.77 M
  4. Pirelli Ice Friction
    11.87 M
  5. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    11.92 M
  6. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    11.99 M
  7. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    12.85 M
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    14.7 M

Ice Traction (s)

Ice acceleration time (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV with a result of 5.23 s. The difference between best and worst was 26.8%.
  1. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    5.23 s
  2. Continental VikingContact 8
    5.24 s
  3. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    5.27 s
  4. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    5.29 s
  5. Pirelli Ice Friction
    5.44 s
  6. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    5.45 s
  7. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    5.7 s
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    7.14 s

Ice Handling (s)

Ice handling time in seconds (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Continental VikingContact 8 with a result of 56.9 s. The difference between best and worst was 10%.
  1. Continental VikingContact 8
    56.9 s
  2. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    58.6 s
  3. Pirelli Ice Friction
    59.2 s
  4. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    59.3 s
  5. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    59.4 s
  6. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    60 s
  7. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    62.4 s
  8. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    63.2 s

Comfort Performance Overview

Noise (dB)

External noise in dB (Lower is better)

Key Insight: All the tyres in the noise test finished less than 3% apart.
  1. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    68.6 dB
  2. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    68.7 dB
  3. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    69.1 dB
  4. Continental VikingContact 8
    69.1 dB
  5. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    69.6 dB
  6. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    69.6 dB
  7. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    69.7 dB
  8. Pirelli Ice Friction
    70.3 dB

Value Performance Overview

Fuel Consumption (l/100km)

Fuel consumption in Litres per 100 km (Lower is better)

Key Insight: The best performer was Nordman North RS3 SUV with a result of 6.25 l/100km. The difference between best and worst was 3.8%.
  1. Nordman North RS3 SUV
    6.25 l/100km
  2. Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X
    6.3 l/100km
  3. Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3
    6.35 l/100km
  4. Michelin X Ice Snow SUV
    6.35 l/100km
  5. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV
    6.4 l/100km
  6. Pirelli Ice Friction
    6.4 l/100km
  7. Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus
    6.4 l/100km
  8. Continental VikingContact 8
    6.5 l/100km

Overall Findings

Based on the weighted scoring from all tests, here are the overall results:

Position Tyre Score
Continental VikingContact 8 0%
2 Pirelli Ice Friction 0%
3 Goodyear UltraGrip Ice 3 0%
4 Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV 0%
5 Michelin X Ice Snow SUV 0%
6 Nordman North RS3 SUV 0%
7 Hankook Winter i cept IZ3 X 0%
8 Maxtrek Trek M7 Plus 0%

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