I think ComfortDrive is a misleading name for this tire - it's only moderately comfortable and is actually quite sporty. Wet grip is its best characteristic - from the tests I found it was at the top of the GTAS category in wet handling and posted lateral grip figures competitive with many of the UHP All Season options. It feels very confident in wet conditions with a proportional balance of lateral and longitudinal grip. In both dry and wet conditions this tire has quick steering response, but I would like more steering effort buildup. I find the steering response is a little too quick and feels slightly nervous on center at highway speeds.
This feels like a relatively stiff tire for the category and size, which for comfort does not match well to my VW Jetta Mk7. The main issue is some float on larger bumps like expansion joints, where it feels like the tire is not absorbing enough of the impact. This float went away when I swapped back to my winter tires. The ComfortDrive also transmits more road texture and noise than the Bridgestone Ecopia EP422+ and Turanza T005 I previously had on this car. Another concern is despite being balanced on Road Force equipment there is some smooth road vibration on these tires. I will get them rebalanced and road force checked, but suspect there is a uniformity issue with these tires since none of my previous tires have had similar vibration issues on the same wheels.
I've driven in the snow once on these tires. They have very poor braking traction and struggle with combined braking and turning inputs. Fortunately I have winter tires and did not expect snow traction from these tires. I would definitely not choose the ComfortDrive if I needed to use them in winter.
I would not buy this tire again for this car, it does not seem to be a good match to the Jetta. However, I would consider it for the strong wet grip and responsiveness on a car with a more firmly tuned suspension.
