I reviewed these on the 24th Dec 2014, so this is an updated review. I've completely given up on these tyres. Yes, they are quite and comfortable, but their poor grip on snow and the vague feeling on tarmac meant I could not suffer them, so I have given up on them and fitted some Nokian WR D3's instead. What a revelation - the Nokians are certainly noisier, but their road manners are superb and their grip on ice and snow remarkable. So glad I gave up on the Goodyears. If you tootle around the M25 in winter I guess they'd be a good choice, but if you need to drive on winter roads such as the Scottish Highlands they are terrible and best avoided.

One of the best winter tires I ever drove

First class product! more expensive than a standard winter tyre but well worth the money as they are a performance winter tyre, i can only say that you get what you pay for in life!, i ran a set of Michelin Alpins last winter on my last car these but Goodyears offer superior traction & grip compared to them especially when braking & cornering on snow & ice there is also great recovery from these tyres if you push to hard they will search & bite for grip, you only have to touch & feel the compound & sipes on them to know how they will perform, they remain very plyable & supple even down to very low temps, i've ran them at minus 18 degrees C & you can still easily bend the outer sipes with your thumb nail, but in normal conditions the sipes remain closed as a tight block until required improving handling in the dry & improving general wear, they are an intelligently designed product!
The inner directional tread pattern & outer blocks bite into snow covered roads & offer exceptional traction when climbing hills,( i know from experience of where i live, i don't get stuck but other people do! ) the directional pattern helps to evacuate slush & snow quickly so maintaining grip on long subzero temp journeys, & also improving grip on standing water in turn reducing aquaplaning. I'm not worried about tyre wear as these tyres are designed to do a specific job & keep you safe, of course there is going to be certain compromises but so far they are wearing extremely well. In all i have been using these tyres for over 45 days now in these UK winter conditions most of which has been challanging driving on snow & ice & slush, but every time i drive my car they put a massive smile on my face with the confidence & winter performance that they offer... L.T.

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If there was a score of 0 , this tire would earn it for snow and ice. Right out of my driveway, I'm skidding all over the place. Coming to a stop, my ABS is working overtime. Light turns green and I can't get traction, I'm slipping sideways. Light snow on the highway at 50mph is a white-knuckled shit-show.
These tires are terrible. I felt safer on my all-seasons in the snow.

Very quite and comfortable but very poor handling and grip in snow poor.

Bought them recently and the feel with the new tyres is amazing compared to my old Sepmerit Speed Grip I had on my Ford Mondeo. Bought 4 of the recently manifactured Goodyear Ultra Grip Performance 2. Also very good choice of size for the Mondeo, as it is a bit wider but yet a bit taller than the 205/55/16 tyre size. And the behavior of the grip is immaculate in wet and dry conditions, as long as the outside temperature is too cold. They are not as sticky to the road in too warm conditions.

I decided to bit the bullet this winter and get some winter tyres. I bought some steel wheels and ordered the Goodyears from blackcircles although initially I ordered the Hankook Winter i'cept RS but these weren't available however I was offered the Goodyears instead. Having used Goodyear Summer tyres previously and these had good reviews I decided to go with the Goodyears. Despite not having much snow here in Cheshire the times when we did coupled with the large amounts of standing water we had these tyres have given me real reassurance in these conditions both grip on snow and ability to "cut through" standing water without the slightest hint of loss of traction. Only on the motorway where flash floods had turned the motorway into a river did the tyres give any hint of the amount of water on the roads and really it was prudent to take things easy. Going back to premium tyres after having budget and mid range summer tyres recently really made me appreciate the difference in having a premium tyre designed for the weather conditions. Even my wife, after initially questioning my decision, realised the benefits of these tyres after driving in the snow!

I'm amazed at how competent these tyres are even in conditions where summer tyres would normally be used.
They have been outstanding in the recent snow and extreme cold weather. The amount of improved traction over my Conti 3's is quite startling in the wet/icy/cold conditions. I was never really convinced by winter tyres but am now completely sold.
Naturally they are not snow tyres so what i've found on roads with layers of ice/snow is that the car can lose grip in heavy patches but once a softer patch is found they bite really well, whereas a summer tyre would continue to skid off the road. I had a couple of examples of this that thankfully kept me on the road.
A couple of things i have found is that tyre noise is greater at higher speeds compared to most summer tyres, however they are pretty much the same at speeds below 80mph. I also found that the steering does become a little light compared to something like the Conti 3's at higher speeds. These are V rated however i would be a little uncomfortable to push the car towards the 100mph mark, naturally where legally allowed.
Overall great tyres and would highly recommend.